n the morning of January 25, 1898, the waters of Havana Harbor were calm. The situation in the Cuban capital was just the opposite, however. Cubans had been fighting for independence from Spanish rule for several years. A riot had rocked Havana on January 12. It made the U.S. government fearful for Spain’s ability to maintain the peace and for the safety of Americans living in Cuba. “In view of the possibility of danger to American life and property,” President William McKinley noted, “some means of protection should be at hand.” That protection arrived battleship.
