USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Maine was sent to Havana Harbor to protect U.S. interests during the Cuban War of Independence. She exploded and sank on the evening of 15 February 1898, killing 268 sailors, or three-quarters of her crew. In 1898, a U.S. Navy board of inquiry ruled that the ship had been sunk by an external explosion from a mine.

Detailed explanation-2: -As Cubans were fighting for independence from Spanish colonial rule, President William McKinley ordered the Maine to Cuba to protect U.S. political and economic interests on the nearby island.

Detailed explanation-3: -The USS Maine was in Cuba, officially, on a mission of friendly courtesy and, incidentally, to protect American lives and property in the event that Cuba’s struggle for independence from Spain might escalate into full-blown warfare.

Detailed explanation-4: -On February 15, 1898, an explosion of unknown origin sank the battleship U.S.S. Maine in the Havana, Cuba harbor, killing 266 of the 354 crew members. The sinking of the Maine incited United States’ passions against Spain, eventually leading to a naval blockade of Cuba and a declaration of war.

Detailed explanation-5: -In 1897, newly elected President William McKinley cautioned patience, but the explosion of the Maine shattered U.S. relations with Spain and led to a declaration of war on April 25, 1898. War with Spain caused the U.S. to rethink its long-held principle of anti-colonialism.