The Age of Imperialism Flashcards

Definition and Overview of Imperialism

• Formal Definition: Imperialism is defined as the policy of extending a nation's authority through territorial acquisition or by establishing economic and political influence over other nations.

• Chronological Context: These notes cover Chapter $27$, focusing on the "Age of Imperialism."

Motivations and Justifications for Imperialism

• Economic Drivers (The Industrial Revolution): As a result of the Industrial Revolution, European nations sought two primary assets:

  • Resources: Raw materials required to fuel expanding industrial production.

  • New Markets: Fresh populations to purchase mass-produced European goods.

• Additional Forces Driving Imperialism:

  • National Pride: Territorial expansion was seen as a measure of national greatness.

  • Racism and Social Darwinism: This involved a corruption of Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. It applied the concept of "survival of the fittest" to human societies, suggesting that certain races and nations were naturally superior to others.

  • The "White Man’s Burden": Based on the poem by Rudyard Kipling, this idea framed imperialism as a moral obligation for white Europeans and Americans to "civilize" non-Western peoples.

  • Missionary Work: Many missionaries traveled to foreign lands to promote Christianity and specifically sought to end the "evil practice" of slavery.

Analysis of Rudyard Kipling’s "White Man’s Burden"

• Verse Analysis: "Take up the White man's burden / Send forth the best ye breed": Kipling depicts imperialism not as an optional choice but as a heavy moral duty. He calls for the strongest and smartest members of the white race to dedicate their lives to this cause.

• Verse Analysis: "Go bind your sons to exile / To serve your captives' need": This serves as "rhetorical gymnastics" by portraying the colonizer as the one making the sacrifice. It suggests that moving to foreign lands to rule is a form of "exile" undertaken specifically to "serve" the people they have conquered (the "captives").

• Verse Analysis: "To wait in heavy harness / On fluttered folk and wild": The "heavy harness" is a metaphor for the burden of governance and responsibility. By calling the native populations "fluttered" and "wild," Kipling characterizes them as chaotic and unable to rule themselves.

• Verse Analysis: "Your new-caught, sullen peoples / Half devil and half child": This infamous line dehumanizes the colonized by describing them as dangerous/evil (part "devil") and ignorant/immature (part "child"). This served as a primary justification for $19\text{th}$-century expansion, claiming people were too "childlike" for self-government.

Conditions in Africa Before Imperialism

• Societal Diversity: The continent consisted of hundreds of ethnic and linguistic groups.

• African Resistance: Powerful African armies successfully kept Europeans out of the interior for centuries.

• Natural Barriers: Europeans were initially unable to navigate African rivers effectively.

• Economic Control: Africans controlled their own internal trade networks.

• The "Dark Continent": Africa was referred to as the "Dark Continent" because little was known about its interior by Europeans until the mid-to-late $19\text{th}$ century.

Key Figures and Events in the Exploration of Africa

• Dr. Livingstone: A Scottish missionary who traveled into central Africa in the $1860\text{s}$ to promote Christianity.

• Henry Stanley: An American explorer hired to find the missing Dr. Livingstone. He successfully located him at Lake Tanganyika in $1871$, famously greeting him with, "Dr. Livingstone, I presume?"

  • Stanley later became an explorer in his own right, tracing the Congo River.

• King Leopold II and the Belgian Congo:

  • King Leopold II of Belgium hired Henry Stanley to secure land in the Congo region.

  • Leopold brutally exploited workers for the production of rubber from rubber trees.

  • In $1908$, the Belgian government stripped Leopold of his control over the land due to the extreme level of atrocities; it is estimated that more than $10,000,000$ Congolese were killed during his reign.

Factors Promoting Imperialism in Africa

• Technological Superiority:

  • The Maxim Gun: The world's first automatic machine gun gave Europeans a decisive military edge.

  • Steam Engines/Steamboats/Railroads: These technologies allowed Europeans to navigate rivers and cross land much faster, maintaining close communication and supply lines between the colony and the home nation.

• Medical Advances: The development of the drug Quinine allowed Europeans to combat the threat of Malaria, which had previously devastated explorers in tropical regions.

• Internal Divisions: African unity was hindered by massive linguistic differences, social divisions, and ongoing wars between tribes.

The Partition of Africa: The Berlin Conference ($1884$)

• Purpose: $14$ nations met to establish formal rules for the partition of Africa to avoid war between European powers.

• The Rule of Claims: Any European country could claim African territory by notifying other nations and demonstrating physical control of the area.

• Representation: No African leaders or representatives were present or invited to the conference.

• Geopolitics ($1878$ vs. $1913$): By $1878$, European presence was limited to coastal outposts. By $1913$, almost the entire continent was under European control, except for Ethiopia (Abyssinia) and Liberia.

Conflict in South Africa: The Boer Wars

• Participants: The British vs. the Boers (descendants of Dutch settlers).

• Dates: Two conflicts occurred between $1880$ and $1881$, and from $1899$ to $1902$.

• Cause: The discovery of diamonds and gold in the region led to increased tensions and conflict.

• Outcome: The British won the wars, leading to the unification of the Union of South Africa in $1910$.

Forms and Methods of Imperial Control

• Forms of Imperialism:

  • Colony: A territory governed internally by a foreign power.

  • Protectorate: A territory with its own internal government but under the external control of an outside power.

  • Sphere of Influence: An area where an outside power claims exclusive trading or investment privileges.

  • Economic Imperialism: A less-developed but independent country controlled by private business interests rather than a government.

• Management Methods:

  • Indirect Rule: Uses local government officials and allows for limited self-rule.

  • Direct Rule: Foreign officials are brought in to rule; there is no self-rule for the locals.

  • Paternalism: A policy of providing for the basic needs of the people but not granting them any rights.

  • Assimilation: The idea that local populations would eventually adopt the culture of the imperial power and become like them. This was largely abandoned as Europeans began viewing colonists as inherently inferior.

British Imperialism in India

• Early Presence: The British and French both established trading posts in India in the $1600\text{s}$.

• British East India Company: Defeated Indian forces (allied with France) in the French-Indian War in $1757$, effectively removing the French from India. The Company remained the leading power in India until $1858$.

• The "Crown Jewel": India was considered Britain’s most valuable colony because:

  • It supplied raw materials for the Industrial Revolution.

  • It provided a massive market for British-manufactured goods.

  • Legal Restrictions: Laws prevented Indians from producing goods that would compete with British-made products.

The Sepoy Rebellion ($1857$)

• Sepoys: Indian soldiers serving in the British army.

• The Catalyst: Rumors spread that the cartridges for the new Enfield rifle were greased with beef and pork fat.

  • Religious Significance: Hindus consider the cow sacred, and Muslims do not eat pork.

• The Conflict: Most Sepoys refused to use the cartridges, leading to a rebellion. While the rebellion was widespread, most Sikh Indians remained loyal to the British and became the core of the British Army in India.

• Consequence: The British suppressed the rebellion and transitioned from Company rule to Direct Rule of India in $1858$. British power lasted until Indian independence in $1947$ following World War II.

Mechanics of the Enfield Rifle

• Overview: A percussion-lock rifle produced near London, introduced to the British army in $1853$. It was superior to the Brown Bess smooth-bore musket because "rifling" (grooves inside the barrel) made it more accurate and gave it greater range.

• Loading Procedure:

  1. The soldier must tear open the greased end of the paper cartridge with his teeth.

  2. The powder is poured down the muzzle of the rifle.

  3. The bullet (wrapped in the paper case) is thrust into the muzzle.

  4. A ramrod is used to push the paper, bullet, and powder to the bottom of the barrel.

Mohandas K. Gandhi and the Path to Independence

• Background: A lawyer who became a social activist.

• Leadership: Led the Indian Independence movement in the first half of the $20\text{th}$ century.

• Methodology: Practiced Civil Disobedience, also known as passive resistance or non-violence.

• Assassination: In $1948$, Gandhi was assassinated by a fellow Hindu who believed he was granting too much power to Muslim leaders in the newly independent Indian government.

Imperialism in China

• Self-Sufficiency: Before the $19\text{th}$ century, China was largely self-sufficient and limited foreign trade to a single port at Guangzhou.

• Opium Trade: To force their way into the Chinese market, the British introduced Opium, causing widespread addiction.

• The Opium War ($1839$): Outraged by the drug trade, the Qing Emperor clashed with the British at sea. The British modern navy defeated China’s outdated "junks."

• Treaty of Nanjing ($1842$): China was forced to cede control of Hong Kong to the British.

• Extraterritorial Rights: Subsequent treaties granted foreigners rights that meant they were not subject to Chinese law in port cities.

• Sphere of Influence: China was eventually carved into spheres of influence where foreign nations (Britain, France, Germany, Japan, Russia) controlled trade.

• Open-Door Policy ($1899$): Initiated by U.S. official John Hay, declaring China open to trade with all nations to protect American interests.

Resistance in China: The Boxer Rebellion ($1900$)

• Causes: Resentment over foreign privileges and the growing influence of Christianity.

• The Boxers: Officially known as the "Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists."

• The Conflict: Boxers took control of Beijing for several months, shouting "Death to the foreign devils."

• International Response: A multinational force of $19,000$ troops attacked and defeated the Boxers in August $1900$. The force included troops from:

  • Britain

  • United States

  • Australia

  • British India

  • Germany

  • France

  • Austria-Hungary

  • Italy

  • Japan

Imperialism and Modernization in Japan

• Initial Contact ($1853$): U.S. President Millard Fillmore sent a letter "asking" Japan to trade, delivered by four modern steam-powered warships.

• Treaty of Kanagawa ($1854$): Japan opened two ports to trade with the United States.

• Meiji Era ($1868–1912$): Under Emperor Mutsuhito, the era of "enlightened rule" began. Japan decided the best way to counter Western influence was to modernize.

• Modernization Models:

  • Government/Army: Adopted Germany’s strong centralized government and disciplined army model.

  • Navy: Modeled after the British Navy.

  • Education: Modeled after the United States system.

• Expanding Empire: By the early $20\text{th}$ century, Japan became an imperial power itself, expanding into Taiwan ($1895$), Korea ($1910$), and Manchuria ($1931$).