Panama took place in 1989, when the
United States sent troops to capture dic-
tator Manuel Noriega and force him to
stand trial in the United States for drug
trafficking.
The racism common among Anglo-
Americans of the time against Hispanics
laced much of Roosevelt’s “big stick” for-
eign policy. Anglo-Americans regarded
themselves as superior, upright, and
mature, while considering Hispanics as
inferior, corrupt, and childlike. Roosevelt
justified his actions in Panama by calling
Colombians “an inferior people” and
remarking, “You could no more make an
agreement with the Colombian rulers
than you could nail currant jelly to the
wall.” He made light of potential
Panamanian resistance to U.S. domina-
tion in a letter to his brother-in-law in
1905: “Sometime soon I shall have to
spank some little brigand of a South
American republic.”
Nicaragua
In the early years of the 20th century, the
American “big stick” was increasingly
used in other parts of Central America.
Americans were not newcomers to the
region; American businesses had been
investing in Central America since the
1840s, opening mines and growing cash
crops, especially bananas and coffee. One
American, William Walker (1824–1860),
went so far as to conquer Nicaragua in a
private filibustering expedition, getting
himself declared president in 1856 before
being ousted in battle in 1857. He was
executed by a Honduran firing squad in
1860 while attempting another invasion of
Nicaragua.
Even without Walker’s adventures,
the turbulent politics of Central America
was a constant threat to American business
interests. Insurrections, revolutions, and
wars between neighboring countries were
chronic. After 1900, the U.S. Navy regu-
larly patrolled the Caribbean coast of
Central America, protecting American
lives and property in port towns. On one
occasion in Honduras in 1907, a U.S.
shore party landed to police a town aban-
doned by its own military during a war
with Nicaragua. The United States lent
military and diplomatic support to the
overthrow in 1909 of Nicaraguan dictator
José Santos Zelaya, who was regarded as
a destabilizing force contrary to American
interests in the country. In 1912, U.S.
Marines landed to protect the govern-
ment of Adolfo Díaz, who was friendly to
the United States, against an insurrection.
A small force of marines remained after
the rebellion was quelled, inciting nation-
alist anger.
Anti-American guerrilla warfare pre-
vailed in Nicaragua until the marines left
in 1925. In response to a coup, the
marines came back in 1926, occupying
the country until 1933; for most of that
time they were plagued by a renewedA TIME OF TRANSITION 1311791 Slave insurrection takes places on Saint-Domingue, the French colony on
the western portion of the island of Hispaniola,which the rebels call Haiti
(after ayti, the native Arawak word for the island).
1793–1798 All of Hispaniola is occupied by Britain.
1801–1808 Santo Domingo, the Spanish colony on the eastern half of Hispaniola, is
occupied by Haiti.
1804 Jean-Jacques Dessalines and his generals declare independence in
Haiti.
1805 Dessalines crowns himself emperor.
1806 Dessalines is assassinated.
1807–1820 Haiti splits between an authoritarian state in the north led by Henry
Christophe and a republic in the south led by Alexandre Pétion.
1808 The people of Santo Domingo revolt against Haiti and set up a republic.
1809 Spain regains control of Santo Domingo.
1820 Following the death of Christophe, Jean-Pierre Boyer, the successor to
Pétion, reunites the north and south of Haiti and eliminates the forced
labor system.
1821 Spanish rule is overthrown in Santo Domingo by popular uprising.
1822 Haitian forces invade Santo Domingo.
1822–1844 Haiti rules all of Hispaniola. Jean-Pierre Boyer leads a campaign to erase
Spanish culture from Santo Domingo.
1843 Boyer is ousted.
1843–1844 Santo Domingo, led by Pedro Santana, overthrows Haitian rule and
establishes the Dominican Republic.
1844–1874 Control of the Dominican Republic alternates between armed bands led
by Santana and his rival Buenaventura Báez.
1861–1865 At Santana’s request, Spain reoccupies the country.
1866–1882 A period of chaos and disorder ensues.
1882–1899 A period of ruthless dictatorship under Ulises Huereaux takes place, end-
ing with Huereaux’s assassination in 1899.
1899–1919 Further chaos under several generals bankrupts the Dominican national
treasury. The United States arranges to control the finances and customs
receivership of the nation, resulting in virtual domination by the United
States.
1906–1911 A period of relative stability under President Ramón Cáceras ends with his
assassination in 1911.
1911–1919 A sequence of brief presidencies takes place.
1916–1924 The U.S. Marines occupy the Dominican Republic.HISPANIOLA’S TURBULENT
HISTORY, 1790–1924