Ostend Manifesto

American  

noun

1. a declaration (1854) issued from Ostend, Belgium, by the U.S. ministers to England, France, and Spain, stating that the U.S. would be justified in seizing Cuba if Spain did not sell it to the U.S.

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Example Sentences

They premised their secret proposal, the Ostend Manifesto External link, on national defense.

From Barron's • Jan. 18, 2026

They premised their secret proposal, the Ostend Manifesto External link, on national defense.

From Barron's • Jan. 18, 2026

The Ostend Manifesto articulated the right of the United States to forcefully seize Cuba if Spain would not sell it, while filibuster expeditions attempted to annex new slave states without the benefit of governmental approval.

From Textbooks • Dec. 30, 2014

Yet Spain had not changed its mind since the time of the Ostend Manifesto.

From Salon • Feb. 21, 2011

The Ostend Manifesto was rejected by the State Department, but it was a good picture of the imperialistic sentiment at that time abroad among certain elements in the United States.

From The American Empire by Nearing, Scott