Second Wave of Imperialism: Methods of Imperial Expansion

Methods of Imperial Expansion in the Second Wave of Imperialism (1750-1900)

Setting the Stage: Developments

  • Change in Geographical Focus:
    • Previous period (1450-1750): European imperial expansion focused on the Americas, Asia, and Southeast Asia.
    • Second wave (1750-1900): Imperial expansion heavily focused on Africa, Asia, and Southeast Asia. Less focus on the Americas.
    • In the First Wave, Africa's main focus was to establish trading posts along the coast to trade for natural resources and enslaved laborers.
  • Change in Imperial States:
    • Previous period: Spain and Portugal were the first movers in building maritime empires, but start to decline in this period, losing colonial holdings.
    • Great Britain, France, and the Dutch continued to play important roles.
    • New players in this period: Germany, Italy, Belgium, the United States, and Japan.

Four Major Methods of Imperial Expansion

1. State Takeovers of Private Colonies

  • Some colonies were controlled by individuals or businesses, not governments.
  • Example: The Belgian Congo
    • King Leopold II of Belgium privately controlled the Congo Free State.
    • Leopold claimed humanitarian intentions (converting indigenous people to Christianity, Western education).
    • Reality: Brutal exploitation of the Congo for raw materials, especially rubber, leading to millions of deaths.
    • Public outrage led the Belgian government to take control in 1908.
  • Other examples include the Dutch government taking over Indonesia from the Dutch East India Company and the British government taking over India from the British East India Company.

2. Diplomacy and Warfare

  • Focus on the colonization of Africa.

    • Diplomacy: Making political agreements through dialogue and negotiation, not warfare.

      • Example: The Berlin Conference (1884-1885)

        • European powers were already claiming parts of Africa, leading to the "Scramble for Africa."
        • Competition among states fueled the new wave of imperialism. The perception was that holding the most territory equaled being a great power.
        • Otto von Bismarck of Germany called the Berlin Conference due to the competition over Africa potentially leading to warfare.
        • European powers divided almost the entire African continent into colonial holdings.
        • No African leaders were invited to the conference.
        • Borders were drawn in Africa, dividing united ethnic groups and bringing together rival ethnic groups.

    • Warfare:

      • Example: The French in Algeria

        • France was in debt to Algeria for wheat supplies.
        • The Algerian ruler hit the French diplomat three times with a fly swat during tense negotiations.
        • France responded by sending 35,000 troops to invade Algeria.
        • Despite resistance, the French expanded their power into Africa through warfare.

3. Establishment of Settler Colonies

  • The imperial power claims an inhabited territory and sends its own people to live there.
  • Examples: British settler colonies in the South Pacific (Australia and New Zealand)
    • Massive waves of British settlers populated the regions.
    • Establishment of neo-European society.
    • Introduction of diseases that killed many indigenous people, such as the Aborigines in Australia and the Māori in New Zealand.

4. Conquering Neighboring Territories

  • Exploiting and killing people next door.
  • United States:
    • Westward expansion driven by Manifest Destiny (belief that it was their God-given right to possess all territory from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean).
    • Louisiana Purchase in 1803 and wars with Mexico and Spain.
    • Displacement of indigenous peoples onto reservations.
    • Policies of forcible assimilation, especially of children, in American-style boarding schools.
  • Russia:
    • Pan-Slavism: Militant political doctrine to unite all Slavic peoples under Russian authority.
    • Expanded into neighboring territory.
    • Established a trading post on the Pacific coast in 1860.
    • Claimed the steplands of the Khalkha nomads and expanded into three U.S. states to the south.
  • Japan:
    • Rapid industrialization during the Meiji Restoration.
    • Modernized military.
    • Expanded its sphere of influence over Korea, Manchuria, and parts of China.