Episode 9 of Insights Into History traces the arc from Spain’s sprawling empire to the powder keg of 1898: Cuban unrest, the mysterious sinking of the USS Maine, and the rush to war that followed. It then follows the rise of the USS Olympia and its commander George Dewey—how a modern, ocean‑going navy signaled American reach and set the stage for a decisive clash in Manila Bay.
With sharp context on imperial strain, naval innovation, and Dewey’s steady career, the episode builds to the cliffhanger moment before the fleet’s dawn attack: the order that would become immortalized in history.