Wilson's Missionary Diplomacy: A Complex Legacy

Woodrow Wilson's missionary diplomacy was a foreign policy approach that held that the United States had a moral responsibility to promote democracy and deny recognition to governments it deemed undemocratic or hostile. This policy was applied to Latin America, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and China. Wilson believed that the United States should be actively involved in international issues and envisioned a new diplomacy that prioritised open agreements and self-rule for colonial holdings. However, his missionary diplomacy led to permanent hostility with Latin America, particularly in Mexico, Nicaragua, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic, where military interventions and attempts to influence political leaders created a legacy of failure and ill will.

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Wilson's missionary diplomacy led to permanent hostility between the US and Latin America

Woodrow Wilson's brand of "missionary diplomacy" was meant to spread democracy and constitutionalism to Latin American countries. However, it led to permanent hostility between the US and Latin America due to the high-handed nature of its implementation and the resulting lengthy occupations of these countries by American military forces.

Wilson's missionary diplomacy was driven by the belief that the United States had a moral responsibility to deny diplomatic recognition to any Latin American government that was not democratic. This policy was an expansion of President James Monroe's 1823 Monroe Doctrine. Wilson's objectives for Latin America, emphasizing democracy and constitutionalism, were admirable in the abstract but failed to accord with the reality in the nations affected.

For instance, in Nicaragua, Wilson inherited from the Taft administration a military intervention and an extensive effort at dollar diplomacy. Similarly, in Haiti, which had been a key target of Taft's dollar diplomacy, Wilson sent troops, ensuring a continued US military presence in the Caribbean and Central America for decades. In fact, despite his sincere intentions to halt the spread of imperialism, Wilson intervened in Latin American affairs more than any other president.

Furthermore, Wilson's insistence that Latin American governments be democratic undermined the promise of self-determination, which the Latin American states had hoped for. This created resentment against continued military occupation and the financial advisor's complete control of government expenditures. Thus, Wilson's missionary diplomacy ultimately failed to bring about long-term stability in Latin America and instead created seemingly permanent hostility between the US and the region.

The policy was an expansion of President James Monroe's 1823 Monroe Doctrine

Missionary diplomacy was a policy of US President Woodrow Wilson that expanded on President James Monroe's 1823 Monroe Doctrine. The Monroe Doctrine was the United States' way of protecting the Western Hemisphere from colonisation and increasing its international power and influence. Wilson's missionary diplomacy added a moral tone to the Monroe Doctrine, stating that it was the United States' moral responsibility to deny diplomatic recognition to any Latin American government that was not democratic or threatened American interests. This policy was applied to Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and even China.

Wilson's missionary diplomacy was driven by his ethical and religious beliefs, which held that nations should adhere to high ethical and moral standards. He believed that democracy was the most Christian form of government and was suitable for all peoples. This belief gave him the confidence that he knew better than the leaders of other countries how to promote peace and well-being. As a result, Wilson's diplomacy often took the form of interventionism, as he attempted to spread democracy and justice through military force and economic pressure.

One of the key aspects of Wilson's missionary diplomacy was its focus on Latin America. While the previous Dollar Diplomacy had promoted trade in Latin America, missionary diplomacy ignored the region. This was a notable shift, as Wilson believed that it was the United States' moral duty to deny recognition to any Latin American country that posed a threat to American interests. This policy led to increased interference in Latin American affairs, creating permanent hostility between the United States and Latin America, especially in Mexico, Nicaragua, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic.

In Mexico, Wilson refused to recognise the authoritarian government of General Victoriano Huerta, which had taken power through a counter-revolution in 1913. Instead, he supported the anti-Huerta forces led by Venustiano Carranza. In 1914, he ordered the US Navy to occupy the port city of Veracruz, weakening Huerta's control and leading to Carranza becoming the de facto president of Mexico. Wilson also inherited a military intervention in Nicaragua, where he continued the use of dollar diplomacy to promote American business interests and gain economic influence.

Overall, Wilson's missionary diplomacy was an attempt to expand American influence and promote democracy, but it often led to increased interventionism and hostility in Latin America, contradicting its stated goals of reducing US involvement in the region and respecting the self-determination of Latin American nations.

It resulted in lengthy occupations of Latin American countries by the US military

Woodrow Wilson's brand of "missionary diplomacy" was meant to teach Latin American countries about democracy, constitutionalism, and the process of a government based on a system of laws. Wilson's policy was driven by the belief that the United States had a moral responsibility to deny diplomatic recognition to any Latin American government that was not democratic. This was an expansion of President James Monroe's 1823 Monroe Doctrine.

Despite Wilson's admirable ideas and objectives, his missionary diplomacy was a failure. It resulted in lengthy occupations of Latin American countries by the US military. This was due to Wilson's insistence that Latin American governments be democratic, which undermined the promise of self-determination. The result was seemingly permanent hostility between the United States and Latin America.

Wilson inherited a military intervention in Nicaragua from the Taft administration and sent troops to Haiti and the Dominican Republic, ensuring a US military presence in the Caribbean and Central America for decades. This was ironic given Wilson's sincere intentions to halt the spread of imperialism. In fact, Wilson intervened in Latin American affairs more than any other president.

In addition to his actions in Latin America, Wilson's missionary diplomacy also extended to Mexico, where it led to the same legacy of failure and ill will as in Nicaragua. Wilson's intervention in the Huerta Revolution resulted in the US gaining valuable land, but the war itself was unjust due to the Texas Revolution, the belief in Manifest Destiny, and the illegitimate intentions of President Polk.

Ultimately, Wilson's missionary diplomacy failed to achieve its intended goals and instead resulted in lengthy US military occupations and increased resentment in Latin America.

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Wilson's actions in Mexico were a blunder and an irony of fate

"Missionary diplomacy" was a label applied to the policies and practices of the United States in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean during the presidency of Woodrow Wilson. Wilson's actions in Mexico, which included military force, have been described by some as a "blunder" and an "irony of fate".

Wilson's predecessor, William Howard Taft, had been a key player in the overthrow of the President of Mexico, Francisco I. Madero, who came to power in a free and fair election in 1911. However, Madero soon aroused the ire of radicals like Emiliano Zapata, who demanded land redistribution, and Pancho Villa, Pascual Orozco, and Felix Diaz, the nephew of the deposed dictator Porfirio Diaz. In March 1913, Madero was forced to flee to Texas and appealed to President-elect Wilson for help, but to no avail. Instead, Wilson supported the rebel leader, General Victoriano Huerta, who imposed a bloody authoritarian rule on Mexico. Wilson's refusal to recognize Huerta's government, despite pressure from US businessmen in Mexico, led to deteriorating relations between the two countries.

In April 1914, a dispute over the arrest of American sailors in Tampico led to the US Navy occupying Veracruz, which was defused through a peace conference in Canada. However, this was not the end of Wilson's intervention in Mexico. In 1916, Pancho Villa attacked a border village in New Mexico, killing several Americans. Wilson sent thousands of US soldiers under General John Pershing into Mexico in pursuit of Villa, but the expedition failed to capture him and instead provoked a confrontation with Carranza's forces, in which men on both sides were killed. This incident has been described as a "blunder" resulting from Wilson's "interventionist impulses" and has been contrasted with Wilson's post-Veracruz policy, which was to "support the [Mexican] revolution, avoid intervention, and attempt to influence the rebel leaders into the path of justice and moderation by means of diplomatic influence."

Overall, Wilson's actions in Mexico, characterized by military intervention and support for certain factions, failed to create the democratic state that was their stated objective and instead led to seemingly permanent hostility between the United States and Mexico.

The policy failed to create democratic states in Latin America

Woodrow Wilson's missionary diplomacy was a policy that stated the US would not recognize any Latin American government that was not democratic. Wilson's policy was driven by the belief that democracy was the most Christian form of government and was suitable for all peoples. He thought that the democratic United States had a moral mandate for world leadership.

However, Wilson's missionary diplomacy failed to create democratic states in Latin America. Firstly, it led to lengthy occupations of Latin American countries by American military forces, which caused resentment and hostility. For example, Wilson sent troops to Nicaragua, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic, which ensured a US military presence in the region for decades. This contradicted his goal of minimizing American involvement in the region and his anti-imperialist stance.

Secondly, Wilson's policy of non-recognition of undemocratic governments in Latin America did not accord with the reality of the nations affected. While it did lead to the establishment of democratic governments in some Central and South American countries, it also resulted in permanent hostility and ill will. The insistence on democratic governments undermined the promise of self-determination for Latin American states, as they were not truly free to conduct their own affairs without American interference.

Moreover, Wilson's missionary diplomacy was a continuation of earlier US policies in Latin America, such as Roosevelt's "big stick" policies and Taft's "dollar diplomacy," which had already escalated US intervention in the region. Despite Wilson's intentions to reverse these policies, he faced pressure from imperialists and American industrialists, and his actions ultimately did not bring significant change.

Finally, Wilson's policy of non-recognition was not consistently applied. For example, he did not recognize Huerta's government in Mexico, but he also inherited and continued military interventions and dollar diplomacy in Nicaragua. This inconsistency undermined the effectiveness of his missionary diplomacy in creating democratic states in Latin America.

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