From 1898 to 1934, the United States conducted a series of military interventions in Latin America. These expeditions, commonly referred to as “small wars” and these had a significant impact on the development of Marine Corps tactics and counterinsurgency strategies for upcoming conflicts. Evidence suggests that these invasions and occupations were motivated by safeguarding American enterprises, establishing financial and military dominance in the region, and preventing the spread of European influence across the continent.
Motives and Justifications of the Banana Wars
James Monroe articulated a fundamental principle for the US’s dominance of the region in the Monroe Doctrine of 1823. He implored European countries to not further colonize the Western Hemisphere and to respect it as America’s region of influence. In 1904, European powers threatened war against Central American nations such as Venezuela in an effort to collect debts. President Roosevelt then proclaimed the “Roosevelt Corollary” to the existing Monroe Doctrine. He asserted that the United States has the capability to employ military force to compel nations in the Americas to fulfill their obligations. This was to avoid provoking European intervention and thus jeopardizing the security of other nations.
The consequence had little impact on relations with Europe, but it was the impetus for wars against neighbors in the Western Hemisphere. The Roosevelt Corollary and its involvement in the Caribbean were the first time American politicians emphasized regional stability in foreign policy. William Howard Taft echoed this with his philosophy of dollar diplomacy, with interventions staged to protect American commercial interests abroad. Woodrow Wilson directed the occupation of Haiti under the guise of promoting democracy. Additionally, military interventions became commonplace.
The Spanish-American War and its Effects
In 1898, the United States defeated Spain with indigenous revolutionary forces in the Spanish-American War. The Filipinos issued a Declaration of Independence and nearly defeated Spanish troops before the arrival of the United States. Subsequently, President William McKinley shattered the hopes of Filipino combatants by announcing his intention to annex the Philippines. This action was met with resistance from members of Congress and prominent Americans. Despite outcry, the Treaty of Paris officially ended the war with Spain, giving the United States control over the Philippines, Guam, Puerto Rico, and Cuba.
American service members provoked war in the Philippines in order to cement control of the island, attempting to expand opportunities for international trade. Two hundred and fifty thousand Filipinos were killed, mainly civilians who were subjected to human rights abuses. American soldiers were often subjected to torture, mass executions, and forced relocation. Although the conflict ended in victory, it became apparent that overt large-scale war was an inefficient way to spread American influence. Future domestic operations were also distinguished by their unjust nature.
The Two Banana wars in Nicaragua
President Jose Zelaya of Nicaragua wanted to unite neighboring countries under a single flag, which would threaten regional peace. Small contingents of American soldiers arrived in Nicaragua in 1894, 1898, and 1899 to safeguard US property during domestic struggles under Zelaya’s reign. In 1909, the Taft administration took the opportunity to support an uprising against Zelaya. Nicaraguan troops executed two Americans serving in the revolutionary forces, giving reason for the Marine Corps to invade and back Juan Estrada as the new president.
Estrada inherited a corrupt government with meager funds from a corrupt government. The United States brokered a treaty under which American banks would issue large loans, collect taxes on foreign trade, and gain controlling interests in the national bank and railway. Political friction continued, and additional revolts occurred in the following years. The United States Marine Corps remained present in the country to safeguard American assets. After Nicaragua repaid their loans and purchased their bank and railroad, they left in 1925.
The American Marines were deployed to Nicaragua again from 1927 to 1932. In order to ensure continued stability, the United States sought to safeguard a presidential election and train the Nicaraguan National Guards. Nicaragua was experiencing a civil war that threatened US corporations operating within. Mexico provided the opposition with weapons, and the United States was not interested in allowing their neighbor to compete in Central America. The resistance forces led by Augusto Sandino fought against the American occupation amid suspicions that the troops would interfere with the political process. After two successful elections, the United States fully withdrew.
Occupation and Oppression of Haiti and its European links
By 1914, Haiti had accrued a substantial debt to European nations, to such an extent that France seized their navy, and both Britain and Germany threatened war. Germany began discussions with Haiti in the late 19th and early 20th centuries to acquire exclusive trading rights and land for a coaling station. Several multinational conglomerates established sugar plantations to the detriment of small Haitian planters. In 1915, a revolt broke out, and President Woodrow Wilson dispatched troops.
Military occupation created hierarchies and divisions in Haiti. The United States repressed the press, employed forced labor, and compelled the adoption of a novel constitution that permitted American corporations to acquire property. Haitians resisted, and within the initial five years, American forces claimed the lives of 2,250 individuals. In the year 1921, the United States Senate investigated allegations of human rights violations and, in response, reorganized the occupation government. In 1929, labor strikes and other forms of resistance led to the end of American governance, which was completed in 1934.
Sugar and Economic Ties between the Dominican Republic and Europe
Under the Roosevelt Corollary, the United States took control of Dominican customs collection to pay the countries’ European creditors and avoid European intervention. Local growers were priced out by American sugar companies, which furthered debt problems. A new president was installed after the assassination of Dominican president Ramon Caceres in 1912. Juan Isidro Jimenez was the head of state in 1916 and accommodated American interests to the displeasure of his constituents. That year, the Marine Corps announced its occupation after supporting Jimenez.
Sugar corporations were virtually unchecked under the occupation government. To clear land for their fields, the “South Porto Rico Sugar Company” burned two villages and ninety-five percent of Dominican sugar was exported to the United States, with the local workers seeing no benefit from their labor. The military presence was also in place to discourage Germany from expanding further into the region.
European influence and interest in the Caribbean declined after World War I, along with the perceived military necessity of the island, as European influence and interest declined. The Great War propaganda called for the rights of small nations to exist independently. They recognized that this ideal should also apply to the island nation. In June 1920, the Dominicans launched “patriotic week”, a time of fundraising to lobby for independence. The following year, President Wilson began dismantling the occupation force.
The Wilson administration authorized the withdrawal under the guise of restoring peace and order. In the ensuing economic crisis, the Dominican government was unable to provide public services because of its severe debt. Exploitation of key resources and foreign development stunted their growth.
From Good Neighbor Policy to the Domino Theory
Franklin Delano Roosevelt brought a noninterventionist position to the presidency. In his inaugural speech of 1933, FDR laid out his principle of neighborly relations. Roosevelt believes that a good neighbor respects the rights of others. The secretary of state reaffirmed this belief at the Montevideo Conference in December, stating, „No state has the right to interfere in another’s internal or external affairs.” Roosevelt voluntarily withdrew from Haiti after repealing the treaty permitting American dominance over Cuba.
American leaders feared that a single country becoming communist could trigger a “domino effect”, resulting in the conversion of its neighbors, prompting a return to imperialist policy during the Cold War. The subsequent interventions are occasionally grouped with the earlier Banana Wars, such as those in the Dominican Republic (1965), Grenada (1983), and Panama (1989) These conflicts were also initiated under the guise of restoring stability while exercising US dominion over the region.
Strategic Insights and Military Lessons from the Banana Wars
In these conflicts, irregular warfare shaped the Marine Corps doctrine. The importance of local guides and partisans was demonstrated during the armed occupation. Service members were trained on how to defend against guerilla forces and establish enclaves for noncombatants to live safely. The construction of roads, schools, and medical facilities increased native support.
The lessons learned from these expeditions were compiled into the “Small Wars Manual” in 1940. The practices outlined in this book continue to be used in struggles against insurgents today. It highlighted the notion that, in small wars, tolerance, sympathy, and kindness should be the key to our relationship with the mass of the population. The Small Wars Manual was the source for a revised counterinsurgency guidebook designed for the War in Afghanistan. It was the source for the Small Wars Manual, which was revised for the War in Afghanistan.
Military and civil involvement in these Central American nations provided lessons beyond combat tactics. The Banana Wars were primitive attempts at nation-building, purportedly under the guise of affirming democracy. Many civic institutions established by American occupiers were not free and fair, neglecting the needs of citizens in favor of continued US hegemony. During conflicts in Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan, the treatment of civilians and the restructuring of government systems were influenced by experiences gained from prolonged involvement in the Caribbean and Latin America.
The Question of Justification of the Banana wars
The “Just War Theory” identifies the factors that serve as justification for military conflict with a foreign power. Explanations for the initiation and escalation of violence have been offered for thousands of years, and in contemporary times. Wars must have a just cause and intent and must start with a legitimate authority with the ultimate, plausible goal of peace. The armed response must be proportionate and only undertaken as a last resort if all diplomatic options fail. The doctrine of last resort is highly regarded, with war viewed as an unmatched calamity that should only be pursued after exhausting every feasible nonmilitary resolution.
Nonetheless, these actions contravened each aspect of the Just War Theory. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the United States utilized military intervention as its first and primary option against the nations of the Caribbean and Central American region. These expeditions were intended to exert control. The US pursued peace in order to gain and protect that control. The Constitution grants Congress the power to declare war, and they levied no declaration of war against the targeted countries. The violence was disproportionate, with Salvadorans’ deaths from US intervention being forty times higher, adjusted for the population, compared to the deaths of Americans in Vietnam, for instance.
The Banana Wars demonstrated the American desire to expand and protect national interests economically, militarily, or otherwise. With the Monroe Doctrine as a justification, the United States perpetrated these wars to maintain power over the Western Hemisphere.
Sources:
The Banana Wars: A History of United States Military Intervention in Latin America from the SpanishAmerican War to the Invasion of Panama: https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3751&context=nwc-review
Cooperation & Conflict During a Banana War: https://www.usni.org/magazines/naval-history-magazine/2017/august/cooperation-conflict-during-banana-war
The banana wars explained: https://www.theguardian.com/world/1999/mar/05/eu.wto3
What were the Banana Wars (1898-1934)?: https://bootcampmilitaryfitnessinstitute.com/2021/09/23/what-were-the-banana-wars-1898-1934/
Small Wars and Irregular Warfare: https://grc-usmcu.libguides.com/pme/qpme/small-wars-irregular-warfare
American Cold War Policy: https://www.nps.gov/articles/cworigons-americancwpolicy.htm
Good Neighbor Policy, 1933: https://history.state.gov/milestones/1921-1936/good-neighbor
U.S. Invasion and Occupation of Haiti, 1915–34: https://history.state.gov/milestones/1914-1920/haiti
THE CARIBBEAN THEATER?: HAITI AND THE FIRST WORLD WAR: https://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/caribbean-theater-haiti-and-first-world-war
Monroe Doctrine (1823): https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/monroe-doctrine
Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine, 1904: https://history.state.gov/milestones/1899-1913/roosevelt-and-monroe-doctrine
Banana Wars: When US Marines Fight For Big Fruit (Documentary): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ux_HBUsy1_4
Banana Wars – US Marines Occupy Cuba, Haiti & Dominican Republic (Documentary): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZUQsWexXT8