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British Empire > Trade And Commerce 1857-1890 And Informal Empire > Flashcards

Trade And Commerce 1857-1890 And Informal Empire Flashcards

1
Q

Who was the most influential chartered company?

A

East India Company

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2
Q

When did chartered companies become less fashionable?

A

After 1857

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3
Q

What did Lord Palmerston say about role of British gov in trade in 1841?

A

‘It is the business of government to open and secure roads for the merchant, but no more’

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4
Q

What led to the decline of chartered companies?

A

Adoption of Free trade
Indian Rebellion

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5
Q

In what ways was Britain the foremost industrially advanced nation by 1857?

A

. British factories were producing heavy iron goods such as railways and textiles for a global market
. Britain’s urbanisation had increased its reliance on imports from overseas
. World’s largest consumer market for food and raw materials
. Britain relied on its colonies to feed and provide its workforce

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6
Q

How was Britain’s the largest consumer market for food and raw materials by 1857?

A

. Tropical goods came to Britain from plantations of British West Indies
. Minerals and wool imported from Australia
. Raw cotton imported from India

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7
Q

What is mercantilism?

A

A system of regulations governing trade

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8
Q

What is protectionism?

A

Using tariffs - particularly duties on imported goods - to regulate trade (for ‘protection’ hence the name)

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9
Q

What was the theory in Adam Smith’s ‘Wealth Of Nations’?

A

Wealth was indefinitely expandable and freedom from commercial restrictions was the only way to prosper

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10
Q

What was the impact of the ‘Wealth of Nations’?

A

Prompted Britain to turn to free trade, British trade became free from government trading restrictions from mid C.19

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11
Q

How did the British government often try and support/enforce free trade?

A

Often resorted to threat or coercion, such as for China in the Opium Wars when the British navy was used to enforce British free trade terms there.

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12
Q

Why were colonies in the empire generally happy to continue trading with Britain?

A

Partly out of loyalty or duty but also because it was easier as Britain had well-established trading patterns and a common language within the empire

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13
Q

What was the impact of Free Trade on the empire and on Britain in the latter part of C.19?

A

Imperial trade and investment grew enormously, creating an ‘industrial empire’ in which the colonies supplied both foodstuffs and raw materials which British industry converted into financial goods for export and which the colonies were compelled to buy back quite a lot

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14
Q

In the 17th century, who had the leading economy?

A

India and the Mughal empire

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15
Q

Why was the BEIC company established?

A

To access India’s merchandise and markets (spices and textiles)

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16
Q

When was chartered companies the normal way of organising trade?

A

Mid 1850s

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17
Q

What are chartered companies?

A

Government-recognised commercial organisations which were granted monopoly rights to a specific territory’s resources in return for its administration (like Google etc.)
NOT RUN BY THE GOVERNMENT

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18
Q

When did Britain become the most dominant trading power and how did they maintain economic leadership?

A

19th century, had to use free trade to make it to the top

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19
Q

What caused an end to the BEIC?

A

movement towards free trade and the Indian Rebellion

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20
Q

Where did trading companies remain influential in the late C.19?

A

Africa

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21
Q

How did the government organise trading in the 1860s?

A

Let trading go at its own pace (less chartered companies) as competition between rival companies was seen as a healthy sign of successful capitalism

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22
Q

Why did Britain change its trading methods in 1870s+80?

A

British economy faced challenges:
. European and American advancing industrialisation
. Long Depression

This revived chartered companies to extend British trade and control

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23
Q

What company received a charter in 1881?

A

North Borneo trading company to administer the territory there

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24
Q

How did North Borneo benefit from the royal charter?

A

. Deposits of coal, iron and copper
. Development of tobacco and coffee plantations to better the economy

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25
Q

What was the importance of North Borneo to Britain?

A

Important strategic site for Britain in South China Sea as it was almost a midpoint between India and Hong Kong

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26
Q

What was the purpose of trading companies and what was the cost of this?

A

To generate profit for shareholders in Britain - caused ruthless exploitation of locals and their environment

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27
Q

Which charters followed the N. Borneo trading company?

A

. National African Company (renamed Royal Niger company) - 1886
. Imperial British East Africa Company -1888
. British South Africa Company - 1889

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28
Q

Why was the benefits of chartering the National African Company?

A

. Permitted trade in lands along Niger River
. Gave permission for northward expansion
. Gave permission for company to serve as a government of the Niger Region

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29
Q

When was the Imperial Federation League founded?

A

1884

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30
Q

Why was the Imperial Federation league important?

A

. To promote colonial unity
. To promote internal imperial tariffs as they were preferred (away from free trade)

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31
Q

How was the Imperial Federation league overall unsuccessful?

A

Mostly failed to overturn systems of free trade that made Britain so economically dominant in C.19

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32
Q

How are colonies and protectorates different?

A

Colony - no control over internal affairs and under the direct control of the colonial power
Protectorate - continues to theoretically be an independent state, with its external affairs controlled by the protector country

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33
Q

What were most colonies economies except India based on?

A

Agriculture

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34
Q

Why did Britain trade with Canada, Australia and NZ (‘dominions’)?

A

Vast tracts of land produced cheap foodstuffs and agricultural raw materials like wool which were available in Europe but a cheaper price here

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35
Q

What did tropical colonies produce and give examples?

A

Goods not available in Europe:
. Sugar
. Coffee
. Cocoa
. Groundnuts
. Palm oil

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36
Q

Describe production and selling in tropical colonies?

A

Production here was usually small-scale as additions to local subsistence farming
Indigenous farmers felt obliged to sell at any price (often very low as desparate)

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37
Q

Apart from dominions and tropical colonies, describe the products of trade and commerce here?

A

Products grown on plantations run by British:
. Indian labourers (‘coolies’) were transported to work in Carribean colonies for a fixed time (usually 5 years) - indentured service
. Some were taken to SA

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38
Q

Describe the conditions for indentured workers?

A

Paid low wages for harsh, nasty work

39
Q

Describe the different plantations in British colonies?

A

. BEA and Tanganyika for sisal
. Natal for sugar
. Malaya and N. Borneo for rubber and palm oil
. Solomon Island for coconuts (copra)

40
Q

What started being imported from China to Britain in 1840s?

A

Tea plants

41
Q

What happened to tea trade after Indian Rebellion?

A

British expanded tea-growing to expand tea trade

42
Q

How did Britain expand the tea trade?

A

. Plantations established by Henry Mann and James Taylor in Nilgiri Hills and Ceylon in 1860s
. Plantations established by Arthur Hall in Kerala in 1870s.

43
Q

How important was tea to Britain before end of C.19?

A

Became cheapest and most popular drink in Britain

44
Q

Compare value of tea in 1854 and 1876 in Britain?

A

1854: £24,000
1876: £2,429,000

45
Q

Why is mining done?

A

A desire to exploit precious metals

46
Q

Where was mining happening in Africa and what was the effect?

A

. Nigeria for tin
. Gold Coast for Gold
. Sierra Leone for diamonds

Effect: helped develop these colonies

Other colonies not helped as much:

. To-be N. Rhodesia for copper
. S. Rhodesia for gold

47
Q

What was the key event in 1886?

A

Gold deposits were found in Witwatersrand (SA) which caused a Gold rush to the Transvaal (Boers were previously very poor)

48
Q

What are the 4 reasons why the Transvaal became of British interest?

A

. As gold was discovered, tin mines were starting to close down in Cornwall
. Gold mines required skilled labourers (30k travelled there from Britain)
. Influx of migrants there increased ambitions
. Diamonds were discovered in Kimberley later on

49
Q

When was the Kimberley Diamond Syndicate formed?

A

1890

50
Q

Apart from Africa,where were the other gold discoveries?

A

New South Wales produced further £25 mil of gold
Australia in 1851

51
Q

How much gold was Victoria producing by 1886?

A

1/3 world’s productions

52
Q

Describe the Australian mines situation in 1860s-80s?

A

1860s: Australian mines ran dry after first gold rush
1880s: later gold discoveries brought the mines back around Kalgoorie

53
Q

Why was there limited industrial development within colonies?

A

. Small internal markets
. Couldn’t compete in a world market with British manufacture e.g Indian-run mills couldn’t compete with prices of imported British textiles, causing the destruction of the Indian textile industry

54
Q

How could this new system of trade and commerce be beneficial or not to people of the Empire?

A

Yes - undeveloped areas propelled to modernise due to British great capital and technology

No - areas had economic development that was ruined by the way Britain controlled and exploited their economies

55
Q

When was peak efficiency for sailing ships?

A

1860s

56
Q

What are clipper-ships?

A

Fast ships

57
Q

How did the use of Clipper chips change?

A

Used in 1843 after Treaty of Nanking and more demand for tea from China
Rapidly declined in use after opening of suez canal

58
Q

What are clipper ships useful for?

A

Carrying low-volume, high-profit goods such as opium and tea. Could also carry mail and people

59
Q

What was one major con of clipper ships?

A

Usually broke after around 20 years of use

60
Q

What are steamships for?

A

Heavier goods to go across oceans/up rivers

61
Q

How did steamships become useful in 1850s?

A

. Compound steam engine developed which consumed less coal so British iron-hulled ocean-going ships became more efficient and steamships could trade more economically over far distances

62
Q

How have the period since 1850s been useful for journeys by steamship?

A

Britain to West Africa now takes less than 3 weeks by steamship and there is an increased cargo capacity for steamship companies

63
Q

How did 1869 and 1870s become useful for steamships?

A

Opening of Suez Canal increased demand
Triple expansion steam engine developed
Began to be used in inland regions such as steam-trading vessels up the Niger

64
Q

How were railways mainly used by British?

A

To consolidate British control (‘railway imperialism’)

65
Q

What role did Britain play in railways?

A

Investment in them, the engineers to build them and the rolling stock

66
Q

How could Britain pressurise governments of colonies for railways and example?

A

As colonies became dependent on Britain e.g Canada forced to accept British defence policies in mid-1860s

67
Q

Which set of colonies invested the most in railways?

A

Self-governing settler colonies: Canada, Australia, NZ, SA

68
Q

What were the roles of railways in the self-governing settler colonies?

A

. Canada: opened up the Canadian prairies
. Australia: allowed wheat and wool export
. SA: chance to expand its territories and interests to interior Africa (often led to the forced removal of indigenous people)

69
Q

How did India use railways?

A

Linked cotton and jute-growing areas up north with mills of Bombay and Calcutta and enabled rice to reach ports to be exported

India was rich for trade

70
Q

How did less-westernised areas use railways?

A

West Africa: as a vital link between interior areas of production with the sea

71
Q

Give me a summary of railways in trade and commerce?

A

Railways were a trading commodity and investment in them provided invisible trade for Britain
Spread of railways within the empire helped commercial enterprise (companies)

72
Q

Why were internal river systems important?

A

. For trading products
. Staple of explorers’ quests to find out what lay behind the easy-access coastal areas such as Africa

73
Q

How were rivers often changed and what was the problem with this?

A

Often straightened, diverted or deepened to allow trade = bad ecologically

74
Q

Why were canals built and give an example?

A

To avoid hazardous waters/provide artificial waterways:
. In India after 1857, new canals developed on a huge scale
. Canada post 1867: Welland Canal built to overcome height differences between lakes Eyrie and Ontario

75
Q

What are 4 features of mercantilism/protectionism?

A

. Dominated 18th century Empire
. Belief in a controlled and regulated system of trade, monopolised by one superior country
. Colonies expected to send all produce to Britain, buy only British manufactured goods and import and export only through British ships
. Chartered companies - royal charter to give a ‘monopoly’ of trading in a certain area

76
Q

What system of trade is imperial preference?

A

Protectionism

77
Q

Why did infrastructure of colonies have to improve?

A

To cope with the huge growth of trade within the Empire

78
Q

What are 8 features of free trade?

A

. Dominated 19th century empire
. Inspired by Adam Smith’s ‘Wealth of Nations’
. Free trade was ‘free’ from government interference
- ‘Laissez-Faire’ (government system more relaxed and to step back)
. Sometimes enforced trade agreement with countries
. Imperial investment and trade grew enormously under free trade
. In 3rd quarter of C.19, 20% of Britain’s imports came from its colonies.
. Empire provided a market for 1/3 British exports
. London became financial capital and the sterling became the international trade currency of the empire

79
Q

What were ‘informal empires’?

A

Areas which Britain had no legal claim over, but were influenced by British power, particularly economic power, sealed through free trade agreements or by British investment in the country

80
Q

Where did British influence in informal empires usually derive from?

A

. Commerce, financed by British capital, carried in British ships and providing profits for British companies, bankers and insurance firms

81
Q

What is ‘cultural imperialism’?

A

The spreading of English culture and language across the informal empire

82
Q

How did informal empire add status without too much effort?

A

Britain could enjoy power around the world without the cost of responsibility

83
Q

What happened in areas where the links between informal empire and British empire were extremely strong?

A

The areas became settled by British citizens and the British culture and language was adopted

84
Q

Which main treaty allowed britains informal empire influence in China?

A

Nanking (1842) for Shanghai

These treaties gave Britain trading bases and were settled in by British people and governed by British laws

85
Q

Where did Britain’s influence in China as an informal empire come from?

A

Needing to finance the activities of the BEIC through the sale of opium to China

86
Q

How did Britain accelerate influence in Chinese informal empire?

A

1863 - Robert Heart appointed head of Chinese imperial maritime customs office, acting as a branch of the Chi’ing government to protect Brit interests
- this power was used to disrupt the opium trade

87
Q

How did Britain form an informal empire in East Africa that was important in later consolidation of the empire?

A

Exercised its influence over the Sultanate of Zanzibar through the activities of trader John Kirk
- 1891, government established which made Sultan’s first minister British (Lloyd Matthews)

88
Q

How did the Middle East become an informal empire of the British empire?

A

. Iran brought under British influence through trade treaties
. 1879 threat of Afghanistan invasion secured treaty of Gandamak, providing Britain with territorial gains and control over foreign policy of Afghanistan

89
Q

How much of British exports and imports did South American informal empire account for by second half of C.19?

A

10%

90
Q

How were trade agreements often maintained in South American informal empire and give example?

A

Through threats of force e.g Mexico put under pressure to uphold fair treaties in 1861

91
Q

Where did most of foreign investment come from between 1850-1900?

A

Argentina informal empire - 10%

92
Q

How did Britain heavily stamp their influence in the informal empire in Argentina?

A

. 100s of miles of railways constructed with British investment and hardware
. British citizens lived an elite lifestyle in Buenos Aires with their own way of life
. Mutton and beef imported in abundance from here

93
Q

How did Britain’s navy allow it to have such a massive influence in the world?

A

. Growing number of smaller ships able to penetrate coastal areas which were previously inaccessible
. Allowed Britain to use military force when necessary e.g opium wars from 1839
. Helped protect British trading routes with strategically placed naval bases

94
Q

How did the British navy change in 1880s and why?

A

Re-ordering of naval priorities and large shipbuilding programme in 1889 as there was a growing concern around naval weakness in comparison to growing powers like Germany

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