The New Imperialism Study Notes

The New Imperialism

Lecture Overview

This lecture delves into the phenomenon of New Imperialism and connects it to broader historical processes such as capitalism and global economics during the late 19th century.

Review: How did capitalism change the world?

  • For the enslaved: Discusses the implications of capitalism on slavery.

  • For peasants: Explores how peasant lives and economies were transformed.

  • For women: Looks at the impact of capitalist transitions on women's roles and rights.

Timeline of Slavery Abolition in the Americas

  • United States: Abolished in 1865.

  • Cuba: Abolished in 1886.

  • Brazil: Abolished in 1888.

The Redistribution of Land

  • Between 1876 and 1915, around 25% of the world’s land area was reallocated as colonies.

  • Full division of Africa and the Pacific among the British, French, Germans, Dutch, USA, and Japan occurred during this period.

Key Questions for Discussion

  1. Why did the industrial powers build new empires concurrently?

  2. How did empires alter the world?

  3. What were the political consequences of the new imperialism?

Key Question No. 1: Industrial Powers and Empire Building

  • The answer revolves around the phenomenon of deflation during the late 19th century.

The Deflationary Period (1876–1896)

  • Inflation: A scenario where prices rise due to excessive money supply chasing limited goods.

  • Deflation: A scenario where prices decrease due to insufficient money supply relative to the abundance of goods.

  • Prices in Great Britain fell by 40% during this period.

The Gold Standard

  • A monetary system where a nation's currency value is tied to gold.

  • Nations on the gold standard cannot increase paper money circulation without equivalent increases in gold reserves.

Who Did Deflation Hurt?

  • Farmers: Suffered due to declining agricultural prices.

  • Capitalist Class: Faced reduced profit rates.

  • This era (1880s) also witnessed the highest recorded levels of emigration to the United States, particularly from Italy, Spain, Austria-Hungary, and later, Russia and the Balkans.

The Reaction of the Capitalist Class

Responses included:

  • Protectionism: Raising tariffs by countries like Germany, Italy, the United States, and France between 1870 and 1890. Britain did not engage in this due to its position as the largest importer.

  • Corporate Consolidation: Establishment of corporations worldwide intended to raise prices and reduce competition, exemplified by Standard Oil.

  • Imperialism: Seeking to expand territories to alleviate financial stresses.

Why Did These Strategies Fail?

  • Technological advancements led to a significant increase in output, saturating markets and making it difficult to maintain high prices.

The Second Great Acceleration of Time

  • Highlighted through cultural references, such as Charlie Chaplin in Modern Times.

The New Imperialism

  • Capitalists aimed to utilize empires to create new consumer markets to combat falling prices.

  • The Berlin Conference of 1884-1885 was a critical event where European powers planned the division of Africa.

Technologies of Death

  • A notable quote states: "Whatever happens, we have got The Maxim Gun, and they have not."

  • The Maxim Gun was notably efficient, with a firing rate of 760 shots per minute.

Invention of the Term “Imperialism”

  • The terminology associated with imperialism emerged prominently during this era, particularly by the early 1900s.

Key Question No. 2: How Did Empires Change the World?

Effects included:

  • Intensified Resource Extraction: African economies became increasingly dependent on resource extraction, making it challenging to diversify. Price fluctuations of a single commodity could dictate economic conditions.

  • Tightening Global Connections: Imperial infrastructure facilitated faster travel and communication, leading to a swift exchange of ideas and cultural elements unexpectedly for Europeans.

Growing Nationalism

  • Governments promoted nationalism using tools such as public education and mandatory military service. For example, the slogan “Deutsche Frauen, deutsche Treue” exemplified this push for loyalty and national pride within Germany.

Key Question No. 3: Political Consequences of the New Imperialism

  • One significant political outcome was World War I.

The Structural Causes of WWI

  • The conventional narrative of WWI's origins often focuses on the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and Balkan conflicts; this lecture posits that understanding the new imperialism is crucial to understanding the war's causes.

The Wheels of War

  • In the 19th century, the link between economic growth and political power became apparent. Following Africa’s division, Great Britain's standing as a dominant industrial power changed with the rise of Germany, conveying the expectation of a shifted global balance of power. This led to new rivalries and alliances, influencing the onset of World War I.

Participants of World War I

  • Allied Forces: Great Britain, France, Belgium, Russia.

  • Central Powers: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria, Ottoman Empire.

The War’s Observers

  • W.E.B. Du Bois: An influential African American historian, activist, and founder of the NAACP; the first African American to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard University. His work, Darkwater, will be examined in upcoming discussions.

Key Takeaways

  • The deflationary crisis propelled capitalist responses: protectionism, consolidation, and imperialism.

  • The rise of new empires drastically influenced African economies towards resource extraction, enabled global integration, and stirred heightened nationalism, ultimately playing a critical role in precipitating World War I.