19

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Century Imperialism

Imperialism

• Imperialism means control by a powerful nation over an underdeveloped or weaker area. • The powerful nation is usually characterized by an advanced economy, strong government, and considerable military strength. • The underdeveloped area is characterized by untapped natural resources, a primitive economy, weak government, and limited military power. • Since World War II imperialism has also been called

colonialism.

Types of Imperialism

• •

Concession.

An underdeveloped country grants to foreign business interests specific economic privileges, or

concessions,

such as to build railroads, open mines, or drill for oil.

Sphere of Influence.

A powerful nation secured

exclusive

economic privileges in an underdeveloped region, thereby establishing a

sphere of influence.

Usually such an economic monopoly was respected by other imperialist nations

Types of Imperialism 2

• • •

Protectorate.

The native ruler remained in power outwardly, but the imperialist nation controlled affairs behind the scenes.

Colony.

A powerful nation formally took over and governed an underdeveloped area, which became its colony

Mandate and Trusteeship:

Under International Supervision' Following World War I an attempt was made to introduce reforms in the field of imperialism. Victorious nations in a war are granted control of colonies of the losing nation.

Reasons for 19

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Century Imperialism •

Industrial Revolution.

Industrialized nations desired colonies to provide

(a)

a cheap and certain supply

of raw materials, (b) markets

reserved for the mother country's manufactured goods, and (c) large profits with minimum risk on investment of

surplus capital.

Reasons for 19

th

Century Imperialism 2

•

Nationalism.

The advocates of imperialism used nationalist arguments to gain public support for empire building. They claimed that the parent country would (a) gain glory (b) secure essential military bases and war materials, (c) provide an outlet for surplus population, (d) safeguard missionaries spreading Christianity and other humanitarians promoting public health and education, (e) bring to the underdeveloped areas the blessings of the superior culture of the West burden." —a duty labeled by the British writer Rudyard Kipling as the "white man's

Imperialist Nations of the 19

th

Century Great Britain France Belgium Germany Italy United States Spain Portugal Japan Russia

MODERN IMPERIALISM: INTEREST IN AFRICA (SINCE MID-19TH CENTURY)

• •

Work of Explorers

. David Livingstone, Scottish missionary and doctor, spent many years (1840 headed an expedition in 1871 that "found" the geography, resources, and peoples of Africa.

–1873) serving the peoples and exploring the lands of central Africa. Henry M. Stanley, American newspaper reporter, presumably "lost" Livingstone. Later Stanley undertook additional explorations. In well-publicized reports these two men, as well as other explorers, described the

Other Groups Interested in Africa

the primitive Africans.

. The glowing reports of explorers reawakened Europe's interest in Africa. Business leaders saw economic opportunities. Missionaries wanted to convert the blacks to Christianity. Nationalists dreamed of empire building unopposed by

Imperialism in Africa

Great Britain • • • • • • 1. To Protect Trade Routes to the East. In 1815 Britain acquired from Holland the Cape Colony. It included Capetown, a port at southernmost Africa that served as a supply base for British ships enroute to India. In 1875 Prime Minister Disraeli purchased from the bankrupt ruler of Egypt sufficient stock to give Britain control of the Suez Canal. By sailing through the canal, British ships eliminated the long voyage around Africa. In 1882 Britain established a protectorate over Egypt. Britain's trade route to India —via Gibraltar, the Mediterranean Sea, the Suez Canal, and the Red Sea —became known as the lifeline of the British Empire.

Imperialism in Africa 2

Great Britain • • • • 2. To Gain a Rich Empire. Cecil Rhodes, foremost empire builder in Africa, dreamed of an unbroken north-south line of British territory to be linked by a Cape to-Cairo railroad. Rhodes' ambition became British policy. By 1914 the British dominated South Africa, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia), Kenya, Uganda, and the Sudan, as well as Egypt. After World War I, Britain acquired the final link for the railroad, the former German East Africa, or Tanganyika (now Tanzania).

Also, by the beginning of the 20th century, British control was firmly established in Sierra Leone, Gambia, the Gold Coast (now Ghana), and Nigeria —all on the west coast of Africa.

Imperialism in Africa 3

France • For economic gain and nationalist glory, the French gained a considerable African domain. • By 1847 the French had subdued the Moslem tribes and gained control of Algeria. • Between 1881 and 1912 France acquired Tunisia, Morocco, West Africa (now Benin, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, and Upper Volta), Equatorial Africa (now Chad, Central Africa, Congo, and Gabon), and Madagascar (now Malagasy).

Italy. • A imperialist late starter Italy controlled Eritrea, Italian Somaliland, and Libya by 1914. • In 1936 Italy conquered and annexed Ethiopia.

Imperialism in Africa 4

• • Portugal. As a 16th-century maritime power, Portugal early established supply bases and trading posts on the east and west coasts of Africa. In the mid-1970's Portugal granted independence to its African territories: Portuguese Guinea [now Guinea-Bissau], Mozambique, and Angola.

• • • Spain. By the early 20th century, Spain controlled Spanish Morocco (opposite Gibraltar) and Spanish Sahara on the Atlantic coast of Africa. In 1956 Spain ceded Spanish Morocco to newly independent Morocco.

In 1976 Spain surrendered Spanish Sahara [now Western Sahara] to Mauritania and Morocco.

• • • • Belgium. In 1876 King Leopold II and a group of Belgian capitalists founded a private company to manage the Congo region. The company reaped huge profits from rubber and ivory but shockingly mistreated the natives.

In 1908 the Belgian government took control of the Congo. In 1960 Belgium granted independence to the Congo (now Zaire).

Conflicts in African Imperialism

• Boer War Afrikaans (Dutch settlers in South Africa) called Boers, objected to British rule.

• Many took up arms against Britain and were eventually defeated.

Khartoum • Local native people (aboriginal) objected to British rule of Sudan. They chased the British out of southern Sudan.

Germany challenged France over Morocco (1905, 1911), but France retained control .

Imperialism in China

 The imperialist nations seemed poised to annex their respective spheres of influence, thereby threatening to dismember China.

Imperialism in China 2

Britain

, •By the Opium War (1839-1842), •(a) compelled China to allow imports of opium, a habit-forming narcotic, •(b) annexed Hong Kong, •(c) acquired the privilege of extraterritoriality. –This entitled a Briton accused of a crime in China to be tried in a British court.

France

•Annexed ( took over) Indo-China and gained a sphere of influence in southeastern China.

Germany

•Acquired a sphere of influence in northeastern China over the Shantung Peninsula.

Russia

•Annexed the Amur River district, the Pacific seaport of Vladivostok, and the central Asian territory bordering Sinkiang Province; secured a lease to ice-free Port Arthur; and established a sphere of influence over Manchuria.

Japan

, •By the Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895) annexed Taiwan (also called Formosa) and secured a sphere of influence over Korea. •In 1910 Japan annexed Korea.

•By victory in the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905), Japan took over Russia's lease to Port Arthur and Russia's sphere of influence in southern Manchuria.

Events in Imperialist China

• • • • • OPEN DOOR POLICY (1899) The United States was interested in China, not for territory, but for commerce.

Our trade, however, was threatened by the spheres of influence and the prospect of China's dismemberment. Thus they suggested the Open Door Policy which proposed equal trade rights in China for all nations. Later it also came to mean the preservation of China's independence and territory.

The "open door" was accepted by the imperialist nations in principle but not in practice. However, it earned us China's goodwill and for many years served as the cornerstone of American policy toward the Far East.

• • BOXER REBELLION (1900) The Boxers, a Chinese society encouraged by Manchu government officials, staged an uprising to drive out all foreigners and restore China to isolation. After an international military force suppressed the rebellion, the foreign nations demanded damages from China.

The United States successfully urged that China pay, not by loss of territory, but by a monetary indemnity. The other nations agreed but imposed excessive indemnities. The United States disapproved and returned half of its indemnity money to advance education in China and to enable Chinese students to attend American colleges.

Imperialism in

• By 1763 Britain had driven its chief European rival, France, from India. Thereafter, relatively few British military and civilian personnel gradually expanded British control throughout vast, heavily populated India. The British conquest was facilitated by India's backwardness and disunity.

Imperialism in India 2

FACTORS ENABLING BRITAIN TO DOMINATE INDIA 1. Military Inferiority. The Indians could not cope with the superior British military knowledge, training, and equipment.

2. Many Languages. The people of India were divided linguistically among more than a dozen main languages and over 200 dialects. Their many tongues reflected geographic and cultural separation.

3. Religious Divisions. Of India's total population, the Moslems constituted about 20 percent and the Hindus the overwhelming majority. Because of their divergent religious traditions and past conflicts, the Moslems and Hindus were bitterly antagonistic to each other 4. The British freed India of local wars, guarded its borders against invasion, and generally provided efficient rule. In response to Indian demands, Britain in 1919 permitted the Indian people limited self government.

India

1.

2.

Economic Control. Britain profited greatly from India, called the "brightest jewel of the British Empire." British manufacturers and workers depended upon India to purchase their textiles and machines. British merchants sought India's exports of raw jute and tea. British investors developed India's mineral resources, built railways, and established factories. By the mid-20th century, India was an important Asian producer of textiles, iron and steel, and cement.

By industrializing India, the British provided employment for many Indian workers. Also, the British government improved the country by public works: schools, roads, hospitals, and irrigation and sanitation projects. The Indian masses, however, continued to live close to the starvation level. The population almost doubled between 1850 and 1900, and job opportunities could not keep up with the increase in population. Handicraft workers could not compete with factories, and factory workers received extremely low wages. Farmers, the overwhelming majority in the population, were beset by uncertain rainfall, crude cultivation methods, high rents, and heavy taxes.

India 3

1.

Social Control. The British had little respect for the native Indian culture, particularly the barbaric practices of slavery,

suttee

(the Hindu custom of burning the widow on the funeral pyre of her deceased husband), and female infanticide (killing unwanted baby girls). The British halted these practices. Also, they instituted modern health methods, thus lowering the death rate, began English-oriented educational programs, and introduced the English language and English concepts of law, justice, democracy, and nationalism. However, the funds that the British made available for health and education were hardly adequate for India's massive needs.

Japan

OPENING OF JAPAN (1853 —1854) • In the mid-17th century, feudal Japan withdrew into isolation and for 200 years remained unaffected by Western civilization • In 1853—1854 Commodore Matthew C. Perry, heading an American naval squadron, convinced Japan to open its ports to American trade. • Soon afterward the leading European powers demanded and received similar trade rights.

Westernization of Japan

1.

Government

. The nobles removed the shogun (the highest lord) from power and transferred full governmental control to Emperor Mutsuhito. He assumed the reign name Meiji, meaning enlightened peace. Mutsuhito's reign (1867 —1912) and the accompanying transformation of Japan became known as the Meiji restoration. Under the Meijii restoration Japan began to become like western nations. They modeled their government like Bismarck’s Germany The emperor's authority was further strengthened by Shintoism, the state religion, which began to preach his divine origin.

2.

Military

. The government created a powerful British-type navy and Prussian-type army.

3.

Education

. The state began a compulsory public education system, and the Japanese became a highly literate people.

4.

Agriculture

. The nobles voluntarily surrendered their feudal privileges. The peasant farmers were no longer bound to the soil, and many became landowners.

5.

Industry

. The government encouraged a sweeping program of industrialization. Japan soon produced textiles, steel, machinery, and ships, and became a major trading and manufacturing nation.

Japanese Imperialism

Reasons. (a) With Japan deficient in natural resources, Japanese industrialists needed supplies of raw materials — especially cotton, iron ore, and oil; they also wanted secure markets for their manufactured goods. (b) Japanese nationalists sought honor for the emperor and glory for the military forces. They thought that colonies would raise Japan to the rank of a "major power." (c) Densely populated and lacking arable land, Japan wanted colonial outlets for its surplus population. (d) Japan's location placed the country within easy reach of eastern Asia's underdeveloped nations.

Japan

Early Imperialist Events a.

Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895). Japan overwhelmed China and acquired Taiwan and a sphere of influence in Korea. (In 1910 Japan annexed Korea.) b.

Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905). Japan, to the world's surprise, defeated Russia. By the Treaty of Portsmouth (New Hampshire), Japan acquired the southern half of Sakhalin Island, Port Arthur, and Russia's sphere of influence in southern Manchuria. (For promoting the peace treaty, American President Theodore Roosevelt received the 1906 Nobel Peace Prize.) c.

World War I (1914-1918). Although contributing little to the Allied victory, Japan acquired Germany's concessions on China's Shantung Peninsula and mandates over the former German islands in the Pacific.

Imperialism in the Pacific Ocean

 Because of the long trip to China and India over the Pacific Ocean, imperialist nations needed stop-off points along the way to refuel.

 The United States acquired Hawaii, the Philippines, and Wake Island.

 Great Britain used Australia as a prison and later as a colony.

 Germany, France, Holland and Portugal also acquired islands in the South Pacific.