The Panama Canal

He courageously led the navy to destroy the Spanish fleet in the Philippines.

He served as a brilliant diplomat when negotiating the treaty that ended the war

He commanded a group of volunteers known as the “Rough Riders” who were well-known for victories in Cuba.

police the Western Hemisphere

expand its colonial empire in Africa

isolate itself from European conflicts

Congress realized that the key threat to national security came from South America.

Spain had regained control of its former colonies near the canal route.

The navy needed a faster way to move ships between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans

securing the land to build the Panama Canal

leading troops in the Spanish-American War

ending the war between Russia and Japan

12.50

450

24,000

45,000