The War of 1812 and the Monroe Doctrine

Grade 8 Social Studies Worksheet - Challenge Me

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   The Monroe Doctrine, 1823 (cards A to C). Card A, from President James Monroe's seventh annual message to Congress, December 2, 1823 (Avalon Project and National Archives): the United States has been asked by Russia to settle "the respective rights and interests of the two nations on the northwest coast of this continent" by "amicable negotiation", and that a similar proposal to Great Britain "has likewise been acceded to". Monroe writes that "the American continents, by the free and independent condition which they have assumed and maintain, are henceforth not to be considered as subjects for future colonization by any European powers". He adds: "In the wars of the European powers in matters relating to themselves we have never taken any part, nor does it comport with our policy to do so." Then: "we should consider any attempt on their part to extend their system to any portion of this hemisphere as dangerous to our peace and safety. With the existing colonies or dependencies of any European power we have not interfered and shall not interfere." For the new governments that have won independence, Monroe says the United States would see any "interposition for the purpose of oppressing them" by a European power as "the manifestation of an unfriendly disposition toward the United States". He adds that in "the war between those new Governments and Spain we declared our neutrality". Card B, a summary in our words from the State Department's Office of the Historian (Milestones): the statement "was little noted by the Great Powers of Europe, but eventually became a longstanding tenet of U.S. foreign policy". Earlier in 1823 British Foreign Minister George Canning suggested a joint declaration by Britain and the United States. Secretary of State John Quincy Adams "vigorously opposed cooperation with Great Britain, contending that a statement of bilateral nature could limit United States expansion in the future" and argued that the British "must have had imperial motivations themselves". The page notes that the British "also had a strong interest in ensuring the demise of Spanish colonialism, with all the trade restrictions mercantilism imposed". It says the United States pledged not to take part in the political affairs of Europe and "not to interfere in the existing European colonies already in the Americas", and that Americans noticed "Signs that Russia was expanding its presence southward from Alaska toward the Oregon Territory". Card C, a summary in our words from the State Department's text on the National Archives page: the doctrine was "Buried in a routine annual message delivered to Congress". In 1865 the United States used it to support the Mexican President Benito Juarez against the Emperor Maximilian, who had been placed on the throne by the French government. "Almost 40 years later, in 1904," Theodore Roosevelt proclaimed the right of the United States to exercise an "international police power", the Roosevelt Corollary. The page says Roosevelt "would strengthen its meaning to justify sending the United States into other countries of the Western Hemisphere", and that United States Marines were sent into Santo Domingo in 1904, Nicaragua in 1911 and Haiti in 1915. It adds: "Other Latin American nations viewed these interventions with misgiving, and relations between the 'great Colossus of the North' and its southern neighbors remained strained for many years." The Office of the Historian says the Corollary "inverted the original meaning of the doctrine".

2. 1.

   Card A is President Monroe's 1823 message to Congress. What is it best evidence for, Ari asks?

   • How the governments of Europe answered the message in the year after
   • How well the United States could enforce its warning in the 1820s
   • Why Britain wanted a joint declaration with the United States in 1823
   • What the administration chose to announce about the Americas
3. 2.

   Card A says "we have never taken any part" in Europe's wars. What was Monroe doing with that line, Bo asks?

   • Offering to stay out of Europe's wars while warning about the Americas
   • Declaring war on the allied powers of Europe if they came near
   • Asking Congress for money to build a navy for the coming crisis
   • Promising to defend any Latin American government with the army
4. 3.

   A student claims: "Monroe promised that the United States would use force to protect Latin American republics." How strong is that given card A, Esme asks?

   • Weak: card A warns Europe and calls interposition unfriendly, but promises no force
   • Strong: card A says Europe's interposition would show an unfriendly disposition
   • Weak: Monroe's message was not read by Congress, so it promised nothing
   • Strong: Monroe says the United States would send troops to Spain
5. 4.

   A student claims: "European governments took the Monroe Doctrine seriously right away." How strong is that given card B, Jun asks?

   • Strong: Europe's powers saw the warning and changed course at once
   • Weak: card B is silent, so nothing can be said about it
   • Weak: card B says the Great Powers of Europe paid it little notice
   • Strong: it became a longstanding tenet of U.S. policy, so Europe obeyed
6. 5.

   Card B says the United States pledged "not to interfere in the existing European colonies". Does card A back that, Kira asks?

   • No: card A is about talks with Russia and says nothing about colonies
   • No: card A says the United States would take over the European colonies
   • Yes: card A says it has not interfered with existing colonies and will not
   • Yes: card A bans Europeans from holding any colony in the Americas
7. 6.

   How did Canning's and Adams's goals differ in 1823, according to card B, Luz asks?

   • Adams wanted a joint declaration; Canning wanted one made by the United States alone
   • Adams trusted British motives, so he welcomed cooperation
   • Canning wanted a joint declaration; Adams wanted a statement by the United States alone
   • Both wanted the Americas to stay under Spain's control
8. 7.

   Card A is dated 1823 and card C says the Roosevelt Corollary came in 1904. How many years apart are they, Milo asks?

   • 39 years, using card C's "almost 40 years" after 1865
   • 8 years, the gap between 1904 and 1911
   • 91 years
   • 81 years, 1904 minus 1823
9. 8.

   Card C lists Marine landings in 1904, 1911 and 1915. How many years from the first to the last, and what do they show, Noah asks?

   • 11 years, and three landings show repeated action in the hemisphere
   • 11 years, and three landings reveal a plan for each of the three countries
   • 39 years, using card C's "almost 40 years"
   • 4 years, the gap between 1911 and 1915
10. 9.

    Which new evidence would best test card B's claim that the doctrine was "little noted" in Europe, Ren asks?

    • A list of Marine landings in Haiti and Nicaragua
    • Newspapers and letters from European capitals dated 1824
    • Roosevelt's 1904 speech about police power
    • A modern textbook that repeats the same claim in its own words
11. 10.

    Card A mentions Russia's request to settle claims by "amicable negotiation". Why would Monroe include that for Congress, Zee asks?

    • To ask Congress to declare war on Russia over the northwest coast
    • To show Britain had refused to talk with Russia about the coast
    • To show a principle was stated while claims were settled by talks
    • To show that Russia had already settled in the Oregon Territory by 1823