Transcript Africa - cloudfront.net

“New Imperialism” 18801914
19th Century Empires
“Old Imperialism”
(16th-18th Centuries)
Africa and Asia: trading posts
A.
Portuguese and Dutch: spice trade

New World
B.



European conquest of land overseas led to colonization
& settlement
People of European ancestry made up large % of pop.
in U.S., Canada, Latin Am., Australia
Spain, Portugal, France, and England
Imperialism in the 19th Century:
“New Imperialism”
A.
After 1850, a new kind of European expansion:


Not marked by widespread settlement
New objective: to control territories for economic
reasons & national prestige

Nations competed for empires in the new “Age of
Imperialism” (1880s – 1914)
European Emigration, 1815-1932

>60mn. Emigrants, primarily from rural and
poor areas in Britain, Ireland, Italy, and
Germany to European-inhabited lands:




The Americas
Australia and New Zealand
Siberia
Jews went to the US and least likely to
return to homelands due to persecution
New Imperialism
In 1800 Europeans controlled 7% of
world’s territory, but by 1914 they
controlled 84%
 British Empire: controlled 25% of world’s
population and 20% of world’s territory

II. The Scramble for Africa, 1880s - 1914
1.
2.
3.
Euro. had ties in N. Africa & along coasts since set up
trading posts in 15th C.
Large interior of continent unknown until 1880s (Livingstone
& Stanley)
1800 – 1875 exploration of interior


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4.
Resources: oil, gold, rubber, tin…
Geo. features: waterways, rivers
People: over 700 ethnic groups, each w/ own language &
culture (divisive)
Trade brought limited contact w/ Arabs & Eur., therefore no
way for sub-Saharan Africans to predict conquests
1880 – 1900 tone & tempo of Afro-Euro contact
changed…WHY? …Gold, Glory, and God
A. Economic motive (“Gold”)

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GB leading ind. nation until 1860s (France, Germany, and
U.S. caught up)
Promoted “free trade” policy: had cheapest goods, largest
quantity & largest merchant marine to ship to Africa
1870s saturation of goods in W. Eur. led to need for new
markets: Africa
Nations now established protectorates, colonies that other
Eur. nations could be excluded from or taxed
Eur. believed interior had huge quantities of raw materials
2. “Glory”: National Pride

Europeans viewed empire as a measure of
national superiority; possession of a colony in
Africa meant national prestige in Europe
“Belgium is a small country, with a small people” and
needed a colony to boost its image…King Leopold



They wanted to plant their flag on as much of the
world as possible.
Colonies in Africa & Asia were desired to make
European nations great.
Sought new military bases to protect imperial
interests against other European powers
3. “God”: The Missionary Factor

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Europeans wanted to Christianize as much
of the world as possible.
They believed European rule was the best
way to end the Arab slave trade.
They wanted to “civilize” the “savages” and
“barbarians”
Part of the religious revivalism of the mid19th century amongst the middle class
More successful in sub-Saharan Africa than
in Islamic North Africa
Dr. Livingstone: first
white man to do
humanitarian and
religious work in south
and central Africa
Henry Stanley: sent to
find Livingstone; reports
spurred European
interest in Africa
4. Social Darwinism



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Nations did not question the right
to conquer lands & people
They saw industrial might as
“progress” & were bringing
“civilization” to other people (the
“White Man’s Burden” to do so)
Advances in W. technology led to
a belief in superiority of W.
civilization
Convinced Europeans it was in the
best interests of Africans to be
introduced to W. civilization
“The White Man’s Burden” (1899)

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
Rudyard Kipling (1865 –
1936)
English poet
Justification for European
imperialism was the idea
that the “more advanced”
peoples had the moral
responsibility to raise
“ignorant” native peoples
to a “higher level of
civilization”
Poem addressed to the
United States
III. How Were Europeans Able to
Conquer?
A.
European Advantages:
1.
2.
3.
Superiority of weaponry:
armed steam ships,
muskets, machine guns,
breech-loading rifles
Technology-the steam
engine made it possible
explore & colonize deep
within the interior of the
continent.
Quinine: the cure for
malaria provided
Europeans with a longer
life span to stay and
conquer.
B.
African Disadvantages:
1.
2.
Diversity of population
made it difficult to unite to
fight against Europeans
Low level of technology
made it difficult to resist
advanced weaponry.
Military Technology

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
Hiram Maxim, an American, invented the “Maxim Gun”
Invented in 1889
World’s 1st automatic machine gun.
The Steam Engine


Railroads and steamboats
allowed Europeans to
advance into the interior of
Africa.
Technology allowed
Europeans to maintain
close communications
within a colony as well as
b/w the colony & the
mother country
Current Geographic Malaria Locales
Effects of Malaria
Pre-”Scramble”: The Congo
1.
2.
1879: Stanley
established trading
posts and signed
treaties with African
chiefs giving King
Leopold II of Belgium
control of the Congo
Materials: rubber and
ivory
Belgian Congo
3.
King
Leopold II
Savage treatment of
indigenous peoples
horrified the Belgian
Parliament, who took
the Congo away from
Leopold as his
personal possession
British Egypt, 1883
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Turkish general Muhammad Ali
in power (hereditary dynasty);
built strong, well-trained army
and tried to westernize
1863: Ismael the Magnificent
extravagant spending on
modernization led to foreign debt
British and French take over
Egypt’s debt and economy
Britain took over management of
Suez Canal in 1875
Rise of Egyptian nationalism:
British put down rebellion in
1882 and troops remain – a
“protectorate” until 1956
The Suez Canal
IV. Berlin West Africa Conference
1884-5 Divides Africa
Convened by Germany’s Bismarck and France’s Jules
Ferry to set rules for annexing African territory
Purpose: to prevent war amongst Eur.
14 Eur. nations attended; no African rulers present
Outcome: annexation of African terr. only recognized when
“effective occupation” demonstrated
1.
2.
3.
4.
1.
5.
6.
Slavery and the African slave trade was abolished
By 1914 only Liberia & Ethiopia remained independent
Conference successful in avoiding Eur. war w/ 1 major
exception: South Africa
Imperialism in Africa: 19th – 20th C.
Britain: The Sun Never Sets on the
British Empire
1.
2.
3.
4.
Queen Victoria of
England (r. 1837 – 1901)
Ruled over the largest
colonial empire, including
African colonies in
Nigeria, Egypt, South
Africa, among others.
India was her “crown
jewel” of the empire.
The “most enlightened”
of the imperialist powers
British Imperialism: 19th-20th C.
Sudan
 Battle of Omduman
(1898) British
defeated Sudanese
with the machine gun
 Fashoda Incident:
near war with France
over Sudan
 Resolves the “Egypt
Question” over
legality of British
occupation
South Africa
 Cecil Rhodes: PM
of Cape Colony
 “Cape-to-Cairo”
dream
Cecil Rhodes
Boer War, 1899-1902
a.
Sparked by discovery of
gold & diamonds in Boer
(Dutch settlers) state of
Transvaal
 Clashes b/w Afrikaners
and British miners led
to attempt by Rhodes
to annex Transvaal
b. British defeated the Boers
and created the Union of
S. Africa
 Transvaal, Orange
Free State, Cape
Colony, and Natal

By 1890, Britain controlled
Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda,
and Zanzibar
French Empire
1.
The French colonized much
of North & West Africa,
including Morocco, Algeria,
Tunisia, and French W.
Africa.
Germany
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Late to imperialize:
 Concerns – unification
and surrounding
countries (Russia and
France)
1884: Cameroon and
Togoland in West Africa
1885: Tanganyika
(German East Africa)
Namibia: SW Africa
Italy
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Last to colonize
Eritrea on the Red
Sea
Ethiopia:
 1896: Battle of
Adowa
 First country to
lose to Africans
1912: Libya taken
from Turks
New Imperialism in Asia: China
The Opium War, 18391841
 Chinese refused to open
trade restrictions w/ West
 Uneven trade b/w British
& Chinese causing drain
on British silver supply
 British needed a product
the Chinese needed on a
large-scale: Opium
 Britain occupied several
coastal cities and forced
China to surrender
Lin Zexu’s Letter to Queen Victoria
1839
Let us ask, where is your conscience? I have heard that
the smoking of opium is very strictly forbidden by your
country; that is because the harm caused by opium is
clearly understood. Since it is not permitted to do harm to
your own country, even less should you let the harm be
passed on to other countries—much less to China! Of all
that China exports to foreign countries, there is not a
single thing that is not beneficial to people....Is there a
single article from China that has done any harm to
foreign countries? [Sources of Chinese Tradition, 2nd
Edition, Volume 2, p. 203]
Treaty of Nanjing, 1842
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4 treaty ports opened to
British trade (Canton and
Shanghai)
British gained Hong Kong
(under British rule until 1997)
By 1844, U.S. & other foreign
nations gained extraterritorial
rights, exempting foreign
citizens in China from Chinese
law
A 2nd Opium War (1856-60)
opened 6 more ports to the
British and French
Treaty of Nanjing, 1842
Article 2. Determined the opening of five Chinese cities—Canton, Fuzhou, Xiamen,
Ningbo, and Shanghai—to residence by British subjects and their families “for the
purpose of carrying on their mercantile pursuits, without molestation or
restraint.” It also permitted the establishment of consulates in each of those
cities.
Article 3. “The Island of Hong Kong to be possessed in perpetuity” by Victoria and
her successors, and ruled as they “shall see fit.”
Article 4. Payment of $6 million by the Qing “as the value of the opium which was
delivered up in Canton.”
Article 5. Abolition of the Canton Cohong monopoly system and permission at the
five above-named ports for British merchants “to carry on their mercantile
transactions with whatever persons they please.” The Qing government was also
made to pay $3 million in settlement of outstanding Cohong debts.
Article 6. Payment to the British of a further $12 million “on account of the
expenses incurred” in the recent fighting, minus any sums already received “as
ransom for cities and towns in China” since August 1, 1841.
Article 8 (the “most-favored nation” clause) from the “Supplementary
Treaty of 1843”: “Should the Emperor hereafter, from any cause whatever, be
pleased to grant additional priveleges or immunities to any of the subjects or
citizens of such foreign countries, the same priveleges or immunities will be
extended to and enjoyed by British subjects.”
[cf. Jonathan D. Spence, The Search for Modern China, Second Edition (New York: W.
The Tai Ping Rebellion, 1850-1864
1. Largest, most threatening
rebellion to face Qing
2. Led by Hong Xiuquan
3. Primarily a nationalist, antiManchu rebellion
4. The British, in a multinational army, helped
suppress the rebellion
Spheres of Influence
1. China’s perceived
weakness brought more
foreign nations in to gain
greater control over
Chinese economy
2. By late-19th century, much
of eastern China subject
to domination of British,
French, German,
Japanese, and Russian
3. US worried about being
shut out of trade,
proposed an Open Door
Policy in 1899
Boxer Rebellion, 1900
1. Secret society of Chinese
nationalists:
Society of Harmonious
Fists (Boxers)
2. Rebellion in N. China
killed Europeans and
attempted to crush
western and imperialist
influences
3. Defeated by a multinational army, but spirit of
nationalism emerged &
idea of resisting more
foreign intervention
4. By 1911, Qing are
overthrown by Sun Yat
Sen’s nationalist KMT
party
British India
Controlled by the
British East India Co.
after the Seven Years
War (1756-1763)
 1857-58: The Sepoy
Mutiny led to shift in
control of India from
BEIC to British
Parliament

British Reforms
Education to train
Indian civil servants
 Economic:

–
–
–
–
–
Irrigation
RR
Cotton industry
Tea
Jute plantations
Indian National Congress, 1885
Educated, Hindu
nationalist party
demanding selfgovernment and
equality
 Leaders:

– Mohandas K. Gandhi
– Jawaharlal Nehru
French Indochina
 Protectorate of France in
1880s and 1890s
 South Sea: Tahiti and
New Caledonia
Germany
 Marshall Islands
 Samoa
Japan
1. 1853 US Commodore
Matthew Perry sails into
Edo (Tokyo) Bay with 4
steamships & bearing a
letter from President
Fillmore “requesting” the
opening of Japanese
ports to US trade
2. Described the benefits of
“mutual trade” & U.S.
desire to use Japan as
re-fueling station in
Pacific
Meiji Restoration
Modernization prevented Japan
from China’s fate
 Russo-Japanese War, 1904
– Korea and Manchuria
– Japan destroyed the Russian
fleet off the coast of Korea
– Treaty of Portsmouth, 1905
gave Japan major
concessions and land gains
– Long-Term:
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



Russia sought Balkan land
Russian Revolution
Japanese annexation of Korea
Asian revolts of 20th century
Anti-Imperialism: J.A. Hobson
Imperialist powers need new
markets for domestic goods
and that businessmen and
bankers heavily influence
governmental policies, thus
imperialism only benefits
wealthy
IF governments forced businesses
to raise wages, European
consumption would increase
and less need for markets
abroad
Socialists agreed with Hobson’s
link of capitalism and
imperialism
Lenin saw imperialism as leading
V. Types of Rule:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Colony: region governed internally by a foreign
power (ex. French Indochina)
Protectorate: country self-governing, but under
control of outside power (ex. British Nigeria)
Sphere of Influence: area where an outside
power claims exclusive trading rights (ex. China,
Liberia)
Economic Imperialism: independent, but less
developed nations controlled by private
business, not government (ex. Hawaii, Latin
America)
Types of Control:
A. Indirect Rule: (Britain & U.S.)
1. Cheap & effective in ruling large populations
2. Traditional chiefs used to carry out basic
functions:

3.
4.
Judged local disputes, but not allowed to try serious
crimes or disputes involving Europeans
Use of customary law lessened impact on people
Belief: in time, the local pop. would govern itself
B. Direct Rule: (France)
1. Policy of “assimilation” to turn subjects into French
2. Full legal & political rts., all schools, gov. offices modeled
after French system (forced to abandon traditional culture)
3. Growth of the Empire made policy unworkable: 15mn. people
became “sujets” w/ no legal or political rights
4. African chiefs who spoke French allowed to act in local gov

5.
6.
Tax collection, recruit labor, put down rebellion
Destroyed African customary law
French believed Africans were child-like & could not run their
own country “paternalism” (provided for needs, but gave no
rights)
VII. Impact of Colonial Rule
A.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Positive:
Reduced local warfare
Improved sanitation, built hospitals,
schools
Built infrastructure: RR, dams,
communication lines, roads…
Life spans & literacy rates improved
Economic growth
B.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Negative:
Loss of independence
New diseases (smallpox)
Thousands died in resistance movements
Famines due to cash crops
Loss of traditional culture
Europeans drew boundaries w/o thought to
combining or dividing groups leading to
continuing conflict