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https://www.history.com/topics/landmarks/panama-canal

Officially opened on August 15, 1914 (By the USA)

Cost around $375,000,000

The United States continues to be the heaviest user of the Panama Canal.

66 percent of the cargo traffic began or ended at a U.S. port

Cargo from or to China made up 13 percent

Teddy Roosevelt is a big reason for it being created

Under US territory

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When Was the Panama Canal Built?

The idea of creating a water passage across the isthmus of Panama to link the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans dates back to at least the 1500s: After explorer Vasco Nuñez de Balboa realized that a narrow strip of land separated the two oceans, King Charles I of Spain tapped his regional governor to survey a route along the Chagres River.

The realization of such a route across the mountainous, tropical terrain was deemed impossible at the time, although the idea remained tantalizing as a potential shortcut from Europe to eastern Asia. The only other route was to sail around South America via the stormy, unpredictable Strait of Magellan, or use the Panama Railroad to transfer goods and people from one ocean to another.

France was ultimately the first country to attempt the task. Led by Count Ferdinand de Lesseps, the builder of the Suez Canal in Egypt, the construction team broke ground on a planned sea-level canal in 1880.

The French quickly comprehended the monumental challenge ahead of them: Along with the incessant rains that caused heavy landslides, there was no effective means for combating the spread of yellow fever and malaria. De Lesseps belatedly realized that a sea-level canal was too difficult and reorganized efforts toward a lock canal, but funding was pulled from the project in 1888.

Teddy Roosevelt and the Panama Canal

Following the deliberations of the U.S. Isthmian Canal Commission and a push from President Theodore Roosevelt, the United States purchased the French assets in the canal zone for $40 million in 1902. When a proposed treaty over rights to build in what was then a Colombian territory was rejected, the U.S. threw its military weight behind a Panamanian independence movement, eventually negotiating a deal with the new government.

On November 6, 1903, the United States recognized the Republic of Panama, and on November 18 the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty was signed with Panama, granting America exclusive and permanent possession of the Panama Canal Zone.

In exchange, Panama received $10 million and an annuity of $250,000 beginning nine years later. The treaty, negotiated by U.S. Secretary of State John Hay and French engineer Philippe-Jean Bunau-Varilla, was condemned by many Panamanians as an infringement on their country's new national sovereignty.

Seemingly not grasping the lessons from the French effort, the Americans devised plans for a sea-level canal along the roughly 50-mile stretch from Colón to Panama City. The project officially commenced with a dedication ceremony on May 4, 1904, but chief engineer John Wallace encountered immediate problems.

Much of the French equipment was in need of repair, while the spread of yellow fever and malaria was frightening off the workforce. Under pressure to keep construction moving forward, Wallace instead resigned after a year.

John Stevens

A railroad specialist named John Stevens took over as chief engineer in July 1905 and immediately addressed the workforce issues by recruiting West Indian laborers.

Stevens ordered new equipment and devised efficient methods to speed up work, such as the use of a swinging boom to lift chunks of railroad track and adjust the train route for carting away excavated material. He also quickly recognized the difficulties posed by landslides and convinced Roosevelt that a lock canal was best for the terrain.

The project was helped immensely by chief sanitary officer Dr. William Gorgas, who believed that mosquitoes carried the deadly diseases indigenous to the area. Gorgas embarked on a mission to wipe out the carriers, his team painstakingly fumigating homes and cleansing pools of water. The last reported case of yellow fever on the isthmus came in November 1905, while malaria cases dropped precipitously over the following decade.

Although construction was on track when President Roosevelt visited the area in November 1906, the project suffered a setback when Stevens suddenly resigned a few months later. Incensed, Roosevelt named Army Corps engineer Lt. Col. George Washington Goethals the new chief engineer, granting him authority over virtually all administrative matters in the building zone.

Goethals proved a no-nonsense commander by squashing a work strike after taking charge, but he also oversaw the addition of facilities to improve the quality of life for workers and their families.

Panama Canal Dangers

Goethals focused efforts on Culebra Cut, the clearing of the mountain range between Gamboa and Pedro Miguel. Excavation of the nearly 9-mile stretch became an around-the-clock operation, with up to 6,000 men contributing at any one time. Despite the attention paid to this phase of the project, Culebra Cut was a notorious danger zone, as casualties mounted from unpredictable landslides and dynamite explosions.

Construction of the locks began with the pouring of concrete at Gatún in August 1909. Built in pairs, with each chamber measuring 110 feet wide by 1,000 feet long, the locks were embedded with culverts that leveraged gravity to raise and lower water levels.

Ultimately, the three locks along the canal route lifted ships 85 feet above sea level, to man-made Gatún Lake in the middle. Hollow, buoyant lock gates were also built, varying in height from 47 to 82 feet. The entire enterprise was powered by electricity and run through a control board.
READ MORE: Why the Construction of the Panama Canal Was So Difficult-and Deadly
Panama Canal Completed

The grand project began drawing to a close in 1913. Two steam shovels working from opposite directions met in the center of Culebra Cut in May, and a few weeks later, the last spillway at Gatún Dam was closed to allow the lake to swell to its full height. In October, President Woodrow Wilson operated a telegraph at the White House that triggered the explosion of Gamboa dike, flooding the final stretch of dry passageway at Culebra Cut.

The Panama Canal officially opened on August 15, 1914, although the planned grand ceremony was downgraded due to the outbreak of WWI. Completed at a cost of more than $350 million, it was the most expensive construction project in U.S. history to that point.

Altogether, some 3.4 million cubic meters of concrete went into building the locks, and nearly 240 million cubic yards of rock and dirt were excavated during the American construction phase. Many people, however, died building the Panama Canal: Of the 56,000 workers employed between 1904 and 1913, roughly 5,600 were reportedly killed, though the actual number is probably much higher, since the French only recorded deaths that occurred in hospital.

The Panama Canal cost the United States around $375,000,000-this figure includes the $10,000,000 paid to Panama and $40,000,000 paid to the French when they abandoned the project. At the time, it was the most expensive construction project in U.S. history.

Impact of the Panama Canal

Bolstered by the addition of Madden Dam in 1935, the Panama Canal proved a vital component to expanding global trade routes in the 20th century. The transition to local oversight began with a 1977 treaty signed by U.S. President Jimmy Carter and Panama leader Omar Torrijos, with the Panama Canal Authority assuming full control on December 31, 1999.

Recognized by the American Society of Civil Engineers as one of the seven wonders of the modern world in 1994, the canal hosted its 1 millionth passing ship in September 2010.

The United States continues to be the heaviest user of the Panama Canal: 66 percent of the Canal's cargo traffic began or ended its journey at a U.S. port, while cargo from or to China made up 13 percent of its traffic, according to 2019 data.

Sources

Learn about the history of the Panama Canal. Panama Canal Authority.
Building the Panama Canal, 1903-1914. U.S. Department of State, Office of the Historian.
Key Decision Point Coming for the Panama Canal. Center for Strategic & International Studies.

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Panama Canal: History, Definition & Canal Zone - HISTORY

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The Panama Canal is a massive engineering marvel that connects the Pacific Ocean with the Atlantic Ocean through a 50-mile series of shipping canals and locks.

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https://www.history.com/topics/africa/suez-canal

The Suez Canal took 10 years to build and was officially opened on November 17, 1869, and has been vital for international trade ever since it was created.

The Grand total doubled to become $100 million because of deaths, Political turmoil, and the limitations of technology

Egyptian King Ismail Pasha decided to create the Canal, but owners of the Suez experienced financial troubles after it was finished, so Pasha and others were forced to sell their stock shares to Great Britain in 1875. (France was still the majority shareholder)

In 1888, the Convention of Constantinople decreed that the Suez Canal would operate as a neutral zone, under the protection of the British

The Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936 reaffirmed Britain’s control over the important waterway

1951, Egypt withdrew from the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty.

British withdrew their troops from the Suez Canal in 1956, and handed control over to the Egyptian government

transferred ownership to the Suez Canal Authority in order to Nationalize the operation of the canal

Israel sent troops into the region, and took control of the east bank of the canal during the Arab-Israeli War. Nasser imposed a blockade on all maritime traffic for years.

Egypt reopened the canal in 1975

as part of the Egypt–Israel Peace Treaty of 1979, the so-called Multinational Force and Observers were stationed there to maintain order and protect the canal.

They remain in place to this day.

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The Suez Canal is a man-made waterway connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Indian Ocean via the Red Sea. It enables a more direct route for shipping between Europe and Asia, effectively allowing for passage from the North Atlantic to the Indian Ocean without having to circumnavigate the African continent. The waterway is vital for international trade and, as a result, has been at the center of conflict since it opened in 1869.

Where Is the Suez Canal?

The Suez Canal stretches 120 miles from Port Said on the Mediterranean Sea in Egypt southward to the city of Suez (located on the northern shores of the Gulf of Suez). The canal separates the bulk of Egypt from the Sinai Peninsula. It took 10 years to build, and was officially opened on November 17, 1869.

Owned and operated by the Suez Canal Authority, the Suez Canal's use is intended to be open to ships of all countries, be it for purposes of commerce or war-though that hasn't always been the case.

Construction of the Suez Canal

Interest in a marine route connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea dates back to ancient times. A series of small canals connecting the Nile River (and, thus, by extension, the Mediterranean) to the Red Sea were in use as early as 2000 B.C.

However, a direct connection between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea was considered impossible over concerns that they sat at distinct levels of altitude.

Therefore, various overland routes-using horse-drawn vehicles and, later, trains-were employed, most notably by Great Britain, which conducted significant trade with its colonies in present-day India and Pakistan.

Linant de Bellefonds

The idea of a large canal providing a direct route between the two bodies of water was discussed in the 1830s, thanks to the work of French explorer and engineer Linant de Bellefonds, who specialized in Egypt.

Bellefonds performed a survey of the Isthmus of Suez and confirmed that the Mediterranean and Red seas were, contrary to popular belief, at the same level of altitude. This meant a canal without locks could be built, making construction significantly easier.

By the 1850s, seeing an opportunity for Egypt and the Ottoman Empire, which governed the country at the time, Khedive Said Pasha (who oversaw Egypt and the Sudan for the Ottomans) had granted French diplomat Ferdinand de Lesseps permission to create a company to construct a canal. That company eventually became known as the Suez Canal Company, and it was given a 99-year lease over the waterway and surrounding area.

Lesseps' first action was to create the Commission Internationale pour le percement de l'isthme des Suez -or International Commission for the Piercing of the Isthmus of Suez. The commission was made up of 13 experts from seven countries, including, most notably, Alois Negrelli, a leading civil engineer.

Negrelli effectively built upon the work of Bellefonds and his original survey of the region and took a leading role in developing the architectural plans for the Suez Canal. The commission's final report was completed in 1856; two years later, the Suez Canal Company was formally established.

Construction of the Suez Canal

Construction began, at the northernmost Port Said end of the canal, in early 1859. The excavation work took 10 years, and an estimated 1.5 million people worked on the project.

Unfortunately, over the objections of many British, French and American investors in the canal, many of these were slave laborers, and it is believed that tens of thousands died while working on the Suez, from cholera and other causes.

Political turmoil in the region negatively impacted the construction of the canal. Egypt was ruled by Britain and France at the time, and there were several rebellions against colonial rule.

This, coupled with the limitations of construction technology at the time, caused the total costs of building the Suez Canal to balloon to $100 million, more than double the original estimate.

Suez Canal Opens

Ismail Pasha, Khedive of Egypt and the Sudan, formally opened the Suez Canal on November 17, 1869.

Officially, the first ship to navigate through the canal was the imperial yacht of French Empress Eugenie, the L'Aigle, followed by the British ocean liner Delta.

However, the HMS Newport, a British navy ship, was actually the first to enter the waterway, with its captain having navigated it to the front of the line under the cover of darkness the night before the ceremonial opening. The captain, George Nares, was officially reprimanded for the deed, but also secretly lauded by the British government for his efforts in promoting the country's interests in the region.

The S.S. Dido, was the first vessel to pass through the Suez Canal from South to North.

At least initially, only steamships were able to use the canal, as sailing vessels still had difficulty navigating the narrow channel in the region's tricky winds.

Although traffic was less than expected during the canal's first two years of operation, the waterway had a profound impact on world trade and played a key role in the colonization of Africa by European powers. Still, the owners of the Suez experienced financial troubles, and Ismail Pasha and others were forced to sell their stock shares to Great Britain in 1875.

France, however, was still the majority shareholder in the canal.

Suez Canal During Wartime

In 1888, the Convention of Constantinople decreed that the Suez Canal would operate as a neutral zone, under the protection of the British, who had by then assumed control of the surrounding region, including Egypt and the Sudan.

The British famously defended the canal from attack by the Ottoman Empire in 1915 during World War I.

The Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936 reaffirmed Britain's control over the important waterway, which became vital during World War II, when the Axis powers of Italy and German attempted to capture it. Despite the supposedly neutral status of the canal, Axis ships were prohibited from accessing it for much of the war.

After the end of World War II, in 1951, Egypt withdrew from the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty.

Gamal Abdel Nasser

Following years of negotiation, the British withdrew their troops from the Suez Canal in 1956, effectively handing control over to the Egyptian government, under the leadership of President Gamal Abdel Nasser.

Nasser quickly moved to nationalize the canal's operation, and did so by transferring ownership to the Suez Canal Authority, a quasi-government agency, in July 1956.

Both Great Britain and the United States were angered by this move, as well as by the Egyptian government's efforts to establish relations with Soviet Union at the time. Initially, they withdrew promised financial support of planned improvements to the Suez, including construction of the Aswan Dam.

However, they along with other European powers were further enraged by the Nasser government's decision to close the Straits of Tiran, a body of water linking Israel with the Red Sea, to all Israeli ships.

Suez Crisis

In response, in October 1956, troops from Britain, France and Israel threatened to invade Egypt, leading to the so-called Suez Crisis.

Fearing an escalation in the conflict, Canadian Secretary of State for External Affairs Lester B. Pearson recommended the establishment of a United Nations peacekeeping force, the first of its kind, to protect the canal and ensure access to all. The U.N. ratified Pearson's proposal on November 4, 1956.

Although the Suez Canal Company continued to operate the waterway, the U.N. force maintained access as well as peace in the nearby Sinai Peninsula. This was not the last time the Suez Canal would play a central role in international conflict, however.

Arab-Israeli War

At the onset of the Six-Day War of 1967, Nasser ordered the U.N. peacekeeping forces out of the Sinai Peninsula.

Israel immediately sent troops into the region, and ultimately took control of the east bank of the Suez Canal. Not wanting Israeli ships to have access to the waterway, Nasser imposed a blockade on all maritime traffic.

Notably, 15 cargo ships that had already entered the canal at the time of blockade's implementation remained trapped there for years.

U.S. and British minesweepers eventually cleared the Suez and made it once again safe for passage. New Egyptian President Anwar Sadat reopened the canal in 1975, and led a convoy of ships northbound to Port Said.

However, Israeli troops remained in the Sinai Peninsula until 1981, when, as part of the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty of 1979, the so-called Multinational Force and Observers was stationed there to maintain order and protect the canal. They remain in place to this day.

Suez Canal Today

Today, an average of 50 ships navigate the canal daily, carrying more than 300 million tons of goods per year.

In 2014, the Egyptian government oversaw at $8 billion expansion project that widened the Suez from 61 meters to 312 meters for a 21-mile distance. The project took one year to complete and, as a result, the canal can accommodate ships to pass both directions simultaneously.

Despite the widened route, in March 2021, an enormous container ship heading from China became stuck in the canal and blocked more than 100 ships at each end of the vital shipping artery. The incident disrupted global trade for nearly a week.

Sources

Canal History. Suez Canal Authority.
The Suez Crisis, 1956. Office of the Historian. US State Department.
A Brief History of the Suez Canal. Marine Insight.

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The Suez Canal is a man-made waterway connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Indian Ocean via the Red Sea. It enables a more direct route for shipping between Europe and Asia, effectively allowing for passage from the North Atlantic to the Indian Ocean without having to circumnavigate the African continent.

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Spain was a colony of France and England, but became a colonizer.

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Italy was a colonizer in the 19th century

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Ethiopia was never colonized, although Italy tried to colonize them for a brief amount of time.

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The two European countries who colonized South Africa were the Netherlands (1652-1795 and 1803-1806) and Great Britain (1795-1803 and 1806-1961)

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France's colonization of Congo began in 1885, but
The European conquest between France and The King of Belgium divided the Congo into two areas.

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Britain held control over Egypt and it was effectively colonized in 1882

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In 1664 the English captured the colony of New Netherland
The Netherlands then had extensive colonies in many regions

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France was a colonizer

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Vietnam became a French colony in 1877

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Germany became a colonial power late, merely occupying African soil in the 1880s.

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The French invaded and controlled Belgium from 1794–1814, and then created two colonies in Africa.

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Great Britain was a colonizer

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In 1521, the Spanish began colonizing the island of Guam, which led to the near complete genocide of the indigenous Chamorro population. The Spanish maintained colonial rule over Guam for more than 300 years. In 1898, possession of the island changed hands as the United States took control during the Spanish-American War.

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The U.S. annexed Hawaii as a territory in 1898.

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Originally part of the Australian colony of New South Wales, New Zealand became a separate colony, although still ruled by Great Britain, in 1841

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British settlement of Australia began as a penal colony in 1788

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Portugal was a Colonizer

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Japan was a colonizer

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Colonization in the Philippines was from Spain from 1565-1898, and the United States from 1898-1946 because of their victory in the Spanish-American war.

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India was colonized by Great Britain for nearly 200 years after 1757

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Hernán Cortés and a small group of Spanish soldiers conquered Mexico in 1521 and was ruled over for around 300 years

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Puerto Rico is one of the world’s oldest colonies, having been under some form of military occupation or protectorate status since 1508. Originally colonized by the Spanish, but t was annexed by the United States in 1898 as a part of the Treaty of Paris.

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Panama was discovered for Europe by Spanish Conquistador Rodrigo De Bastidas and his crew in 1501. The colonization of Panama would promptly follow.

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Colonized by Spain in 1511 and it was governed from Madrid