the age of imperialism Flashcards
imperialism
a policy where a strong nation seeks to seize and dominate another territory or country politically, economically and/or socially for its own advantage
how did industrialization fuel this age of imperialism
industrialization fueled european desire for more resources and markets to sell their goods, towards the middle/end of the 19th century they began to look to africa/asia for those resources and markets
how was aftrica before european domination
africa was home to many hundreds of different ethnic tribes and linguistic groups, more then 1000 languages spoken, many followed traditional beliefs, some converted to Christianity or Islam, large empires to independent villages, African armies kept europeans out of Africa, europeans controlled only about 10% of African land
why had the europeans not colonized africa earlier
-had difficulty navigating african rivers
-discouraged by disease, unfriendly climate, and dangerous animals
-explorers, missionaries, humanitarians who opposed slave trade were some europeans who entered africa
who was dr. livingstone
david livingstone, a missionary, traveled into central Africa to promote Christianity. he disappeared for several years and was feared dead. a us reporter henry stanley was hired to find him. finally stanley found livingstone and these explorations sparked the interests of the belgian king
which beligan king colonized the congo
king leopold the second
how did he permit the africans to be treated
he sent in companies that brutally exploited the africans in the region by forcing them to collect sap from rubber plants. 10 million Africans had died. the control of this territory alarmed other European nations and soon france, Britain, Germany, and other began claiming parts of Africa for profit as well
what were the 3 forces driving imperialism
- industrial revolution- europeans wanted new markets/raw materials
- national pride, belief in European superiority- wanted to gain as much territory as possible for their own benefit. racism- many europeans believed their race was superior to others
- Christian missionaries- wanted to convert the peoples of asia, Africa, and the pacific islands to Christianity, believed their style of rule was the best way to end evil practices such as the slave trade
social darwinism-
the application of darwin’s ideas about evolution and “survival of the fittest” to human societies, reflects racism and national pride
what factors enabled imperialism
- the europeans were technologically superior (invention of automatic machine gun and steam engine, africans forced to rely on outdated weapons)
- Quinine- protected europeans from malaria
- africans huge variety of language and culture (discouraged unity and cooperation, the European divided and conquered)
what was the berlin congress
a meeting at which representatives of european nations agreed upon rules for the European colonization of Africa, no African ruler was invited
by 1914, only liveria nad ethiopia remained free from European control
what are crimes against humanity
a deliberate act, typically as a part of a systematic campaign, that causes human suffering or death on a large scale
what 3 groups clashed over south africa
zulus, boers, and the british
shaka
zulu chief who successfully fought off a British invasion by using his highly disciplined warriors to create a large centralized kingdom. however his successors couldn’t keep control of the land and eventually the zulu kingdom fell to the british
who were the boers
duch word for farmers. dutch had settled in south Africa at the cape of good hope and the British took over cape colony. boers calssed with British policy and boers moved north to escape the British and fought with zulus and other tribes to take their land
what caused the boer war
after moving to their new home, diamond and gold deposits were found on boer land. boers tried to keep “outsiders” out who were coming in to mine. an attempt to start a rebellion against the boers failed and they blamed the British. war begins between the British and boers
the boer war was the first of
the first modern “total” war, very brutal
outcome of the boer war
british eventually won and the boer republics were joined together in to the union of south Africa, controlled by the british
what are the 4 forms of imperialistic control
- colony- a country or territory with its own internal government but under the control of an outside power ex: french somililand
- protectorate- a country or territory with its own internal government but under the control of an outside power ex: British controlled nigeria
- sphere of influence- an area in which an outside power claims exclusive investment or trading privileges
- economic imperialism- an independent but less developed country controlled by private business interests rather than other governments ex: British east India company
2 forms of colonial management
- indirect control:
- local government officials in control locally
-limited self rule
-goal: to develop future leaders on a local level
- government institutions are based on European styles but may have local rule -ex: British colonies (nigeria, India, burma, us colonies on pacific islands) - direct control:
-foreign officials brought in to rule
-no self rule
-goal: assimilation
-paternalism
-ex: french colonies (somoliland, vietnam), german colonies
assimilation
government institutions are based only on european styles
paternalism
policy by the europeans where people were governed in a parental way, by providing for their needs, but not giving them rights
how did the british control nigeria
british gained control of southern nigeria through both military (force) and diplomatic (treaty) means
what form of imperialism was nigeria
the conquest of northern nigeria was completed economically by the Royal Nigeria Company as a protectorate
why was nigeria difficult for the british to govern
nigeria was one of the most culturally divers are of Africa, 250 different ethnic groups
why was nigeria ruled indirectly
british did not have enough troops to govern such a complex area, so it was ruled indirectly. this worked well with some of the groups but not others, who resented their power being limited by the british
why were most of the resistance efforts by the africans unsuccessful
europeans had superior technology and military power, all these revolutions failed except for ethiopia
how did the east africans try to resist the germans
the belief arose that people should unite against the germans and their superior weapons by using a new “war medicine”. it was believed that when this medicine (maji) was sprinkled on the body of a warrior, it would turn the german bullets to water
what leader helped ethiopia to remian independent
mellelik II, he played the italians, french, and British against eachother
how did ethiopia manage to stay independent
mellelik II had a stash of modern weapons and they won the battle of adowa against the italians
the negative affects of colonialism
-africans lost control of their land and independence
-many died from disease, resisting European rule, famine (forced more cash crops to be grown)
-breakdown of traditional African cultures
positivie affects of clonialism
-reduced local warfare
-humanitarian efforts (built hospitals, brought new medicines) increased lifespan and literacy rates
-african products came to be valued around the world
-europeans helped to modernize Africa overall
how did the ottoman empire lose power
had difficulty trying to fit into the modern world. after suleyman died, he was followed by a succession of weak sultans and by the 1830s greece and serbia gained independence from the ottomans
who was the last great ottoman sultan
sulyman I
geopolitics
an interest in taking land for its strategic location or products (cause of crimean war)
on factor that led to conflict between the russians, ottomans, British, and french
europeans were particularly interested in the ottoman territories that controlled access to the Mediterranean and atlantic
why did the europeans want the land possessed by the ottomans
controlled access to the mediterranean and atlantic
what were causes of the crimean war
- the russians wanted passage for its grain exports across the black sea into the Mediterranean
2.protection of Christian religious sites in the ottoman territories
- war broke out between the russians and the ottomans
-britian and France wanted to prevent the russians from gaining control of additional ottoman lands so they joined with the ottomans
why did russia try to gain land on the black sea
they wanted passages for their grain exports across the black sea into the mediterranean
which countries were aligned and fought in the crimean war
britain and france were aligned with the ottomansw
who won the crimean war
ottomans
what did their success in the crimean war reveal about the ottomans
revealed the empires weakness as they continued to lose land
what were some firsts that occurred during the crimean war
-first femile army nurses (florence nightingale)
-first war correspondents
the great game
conflict between russia and great britian in the region as they competed for territory and supremacy became known as the great game
what about egypt made it so appealing to some of the European countries
egypts strategic location at the head of the red sea, the British and french sought to control this region
who was muhammad ali
egyptian leader who tried to modernize egypt with a series of military and economic reforms. he shifted egyptian culture toward cotton at the expense of the peasants- less food crops more hunger
who was Isma’il
built the suez canal, ali’s grandson
what was the suez canal
connected the red sea to the mediterranean
how did the suez canal help bring egypt under british control
since these projects were expensive, egypt had borrowed much of the money from European banks and they were eventually unable to pay the loan
-this led the British to occupy egypt
what resource was discoered that prompted the British to become more interested in perisa
oil
why did the persian government sell their land to European businesses
perisa lacked the capital to develop its own resources
how was persia divided up between russia and britain
these businesses began to develop the oil fields, sending the profits back to Europe. after civil unrest and a tobacco boycott weakened the persian government, Russia nd britain took over the country and divided it into spheres of influence
which british company began to govern most of india
british east india company
sepoys
indan soldiers
why was india called britains brightest “jewel in the crown”
they were britains most valuable country because they became a major supplier of raw materials for British factories and its 300 million people was a large market for British goods
how did the british maintain control of the indian economy
they set up restrictions that prevented the indian economy from operating on its own:
-indian resources to britian (raw materials produced on plantations included coffee, tea, indigo, cotton, and jute
-indians forced to buy British goods
-indian goods were not permitted to compete with British goods
ex: the indian textile industry was almost put out of business by cheap British cloth
negative impacts of colonialism on india
-british held most political and economic power
-british restriction on indain industry
-exssessive cash crop production resulted in famine
-racism and missionaries threatened traditional indian life and customs
positive impacts of colonialsim on india
-greatly expanded the railroad network
-modernzed the economy and connected regions
-moder roads, telephone/telegraph lines, dams, bridges, irrigation canals, modernized the country
-sanitation/public health/education improved
-cleared bandits and ended local warfare
what was the primary cause of the sepy rebellion
a rumor began to spread among the sepys that the cartridges of their new rifles were greased with beef and pork fat, to use cartridges, soldiers had to bite off the ends, this was offensive to Muslims and hindus
how did the british respond to the seboy rebellion
jailed 85 soldiers who refused to accept the cartridges and fighting was fierce as the sepoys and British tried to slaughter eachother
what prevented the sepoys from winning
the indians were unable to unite against the British due to weak leadership and divisions between the hindus and muslims
what did the sepoy rebellion cause the British government to do
the british government took direct command of india.
what was the time period of direct British rule of India called
Raj
how did the sepoy mutiny influence the relations between the British and the colonized people of india
the mutiny fueled the racist attitudes of the British and distrust between the 2 sides continued to grow
who was Ram Mohun Roy
began a campaign to move nidia away from traditional practices and ideas
what did Ram mohun roy advocate for and why
-end arragned child marriages
-eliminate the rigid caste system of the country
- he believed that if these practices were not changed, India would cpntinue to be controlled by outsiders (advocated adopting western ways)
what was the indian caste system
a social stratification system of placing people in different occupational groups
1. brahmins - priest, academics
2. kshatriyas - warriors, kings
3. vaishyas - business community
4. kshudras - servants, subordinate to vaishyas, khastriyas, and brahmins
5. the dalit - untouchables, do all lower-work, subordinate to all
what wer 2 nationalist groups that were formed in response to the indian caste system that made them 2nd class citizens where they were forbidden from holding high level jobs and were paid less than europeans
- indian national congress
-muslim league
what land did the europeans divide up just like africa
SE asia
theses lands form part of the pacific rim. what was the pacific rim?
countries that border the pacific ocean
some of the lands the europeans claimed include
-dutch east india co. -indonesia
-britian- singapore, burma
-france- indochina
-germans- marshall islands, new guinea, soloman islands
why SE asia?
the lands were perfect for plantation agriculture,focused on growing products that cannot be grown in Europe, such s sugar cane, coffee, cocoa, rubber, coconuts, bananas, and pineapple
what lands did the Dutch control
Sumatra, borneo, and others ultimately controlling the whole island chain of indonesia
what were dutches major trade products
tin, rubbor, oil
what were the dutches form of control
direct control
how did the dutch maintain control of their islands
they created a rigid social structure with themselves at the top followed by educated Indonesians and at the bottom plantation workers
why did the british take over singapore
to compete with the dutch, the british sought a trading base that would serve as a stop for their ships going for India to chinda. they found a large harbor on Singapore, an island on the tip of malay peninsula, and it became one of the worlds busiest ports
major trade products that made singapore the busiest
tin and rubber
what form of control did the british use
indirect control
what lands did the british claim
colonies in malaysia and burma
how did the malays become a minority in their own country
british needed workers to mine the tin and tap the rubber trees so they encouraged Chinese workers to immigrate to Malaysia. as a result of heavy migration, the malays became a minority in their own country
what are the three countries that make up french indochina
laos, cambodia, and northern vietnam.
how did the french control french indochina
direct colonial management
why did resistence by the people increase in french indochina
the french did not encourage industry and most of their rice was exported and starvation followed
siam was located between which colonies
located between the british and the french colonies
how ere the siamese kings able to use their location to stay independent
they promoted siam as a neutral zone between the 2 powers
which leader helped to keep siam independent and how
King Mongkut, by being able to modernize siam and making it more competitive with the europeans.
what reforms were institued by the siamese government
started schools, reformed the legal system, recognized the government, built railroads
since the changes came from the siamese government, what did the siames people escape
they escaped the social turmoil, racist treatment, and economic exploitation
what territories di the us acquire as a result of winning the spanish/ American war
philippine islands, guam, and puerto rico
why were the filipinos upset about the us gaining their territory
they did not want to trade one colonizer for another
who was emilio aguinaldo
he began a fight for independence for the filipinos
who won the filipino/ american war
the us
although the us modernized the country in many ways, what did businesses encourage
they encouraged growing cash crops over food and this led to food shortages
what was the problem that occurred after the united states prepared the filipinos for self rule
businesses encouraged growing cash crops over food which led to food shortages
what crop became in important resource for the americans in hawaii
sugar cane and pineapple
what form of imperialism did the americans use in hawaii
economic imperialism
what led to prompt many businesses leaders to call for the annexation of hawaii
a change in tax laws
who was queen liliuokalani
a new hawaiian leader
what was queen liliuokalanis goal and what happened to her
to preven the annexation and unhappy with this, us business leaders forced her out of power
who became the new president and annexed hawaii
sanford dole
