Final Review Sheet Africa Fact Sheet Imperialism Japan Fact Sheet Imperialism China Fact Sheet Imperialism India Fact Sheet Imperialism Southeast Asia Fact Sheet Imperialism

Imperialism Flashcards

What were the Economic Interests of European Powers in Africa?

European powers were interested in Africa for its raw materials such as peanuts, timber, hides, and palm oil.

What were the Political and Military Interests of European Powers in Africa?

European nations competed for power and prestige. Controlling more territories meant greater influence of the country and for strategic advantages.

What were the Social and Cultural Motives of European Powers in Africa?

There was a belief in racial superiority of Europeans, and they thought that it was the “White Man’s Burden”, which justified the colonization of the “less civilized” people.

What was a Political Effect of Imperialism in Africa?

Borders were created without regard to the ethnic and cultural groups, leading to conflict that would come in the future.

What was an Economic Effect of Imperialism in Africa?

The exploitation of Africa’s resources benefited the European economies while devastating the local populations.

What was a Social and Cultural Effect of Imperialism in Africa?

Traditional societies were disrupted. There was a lost of cultural heritage and identity, and many Africans were subjected to harsh treatment.

What were the Economic Interests of Western Powers in Southeast Asia?

The region was rich in resources like spices, rubber, tin, and oil, which were highly wanted by the Western powers.

What were the Strategic Interests of Western Powers in Southeast Asia?

Control over Southeast Asia provided new strategic advantages for trade routes. It also provided a Western country national prestige.

What were the Social and Cultural Motives of Europeans in Southeast Asia?

Similar to Africa, there was a belief in cultural superiority of Europeans and spreading Western values including Christianity was their goal.

What was a Political Effect of Imperialism in Southeast Asia?

Governments which were previously established, prior to the Western nations’ arrival, were ignored and an European-dominated government was established.

What was a Conflict that resulted from Imperialism in Southeast Asia?

Western nations sought to claim lands in Southeast Asia without the consent of the native people who lived there already, leading to guerilla warfare and revolts.

What were the Industrial Interests of Japan?

Japan had very limited resources on their set of islands, imperializing to get better resources such as raw materials.

What were the Nationalist Motives of Japan?

Japan wanted to prove their imperial power to the rest of the world and become a great power.

What was a Political Effect of Japanese Imperialism (Russo-Japanese War)?

Japan acquiring a strategically placed naval base.

What is a Protectorate?

A state or nation that is protected by a more powerful country militarily. Britain established protectorates over Nigeria and Egypt. France established protectorates over Tunisia and Morocco.

What was The Berlin Conference?

A meeting between the European nations who desired control over East Africa. British and German claims for territory in East Africa were recognized, and Portugal could claim an area called Mozambique.

What was Belgium's Role in the Congo?

Henry Stanley tried to convince the British to bring down settlers to the Congo River basin, but they refused. He then turned towards Belgium and King Leopold II, who hired Stanley to create settlements in the region. Later on, Leopold ended up with territories around the Congo River.

What was the Boer War?

The Boer War was fought between the British and the two Boer Republics: the Orange Free State and the South African Republic (Transvaal) because of British imperial interests, such as extracting diamonds and gold, which was located in the Transvaal.

What is the Suez Canal?

Europeans wanted to create a canal that would connect east of Cairo to the Mediterranean and Red Seas, completed in 1869.

What Significance do Ethiopia and Liberia have?

Ethiopia and Liberia remained the only two free nations in Africa because Liberia had been created as a homeland for the formerly enslaved people in the United States and Ethiopia had defeated Italy in battle.

Who were the Zulus?

The group of people who were living in the area that the Boers, the Dutch, lived in. The Boers and Zulus battled constantly, but they were under a respected leader named Shaka in the early 1800s, who had created a small empire for the Zulus.

What was the cause of the Opium Wars?

Opium (an addictive drug from Northern India) allowed the British to make money on every transaction. However, the Chinese quickly realized the addictive properties of opium and appealed to the British to halt their opium exportation. They did not comply, leading the Chinese to create a blockade that would begin a series of armed conflicts known as The Opium Wars (1839-1842, 1856-1860).

What were the Unequal Treaties in China?

China suffered extreme losses, forcing them to open up trade to Britain in five new ports (Shanghai, Canton, Ningbo, Fuzhou, Xiamen), by the agreement known as the Treaty of Nanjing (1842). Furthermore, China gave Britain the ownership of Hong Kong. Europeans lived in their sections and were subject not to Chinese laws but to their laws, a practice known as extraterritoriality.

What was the Hundred Days of Reform?

In 1898, Emperor Guang Xu attempted to make changes to the Chinese government in a period known as the 100 Days of Reform, creating more chaos.

What was the Boxer Rebellion?

A revolution led by a large group of boxers determined to fix the issues plaguing China; it was eventually crushed by troops from various European powers known as the eight-nation alliance and resulted in massive indemnities or reparations for China, making them weaker than ever.

How did the Qing Dynasty weaken?

Corruption would run rampant throughout the Qing government. Officials were often stealing from government budgets for their own gain. Nepotism instead of meritocracy was common, especially regarding important governmental roles.

What was the Taiping Rebellion?

The lack of action from the government would cause peasants to revolt such as during the Tai Ping Rebellion (1840-1864), an armed peasant uprising led by Christian convert Hong Xiuquan that captured many lands under the control of the Qing government, eventually resulting in an all-out civil war lasting fourteen years.

Who was Matthew Perry?

In 1853, Commodore Matthew Perry arrived in Tokyo Bay with an American fleet of 4 warships, asking the Japanese for better treatment for shipwrecked sailors on the Japanese islands.

What was the Meiji Restoration?

Beginning in 1858, more treaties allowed for further trade and living areas for other Western countries. Many samurai groups were opposed to the new foreign relations. In 1868, the leaders of the alliance overthrew the shogunate, beginning the Meiji Restoration.

What was the Russo-Japanese War?

Japan launched a surprise attack on the Liaodong Peninsula and defeated Russia's Baltic fleet, reclaiming the peninsula. Japan’s victory shocked the world; they had become one of the great powers.

What was the Sepoy Rebellion?

An Indian revolt against the British in 1857. The immediate cause of the revolt was a rumor that the sepoy’s new rifle cartridges were greased with cow and pig fat.

What was the result of the Sepoy Rebellion?

The failed rebellion helped fuel Indian nationalism, and Queen Victoria took control of India as the empress, and the Indian people were now her subjects.

What occurred in French Indochina?

Vietnamese authorities persecuted French Christian missionaries because they thought it was a threat to Confucianism; the French seized the city of Hanoi and conquered Northern Vietnam under indirect rule, combining it with Southern Vietnam into a French Protectorate.

How was Thailand kept independent?

Thai rulers King Mongkut and his son King Chulalongkorn kept Thailand independent amidst Britain and France's attempts at colonization.

What happened in Burma?

Conflict spanning from 1824 -1885 leads to the Burmese monarchy to collapse. In 1886, Britain establishes full control (direct ruler) making it a province of India.

Who Founded Singapore, and why?

Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles established Singapore as a trading post for the British East India Company, which grew in prosperity.

What happened in the Philippines after the Spanish-American War?

Spain gave their Philippine colony to the US after their defeat in the Spanish-American War. Emilio Aguinaldo proclaimed president after the Spanish-American war, but fought American forces because he didn't want a change in colonial rulers, but actual independence, causing the Philippine-American War.