Changing nature and extent of trade

Question 1

Protectionism

Answer 1

Taxes or prohibitions on imports and exports designed to protect domestic producers. By restricting or prohibiting the sale of foreign goods, governments provide an advantage to their own produces, although a lack of competition can lead to high prices

Question 2

Mercantilism

Answer 2

A policy of government intervention to ensure that the value of exports is more than the value of imports- known as a positive balance of trade. To acquire gold or silver bullion through positive balances of trade.

Question 3

Free trade

Answer 3

An alternative system to mercantilism whereby import and export taxes are minimised to allow merchants to compete across borders. The removal of restrictions favours merchants who can produce the cheapest goods, but risks driving others out of business.

Question 4

Scramble for Africa

Answer 4

A period of rapid imperial expansion (1881-1914) during which European powers divided and colonised almost the entire continent of Africa.

Question 5

Triangular trade

Answer 5

A trade route between 3 regions- slave trade between Europe, West Africa and the Caribbean.

Question 6

Quaker

Answer 6

A religious minority who translated their Christian faith into progressive political positions, e.g. abolition of the slave trade, opposition to war and charity to the poor.
They organised the first abolitionist movement in Britain in 1783.

Question 7

Grass-roots campaign

Answer 7

A type of political lobbying aimed at winning the support of the public rather than directly influencing politicians. The Quakers and William Wilberforce organised one to increase pressure on parliament.

Question 8

The Slave Trade Act

Answer 8

1807- abolished the transatlantic slave trade

Question 9

Continuation of slavery

Answer 9

Although the slave trade had been abolished in 1807, slavery in the West Indies continued until 1834.

Question 10

Positive balance of trade

Answer 10

A trade surplus

Question 11

Negative balance of trade

Answer 11

A trade deficit

Question 12

Inflation

Answer 12

A reduction in value due to oversupply

Question 13

Adam Smith

Answer 13

Published his book ‘An inquiry into the nature and causes of the wealth of Nations’ in 1776. He argued that import and export tariffs prevented trade from operating effectively by constraining merchants.

Question 14

The adoption of free trade

Answer 14

It was a slow process. Ireland demanded free trade and Adam Smith recommended that they should be allowed to trade freely. In 1779, the government removed trade restrictions on Ireland.

Question 15

Problems in Ireland

Answer 15

Britain had tariffs to reduce Irish competition. But the Irish economy grew due to large estates, excellent grazing land and cheap labour. By 1790, in Dublin, exports reached £4.9m and imports £3.8m. This indicated a positive balance of trade.

Question 16

Corn laws

Answer 16

Designed to keep grain prices high by excluding foreign grain from British markets.

Question 17

Tories

Answer 17

They supported traditional social values. A set of individuals characterised by their support of the monarchy and a traditional way of life. They held power from 1783-1830.

Question 18

Whigs

Answer 18

They represented more progressive policies, such as electoral reform, free trade and the abolition of the slavery. They were initially dominated by wealthy landowners influenced by enlightenment ideals, but overtime attracted manufacturers and middle-class support. They gained power in 1830.

Question 19

Representation of the People Act

Answer 19

1832- Introduced by the Whigs. It made constituency boundaries more representative and extended the electorate by around 250,000 people.

Question 20

Anti-Corn Law League

Answer 20

1838- It was founded by advocates of free trade and developed into a powerful lobby by holding mass meetings attended by thousands of men where protectionist policies were denounced.

Question 21

Conservative Party

Answer 21

Founded by Sir Robert Peel in 1834. An uneasy coalition of ‘old tories’- who opposed freed trade and the ‘Peelites’- who supported it. In 1841, they secured the majority and Peel became Prime Minister. Over 1,200 imports tariffs were abolished between 1842-1846.

Question 22

Navigation Acts

Answer 22

They were passed between 1651 and 1673 to protect British interests and govern trade.
Colonial goods produced for export could only be carried on English-built and owned ships.
Certain goods (sugar, cotton, tobacco) had to be shipped to an English port even if the were to be exported to another European destination.
European imports to British colonies needed to land at an English port and then be reshipped onwards.

Question 23

Salutary neglect

Answer 23

The ‘light-touch’ approach by the British government and tax collection until the 1760s. Under this system, the Navigation Acts were not too strictly enforced and the local management and settling of local taxes rested in the hands of governors and local assemblies.

Question 24

The repeal of the Navigation Acts, 1849

Answer 24

After Peel removed man tariffs, the sugar duties and Corn Laws still remained. He finally abolished these in 1846. The abolition of the sugar duties led to economic decline in the West Indies. The abolition of the Corn Laws did not help Ireland, who had no money to buy grain by 1846. Over 1 million people died in Ireland between 1845 and 1852, and another 1 million were forced to emigrate.

Question 25

East India Company

Answer 25

A private trading company that had exclusive rights to trade with India after receiving a royal charter from Queen Elizabeth I.

Question 26

The acquisition of Singapore, 1819

Answer 26

Sir Stamford Raffles arranged a treaty with the local rulers and established a trading post here. This opened up China to Britain, allowing more trade. Singapore had rapid growth.

Question 27

Entrepot

Answer 27

A port, city, or other centre to which goods are brought for import and export, and for collection and distribution.

Question 28

The acquisition of Singapore, 1819

Answer 28

Sir Stamford Raffles arranged a treaty with the local rulers and established a trading post here. Singapore had rapid growth. It was an entrepot, where ships of all nationalities could dock without incurring taxes or tariffs. This allowed ships on longer journeys to stop off, make trades here. It led to the creation of merchant houses.

Question 29

Entrepot

Answer 29

A port, city, or other centre to which goods are brought for import and export, and for collection and distribution.

Question 30

The acquisition of Hong Kong, 1842

Answer 30

An entrepot. It provided an ideal and secure location for large ocean-going vessels to offload their cargo without paying import tariffs.

Question 31

Monopoly

Answer 31

Exclusive control over trade.

Question 32

The Chinese Blockade, 1839

Answer 32

The Chinese government’s response to the problem of opium addiction. Chinese troops blockaded the settlement at Canton. Over 1,000 tonnes of opium were burned.

Question 33

Gunboat diplomacy

Answer 33

A means of conducting foreign policy by deliberately displaying naval power as a means of intimidation.

Question 34

Treaty of Nanking, 1842

Answer 34

The Chinese government agreed to:
Pay 6m silver dollars in compensation for the destroyed opium, 3m in debts to British merchants in Canton and 12m in reparations to cover the cost of war.
Cede the island of Hong Kong to the British

Question 35

Treaty of Nanking, 1842

Answer 35

The Chinese government agreed to:
Pay 6m silver dollars in compensation for the destroyed opium, 3m in debts to British merchants in Canton and 12m in reparations to cover the cost of war.
Cede the island of Hong Kong to the British forever.
Open the ports of Amoy, Foochow, Ningpo and Shanghai to foreign traders.
Grant British citizens legal protections in China.
It was known as an ‘unequal treaty’.

Question 36

Importance of Shanghai

Answer 36

It was at the mouth of the Yangtze River, allowing access into the interior of China. The British established a settlement here, that was self-governing. Americans established a settlement in 1848 and the French in 1849.

Question 37

Shanghai Municipal Council

Answer 37

It was formed in 1854. Set up to co-ordinate services such as road maintenance and waste disposal.

Question 38

The Sugar Act, 1764

Answer 38

The Sugar Act of 1733 set a duty of 6d per gallon of molasses and sugar imported from non-British Caribbean colonies. It only yielded £21,000 in 3 years.
The new act lowered the duty to 3d. It was estimated to raise £78,000 annually. The tax was resented by merchants and affected the cost of alcohol. It collection was relatively successful.

Question 39

The Mutiny (Quartering) Act, 1765

Answer 39

It required colonial assemblies to make provision for providing accommodation and supplying British troops stationed in each colony. The New York assembly refused.

Question 40

The Stamp Act, 1765

Answer 40

It required stamps to be fixed on almost all formal documents and was a much broader tax. It was opposed by the colonial assemblies, who petitioned for repeal and passed resolutions condemning the act. An inter-colonial congress with deputies from 9 colonies met and condemned the act. There was formal and informal boycotting of British goods. In 1766, the act was repealed. It came with the Declaratory Act- ‘the colonies were subordinate to the Crown and parliament of Great Britain’ and the British had authority to make laws for the Americans.

Question 41

The Sons of Liberty

Answer 41

Formed in 1765.

It was a secret society formed to protect the rights of the colonists and to fight taxation by the British government.

Question 42

Taiping Rebellion, 1850-1864

Answer 42

It was a political upheaval that took place in China. It left over 20 million people dead. ‘God Worshipper’s Society’- principles of shared property and wealth attracted thousands of impoverished farmers. In 1851, after a successful rebellion, Hong pronounced a dynasty- ‘Taiping Tianguo’. The movement spread through China.

Question 43

The purchase of the Suez Canal shares, 1875

Answer 43

Strategic importance, as it cut trade route times significantly. A majority of the stock was sold in France, while the Khedive also invested heavily, purchasing 44% of shares in the company to ensure its construction progressed. Political uncertainty Egypt made investing in the canal risky. By 1874, 3/4 of the tonnage passing through the canal was British. In 1875, the heavily indebted Khedive was forced to sell his stock in the canal. Disraeli- British Prime Minister, bought the shares for £4 million. He acted without the approval of parliament, borrowing money from the Rothschilds (private bank). He saw it a a way to secure a ‘great hold’ over Egypt and to secure ‘a highway to our Indian empire’.

Question 44

Isthmus

Answer 44

A narrow strip of land with sea either side that acts like a bridge and links two larger pieces of land together.

Question 45

Construction of the Suez Canal

Answer 45

In 1854, a French entrepreneur- Ferdinand de Lesseps obtained a concession from the Khedive of Egypt to construct a canal in return for a 99 year lease on its operation. It took 10 years, 1859-1869. It cost 433 million francs. Steamships became competitive on Asian trade routes for the first time. By 1874, 3/4 of the tonnage passing through the canal was British.

Question 46

Rothschilds

Answer 46

A banking family that began operations in Frankfurt in the 1760s. They had branches across Europe and were the wealthiest family in the world. The English branch profited hugely by lending money to the British government throughout the Napoleonic Wars, and later financed imperialist projects like the Suez Canal share purchase (1875).

Question 47

The acquisition of Zanzibar, 1890

Answer 47

It developed an entrepot model before British involvement. It was a hub where goods were bought from coastal traders and then loaded onto ocean-going ships for transport to the Middle East and India. The trade relied mainly on slaves and ivory. British influence increased after 1815. Initial concerns were safeguarding the trade route around the Cape to India and suppressing the slave trade. In 1822, the British persuaded the sultan to ban the export of slaves. A total ban on slavery was achieved in 1873. Its status as an entrepot increased, merchants could acquire ivory, rubber and spices.

Question 48

Silver Streak

Answer 48

The English Channel. Disraeli is speaking disapprovingly about politicians who opposed overseas interventions and advocated staying behind the Channel.

Question 49

Protectorate

Answer 49

A relationship status between 2 countries that allows the smaller power in the relationship a degree of autonomy while being under the protection of the stronger one. Often, the protecting power also has significant influence over the decisions made by the smaller one.

Question 50

The lease of Weihaiwei, 1898

Answer 50

It was leased territory to the British from 1898-1930. It was in the north-east of China. Britain had remained neutral during the conflict over Port Arthur. But then the British government demanded another port from the Chinese government, it was secured in 1898 with the lease of Weihaiwei. This demonstrates how far British colonial interests had come from their commercial beginnings. The port had no commercial value and British shipping was far better served by the Royal Navy squadron at Hong Kong. They would lease it ‘for so long a period as Port Arthur shall remain in the occupation of Russia’.

Question 51

The ‘Great Game’

Answer 51

A term given to the political and economic rivalry between the Russian and British Empires for supremacy in central Asia during the 19th century. Russia was considered a Great Power due to the sheer size of its territory and army. But it was slow to industrialise and had slow productivity.

Question 52

Russian interests- Port Arthur and the lease of Weihaiwei

Answer 52

Construction of Port Arthur in China, to control the Yellow Sea. It became a focal point for international tension. Japan captured the port in 1894. Russia persuaded France and Germany to support an intervention to force Japan to withdraw from the area. Japan backed down, evacuating Port Arthur in December 1895. The port was now returned to China, but was then leased to Russia from 1898. Britain had remained neutral. The British government demanded another port from the Chinese government, it was secured in 1898 with the lease of Weihaiwei.