World History Imperialism

Imperialism

A policy of extending a country's power and influence through diplomacy or military force.

Social Darwinism

The application of ideas about evolution and "survival of the fittest" to human societies - particularly as a justification for their imperialist expansion.

Racism

Belief that one race is superior to another

Direct Rule

system of colonial government in which the imperialist power controlled all levels of government and appointed its own officials to govern the colony.

Indirect rule

Colonial government in which local rulers are allowed to maintain their positions of authority and status

Protectorate

A country whose affairs are partially controlled by a stronger power.

Sphere of Influence

a country or area in which another country has power to affect developments although it has no formal authority.

Scramble for Africa

Sudden wave of conquests in Africa by European powers in the 1880s and 1890s. Britain obtained most of eastern Africa, France most of northwestern Africa. Other countries (Germany, Belgium, Portugal, Italy, and Spain) acquired lesser amounts.

Berlin Conference

A meeting from 1884-1885 at which representatives of European nations agreed on rules colonization of Africa

Belgian Congo

Exploited by Leopold II at Belgium under the Berlin Act, Leopold was supposed to act as a trustee. He violated the agreement and stripped the country of its resources.

King Leopold II

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).

La Force Publique

French term meaning "public force" and historically refers to the colonial military and police force of the Congo Free State and Belgian Congo from 1885 to 1960.

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.

Goodyear acquired a concession of approximately 20,000 acres in Sumatra, Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia), by agreement with the Dutch colonial administration and local rulers

British Raj

The name for the British government's military rule of India between 1858 and 1947.

British East India Trading Co.

A joint stock company that controlled most of India during the period of imperialism. This company controlled the political, social, and economic life in India for more than 200 years.

Famine

a severe shortage of food (as through crop failure) resulting in violent hunger and starvation and death

Cash Crops

a crop produced for its commercial value rather than for use by the grower.

British South Africa

Britain wants southeast Africa because it helps trade route with India; gain control and work with Boers

Rhodesia

African country named after Cecil Rhodes; now Zimbabwe

Cecil Rhodes

Born in 1853, played a major political and economic role in colonial South Africa. He was a financier, statesman, and empire builder with a philosophy of mystical imperialism.

De Beers Diamonds

(1832) transnational company that has a strong hold on the diamond industry; founded by Cecil Rhodes

Hut Taxes

type of taxation introduced by British colonialists in Africa on a per hut or household basis. It was variously payable in money, labour, grain or stock and benefited the colonial authorities in four related ways: it raised money; it supported the currency ; it broadened the cash economy, aiding further development; and it forced Africans to labour in the colonial economy. Households which had survived on, and stored their wealth in cattle ranching now sent members to work for the colonialists in order to raise cash with which to pay the tax. The colonial economy depended upon black African labour to build new towns and railways, and in southern Africa to work in the rapidly developing mines.

Localization

the creation and assertion of highly particular, often place-based, identities and communities the adaptation of a product or service for a specific local market

British Gold Coast

The name given to Ghana by British colonizers at the 1884 Berlin Conference.

African Company of Merchants

the company served as a crucial tool for the British Crown's commercial and imperial ambitions in West Africa, essentially acting as a precursor to formal colonization

German East Africa

Germany's protectorate in East Africa

German East Africa Company

a private company that, through its role in the Scramble for Africa, laid the groundwork for German colonization in East Africa

Forced Labor (Zwangsarbeit)

systems of compulsory work imposed by a dominant imperial power on the populations of its colonies or occupied territories to exploit their natural resources and labor for the benefit of the empire

"Native Reserves"

Areas in settler communities that native populations are forced to live

Askari

a soldier or policeman

Kipande/Arbeitsbuch

German word for "workbook" or "exercise book" work passes

French Indochina

Area of southeast Asia controlled by France during Imperialism. Includes Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam.

Michelin Tire Co.

establishing large rubber plantations in French Indochina (Vietnam) to secure a steady supply of natural rubber for its tire production

Colonie d' Exploitation

a type of imperialism where a foreign power controls a territory primarily to extract its natural resources and labor for the benefit of the metropole (the colonizing country)

Portuguese Angola

When Portugal occupied Angola

Human Zoos

were a combination of animals and human exhibitions during the late 1800s and early 1900s. These exhibitions were not meant just for entertainments, they were masterminded by scientists and designed to demonstrate the superiority of the white race. Human zoos taught society that racism was scientific and fed the ideologies of the nazis.

Sepoy Mutiny

an 1857 rebellion of Hindu and Muslim soldiers against the British in India

Hindu

A religion and philosophy developed in ancient India, characterized by a belief in reincarnation and a supreme being who takes many forms

Muslim

a follower of the religion of Islam

"Divide and Rule"

the deliberate intensification of divisions and conflicts by potential rulers; in the case of sub-Saharan Africa, by European colonial powers

Apartheid

Laws (no longer in effect) in South Africa that physically separated different races into different geographic areas.

The african committee

created by Britain, claimed to oversee fair trade and welfare but mainly protected European companies.

Wesleyan Methodist Mission

established schools that provided limited education to Africans, often focused on obedience, Christianity, and manual skills rather than political or technical knowledge

Sanitary Segregation

the separation of certain types of waste to prevent disease and the historical and modern-day segregation of public facilities based on sex or race

Dar es Salaam

defined by German and then British colonial rule, which established the city as a capital and administrative center, often imposing racial segregation in its urban planning

Racial zoning

local laws that defined where the different races could live

Herrenvolk

refers to the ideology that an ostensibly superior "master race" (Herrenvolk) has the right to dominate, displace, or exterminate other peoples as part of an expansionist policy

Mission Civilisatrice

missionaries goal to implant french culture, language and religion, equivalent to white man's burden

Can Vuong Resistance Movement

movement active from 1885 to 1889, that sought to expel the French and restore an independent Vietnam under Emperor Ham Nghi. While it was the first resistance movement to involve all levels of Vietnamese society, its lack of a unified command led to its eventual defeat by French forces

Disenfranchisement

Condition of being deprived of the right to vote

Indigenato System

designed to control and exploit indigenous populations by creating a legal and social distinction between "natives" and "citizens"

Assimilados

Portuguese for 'assimilated persons', it represented the Portuguese policy of assimilation as those deemed to be assimilated could have civil rights (although no political ones). However, these were very small in number and the rest of the natives were subject to labor and racist persecution. Most of these assimilated persons joined the Portuguese system and served it, but a small number turned towards anti-colonial thought and action. These figures pushed their respective colonies towards modern nationalism and establishing nationalist movements. They hoped for peaceful change but were forced to respond to the violence enacted by the Portuguese. This resulted in three wars of liberation which led to independence for Guinea-Bissau in 1974, Angola, Mozambique, Cape Verde and Sao Tome in 1975. It also led to a liberating revolution in Portugal in which the people of Portugal overthrew its dictatorship and established a parliamentary republic.

Musseques

densely packed shantytowns without running water or electricity

China

a country in East Asia that is the world's most populous and second-largest in land area

Trade surplus

when a country exports more than it imports

Trade deficit

An excess of imports over exports

Qing dynasty

(1644-1911 CE), the last imperial dynasty of China which was overthrown by revolutionaries; was ruled by the Manchu people: began to isolate themselves from Western culture,

opium

substance derived from the opium poppy from which all narcotic drugs are derived

Opium war

a conflict between Britain and China, lasting from 1839 to 1842, over Britain's opium trade in China

extraterritoriality

Right of foreigners to be protected by the laws of their own nation.

taiping Rebellion

a mid-19th century rebellion against the Qing Dynasty in China, led by Hong Xiuquan

Boxer rebellion

1899 rebellion in Beijing, China started by a secret society of Chinese who opposed the "foreign devils". The rebellion was ended by British troops.

Sino-Japanese War

a war between China and Japan for influence, power, and territory

Treaty of Nanking

Treaty that concluded the Opium War. It awarded Britain a large indemnity from the Qing Empire, denied the Qing government tariff control over some of its own borders, opened additional ports of residence to Britons, and ceded Hong Kong to Britain.

Open Door Policy

A policy proposed by the US in 1899, under which ALL nations would have equal opportunities to trade in China.

Spheres of Influence

Areas in which countries have some political and economic control but do not govern directly (ex. Europe and U.S. in China)

White mans burden

idea that many European countries had a duty to spread their religion and culture to those less civilized

Letter to Queen Victoria

a 1839 letter from Chinese official Lin Zexu to Queen Victoria, protesting the British opium trade in China

Crimes of the Congo

The period of imperialism in the Congo, particularly under the personal rule of King Leopold II of Belgium from 1885 to 1908, was marked by widespread and systematic crimes against humanity, including mass murder, forced labor, and brutal mutilation

Casement Report

An investigation into the brutality in the Congo

A long walk to freedom

Mandela's autobiography detailing his life and struggles.

Hind Swaraj

Gandhi's book (means Indian Home Rule) explaining the ideas behind his nonviolent methods of resistance; was published in South Africa but banned in India

The invention of the savage

is the title of a 2011-2012 exhibition at the Musée du Quai Branly that explored how European culture constructed the concept of the "savage" through various visual and exhibition formats, particularly "human zoos"

The Boer War

Lasting from 1899 to 1902, Dutch colonists and the British competed for control of territory in South Africa.

Scorched-earth policy

the practice of burning crops and killing livestock during wartime so that the enemy cannot live off the land

Concentration Camps

Detention centers for civilians considered enemies of the state

Emily Hobhouse

British suffragette who reported on the conditions in concentration camps.

The Great Game

Used to describe the rivalry and strategic conflict between the British Empire and the Russian Empire before WWI.

The Anglo-Afghan wars

Conflicts between the UK and Russia for control of Afghanistan in the 17th century

Shah Shuja

declared himself emperor, marches on Delhi, is defeated by Dara

Army of Retribution

after the battle of cawnpore, the british killed people who were not even mutineers, but residents of india; sent a message to the indians with the gruesome ways they killed them