In 1898 US public opinion turned against the Spanish for their repression of Cuba. Relations between the two governments soured and ultimately resulted in the mysterious blowing up of the USS Maine in Havana harbor, which triggered a short but demanding war. A US expeditionary force was sent to Cuba, where the troops encountered both difficult climate and terrain, and a fierce Spanish garrison which, despite being greatly outnumbered, fought hard before surrendering. Many famous US personalities were involved, including future President Theodore Roosevelt, future general John Pershing, and journalists William Randolph Hearst and Stephen Crane. The war against the Spanish may have been brief but as Henry Cabot Lodge declared: "Its results were startling, and of world-wide meaning." Victory made the US a nation with global interests. As an extension of the war, US troops also captured the island of Puerto Rico. The US Navy bombarded Manila in the Philippines, and landed its troops. The Spanish garrison quickly surrendered, but a local anti-Spanish insurgent force under Emilio Aguinaldo resisted US occupation. The conflict continued until 1902, more than 100,000 US troops were eventually committed, and the campaign saw difficult jungle fighting, with indigenous Moro tribesmen fiercely resisting US forces. Providing a detailed examination of the experiences and equipment of the opposing sides, and featuring rare and previously unpublished photographs, this book highlights this crucial yet oft-forgotten war that changed the future of American foreign policy during "the age of American imperialism."

The definitive version of the Spanish-American War as well as a dramatic account of America's emergence as a global power.

First-rate military history, A War of Frontier and Empire retells an often forgotten chapter in America's past, infusing it with commanding contemporary relevance. It has been termed an insurgency, a revolution, a guerrilla war, and a conventional war. As David J. Silbey demonstrates in this taut, compelling history, the 1899 Philippine-American War was in fact all of these. Played out over three distinct conflicts—one fought between the Spanish and the allied United States and Filipino forces; one fought between the United States and the Philippine Army of Liberation; and one fought between occupying American troops and an insurgent alliance of often divided Filipinos—the war marked America's first steps as a global power and produced a wealth of lessons learned and forgotten.

The Philippine-American War of 1899-1902 was a dramatic, world-changing conflict that shaped the century to come and revealed the early stirrings of America's drive for global power.

“Fascinating.”—New York Times Book Review • “Well-written.”—The Boston Globe • “Extraordinary.”—The Christian Science Monitor • “A compelling page-turner.”—Adam Hochschild On the eve of a new century, an up-and-coming Theodore Roosevelt set out to transform the U.S. into a major world power. The Spanish-American War would forever change America's standing in global affairs, and drive the young nation into its own imperial showdown in the Philippines. From Admiral George Dewey's legendary naval victory in Manila Bay to the Rough Riders' heroic charge up San Juan Hill, from Roosevelt's rise to the presidency to charges of U.S. military misconduct in the Philippines, Honor in the Dust brilliantly captures an era brimming with American optimism and confidence as the nation expanded its influence abroad.

The Spanish American War of 1898 is often viewed as a disjointed series of colorful episodes; young Americans who would later become famous, fighting a Spanish colonial army putting up a token resistance. Military commentator and historian Albert A. Nofi presents the war as a coherent military narrative, showing the confluence of the American command's Civil War experience and recent developments in technology. Serious attention is also given to the Spanish forces, the army of an empire in decline, but well-equipped and tactically sophisticated.Detailed coverage is given of both American and Spanish aims, assumptions and strategy. The author's colorful narrative is supplemented by 50 illustrations, most of which have not appeared in print since the era of the war.Specially commissioned maps highlight the most tactically significant land and naval engagements, such as the Spanish defense of El Caney and the Spanish fleet's dramatic but futile attempt to break out of Santiago harbor.Military operations are placed in the context of a growing American nation in a wider world, 35 years after the Civil War. The Spanish American War features a detailed treatment of the war in Puerto Rico. This theater was under the command of Indian fighter Nelson A. Miles and included some of the best tactical maneuvering of the war. The Puerto Rican aspect has not been covered in detail in modern works.Albert Nofi has made use of works covering the Spanish that have not been widely used in English-language works, as well as American eyewitness accounts that have not been examined in nearly a century.

"American acquisition of the Philippines in 1898 became a focal point for debate on American imperialism and the course the country was to take now that the Western frontier had been conquered. U.S. military leaders in Manila, unequipped to understand the aspirations of the native revolutionary movement, failed to respond to Filipino overtures of accommodation and provoked a war with the revolutionary army. Back home, an impressive opposition to the war developed on largely ideological grounds, but in the end it was the interminable and increasingly bloody guerrilla warfare that disillusioned America in its imperialistic venture. This book presents a searching exploration of the history of America's reactions to Asian people, politics, and wars of independence." -- Book Jacket