The United States and Latin America and the Caribbean, c.1898–1940

Abstract

This chapter provides an overview of United States (US) policy towards Latin America and the Caribbean from the end of the nineteenth century until the outbreak of the Second World War, taking into account the regional, hemispheric, and international contexts in which such policies were developed. It addresses the impact of US policy in the region, how it was encountered and experienced, but also shaped, by a range of actors and in a variety of settings. The chapter considers how US policy was actively resisted, both at home and abroad, demonstrating that the exercise of American power was highly contested and far from omnipotent. Spain’s departure alleviated some but not all of the threat of European imperial powers. American companies also dominated the mining industry in Mexico, including the American Smelting and Refining Company, Anaconda, and Phelps Dodge. The outbreak of war had a dramatic impact on the inter-American relationship.