Monroe Doctrine In Practice

The Monroe Doctrine has been described as a "hands off" warning to Europe. How did the U.S interpret the doctrine in practice?

On December second, 1823, President Monroe declared to the public his concerns on domestic and foreign affairs in his annual speech. In his words one could find ideas that did not matter only the U.S, but it interested Europe and the Americas as a whole. Such concerns would turn out to be a basis of a set principles that the U.S would implement in the future years, Monroe's words would soon be the Monroe Doctrine. However what Monroe said were bold ideas of support and pacific intervention, too altruistic for people to put into practice. Therefore those after him made tangents to such ideas, diversions so great
that they changed the meaning and definition of the doctrine. This paper will analyze to what extent the U.S extensions to the Monroe Doctrine made this document diverge from its original "hands off" interpretation to become a more interventionist and militaristic.

In the early 1820's the U.S developed with President Monroe the Monroe Doctrine. Here he stated three important points the U.S should follow to successfully moderate its ties with nations this was his "hands off" warning to Europe and other powers. He stated that the U.S was to: not tolerate European colonization; remain neutral to wars and politics within European nations and their already existing colonies; take a stance against Europe if the New World was menaced. These ideas would be interpreted in a different manner by upcoming presidents.

As the Monroe Doctrine was declared by the 1820's, little was done to make it stand on its own.
Europe saw this as a mere warning since the U.S was just developing and had no hardcore military or political influence to back any of its statements. The only help the U.S had was from the strong British navy which supported the U.S just to insure its commercial ties with America. These were the years in which the first interpretation to the Monroe Doctrine was made. James Polk, in 1845, was the first U.S president to announce to Congress that the principle of the Monroe Doctrine had to be enforced aggressively. This was the first contradiction to Monroe's statements which asserted problems pacifically and by retaining neutral stances. Polk lead the U.S to expand westwards bringing the U.S into many confrontations such as a war with Mexico, the annexation of Texas which the British and French tried to prevent and the close buying of Cuba from
Spain.

Extensions were further included with the next presidents. Ulysses S. Grant would be the one to first extend the doctrine by saying that no territory in the Western Hemisphere would be transferred from one power to another. However, this was not made to help the Americas but rather to reflect U.S imperialistic tendencies as they were shown previously in the war with Mexico. What the U.S meant to say was it would not tolerate any "non-American" powers to intervene and conquer in the Americas because it would harm the U.S's power and expansion in the area.

One of the largest changes to the Monroe Doctrine would be the Olney interpretation to the Monroe Doctrine.
This interpretation would be so impacting that it would shift U.S intervention of that time. In the year 1895, President Cleveland with the advice of Richard Olney Secretary of State would issue an amendment to the doctrine whigh stated that the Monroe Doctrine gave the United States authority to mediate border disputes in the Western Hemisphere. Even this quote from the interpretation "Today the United States is practically sovereign on this continent and its fiat is law" shows the ideology change the U.S was undergoing. This amendment was as a direct response to the problems Venezuela had with Great Britain over the boundaries of British Guiana. The Monroe Doctrine stated the U.S would remain neutral to affairs concerning Europe and already existing colonies but as this problem rose, Olney declared that the U.S would openly intervene against the British. Was it really "protecting" Venezuela's and other American interests? Or was it searching a way to monopolize influence in the new Hemisphere? What ever might be the case, Britain retired from the confrontation giving the U.S higher spirits to stand against
Europe.

The final extension made by the 1900's was the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine made by Theodore Roosevelt. This stated that European nations will not enforce military intervention to collect debts of nations in Latin America. The U.S would however be an agent in the commercial interests in the region while keeping Europe out of America. This change sprouted in 1902 when a bankrupt Venezuela had to pay debts to Germany, Italy and Britain. These nations decided to blockade Venezuela in order to collect their money. Things would repeat by 1904, when the government of Dominican Republic was bankrupt and Roosevelt feared that foreign nations such as Germany would intervene in order to collect their debts once again. Roosevelt, thanks to his Corollary, made the U.S leave its neutral position to actively get involved in the internal affairs of nations and make them pay. The U.S believed it had the right to do so since it was the sole power of the hemisphere and it had to solve all problems in the region. Soon the Corollary would be a justification to other interventions in Central America and the Caribbean where the U.S took control of Nicaragua, Haiti and "independent" Cuba after the Spanish American War.

The Monroe Doctrine evolved with every practice and interpretation, each changing the U.S to become more militaristic and interventionist. Starting with Polk which stated that the Monroe Doctrine was an excuse to move aggressively and expand. Grant concluded to monopolize America for the U.S with his extension where no "non-U.S" powers were able to get lands in America. Olney would mark the greatest change in the Monroe doctrine where the U.S was able to intervene in border disputes between Europe and its colonies, which was specifically forbidden en the original doctrine. The final change would be with Roosevelt and his Corollary which stated that the U.S would not permit any intervention in order to collect debts made by nations; instead this would make bankrupt nations pay by intervening in their governments and thus taking "control" of these. As seen the Monroe Doctrine has slowly been altered from its altruistic, "hands off" problem solving views to shift into a more active involvement. Such involvement was always fueled by the expansionist and growing imperialist desires of the U.S starting with Polk who started the expansion, Grant who expelled all competition, Olney who imposed U.S power and finally Roosevelt who would start active intervention.