European Expansion & Conquest in 15th - 18th Centuries Notes

Reasons for European Expansion (15th-18th Centuries)

• Scramble for Africa Parallel: The reasons for European expansion parallel the Scramble for Africa.
• Dominance Factors: Europe's dominance was due to:
  • Technological advances
  • Political, economic, and religious motives of European states
  • Expansive funding of sea voyages and exploration
• Motivation: Western European states were motivated to grow their empires due to the ability to achieve global economic and political control.
• Other empires like the Ottoman and Ming were capable but did not pursue expansion as aggressively.

Technological Advances

• Superior Ships: European states developed superior ships.
  • Initially inferior to Arab and Chinese ships but surpassed them within 200 years.
  • Improved body and sail design allowed for longer distances and larger loads.
  • Portuguese modified the Arab Caravel for a superior ship design.
• Cannons: The addition of cannons provided naval supremacy.
• Navigation Tools:
  • Compass: Invented in the 15th century, enabled long-distance travel.
  • Astrolabe and Quadrant: Made long-distance travel achievable.

Political and Social Structure

• Strong Leadership: Successful voyages required strong and motivated leaders.
• Stable Government: A government that was stable and wealthy enough to withstand the costs of exploration was essential.
• Western European Advantages:
  • Centralized governments
  • Strong, stable, and expanding commercial sector
  • Ambitious merchant class

Economic Reasons

• Shift in European Life: Shift from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic seaboard.
  • Spain, France, Portugal, Britain, and later the Dutch dominated European political and economic life.
  • These nations had Atlantic coastlines and led in discovering new trade routes.
  • This countered the power of the Italians in the Mediterranean.
• Profit: The main reason for sea exploration was wealth accumulation.
  • Western powers wanted to develop profitable trade between Africa, Europe, and Asia.
  • Asian and Arab powers (Ottoman Empire) controlled the Great Silk Road.
  • European powers aimed for direct access to goods and wealth to avoid taxes and end dependency on Islamic-controlled trade.
• Raw Materials: Goal to gain direct, untaxed control of raw materials like gold, silver, ivory, and salt.
  • Colonial expansion led to the capture of land for commercial agriculture.

Religion

• Spread of Christianity: Desire to spread Christianity played a role.
  • This dated back to the Crusades.
  • Competition between Catholics and Protestants increased the urgency of voyages.

Knowledge

• Desire to Learn: Desire to learn more about the world.
  • European nations emerging from the Middle Ages wanted to explore the world.
  • Led to more accurate mapping and discovery, motivating monarchs to fund expeditions.

Treaty of Tordesillas

• Division of Claims: The Treaty of Tordesillas stipulated that the Spanish had claim to a large part of the ‘New World’ and Portugal was regarded as having claims in Africa, the Indian Ocean and Brazil.

Spain and Portugal - The Conquest of the Americas

• Competition: Both nations were interested in the Americas, leading to competition.
• Treaty of Tordesillas (1494): The Catholic Church determined colonial claims.
  • Highlights the mindset of Western powers assuming entitlement to new lands.

Spain and the Americas

• Process of Conquest:
  • Landed on Caribbean islands, but did not initially find wealth.
  • Settled, introduced crops and livestock from Europe.
  • Discovered sugar cane grew well.
  • Spanish forced indigenous people to work, learn customs, and accept their religion.
• Key Figures: Columbus, Cortez, and Pizarro led Spanish colonization.
  • Columbus: Originally set sail in 1492 to find a route to the East.
  • Landed at Hispaniola and initiated disregard for indigenous rights, sending some into slavery.
• Hernan Cortes (1519):
  • Landed on the coast and marched inland to attack the Aztec Empire.
  • Motivated by rumors of gold and silver.
  • Gathered supporters by promising treasure.
• Aztec Empire:
  • Strongest empire in central America at the time.
  • Emperor Moctezuma ruled over 10 million people.
  • Capital: Tenochtitlan (modern-day Mexico City) housed over 300,000 people.
  • Within 3 years, Moctezuma was dead, his empire plundered, and Tenochtitlan destroyed.
• Francisco Pizarro: Exploited the land of the Incas, similar to Cortez's impact.
• Results of Conquest:
  • Two great civilizations were destroyed.
  • Much history was lost.
  • Land passed to the Spanish conquerors.
  • The Spanish Crown extended control, with 20,000 Spaniards emigrating to the Americas during the 1500s.
  • Native population forced to accept the Spanish King and Queen, Catholic religion, and Spanish conquerors.
  • Spanish governor appointed to control the area (e.g., Mexico).

Effects on the Indigenous Population

• Long-Lasting Effects:
  • Native religion was driven underground.
  • Locals were forced to labor for the Spanish and were killed if they tried to escape.
  • Smallpox was introduced from Europe, decimating the Aztecs.

Encomienda System

• Description: Spanish settlers collected “tribute” (produce or labor) from local people.
  • Considered a legal form of slavery.
  • Local people lost land and independence and had to work for the Spanish.
• Wealth for Spain: Spain became very wealthy from gold and silver.
  • Miners (locals) worked under terrible conditions and were treated as slaves.
• Resistance to the System:
  • Monk Bartolomé de la Casas fought for the rights of local people.
  • Spanish government set laws restricting the system, but they were hard to enforce.

Slavery

• Introduction of Slaves: Approximately 1.5 million slaves were introduced in the Spanish Americas, bought from the Portuguese.
• Interbreeding: Over time, interbreeding occurred, creating a rigid social structure:
  • Spaniards at the top
  • Slaves at the bottom
  • Degrees of mixed ancestry in the middle (Negros, Zambos, Mestizos).

Factors Leading to the Defeat of the Aztecs

• Superior Weapons: Steel swords, guns, horses.
• Allies: Aztecs had many enemies who allied with the Spanish.
• Religion: Many Aztecs believed Cortes was an Aztec god.
• Natural Phenomena: Appearance of a comet and disasters made the Aztecs nervous.
• Smallpox Epidemic:
  • The disease was brought by the Spanish, and the Aztecs had no immunity.
  • Spread rapidly during the fight for Tenochtitlan.
    *Superior
    Weapons:
    Smallpox:
    Horses:
    Allies:
    Religion:
    Lack of
    Preparation:
    Attitudes to War:
    Weak leader:

Portugal and the Destruction of the Indian Ocean

• Portuguese Exploration and Trade:
  • Established trading posts along the west coast of Africa before the Spanish discovered the Americas.
  • Traded in slaves and gold.
  • Captured trading posts along the east coast of Africa.
  • Sent ships to Africa in the 1430s to trade for gold and find a trade route around Africa to the east.
  • Discovered the trade route in the Indian Ocean after rounding the Cape in 1488.
  • Made contact with the Mali and Songhai empires.
  • Exchanged brass, copper, and textiles for gold.
  • By 1500, the Portuguese controlled the flow of Gold to Europe.
• Settlements:
  • Established sugar plantations on the islands off the west coast of Africa.
  • Mainly settled in Mozambique and Angola.
  • Traders moved inland to the Zambezi valley for gold.
• Prazeros: Some traders received land grants from local chiefs in exchange for guns and military support.
  • Many Portuguese married African women, gaining power.
  • Portuguese only gained control over Mozambique in the late 1800s.
  • Invaded Angola earlier to control the slave trade.
  • Sent exiled convicts to live there.
  • Some settlers married African women in Angola, creating new communities.

The Links Between Colonialism and Slavery in Africa

• Portugal's Role:
  • Portugal was the first European country to start trading in African slaves.
  • This marked the beginning of the Atlantic Slave Trade.
  • The first slaves were taken to Portugal or Portuguese islands (Madeira and Sao Tome) to work on sugar cane plantations.
  • When the Portuguese started a colony in Brazil, they sent slaves there as well.
  • Brazil became the biggest market for slaves in the whole of the Atlantic Slave Trade.
  • Angola became a major source of slaves.
• Ties with the Congo:
  • The Portuguese established strong ties with the Congo, where the king welcomed them.
  • King Affonso of the Congo supplied slaves to the Portuguese in exchange for manufactured goods and military support.
  • He sent armies into neighboring kingdoms to capture slaves, becoming extremely wealthy.
• Decline of the King's Power:
  • Over time, his power declined as other local leaders also became involved in the trading of slaves and were no longer loyal to the king.
  • By the end of the 1500s, other European states had joined the slave trade, weakening the power of the Congo.
• Slave Treatment:
  • Slaves were bound together and marched to the ports.

The Impact of Slave Trading

• Scale and Duration: The Atlantic Slave Trade lasted nearly 400 years, with approximately 12 million African people sold as slaves.
• Negative Effects:
  • It had a terrible impact on the lives of these people and on Africa itself.
  • It had a negative effect on the economy, as many young, strong African men were taken from Africa.
  • The biggest number of slaves came from Angola, the Gold Coast (coast of Ghana), and the Slave Coast (coast of Nigeria).
  • The slave trade provoked slave raids, violence, and warfare between African kingdoms.
  • This spread fear and instability in Africa.
  • The nature of war changed in Africa as Europeans were trading guns for slaves.
  • African craft decreased as manufactured goods were introduced by Europeans.
  • The slave trade led to an increase of slaves within Africa.
  • Even in the 1920s, there were millions of people in Africa who were still slaves, even though slavery had been abolished.
  • Racist attitudes were heightened because of slavery as Europeans saw all African people as slaves.
  • Even after slavery was abolished, white people treated black people as inferior.

The Impact of the Portuguese on the Indian Ocean Trade

• Before the Portuguese: The east coast of Africa was part of the Indian Ocean trade network due to Arab traders who built up strong networks of trade by setting up the Swahili states.
  • They bought goods from China, India, and Arabia and exported ivory, gold, and other products from the interior of Africa.
• Portuguese Arrival:
  • The Portuguese ships arrived in the Indian Ocean in 1497 and discovered the Swahili states.
  • They seized control by force and established forts along the east coast of Africa.
  • They used these bases to trade with Zimbabwe and dominated trade in this area throughout the 1500s and 1600s.
  • (These forts were later taken over by the Arabs.)
  • Portugal also attacked the Muslim coastal forts, which became trading posts and military bases.
  • Portugal dominated the spice trade until the arrival of the Dutch and British 100 years later.
  • They also established settlements in Ceylon and the Spice Islands.

The Link Between Colonialism and Slavery

• Triangular Trade Network:
  • Slavery involved Africa, America, and Europe in a triangular trade network.
  • The impact on the 3 regions varied: in Africa, it removed the young and fit; in America, it laid the foundation for profitable plantation agriculture; and in Europe, it laid the foundation for economic growth through trade in products from the plantations.
  • For over 300 years, there was a trade in slaves from Africa across the Atlantic, with millions being sold in North and South America and in the Caribbean.
  • Slavery was the largest forced migration of people ever to have taken place, involving some 12 million people over 400 years.
• Cooperation of African Leaders:
  • In order for it to have been a success, it had to involve the cooperation of African leaders.
  • Slaves were often captured by fellow Africans and sold to traders at the coast in return for guns, cloth, and iron.
  • Permission to build forts on the west African coast was granted to European slave trading nations in return for payment.
  • Slaves were marched from the interior to the coast, sold, and then kept in the forts awaiting the arrival of the slave ships.
  • The ships were overfilled, and the slaves were chained, receiving inadequate food.
  • Disease was rife in the unsanitary conditions that existed below the decks.
  • On arrival at their destination, the slaves were auctioned to plantation owners, many being branded as a sign of their being owned.
• Impact of Slave Trading on Africa:
  • Africa lost millions of young, economically active people
  • Most slaves came from Ghana (Gold Coast), Nigeria (Slave Coast), and Angola, weakening their socio-economic potential.
  • It increased violence and warfare in Africa as kingdoms fought each other to control the trade and capture slaves
  • Guns exchanged for slaves increased the ferocity of war and the misery of the victims
  • European manufactured goods caused a decline in local crafts, and traditional goods and trade routes were abandoned
  • It increased slavery in Africa even after the Atlantic slave trade ceased
  • It led to the development of racist attitudes

The Dutch East India Company and Africa

• Dutch Takeover: In the 17th century, the Dutch took over from Portugal in dominating the spice trade through the activities of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) with its headquarters in Batavia (now part of Indonesia).
• Establishment at the Cape:
  • Ships traveling between Europe and Batavia needed a stop-off point for fresh food and water, and Table Bay was particularly convenient.
  • The Dutch sent Jan van Riebeek in 1652 to establish a fort and company gardens at the Cape.
• Confrontation with the Khoikhoi:
  • Despite the existence of the gardens, insufficient was produced, and so officials set up their own farms.
  • This led to direct confrontation with the Khoikhoi, of whom there were between 50,000 and 100,000.
  • They were nomads with no idea of land ownership, and their wealth was their herds.
  • With the Dutch occupation, they lost access to water and grazing as control of these resources went to the Dutch.
• Loss of Land and Freedom:
  • The Khoikhoi tried to avoid contact with the Dutch and were not willing to sell their labor.
  • However, some were forced into servitude, while others retreated further northwards or moved onto mission lands.
• Disease and Displacement:
  • In 1713, smallpox came via linen on a ship and decimated the Khoikhoi population.
  • The San, who were hunted for sport, also fled northwards into the Kalahari.
  • So once again, the pattern of colonization was witnessed – the dispossession and exploitation of indigenous people.

The Link with Slavery (VOC)

• Use of Slaves:
  • The VOC used slaves in Batavia, and because of the general inability to force the Khoikhoi to work, about 60,000 slaves were sent from Batavia, India, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), Madagascar, and modern-day Mozambique to the Cape.
  • Most of them lived in Cape Town, where they were servants, laborers at the harbor, quarries, or farms.
  • Some were woodcutters and herders on outposts.
• Demographics:
  • In the 18th century, there were more slaves than colonists.
  • Only in remote areas were Khoikhoi used as labor.
• Conditions for Slaves: Conditions for slaves were very much as they were in other parts of the world: they were forced to work on demand, and for long hours
  they received no pay
  they were sold at will
  they were not allowed to marry
  children were sold away
  children were automatically slaves
  females were often abused by their owners, but their offspring were still slaves
  treatment varied according to the owners – those closest to the home/most visible were more tightly controlled than those on the outposts
• Culture and Language:
  • Eventually, most slaves were born locally.
  • Slaves brought their language and culture, as well as their religious beliefs with them.
  • In SA, certain words and foods originated from the slaves e.g. piesang, blatjang and chutney, bobotie and samoosas.
• Islam:
  • Many slaves in the Cape were Muslims, and Islam spread among the slaves as it was a different belief system to that of their masters.
• Colonial Society: A colonial society was established where the indigenous population and slaves occupied the lowest rung.
  • It became a society based on segregation and stereotypes.

General Characteristics of Colonial Control

1. Political control over an indigenous society

   All of the European powers established political and legal control over the indigenous societies in America, Africa, or Asia.

   It meant traditional leadership was deprived of power and became ignored, and traditional patterns of leadership were replaced.

2. Economic and political dependence of colonies on the colonizing power was created.

   European powers came to dominate indigenous economies, and traditional crops or occupations were forced to make way for commodities/occupations that were beneficial to the colonizers.

   Because the colonizers provided money for development and indigenous peoples were made increasingly aware of the excitement of imported goods, colonies were tied more tightly to the European powers, and their independence was increasingly eroded.

3. Exploitation between imperial powers and the colony.

   The whole relationship between the imperial power and its colonies was based on what would benefit the imperialists and came to involve exploitation of resources and labor.

   Colonies no longer gained any advantage from their crops or mineral resources as the imperial power took all wealth for themselves, and the colony remained underdeveloped.

4. Racial and cultural inequality

   Colonialism gave rise to racial discrimination and the destruction of many indigenous cultural beliefs and practices.

   It has also been held responsible for racist attitudes in previously colonized areas because of the belief in the superiority of European people and culture.

Racial Classifications

• Negros: African slaves, at the bottom of the social scale.
  *Considered racially inferior
• Zambos: Children born to mixed slave and Indian parents.
• Mestizos: Children born to slave and white parents.

New World vs Old World