Information from Heimler's History

Unit 6.1: Rationales for Imperialism from 1750 to 1900

Motivations for Imperialism

• Nationalism

• Social Darwinism

• Racial superiority that was said to be backed by scientifical proof (e.g. head size)

• The “White Man’s Burden”

Unit 6.2: State Expansion from 1750 to 1900

• A shift of focus towards imperializing Africa instead of the Americas

  Declining Colonial Power	Continued Colonial Power	New Colonial Powers
  Spain Portugal	Great Britain France Dutch	Germany Italy Belgium United States Japan

Independent State Takeovers

• Congo Free State: Imperialized by King Leopold II of Belgium (a newly independent state) in 1908 for raw materials such as rubber

• Indonesia: Imperialized by Dutch East India Company

• India: Imperialized by British East India Company

Methods of Imperialism

Diplomacy

Diplomacy: The act of making political agreements by means of dialogue and negotiation rather than warfare

Berlin Conference of 1985 (put together by Otto von Bismarck): Split African territory among interested European colonial powers (Scramble for Africa). This resulted in new African borders that split ethnic groups and brought rivaling groups together.

Warfare

At the beginning of the 19th century, France was in debt to Algeria, which supplied wheat. A French diplomat went to Algeria to negotiate payments, but the leaders of Algeria weren’t happy about it. Thus, the French responded by invading Algeria and, eventually, other parts of North Africa.

Settler Colonies

Settler Colonies: A colony in which an imperial power claims an already inhabited territory and sends it own people to inhabit it

Great Britain (remember the thirteen colonies in the United States): Set up colonies in Western Australia, South Australia and New Zealand, and sent British to inhabit them.

The British ended up bringing diseases that killed huge percentages of indigenous populations [e.g. Aborigines in Australia, Maori in New Zealand

Conquering Neighboring Territories

United States

• Manifest Destiny: US’ so-called “calling from God” to posses territories from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean

  • Moved indigenous people to reservations

  • Forced children to be “Americanized”

Russia

• Pan-Slavism: Unite all Slavic peoples under Russian authority, including all who, then liven under Ottoman and Austrian rule

Japan

• On its road to modernize (since the Meiji Restoration), Japanese authorities sought to expand Japan’s territory, increasing its sphere of influence to Korea, Manchuria, and parts of China.

Unit 6.3: Indigenous Responses to State Expansion from 1750 to 1900

Causes of Resistance to Imperialism

• Imposition of European education

  • Based on Enlightenment ideals (e.g. natural freedom) ↓

  • Motivated conquered peoples to seek freedom from colonial powers

• Increased nationalism

Methods of Resistance

Direct Resistance

• Indian Rebellion of 1857 (against British)

• Rebellion of Túpac Amaru II (in Peru)

• Yaa Asantewaa War

  • The fifth (and last) attempt by the British to conquer Asante

  • Yaa Asantewaa, the queen mother, gathered men to fight the British

  • However, the British won because of its “superior” military

The Creation of New States

• The Cherokee Nation, located on the eastern edge of the United States ↓

  • Indian Removal Act: removed native Americans from their homes in the East to the Oklahoma territory ↓

  • Cherokees, in the Oklahoma territory, established a new state with its own semi-autonomous government and judicial system (eventually marginalized by American westward expansion)

Religion

• Xhosa Cattle Rebellion

  • The British tried to take over the Xhosa in the Cape Colony

  • Diseases, likely brought by the Europeans, killed off Xhosa cattle

  • A prophesy stated that if the Xhosa killed all of their cattle, healthy cattle would spring up and the dead ancestors would drive the Europeans away

  • The starvation experienced by the Xhosa allowed for an easier takeover by the British

Unit 6.4: Global Economic Development from 1750 to 1900

Raw materials needed: copper, cotton, rubber, gold, diamonds

Transformed colonial economies to export economies to supply industrial production

Export Economies: economies that are primarily focused on the export of raw materials or goods for distant markets

Before colonization, many territories were subsistence (non-commercial) farmers. After colonization, imperial powers transferred colonies’ economies to suit their own interests (e.g. extraction of raw materials, growing cash crops)

• Great Britain got most of its cotton from the US prior to the Civil War. After the Civil War, Britain relied on Egyptian and Indian holdings so much so that, by the end of the 19th century, almost the entire Egyptian economy was dedicated to exporting cotton.

• Palm oil was harvested, by means of slave labor, from West Africa.

• Guano extraction in the Pacific and Atlantic Islands

⚠ Industrialization → Urbanization → More People → Greater Need For Food → Need to Import

Effects of Economic Development

• Profits from exports were used to buy finished manufactured goods from imperial states (closed markets)

• Conquered peoples’ growing economic dependence on colonial powers

Unit 6.5: Economic Imperialism from 1750 to 1900

Economic Imperialism: The act of one state extending control over another state by economic means

Examples

China

1. Treaty of Nanjing: Following the first Opium War, opened several new Chinese trading ports to the British; increased British influence in China ↓

2. Taiping Rebellion: a religious movement among Han Chinese that focused on getting rid of foreign Manchu leaders of the Qing Dynasty ↓

3. After 15 years, Qing military suppressed the rebellion ↓

4. However, lots of money was spent and twenty to thirty million people died ↓

5. China didn’t have the time or resources to industrialize ↓

6. The British and French took advantage of this weakness → Second Opium War

Port of Buenos Aires

Britain invested in Argentina to improve its conditions so that Britain could extract raw materials

A port was built in Buenos Aires, close to British factories → increased exports to Britain → dependence on British investment

Commodities

• Cotton:

  • India and Egypt

  • Exported to Britain

  • Dependent on external demand

• Palm Oil

  • Sub-Saharan Africa

Unit 6.6: Causes of Migration in an Interconnected World

Environmental Causes

• Increased population

• Famine in areas that weren’t industrialized

Economic Causes

• Industrialization caused the creation of new jobs

• Voluntary Migration

  • Irish, Italians, and Germans relocated to urban centers of America’s East Coast

  • Chinese relocated to America’s West coast [railroad industry]

• Forced / Semi-forced Migration

  • Slave trade

  • Convict labor (as opposed to putting convicts in jail, they would work for colonies)

  • Indentured servitude

Cheap transportation systems like railroads and steamships facilitated migration, both locally and internationally.

Unit 6.7: Effects of Migration

• Gender imbalance: More women than men in migrants’ home societies because most of the migrants were men seeking jobs

  • Women took on traditionally male jobs

  • In South Africa, 60% of its households were led by women

  • Women in Africa sold extra goods thus could gain financial independence

• Ethnic enclaves

  • Cultural Diffusion

• Nativism: a policy of prioritizing the protection of the interests of native born people over the interests of immigrants

  • Chinese Exclusion Act: Banned almost all Chinese immigration to the US.

  • White Australia Policy: Goal: To keep Australia White; Almost completely banned Asian immigrants to Australia.

Unit 6.8: Causation in the Imperial Age