No, Nicaragua did not control
Panama before the
canal was built.
The United States had long been interested in a Central American
canal, to link its east and west coasts and expand trade. However, it did not have the money or the will to build one before 1900. During the 1890s Congress appropriated money to begin work on a
canal in Nicaragua, but the project was soon cancelled.
The Spanish-American War in 1898 heightened military interest in a
canal. After defeating Spain, the United States acquired the Philippines and Puerto Rico and wanted better access for its navy to both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. American officials negotiated the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty with Britain in 1901,
in which the two countries agreed that the United States alone could build and regulate a
canal.
The
canal issue reached a critical point in 1902 and 1903. In a complex series of events, Congress and President Theodore Roosevelt decided on
Panama over Nicaragua and negotiated a treaty with Colombia. Under the agreement, the United States would obtain a strip of land across the isthmus and build a
canal. But Colombia’s senate rejected the treaty. Panamanians feared the United States would build a
canal in Nicaragua instead, so they took matters into their own hands. A group of Panamanians conspired with agents of the French company and the
Panama Railroad to rebel against Colombian rule and declared
Panama independent on November 3, 1903. The United States supported the revolt and used its navy to prevent Colombia from defeating the rebels.
In Panama
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