From start to finish, the Puerto Rico campaign belonged to Miles. Miles, a Civil War hero and Indian fighter who had risen through the ranks on his leadership and tactical skills. The campaign plan for conquest of the island was the brainchild of the Army’s Commanding General, Major General Nelson A. Posing as a crewman aboard a British ship, Whitney investigated the island, returning to Washington on 9 June to report his findings. On, only ten days after the United States declared war, the War Department ordered Lieutenant Henry F. President William McKinley, however, preferred the direct approach, and ordered the attack on Cuba first. By capturing the small island 500 miles southeast of Cuba, the Army would deny the Spanish a useful base in the Caribbean, and possibly encourage an early surrender, making the invasion of Cuba unnecessary. The first of the expeditions, the invasion of Puerto Rico was originally considered by Army planners to be the first step before the Cuban invasion. While these two campaigns lacked the drama of the actions around Santiago, Cuba, their results were equally important as far as long-term impact on the United States. Along with the invasion of Cuba, two other corps size expeditionary forces were launched–one to Puerto Rico and the other to the Philippine Islands. Army campaigns that followed, however, took on global proportions. When the United States declared war with Spain in 1898, American planning focused on Cuba.
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