WHAP Unit 6 Vocab

Imperialism

"White Man's Burden"

"White Man's Burden"

Def: poem by Rudyard Kipling that explained why white Europeans (and Americans) had a moral responsibility to take control of weaker nations

Sig: Christian missionaries were supportive of this moral duty, as they sought to bring Christianity to newly colonized lands and "civilize" the native people; spread racist and Eurocentric ideologies across the globe

1857 Indian Rebellion (Sepoy Mutiny)

Def: led by Indian soldiers against the British East India Company in protest of rules that threatened religious traditions, such as the sepoys' (Indian soldier) gun cartridges were greased in pig and cow fat, an insult to both Muslim and Hindu traditions.

Sig: the BEIC quickly put down the revolt, but led to Britain taking direct political control of India; the revolt was reflective of a trend during this time period revealing increasing discontent with imperial rule

Cherokee Nation

Def: an independent established tribal state established in 1833 in modern-day Oklahoma after the passing of the Indian Removal Act of 1830 (Trail of Tears) forced thousands of Cherokee from their original homeland.

Sig: it operated autonomously from the U.S. government, and established its own Supreme Court and Constitution. The Cherokee routinely fought for Native American rights and against the continued westward expansion of the U.S. government in the 19th century.

Chinese Exclusion Act (1882)

Def: was the first significant law restricting immigration into the U.S. when west coast Americans blamed declining wages & economic problems on this population; Congress passed the act which suspended their immigration for ten years and prevented them from becoming citizens until 1943.

Sig: led to a sharp decline in this population in the U.S. and laid the foundation for future immigration restrictions against other "undesirable" groups from the Eastern or Southern Hemisphere

Civilizing Missions

Def: genuine but condescending sense of responsibility among Europeans to improve the "weaker races" by Christianizing them, and providing them with a measure of education, good government, work discipline, health care, etc.

Sig: accompanied the notion of Social Darwinism and perpetuated the view of natives as "lazy" or "heathens; suppressed "native customs" that ran counter to Western ways of living in exchange for European values that were defined as "progress"

Economic Imperialism/Neocolonialism

Def: the policy in which one country gains control over another by making a weaker country dependent upon its manufactured goods while extracting its natural resources to supply its industry with raw materials (thus making the weaker country become an export economy)

Sig: allowed for western European countries & the U.S. to gain more wealth and power but it also severely limited the dependant country's ability to create it's own industries and therefore strengthen its economy independently, which is the source of political and economic issues in many third world countries today

Ghost Dance

Def: a ritual the Sioux performed to bring back the buffalo and return the Native American tribes to their land; was a form of resistance against American westward expansion

Sig: It signified native resistance against American expansionism and neocolonialism; resulted in multiple massacres of Native Americans in the U.S., as the American authorities misinterpreted the dance as a threat to the U.S. government.

Imperialism

Def: spurned by nationalist movements and racial ideologies, a policy of extending a country's power and influence through diplomacy or military force

Sig: led to an increased sense of competition as strong nations sought to expand their empires, creating new transoceanic empires in the Eastern Hemisphere; was a major cause of World War I

King Leopold II

Def: the King of Belgium (r. 1865-1909). He was active in encouraging the exploration of Central Africa and became the infamous ruler of the Congo Free State (to 1908). He was a key player in the Scramble for Africa, and developing the rubber and ivory trade from the Congo.

Sig: his brutal and violent tactics against the Congolese including cutting off the hands of workers who did not meet their rubber quota; these tactics led to the deaths of millions of Congolese and the eventual overtaking of the administration of the Congo Free State by the Belgian government.

Mahdist War (1881-99)

Def: a rebellion against the Khedivate of Egypt, and later the British by the Mahdist Sudanese in modern-day Sudan. Inspired by Islam, it was led by Muhammad Ahmad bin Abd Allah, who had proclaimed himself the "Mahdi" of Islam.

Sig: it was a decisive rebellion against the imperialist forces of Britain, but it resulted in the creation of the jointly-ruled state of Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, where the British and the Egyptians, where the British had de facto control over Sudan.

Scramble for Africa

Def: was the occupation, division and colonization of the African continent by European powers following the Berlin Conference, during the period of New Imperialism between 1881-1914

Sig: increased European power in Africa and domination of trade and the supply of raw materials; reduced native populations by disease and warfare; significantly weakened African states (effects seen in modern-day) with a lack of industrialized economies

Settler Colonies

Def: areas outside of Europe in which so many European immigrants voluntarily settled that their numbers were large enough to secure political dominance, even if they were the minority amongst the indigenous population.

Sig: these colonies included regions such as Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, where especially the British extended their dominance into the Pacific. It allowed for the quicker takeover of indigenous populations in these regions.

Social Darwinism

Def: theory based in part on Charles Darwin's theories of evolution and natural selection; the concept of "survival of the fittest" was was used to explain why some people where more successful than others

Sig: this racial ideology served as justification for white European capitalist powers to control other nations and justify imperialism

Sokoto Caliphate

Def: an independent Islamic Sunni Caliphate in West Africa, that came to occupy what is now modern-day Nigeria. Founded by Usman dan Fodio, an Islamic scholar, who conquered the Hausa people in the region, but was later overthrown by the British in 1903.

Sig: the Caliphate created a unified political and economic policy while promoting a reformist Islamic movement; when the British overthrew the Caliphate, they retained the position of Sultan, which continues to be recognized on modern Nigeria today.

Tupac Amaru II Rebellion (1780-1781)

Def: an uprising of native and mestizo peasants against the Bourbon reforms of the Viceroyalty of Peru. Though Tupac Amaru II was captured and executed early into the rebellion, the revolt continued for a few years after his death.

Sig: it lead to the deaths of at least 100,000 natives, but as a result the Peruvian government lessened the mit'a obligations of the natives and reorganized the government administration.

United Fruit Company

Def: American corporation that traded in tropical fruit (primarily bananas), grown on Central and South American plantations, and sold in the United States and Europe; until the 1970s, it dominated 90% of the global banana market

Sig: dominated portions of a dozen countries in the Western Hemisphere through repressive methods, both by supporting right wing dictators and using paternalism and violence to control workers; laid the framework for modern multinational corporations

White Australia Policy

Def: a series of political policies instituted by the Australian government to prevent the further immigration of non-European people to Australia; caused due to the competition between laborers in the gold fields and sugar plantations.

Sig: was heavily influenced by European ideals and racist ideologies such as the "White Man's Burden" and the Chinese Exclusion Acts

Xhosa Cattle-Killing Movement

Def: in 1856, a young girl in South Africa claimed to have a prophetic event, in which the spirit of a man told her that her entire village needed to kill off their cattle to have those to have been killed rise from the dead. This sent the region into a frenzy, and many people deliberately killed off their cattle and crops as a way to return their nation to its former glory.

Sig: one of the first instances of mass resistance to Imperial powers, this was a way for the Xhosa people to resist the British rulers and overall European imperialism in Africa. However, thousands of people died of starvation as a result.

Yaa Asantewaa War

Def: was the final war in a series of conflicts between the British imperial government and the nation of Gold Coast and the Ashanti Empire. Led by warrior Queen Yaa Asantewaa, who led an army to defiantly fight the British and neocolonialism in the area.

Sig: the British swiftly defeated the Asante people, which led to the Gold Coast and the Ashanti Empire becoming protectorates of the British crown; Yaa Asantewaa and other leaders were sent into exile. It is considered one of a series of major native rebellions against European imperialism.

Zulu Kingdom Rebellion (1872-1887)

Def: the Zulus began fighting in 1843, when Britain invaded Zululand; the Zulu king refused British demand that he disband his troops and the British fully invaded the country; led to a bloody conflict between the two sides

Sig: the Zulu were forced to surrender at the hands of the British, annexing their land into the colony of the Union of South Africa in 1910; was one of a series of African rebellion movements against imperialist powers; spread African resentment of European colonization