II. What was the impact of imperial expansion on international relations?

1. Germany: Bismarck initially supported French imperialism in Africa as a way to distract France and create tension between France and Britain; with the decline of Ottoman Empire (the “sick man of Europe”) in the Balkans, Bismarck feared a war between Russia and Austria (wars almost broke out in 1878 and 1885-1887) over the Balkans might turn into a general European war with Germany fighting France again over Alsace and Lorraine; Bismarck resigned in 1890; his successor, General Von Caprivi, worked to form an alliance between Britain and Italy and Austria to counterbalance Russo-French alliance, but Germany’s construction of a large navy (part of Kaiser Wilhelm II’s Weltpolitik “world policy”) to assist in obtaining colonies and Germany’s “place in the sun” in the 1890s alienated the British and caused a naval arms race. 

2. France: France saw Germany as its top threat in Europe, and Britain as its top competitor in the world. After the Fashoda crisis France sought greater cooperation with Britain and entered the Entente Cordiale with Britain in 1904 (mutual recognition of the British protectorate in Egypt and French plans for a protectorate in Morocco). 

3. Britain: the British empire was experiencing imperial overstretch; policy makers wanted to establish ententes with France, Germany, and Russia; wanted to protect Britain’s vital interests in Egypt, South Africa, and India; pursued balance of power politics in Europe; Britain began maneuvering to contain German naval power.

4. Russia: was defeated by Japan in 1905, which weakened its position in Asia and Europe; Russia now focused on Europe and the Balkans; in the 1907 Anglo-Russian agreement Russia gave up claims to Afghanistan, recognized Chinese sovereignty over, and British interests in Tibet, and divided Persia into northern (Russian) and southern (British) zones of influence; this agreement marked the beginning of the Triple Entente.  

The Moroccan Crises (1905, 1911): Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, hoping to split up the Entente Cordiale, supported Moroccan independence in 1905 and demanded the resignation of French Foreign Minister Delcasse; the 1906 Algeciras Conference recognized France and Spain’s special interests in Morocco, but all nations had free access to Moroccan trade; war between France and Germany was averted, but in the aftermath Germany developed the Schlieffen Plan and France and Britain began moving toward a formal military alliance. In 1911, Germany sent a gunboat to the Moroccan port city of Agadir to challenge the French occupation of Morocco and break up the Triple Entente; the British opposed the German move and the British strengthened ties with France and Russia to isolate Germany.

F. Disputes with China over imperial expansion

• Britain: The British defeat of China in the Opium Wars (1838-42, 1856), and the Treaty of Nanking (1842) and the Treaty of Tientsin (1860) allowed the British to sell opium in China, ceded Hong Kong to Britain, and opened Chinese coastal cities to foreign traders and missionaries; more concessions to European nations followed and Europeans carved out coastal enclaves in China to control Chinese trade; China experienced a period of major internal rebellion (Taiping Rebellion) and instability between 1850 and 1864.

• Russia: in the mid-19th century Russia wanted to control Manchuria and have a warm water port in Korea, but was opposed by British naval power; The completion of the trans-Siberian railway in 1891 (planned to end at Port Arthur) changed the dynamics, and the British looked to Japan to counterbalance Russian power in Asia. 

• Japan: helped suppress a rebellion against China in Korea in 1894; Japan refused to withdraw troops from Korea and subsequently defeated China in 1895 in the First Sino-Japanese War; the 1895 Treaty of Shimonoseki, supported by the British to thwart Russian aims in Asia, ceded protectorates to Japan in Korea, Taiwan, the Pescadores, and the Liaodong Peninsula (Port Arthur); Germany and France supported Russia in Asia (Triplice), and Japan had to return the Liaodong Peninsula to China and allow a joint Russo-Japanese protectorate over Korea. 

The scramble for China: Germany seized Kiaochow in 1897 for a coaling station; Russia seized (leased for 25 years) Port Arthur and Dalian in 1897; Britain leased Weihaiwei; France leased Kwang Chowan (for 99 years!); an anti-Western and anti-missionary rebellion in China (Boxer Rebellion, 1898-1901) led to military intervention by Russia, Japan, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Austria, and the USA; the Chinese Emperor was forced to pay an indemnity and accept the lease of more Chinese ports by the western powers; Britain and Germany supported an “open door” and did not want China to be partitioned, which the USA supported for equal access to Chinese trade; Britain entered an alliance with Japan in 1902 to counter Russian influence (now controlled Manchuria, Korea, and Northern China) in Asia.  

G. Tension between Britain and Germany in South Africa

• South Africa was seen as vital to British security because of its access to India; when Britain annexed the Dutch Cape Colony in 1814, the Boers (South Africans of Dutch descent) migrated (Great Trek) during the 1830s and formed the Orange Free State and Transvaal, which joined the British Empire in 1877 for British protection against the Zulus, but revolted in 1880 in the First Boer War; the Boers were given home rule autonomy in 1881.

• Germany annexed South West Africa in 1884; Britain gave Cecil Rhodes’ company the the right to colonize and govern east Africa north of Transvaal (called Rhodesia) in 1889; gold was discovered in Transvaal in 1886, and was followed by a rush of British prospectors; Boer president Paul Kruger looked to Germany to help defend Transvaal independence; German investment poured into Transvaal.

• In 1895, Cecil Rhodes launched the failed Jameson raid into Transvaal to overthrow the Boer government; the raid and the Kaiser’s public support (Kruger telegram) for the Transvaal Boer government created tensions between Germany and Britain; the Kaiser later claimed his provocations of the British were at the insistence of his foreign secretary.  

• Kruger declared war in Britain in 1899, starting the Second Boer War 1899-1902; he thought France, Russia, and Germany would intervene, but they were prevented from doing so by the royal navy and imperial differences; Britain defeated the Boers, but the war became costly; the war was condemned internationally and was unpopular at home due to the 22,000 British soldiers killed, the 30,000 Boer civilians that died in concentration camps, and British scorched earth tactics. 

• The war convinced British policymakers to increase military spending and obtain allies. 

  H. Attempts to resolve tensions between imperial nations before the League of Nations was established in 1920:

  • Nations resolved problems and communicated policies through their ambassadors; conferences would be held to solve major problems between the great powers with treaties, conventions, Final Acts, or agreements.

  • Rival imperial claims sometimes almost led to war between European powers, such as in the 1898 Fashoda Incident between Britain and France, but no major wars were fought between the European powers between 1871 and 1914.  

  • The Berlin West African Conference, 1884: to decide the future of the Congo; led to the 1885 Treaty of Berlin; gave control to Leopold’s IAC; set rules for the partitioning of Central Africa–free trade zone, missionaries and explorers were to be protected, banning of the slave trade. 

  • The Hague Conference, 1899, 1907: in 1899, an international court system was established to arbitrate disputes between the great powers; banned the use of force to collect debts in 1907; planned to meet again in 1914, but the war began.

  • Imperial rivalries led to a system of shifting alliances and a naval arms race, and ultimately set the stage for WWI. 

    I. Imperial Rivalries and WWI

    • Serbia wanted to detach the southern slavs from Austrian control; Russia backed Serbia; a militant Serbian nationalist assassinated the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne in 1914; Germany backed Austria’s ultimatum to Serbia–Austria would be allowed to investigate inside Serbia, or war; Russia backed Serbia and the alliance system was put into motion causing a general war in Europe.