See also: Second Occupation of Cuba, Sugar Intervention and Guantánamo Bay Naval Base.
| Native Name: | Gobierno militar estadounidense en Cuba |
| Conventional Long Name: | United States Military Government in Cuba |
| Era: | Modern Era |
| Status: | Administered territory of the United States |
| Government Type: | Military Government |
| Year Start: | 1898 |
| Year End: | 1902 |
| Event Start: | Treaty of Paris |
| Date Start: | 10 December |
| Event End: | Independence |
| Date End: | 20 May |
| Event1: | Platt Amendment |
| Date Event1: | 2 March 1901 |
| Event Pre: | Teller Amendment |
| Date Pre: | 20 April 1898 |
| P1: | Captaincy General of Cuba |
| Flag P1: | Flag of Spain (1785-1873 and 1875-1931).svg |
| S1: | Republic of Cuba (1902–1959)Republic of Cuba |
| Flag S1: | Flag of Cuba (sky blue).svg |
| S2: | Guantanamo Bay Naval Base |
| Flag S2: | US flag 45 stars.svg |
| Flag: | Flag of the United States |
| Flag Type: | Flag |
| Symbol: | Great Seal of the United States |
| Capital: | Havana |
| National Motto: | E Pluribus Unum "Out of Many, One" |
| National Anthem: | Salve, Columbia "Hail, Columbia" |
| Common Languages: | Spanish, English |
| Title Leader: | Military-Governor |
| Leader1: | Adolfo Castellanos |
| Leader2: | John R. Brooke |
| Leader3: | Leonard Wood |
| Year Leader1: | 1898–1899 |
| Year Leader2: | 1899 |
| Year Leader3: | 1899–1902 |
| Today: | Cuba United States |
The United States Military Government in Cuba (Spanish: Gobierno militar estadounidense en Cuba or Gobierno militar americano en Cuba), was a provisional military government in Cuba that was established in the aftermath of the Spanish–American War in 1898 when Spain ceded Cuba to the United States.[1] [2]
This period was also referred to as the First Occupation of Cuba, to distinguish it from a second occupation from 1906 to 1909. United States Army forces involved in the garrisoning of the island during this time were honored with the Army of Cuban Occupation Medal after its establishment in 1915.
The Platt Amendment defined the terms by which the United States would cease its occupation of Cuba. The amendment, placed into an army appropriations bill was designed to give back control of Cuba to the Cuban people. It had eight conditions to which the Cuban Government needed to adhere before full sovereignty would be transferred. The main conditions of the amendment prohibited Cuba from signing any treaty allowing foreign powers to use the island for military purposes. The United States also maintained the right to interfere with Cuban independence in order to maintain a certain level of protection of life, though the extent of this intrusion was not defined. Most significant, the amendment forced the Cuban Government to sign a treaty officially binding the amendment to law.
The United States reasoning behind the amendment was based on the significant commercial interests held on the island. Spain had previously been unable to preserve U.S. interests and maintain law and order. At the end of military occupation, the amendment served as the primary method of ensuring a permanent presence. Due to the previously enacted Teller Amendment, the United States was forced to grant Cuba its independence after Spanish rule ended. Since the Platt Amendment was successfully incorporated into the constitution in Cuba, influence was maintained without direct U.S. involvement in the country.[4]