Spain–United States relations
Bilateral relations / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The troubled history of Spanish–American relations has been seen as one of "love and hate".[1] The groundwork was laid by the colonization of parts of the Americas by Spain before 1700. The Spaniards were the first Europeans to establish a permanent settlement in what is now United States territory. The first settlement in modern-day United States territory was San Juan, Puerto Rico, founded in 1521 by Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León. 35 years later, Spanish admiral Pedro Menéndez de Avilés founded the city of St. Augustine, Spanish Florida (the earliest settlement in the continental United States), which became a small outpost that never grew very large. More permanent, much larger colonies were established in New Mexico and California, with a few in Texas and Arizona, forming part of the colonial history of the United States. Although the Spanish elements in the history of the United States were mostly ignored by American historians in the decades after independence, the concept of the "Spanish borderlands" in the American Southwest was developed by American historians in the 20th century, which integrated Spain into U.S. history.[2]
This article is written like a personal reflection, personal essay, or argumentative essay that states a Wikipedia editor's personal feelings or presents an original argument about a topic. (August 2023) |
Spain |
United States |
---|---|
Diplomatic mission | |
Spanish Embassy, Washington, D.C. | Embassy of the United States, Madrid |
Envoy | |
Ambassador Santiago Cabanas | Ambassador Julissa Reynoso Pantaleón |
Spain provided indirect support to the new United States by fighting against Great Britain during the American Revolutionary War. Madrid tacitly recognised the independence of the United States in 1783. The purchase of the underdeveloped Spanish Florida by the US was made effective in 1821. The U.S. gave diplomatic support to the breakaway Spanish colonies as they secured their independence around 1820. American diplomatic offers to buy Cuba in the 1850s failed. When Cuba revolted in the late 19th century American opinion became strongly hostile to Spanish brutality. The Spanish–American War erupted in 1898. The Spanish defeat in the conflict entailed the loss of the last Spanish colonies outside north Africa, notably Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines.
When the Spanish Civil War erupted in 1936, Washington was neutral and banned arms sales to either side; oil sales were allowed. Congress endorsed the embargo by a near-unanimous vote. President Franklin Roosevelt quietly favored the left-wing Republican (or "Loyalist") government, but intense pressure by American Catholics forced him to maintain a policy of neutrality. Spain was carefully neutral in World War II, despite its ties with Nazi Germany.
As the Cold War deepened after 1950, Washington threw a lifeline to the Francoist dictatorship that included financial aid and military bases. Membership in NATO came in 1982, after Francisco Franco's death and the Spanish transition to democracy.[3]