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Roosevelt Corollary Facts & Worksheets

The Roosevelt Corollary states the possible intervention of the United States of America in conflicts between European and Latin American countries to reinforce its international police power against chronic unrest.

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The Monroe Doctrine was significantly amended by Theodore Roosevelt in 1904, stating that the United Republics had the authority to meddle in the economic affairs of minor Central American and Caribbean states if they were unable to pay their foreign obligations. Under President William Howard Taft, the U.S. government intervened in Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama as part of a policy known as “Dollar Diplomacy” that was intended to prevent European powers from using direct military intervention to collect international debts.

See the fact file below for more information about the Roosevelt Corollary, or download the comprehensive worksheet pack, which contains over 11 worksheets and can be used in the classroom or homeschooling environment.

Key Facts & Information

Background

  • The Roosevelt Corollary was a statement given by Roosevelt in which he said that European participation in the Western Hemisphere had ended. It informed Latin American governments that the United States would act to safeguard regional peace and stability.
  • While the Monroe Doctrine said that European nations should remain out of Latin America, the Roosevelt Corollary stated that the US had the authority to use military action to keep European countries out of Latin American countries.
  • The Roosevelt Corollary is a foreign policy proclamation issued by the United States in 1904-1905.
  • President Theodore Roosevelt was the 26th president of the United States and was known for his foreign policies and corporate reforms. In 1906, he won the Nobel Prize for Peace for mediating the Russo-Japanese War. He became the U.S. president on September 14, 1901, after the assassination of Pres. William McKinley.
  • The Venezuela Crisis of 1902–1903 led to the formulation of the Roosevelt Corollary. After President Cipriano Castro refused to pay foreign debts and losses sustained by Europeans in a recent Venezuelan civil war, Britain, Germany, and Italy established a naval blockade against Venezuela in late 1902 that lasted for several months.
  • An international court was asked to arbitrate the conflict, and on February 22, 1904, it decided that the blockading nations participating in the Venezuelan issue were entitled to preferential treatment in settlement of their claims. This rendered all other countries, including the United States, that chose not to engage in military conflict defenseless.
  • In principle, the United States disagreed with the conclusion and felt that it might inspire future European intervention to obtain such an advantage. To avoid European interference, the Roosevelt Corollary claimed in December that the US had the right to meddle in the economic affairs of tiny governments in the Caribbean and Central America if they weren’t able to settle their international obligations.
  • President Roosevelt revived the Monroe Doctrine and added his own corollary after becoming convinced that all of Latin America was open to European aggression. The Roosevelt Corollary went further than the Monroe Doctrine in preventing further European expansion in the Western Hemisphere.

Content & Use of the Corollary

  • In 1903, Pres. Roosevelt attended a meeting with the Colombian government to discuss the Panama Canal, which was completed in 1914. The canal’s geographical location was a tremendous benefit for the US naval force since it connected the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.
  • As a result, the Hays-Herran Treaty was proposed, providing the United States sovereignty over the Canal Zone and awarding it a 100-year lease. The Colombian Senate rejected the accord due to its unpopularity.
  • Pres. Roosevelt backed the insurrection against Colombia‘s government, granting Panama independence. After the canal was completed, this event established the United States as a major naval force.
  • In his yearly address to Congress on December 6, 1904, Roosevelt stated:

“All that our nation wants is for its neighbors to live in peace, harmony, and prosperity. Any nation with morally upright citizens may rely on our sincere friendship. A country need not be concerned about American meddling if it demonstrates that it is capable of acting with normal efficiency and decency in social and political concerns if it maintains order and fulfills its duties. Chronic wrongdoing or impotence that causes a general loosening of the bonds of civilized society may eventually require intervention by some civilized nations in America, as well as elsewhere. In the Western Hemisphere, the United States’ adherence to the Monroe Doctrine may force it, albeit reluctantly, to exercise an international police power in flagrant cases of such wrongdoing or impotence.”

  • Roosevelt utilized the Corollary for the first time in 1904 in the Dominican Republic, which at the time was heavily indebted and on the verge of collapse. 
  • The United States sent out two warships and insisted that the customs house be given over to American negotiators, who utilized a portion of the earnings to pay off foreign debtors. This strategy, dubbed as “dollar diplomacy,” saw United States advisers seek to stabilize countries in Latin America through provisional protectorates in order to deter European intervention. 
  • The Dominican experiment, like the majority of “dollar diplomacy” agreements, turned out to be ill-advised and ephemeral, and the United States began a more extensive military engagement in 1916 that lasted until 1924.
  • It served as a justification for United States intervention over the territories of Cuba (1906-1909), Nicaragua (1909-1910, 1912-1925, 1926-1933), Dominican Republic (1916-1924), Venezuela (1902-1903), and Haiti (1915-1934).
  • In 1905, the Dominican Republic became a protectorate of the United States after the threat of invasion by European debt collectors.
  • Pres. Roosevelt used the motto “Speak softly and carry a Big Stick.” His “Big Stick Diplomacy,” composed of the Monroe Doctrine and the Roosevelt Corollary, was supported by the new American naval force.
  • The Roosevelt Corollary to Monroe Doctrine was an aggressive foreign policy that made a concrete standing of America to the rest of the world. It also guided hemispheric diplomacy throughout World War II and the Cold War.

Shift to the “Good Neighbor” policy

  • Franklin D. Roosevelt’s administration’s foreign policy towards Latin America was known as the “Good Neighbor” policy. Although the Roosevelt administration carried out the strategy, President Woodrow Wilson had first coined the phrase. He later used it to defend American engagement in the Mexican Revolution and the occupation of Haiti.
  • President Calvin Coolidge published the Clark Memorandum in 1928, which was widely seen as a partial renunciation of the Roosevelt Corollary, which declared that the United States did not have the authority to act when European nations posed a threat.
  • Herbert Hoover also worked to shift the US away from Roosevelt Corollary’s imperialists impulses by traveling on goodwill tours, removing troops from Nicaragua and Haiti, and refraining from engaging in other countries’ domestic affairs.
  • Further rejecting interventionism, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established his “Good Neighbor policy” in 1934. This policy resulted in the Treaty of Relations with Cuba’s annulment of the Platt Amendment in 1934 and the negotiation of compensation for Mexico‘s 1938 nationalization of foreign-owned oil assets.
  • When the Cold War began in 1945, the Good Neighbor policy came to an end because the United States saw a greater need to defend the Western Hemisphere from Soviet encroachment.
  • The Roosevelt Corollary was effective in many respects. President Theodore Roosevelt’s foreign policy was defined by the Roosevelt Corollary. The corollary said that the US would interfere in Latin American issues to avoid European domination and to ensure stability and order.

Roosevelt Corollary Worksheets

This bundle contains 11 ready-to-use Roosevelt Corollary Worksheets that are perfect for students who want to learn more about the Roosevelt Corollary which was articulated by President Theodore Roosevelt in his 1904 State of the Union Address, as an addition to his Big Stick Diplomacy. It states the possible intervention of the United States of America in conflicts between European and Latin American countries to reinforce its international police power against chronic unrest.

List of Worksheets Included

  • Roosevelt Corollary Facts
  • President Theodore Roosevelt
  • The Big Stick Diplomacy
  • Mapping Central America
  • Monroe Doctrine Word Search
  • Famous Leaders
  • All About US Foreign Policy
  • SWOT Deconstruction
  • Mix and Match Colonialism
  • Political Cartoon Analysis
  • America, Today

Frequently Asked Questions

Why was Roosevelt Corollary created?

President Roosevelt revived the Monroe Doctrine and added his own corollary after becoming convinced that all of Latin America was open to European aggression. The Roosevelt Corollary went further than the Monroe Doctrine in preventing further European expansion in the Western Hemisphere.

What was the purpose of the Roosevelt Corollary?

The Roosevelt Corollary was a statement given by Roosevelt in which he said that European participation in the Western Hemisphere had ended. It informed Latin American governments that the United States would act to safeguard regional peace and stability.

What did the Roosevelt Corollary mean for Latin American countries?

While the Monroe Doctrine said that European nations should remain out of Latin America, the Roosevelt Corollary stated that the US had the authority to use military action to keep European countries out of Latin American countries.

When was the Roosevelt Corollary?

The Roosevelt Corollary is a foreign policy proclamation issued by the United States. Pres. In 1904-1905.

Was the Roosevelt Corollary successful?

The Roosevelt Corollary was effective in many respects. President Theodore Roosevelt’s foreign policy was defined by the Roosevelt Corollary. The corollary said that the US would interfere in Latin American issues to avoid European domination and to ensure stability and order.

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Use With Any Curriculum

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