Lecture 4: Colonialism and Economic Development

What are the four patterns of origin of colonialism?

1) political or militaristic pathway

2) commercial pathway

3) inland-settler pathway

4) island-settler pathway

what is the definition of colonialism?

domination of a people or area by a foreign state or nation

What are the four types of colonialism?

1) settler colonialism

2) exploitation colonialism

3) surrogate colonialism

4) internal colonialism

What was the Atlantic Slave Trade?

• export of enslaved Africans from Atlantic coast of West Africa, c. 1500- c. 1870

• began during 16th century after arrival of Portugeuse merchants

• volume of trade peaked in the 18th century and decline gradually after abolitions in the early 19th century

• 1500-1860- 4.9 million Africans landed in Brazil

  • demand was higher there as it was easier to gain freedom

What was the role of slavery in growth in exporting countries ?

Nunn’s view that countries with high slave export damaged economic growth in the second half of the 20th century

What shaped policies in colonies?

Gardner and Roy identify 3 explanations in differences in colonial administration

1) European policies

2) indigenous policies

3) local conditions eg geography and environment

What did European colonial policy consist of?

• Acemoglu et al argue mortality rate of settlers determined which set of institutions were adopted → extractive state or neo-Europe

• La Porta et al look at legal systems exported to colonies, showing that common law colonies performed better than Roman law colonies

• Gardner and Roy point out presence was minimal and underresourced

What is Acemoglu et al’s idea of extractive states?

• a small elite controls power and resources, using that power to extract wealth from the majority of the population without investing in broader development or inclusive institutions.

  eg no protection of property rights and no checks or balances

What were neo-European states?

states that tried to replicate European institutions

How did indigenous policy shape colonial policy?

• portrays colonial rule as a series of interactions between colonial states and indigenous actors

• responses by indigenous elites and producers in colonies independent of the demands of the colonial stat

  • provided trade to finance it

• but not often huge→ skeletal institutions and relied on indigenous integration and hierarchy to survive

How did local conditions shape colonial policy?

• geography and environment influenced decisions of a range of actors

• different types of administration in response to this

  • eg South America climate and soils favoured production of crops by large plantations→ high inequality areas

what were the links between colonisation and globalisation?

• most colonial economies depended on the export of a few commodities in which they specialised

• supplied food, raw materials, minerals, animal products

• colonisers exported manufactured goods, capital and technologies

• currency unions, preferential trade and investment needed to sustain trade

How did colonisation impact the IR in Britain?

• Britain needed access to raw cotton inputs for textile industry and needed growing markets to sell to

• imports of raw cotton came from slave plantations in North America

• imported food to feed workers in manufacturing in England