AP World History
Lecture/Discussion Notes
“Motives Methods for the New Imperialism”
I. Motives
A. Political Motives
1. Europe had a long tradition of imperialism going all the way back to the Crusades
2. By the late 1800s a new imperialism appeared that resulted in an explosion of
territorial conquests by European powers
3. Between 1869 – 1914 Europeans seized vast numbers of territories in Africa, Asia
and the Pacific (the USA was even involved)
4. Means that the Europeans used:
a. Economic and technological to reorganize dependent regions  make colonies
suppliers of food and raw materials
b. Conquest and colonial administration
5. Definition of “New Imperialism”  the wave of conquests by European powers,
the USA and Japan that were followed by development and exploitation of the
newly conquered territories for the benefits of the colonial powers
6. Predominant powers included: Britain, France, Germany, Belgium, Italy
7. Political Motives
a. By 1870 conditions in Europe were ripe for overseas expansion  creation of
nation-states in Germany and Italy heightened national rivalry
b. Competition for increased global power and above all status  saw colonies as
essential for begin a great power
c. Military security for nation and colonies alike
B. Cultural Motives
1. To convert the “heathens” to Christianity (there was a Christian revival going on
in Europe and the USA
2. To export their norms of “civilized” behavior and culture
3. To abolish slavery, sati, child marriage
4. To bring Western ideas of education, medicine, and monogamous marriage to all
the world’s people  a “civilizing” mission
5. For this effort many missionaries – men and women – poured into Africa and
Asia
6. The belief that Western technology proved the superiority of Western ideas,
customs and culture
7. Racism  the idea that Europeans were superior peoples
a. Social Darwinism  assigned different stages of biological development to
peoples of different races and cultures into a hierarchy based on physical
appearance
b. Ranked those races from “civilized” at the top to “semibarbarous”, barbarian
and “savage”
c. Caucasians were always at the top
8. Quest for the exotic and exciting  scientists, hunters, and adventurers flooded
Africa and Asia
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C. Economic Motives
1. The Second Industrial Revolution stimulated the demand for minerals of all
kinds, diamonds, and gold, oil, cotton, rubber, as well as sugar, coffee, tea, and
tobacco  these resources were predominantly in Africa and Asia
2. An insurance against shortage of raw materials and loss of overseas markets
3. Growing economic rivalry between old industrial states like Britain and France
and new ones like Germany and the USA added to the competition
4. The depression of 1875 – 1895  caused European merchants and industrialists to
seek protections from foreign competition
a. Need secure sources of raw materials and protected markets
b. Little experience in handling overproduction and unemployment and
diminished exports
c. Concerned about the possibility of social and economic unrest
5. Investors saw an opportunity to get richer from profits from mines, plantations
and railroads in Africa and Asia
6. The economies of Africa and Asia were eventually reorganized to serve the needs
of the European economies
a. Roads and railroads were built to move raw materials
b. Mining sectors developed
c. Vast areas were converted to the production of commodities
7. Profits went mainly to European merchants and industrialists  raw materials
sent to Europe than transformed into finished goods which were mainly intended
for Europeans
II. Methods of the New Imperialism
A. Tools of Empire Building
1. The “New Imperialists” needed the means to achieve their objectives at
reasonable costs
2. Scientific discoveries and technological innovations had catapulted the Europeans
far ahead of all other peoples particularly in war
3. Europeans dominance of the seas
a. Naval power increased with the introduction of steamships
b. Development of more efficient engines  helped to defray costs
c. Building of the Suez Canal  greatly cut shipping costs
d. Global network of submarine telegraph cables increased communication
capabilities
4. Military Dominance
a. Use of smaller gunboats on the major river basins
b. Deadlier firearms and light artillery  breechloader that could fire accurately
ten times as fast and five times farther than a musket
i. Repeating rifles
ii. Machine guns
c. Other deadly explosives
d. Railroads gave the Europeans fast mobility and ability to supply large armies
e. What did the natives have  spears, arrows, leather shields and perhaps
primitive muskets
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5. Discovery of quinine to prevent malaria among the colonizers
6. Public opinion  newspapers promoted the idea of colonies as patriotic
B. Colonial Administration
1. Colonialism  the system of administering and exploiting colonies for the benefit
of the home country
2. Types of colonies
a. Protectorates  retained their traditional governments but had a European
“resident” or “consul-general” to advise them
b. Tropical dependencies with direct administration  a European governor who
ruled over large populations of native peoples
c. Settlement colonies
i. White dominions  descendents of European settlers made most of the
population because the native had been decimated by diseases and wars i.e.,
Australia and Canada
ii. Contested settler colonies  where there were many European settlers but
still a minority like in Algeria and South Africa there was a constant
struggle for control (in colonies with very few white settlers like the
Congo the European governors ruled as an autocrat)
3. How did the colonial administration work?
a. Governor and his staff
b. Few troops to keep order
c. Small number of tax collectors and magistrates
d. Only a very few local youths were educated for “modern” jobs like clerks,
policemen, customs inspectors  this often caused friction among the
indigenous peoples and often strengthened existing ethnic differences
i. These thousands of Africans or Asian subordinates actually carried out
local administration
ii. Recruited often from elite groups
4. The segregation of the Europeans
a. As more and more Europeans went to the colonies, they tended to keep to
themselves on social occasions rather than mixing with the natives
b. Segregated living quarters made it possible for government officials and
business to bring their families with them
c. Europeans frowned on liaisons between European men and Asian or African
women
d. Mixed marriages were very much disapproved  laws restricting
miscegenation
e. All efforts were made to keep social contacts between European women and
the colonized to a minimum
f. Only native servants or nannies allowed in the compounds