The USS Maine was a United States Navy battleship commissioned in 1895. It was built in response to the growing naval power of other nations and was intended to protect American interests in the Caribbean and Latin America. The ship was stationed in Havana, Cuba, during a time of rising tensions between the U.S. and Spain. On February 15, 1898, the USS Maine exploded in Havana Harbor, resulting in the deaths of 266 crew members. The cause of the explosion was unclear, but it fueled public outrage in the U.S. and contributed to the outbreak of the Spanish-American War. The incident remains a significant event in American naval history.