Hawaii's value to the United States was initially considered military. Alfred Tye Mahan was one of the advocates of the "sea power theory" in the United States, and his theory was in line with the historical trend of the development of the United States at that time, advocating the expansion of the rights and interests of the United States in the Pacific region, which played an important role in the transformation of the geopolitical policy of the United States, and at the same time paid attention to linking military development with commercial economy. This article focuses on Mahan's explanation of Hawaii's military value to analyze why the United States annexed Hawaii.
The military conflicts between the Dutch, British, French, and Spanish in the 17th century, as well as the naval battles between Britain and France in the 19th century, had an important impact on Mahan's military views. Mahan stressed that the greatness of the nation is inextricably linked to the ocean, which can reflect its commercial and military value in times of peace and war, respectively.
(i) Emphasize the importance of naval power
In 1890 Mahan published The Impact of Sea Power on History, 1660-1783, in which he argued that sea power was essential to national power. Mahan argues that Britain's control of the seas, combined with a corresponding decline in naval power from europe's main rivals, paved the way for Britain to become the world's leading military, political and economic power. The United States can learn its lesson and use its powerful maritime power to expand the U.S. market overseas. In his view of advancing sea power, Mahan pointed out that the military value of naval positions depends on their location, strength and resources, of which the situation is the most important factor.
(ii) Emphasize the interdependence of commerce and navy
In his second book, The Influence of Maritime Power on the French Revolution and Empire of 1793–1812 (1892), Mahan emphasized the interdependence of the sea over military and commercial control and asserted that control of maritime trade could determine the outcome of the war. Mahan believes that the U.S. economy will soon be unable to absorb the large amounts of industrial and commercial products produced at home, so it will need to seek new markets abroad. It takes three things to ensure that goods enter new markets: the merchant navy; a new market that can ship U.S. products to the "great highway" on the high seas; and U.S. Navy warships to deter or destroy hostile fleets.
(iii) Emphasize the transition of the United States from isolation to wholeness
Mahan believes that the United States must get rid of its self-imposed isolation once and for all and actively participate in world competition. It needs to ignore false calls for man-made peace, which are closely linked to protecting U.S. interests.
(i) The Hawaiian Islands themselves are strategically located
Mahan identified the Hawaiian Islands as the central link across the Pacific, while occupying the center of natural maritime communication lines (wind direction, currents, etc.) and their accompanying maritime trade routes, full of small bays and ports, easily adapted to the Navy's offensive and defensive needs, and was a foothold for controlling the Pacific, both as a combat launch point and as a defensive reserve position.
(b) to prevent other States from controlling the pacific seas
Ma Guan knew that the U.S. possession of Hawaii would destroy the naval bases and commercial facilities that Britain was busy building around the western Pacific. At the same time, he feared that China or Japan would expand into Hawaii, and that expansion would be devastating to him. Ma Guan considers the island of Hawaii "on par with San Francisco, Samoa and Massachusetts and is an important position on our communication route with Australia and China." The island of Hawaii is within 3,000 miles of San Francisco, and without any foreign authority controlling important locations, its geography meets Mahan's demands. Thus, owning Hawaii strengthened U.S. control over the Caribbean Sea and canals.
(iii) Realize its commercial value
The geographical location of the hawaiian island nation is also related to the control of the new Central American canal. Any major power that tries to pass goods and goods to China or Japan through the canal would have to pass through Hawaii, which could achieve high profits while being strategically important for the United States to expand its military global horizons.
Captain Sperry was then the commander of the Fourth Division of the Second Squadron of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet aboard the USS Alabama. Admiral Sperry supported Ma Guan's argument that by establishing a transoceanic passage over the Isthmus of Central America, the United States could redeploy its fleet more easily and quickly as needed in the event of a conflict in the Pacific, and make maritime trade more profitable.
Senator George Clement Perkins wrote to Mahan in 1911 urging him to brief the U.S. Senate Naval Affairs Committee on his views on moving half of the U.S. Navy's battleship fleet to the West Coast. The letter said: "The commercial expansion of the Eastern powers ... Discord has shifted from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The United States should represent it with a force commensurate with our interests in that part of the world. ”
Roosevelt was an independent thinker who sought to understand as much as possible any given subject: he did not confine himself to a handful of advisers and supporters. He was convinced that Hawaii must be annexed by the United States and that a canal connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans needed to be built, and agreed with Mahan on this. Roosevelt and Lodge repeatedly tried to gain McKinley's support for the annexation of Hawaii, especially in the years when the Spanish U.S. War and Roosevelt's nomination of assistant secretary of the Navy.
In 1897, President McKinley's attitude began to waver in favor of the annexation of Hawaii, much to Roosevelt's delight, as McKinley's approval coincided with a corresponding increase in the size of the U.S. Navy. After hostilities with Spain broke out in May 1898, President William McKinley eventually passed a joint congressional resolution to annex Hawaii.
Professor James Holmes of the U.S. Naval War College wrote in an article published in 2009: "The high seas are like a featureless plain with few important geographical assets. The rarer these features are, the more valuable they are. If there is only one island or archipelago, it has unparalleled strategic value. ”
The annexation of Hawaii was based on a desire for military expansion, specifically designed to defend U.S. interests in the Pacific in terms of defense and economic expansion, laid the foundation for the opening of canals and the establishment of the Pacific Empire, and profoundly influenced the united States and the direction of world politics during the period. But at the same time, it is undeniable that this is also an annexation that infringes on the sovereign interests of other countries.
bibliography
[1]holmes, james r. and yoshi yoshihara, “mahan’s lingering ghost.” proceedings of the united states naval institute, vol. 135, no. 12 (december 2009)
Liang Maoxin. U.S. annexation of Hawaii and diplomatic strategy in the Pacific