AHC: Prevent the Spanish-American War...

Prevent the Spanish-American War from escalating outside Cuba (or minimize the incidents in the Pacific), or prevent the war itself.
 
Have Spain realize that it needs to cut its losses, or undergo a major revolution in the 1870s or 1880s. Cuba gains independence, and becomes a US puppet state.

No Spanish Cuba=No reason for the US to go to war=No Spanish-American War.
 

Mercenarius

Banned
How about Spain surrendering Cuba after a few battles and then focusing on their Asian possessions?

IIRC, one of the reasons the US planned an attack on the Spanish East Indies is that they expected Spain to attack from there (and therefore launch a second front). If the Spanish gives up Cuba earlier in the war, there's a chance that the Americans won't launch an attack in the Pacific.
 
Maybe having better coal tenders on the Maine, so it doesn't self destruct. It wasn't the cause, but it was the spark that set off the whole shebang. Without it, maybe both sides muddle along til the yellow journalists get tired of feeding fuel to the fire, and everything dies down.
 

BigDave1967

Banned
The USA decides to buy Cuba,Puerto Rico and the Phillipines from Spain to have new bases for the expanded US Navy.
 
The USA decides to buy Cuba,Puerto Rico and the Phillipines from Spain to have new bases for the expanded US Navy.

Then Spain would refuse. Cuba was seen not as a colony but as an integral part of Spain (yes, I know, it's a stupid differentiation that colonial powers tended to make e.g. France in Algeria, but they did feel that way). Spain was no likelier to sell Cuba to the USA than the USA would be to sell Manhattan to France.
 
Prevent the Spanish-American War from escalating outside Cuba (or minimize the incidents in the Pacific), or prevent the war itself.

The Spanish East Indies is independent before 1895. You will have just Cuba to worry about. Spanish East Indies have the capability to win independence by force for almost 100 years since 1895. If you look at OTL, one turncoat could have change Spanish East Indies history in 1823. You had another close call in 1828, an another in 1840, 1872 which could have gone either way for the rebels or Spain.
 
Maybe having better coal tenders on the Maine, so it doesn't self destruct. It wasn't the cause, but it was the spark that set off the whole shebang. Without it, maybe both sides muddle along til the yellow journalists get tired of feeding fuel to the fire, and everything dies down.



Have some way to put out coal bunker fires. Coal bunker fires were very common, having one next to a powder magazine, not so much. A raving newspaper owner who was determined to have a 'splendid little war' was the cherry on top.
 
this war was so easy to avoid, except for the perfect confluence of events.

Butterflies: Teddy Roosevelt. he rode this to fame and to the presidency.

and Phillipines lending to American presenting itself in the far pacific.

I'm a little hazy on the Hawaiian annexation, only knowing it came in the same year. Not sure if Hawaii is just a convenient "let's do it as long as we're taking over the world", or whether it happens anyway.
 
The reason for the Spanish American war, in spite of all the legends and details, is purely that America wanted Manifest Destiny in the form of a republican colonial empire. That is hard to avoid, and doing so will take leaders and powerful men willing to avoid it.

As I've mentioned elsewhere, J.P. Morgan was thoroughly opposed to American imperialism, and offered the Philippines 20 million dollars to compete with the US bid and to buy their own independence. And he was so incensed by American colonialism, he nearly supported William Jennings Bryan against McKinley. So play around with that, perhaps.
 
The reason for the Spanish American war, in spite of all the legends and details, is purely that America wanted Manifest Destiny in the form of a republican colonial empire. That is hard to avoid, and doing so will take leaders and powerful men willing to avoid it.

As I've mentioned elsewhere, J.P. Morgan was thoroughly opposed to American imperialism, and offered the Philippines 20 million dollars to compete with the US bid and to buy their own independence. And he was so incensed by American colonialism, he nearly supported William Jennings Bryan against McKinley. So play around with that, perhaps.

This is true. However, USA still needs a causus belli to wage war. Spanish American war like OTL 1898 cannot be prevented unless Cuba is independent. Even the war happens like OTL, it is not necessarily true that US will have to go the Pacific for many reasons. Reason no 1 being Spanish east indies being independent before 1895 and out of any Spanish influence.
 
as said, you need a causis belli to start the war. the Maine presented such a cause. take away the Maine, everyone now needs to search for another reason. It's not inevitable that another one will be found. OTL was the perfect confluence of events: a rabid cheerleader, a cause, a hapless victim. Americans are notoriously fickle. give them another year or two, and things likely look a lot different.
 
as said, you need a causis belli to start the war. the Maine presented such a cause. take away the Maine, everyone now needs to search for another reason. It's not inevitable that another one will be found. OTL was the perfect confluence of events: a rabid cheerleader, a cause, a hapless victim. Americans are notoriously fickle. give them another year or two, and things likely look a lot different.

They'd find one. We went to war with Mexico for no legitimate reason. Pick one for Spain. It's nearby territory owned by a weak European nation far past its prime. It's easy to take.
 
They'd find one. We went to war with Mexico for no legitimate reason. Pick one for Spain. It's nearby territory owned by a weak European nation far past its prime. It's easy to take.

Oddly, I think if the 1896 election had gone the other way we'd have gone to war at the drop of a hat under WJB, but with McKinley there needed to be an overwhelming need for it. McKinley didn't seem terribly thrilled with the idea and seemed the right President to keep the peace...if the Maine hadn't blown up. He was dragging his feet even after it happened.

Of course, the Cuban War for Independence did give both Americas, the typical self interested nation state and the true believer, a cause that satisfied both sides. So you do need a very strong anti-interventionist at the helm as well as know random tension causing situations.
 
this war was so easy to avoid, except for the perfect confluence of events.

Butterflies: Teddy Roosevelt. he rode this to fame and to the presidency.



Don't forget the not-secretary-of-the-navy Teddy conniving in the Navy department in the runnup to war while the secretary was away, and his suggestions/orders to the Asiatic Squadron.
 
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