Provisional Government of Cuba | ||||||||||
United States Military occupation | ||||||||||
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Capital | Havana | |||||||||
Languages | Spanish, English | |||||||||
Government | Military occupation | |||||||||
Provisional Governor | ||||||||||
• | 1906 | William Howard Taft | ||||||||
• | 1906–1909 | Charles Edward Magoon | ||||||||
Historical era | Modern Era | |||||||||
• | United States invasion of Cuba | September 1906 | ||||||||
• | Completion of the withdrawal of American troops | February 1909 | ||||||||
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Today part of |
Cuba United States |
Second Occupation of Cuba | |
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Part of the Banana Wars | |
A 1909 cartoon from Puck showing President Theodore Roosevelt, dressed in his Rough Riders uniform, handing off his policies to the future president, William H. Taft. William Loeb, Jr. is at left, holding Roosevelt's "Big Stick."
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Type | Military occupation |
Location | Cuba |
Objective | Protect United States interests, stabilize Cuba, hold free elections |
Date | 1906–1909 |
Executed by | United States |
The Second Occupation of Cuba by United States military forces, also known as the Cuban Pacification, lasted from September 1906 to February 1909.
When the government of Cuban President Tomás Estrada Palma collapsed, U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt ordered U.S. military forces into Cuba. Their mission was to prevent fighting between the Cubans, to protect U.S. economic interests there, and to hold free elections in order to establish a new and legitimate government. Following the election of José Miguel Gómez in November 1908, U.S. officials judged the situation in Cuba sufficiently stable for the U.S. to withdraw its troops, a process that was completed in February 1909.
An earlier occupation lasted from 1898–1902, from the conclusion of peace between the United States and Spain at the end of the Spanish–American War until the inauguration of the Republic of Cuba.
The role of the United States in Cuban affairs, its responsibilities and prerogatives, derived from the Cuban–American Treaty of Relations of 1903, which Cuba and the United States had signed on 22 May 1903, and ratified in 1904. Article III stated: It contained this provision:
The Government of Cuba consents that the United States may exercise the right to intervene for the preservation of Cuban independence, the maintenance of a government adequate for the protection of life, property, and individual liberty, and for discharging the obligations with respect to Cuba imposed by the Treaty of Paris on the United States, now to be assumed and undertaken by the Government of Cuba.
The conflict between Cuba's political parties began during the presidential election of September 1905, in which Estrada Palma and his party rigged the election to ensure victory over the liberal candidate, José Miguel Gómez. The liberals orchestrated a revolt in August 1906. Both sides sought United States military intervention, the government expecting support in suppressing the rebellion and its opponents hoping for new, supervised elections. When Estrada Palma asked for U.S. troops, President Roosevelt was initially reluctant. He sent the Secretary of War William H. Taft and Assistant Secretary of State Robert Bacon to hold discussions in search of a negotiated resolution of the parties' differences. Arriving on 19 September, Taft and Bacon met with the leaders of both parties. When Estrada Palma recognized that Roosevelt was not prepared to support his position, he resigned on 28 September 1906.