Economy: slave trade, agriculture and industry Flashcards
Economic causes
Industrialisation: greater demand for resources and greater need for overseas markets
Growing populations/demographic shift in europe: Greater demand for food and luxuries
Economic exploitation of India
Depletion of india for benefit of britain
18th c: India was net exporter of textile to Britain
After industrialisation (19th c): India forced to import cheap British industrial textile – destroyed the local market
From monopoly to free trade
Early modern age: age of monopolies (dutch succeeded in attaining a spice monopoly)
After Britain became the central colonial power: advocated for free trade as a principle of its industrial revolution
India became included in this free trade in the decades before britain`
Stagnation and depression in Europe
Motivation for imperialism
1870-1995
Britain: non-interventionism (thomas malthus)
Other metropoles: protectionism
All: imperialism was used to grow overseas markets to stimulate domestic production
Atlantic triangular trade
Europe -> Africa: copper, cloth, glass beads, guns (with these profits, they would buy slaves)
Africa -> America: slaves (sold in America for more profits)
America -> Europe: tobacco, sugar, cotton, gold (brought back to europe and sold for profit)
Number of slaves
In total: 11 million slaves
Portugal: 4.5 million
Britain: 3 million
France: 1.3 million
Sources of abolition
Religion, enlightenment, american independence
Always criticised by religious sects like the quakers
Enlightenment also contributed to the idea of universal human rights
American independence war: created a debate on the subject of abolitionism
Clapham sect
1780s-1840s
First mass campaign for abolition
Results of abolition
Britain: first to ban the slave trade in 1807 and slavery as a whole in 1852
Followed by france in 1848, US in 1863 and brazil in 1888 (last large country to do so)
Sierra Leone and Freetown
Sierra leone (British colony): Freetown privately established in 1787
Sierra leone company in 1791: in charge of the state
Was given to Britain in 1807
Thousands of freed slaves from captured ships were transported there
Liberia
An ‘independent’ country created by US
1821: Monrovia was established for freed American slaves, not as a colony but as an independent state
Republic of Liberia founded in 1847
Different views on land ownership
Europeans: if it wasn’t used, it was free to be claimed
Indigenous: did not even have a concept of land ownership
Land uses
For gathering taxes, naturally occurring products, cultivation or plantations
Indentured labour
Coolies: low-wage labourers typically from asia - often transported as indentured servants
Culture system in dutch east indies: forced farmers produce export crops for the Netherlands on their land or through compulsory labour
Zamindari System for taxes in BI
From 1793 in north india
British appropriated a preexisting social structure for their own benefit
Mughal tax collectors were given property rights and new privileges – previously they were only tax collectors, not landowners (a fabricated, loyal elite class)
The aim was for loyal landowners to pay taxes to the British
But led to misuse, oppression and famine
Rayatvari system
Southern india from early 19th c
Peasants would pay taxes directly to the British (fascination to civilisation)
The aim was to create a closer connection to the British: formation of a stagnant peasant class that could be more easily controlled and taxed
Nomads were considered to be thugs and brits campaigned against them
Naturally occurring products
Mostly in early colonisation and later only in Africa: ivory, timber, rubber, palm oil
From gathering to cultivation: industrial rev required an abundance of certain products -invention of tire in 1888 and use of palm oil for lubrication of machinery and as lighting fuel
Plantations
Carribbean, indochina, East Indies, India, Africa
Early modern age: mostly in carribbean and guyanas
French Indochina: rice, maize and rubber
Dutch East Indies: coffee, indigo, sugar
India: tea and opium (along w taxes)
Africa: cocoa, banana, tea
Labour migration for plantations
Indentured labour and coolies
New systems following the abolition of slavery
Day labourers not very effective
Indentured labour:
- Contracted labour w/o salary, usually for 5 years
- Breach of contract would fall under criminal law
- Poor living conditions
Migration of Chinese and Indian ‘coolies’:
- Indians in east Africa, Chinese in Java
- Resulted in much ethnic diversity – e.g. in Suriname
Origins of culture system
Dutch east indies (1830-70)
Financial loss following java war and Belgian independence
Served to boost exports, forced a change in the colonial cultivation system
Culture system
1830-1870
Peasants were compelled to cultivate government owned export crops on 1/5 of their land, or to work 66 days a year on government estates (usually under threat of force)
Usually single crop plantations (sugar, coffee, indigo) - extremely lucrative
Criticism of culture system
Imposed by force and misused
Stagnation since there was no incentive to innovate
Native population had no access to capital market, no profits for them
Liberal system
1870-1901
Agriculture would be open to private and corporate plantations
New crops: tea, tobacco, rubber, palm oil
Did not improve the living standards of local peasants
Ethical policy
1901-30/42: failure
Decided to not only concern itself with the economy, but to a moral obligation to increase quality of life
Social, economic and political reforms
Mining
Made quick fortunes
Funded infrastructural development
Products would be transported to europe to use in their production of industrial goods
Industry
Mostly in the metropoles
Colonies were instead markets for finished industrial products
Gold rushes
US, Aus, SA
Stimulation for migration
US: claifornia and Colorado
Australia (1850s): Population of Victoria from 73,000 in 1851 to 540,000 in 61 - ¾ immigrants were britihs or irish
SA: Diamonds in Kimberley and gold in Witwatersrand
Mechanised gold mining in gold coast
Minerals in Belgian Congo
Extremely rich soil (especially Katanga); deposits of gold, copper and cobalt
Huge mining companies: Forminiere and UMHK
Also led to construction of infrastructure for workers: Hospitals, schools, administration, police force
Minerals in British India
No interest from European investors: focused on trade, taxes and cultivation
Long tradition of artisan skills: stimulated by British and infrastructure products
Indian plants in late 19th c founded by natives
Tata Iron and Steel works
Largest steel producer in the British empire
Would expand into other domains like car production, tech, hotels, and insurance to form a massive conglomerate
Oil discoveries
Mid 19th c: 1850s – central europe; 1860s – US (for refinement of paraffin from crude oil )
Discoveries at end of the century
1885 – Sumatra; 1908 – Persia (prompted by invention of internal combustion engine)
Oil companies
Anglo persian oil company (1908): a predecessor of BP (1954)
Shell: successor of royal dutch petroleum company
Rest of the big 7 oil companies: american
