A Western-Dominated World
(Chapter - 25 / Section - 1)
The New Imperialism
Imperialism is the domination by one country of the political,
economic, or cultural life of another country or region.
The Causes:
1. Industrial Revolution
2. Social Darwinism
3. Missionary Zeal
4. Ethnocentrism- The belief that one's own race or ethnic
group is the most important and/or those some or all aspects of its
culture are superior to those of other groups.
5. Nationalism
6. Naval Refueling Bases
1. By the mid-1800s, Europe had gained considerable power.
2. Encouraged by their new industrial, economic and military
strength, Europeans embarked on a path of aggressive
expansion that today’s historians call the “new imperialism.”
Pressures for Expansion
1. Economic Interests:
 Oversea expansion was the result of the desire for New
Markets and Natural Resources
Factories in Europe and the US searched for new raw
materials and new markets for their products (rubber, copper,
gold, cotton, and tin)
 Seeking New Opportunities : To sell their factory goods
2. Political & Military Interests:
(Is closely linked to the economic motives for expansion)
 The need to maintain their navy’s depended upon refueling
stations.
 Countries seized ports/harbors that could accommodate the
navy’s needs.
 Nationalism created each countries drive to inhibit others
from having an advantage over them.
 Nations claimed that colonies were needed for national
security & having global empires a nation would boost their
prestige around the world
3. Humanitarian Goals:
 “Civilizing” Mission: missionaries believed to become
“civilized”, the people of Africa and Asia must convert to
Christianity.
 Europeans had the duty to spread the greatness that existed
within their civilization (medicine, law and religion)
4. Social Darwinism:
 Europeans believed Western civilization was superior to all
others.
 They encouraged others to use European languages and
Western lifestyles
 Europeans believed they were superior to all others
______________________________________________________
Evolution Influences Imperialism
 This is a great example of how science can influence
social, political and economic values and actions!
 Darwin’s theory (define) was published in 1852.
Some Europeans adapted Darwin’s ideas about the evolution of
animals to explain differences among human beings: “survival
of the fittest”
Social Darwinists believed white Europeans were the fittest
people and conquests & destruction of weaker races was
nature’s way of improving the human race
Forms of Imperial Control
 Many of the older civilizations had declined & gotten weaker
(Ottoman / Middle Eastern / Far Eastern)
 African slave trade had weakened the ability of states to
develop & they were too weak to stand up to the stronger
Western nations.
 The invention of medicine, weapons and warships often were
persuasive tools to persuade nations to give in to an outside
powers rule
RESISTANCE
Europeans had the advantage of:
 Strong economies
 Well-organized governments
 Powerful armies and navies
Some societies attempted to strengthen their societies by
reforming their own traditions
Also western educated natives helped create a sense of
nationalism in their countries to expel the outside nations
CRITICS AT HOME
A group of anti-Imperialists emerges in individual nations
home. They argue that colonialism is:
 Tool of the rich
 It is immoral what a country does to another country
 How does a democracy create an undemocratic existence in
another country?
 Are we not forcing our will upon others that have currently
the inability to fight back?
Forms of Imperial Rule
Colonies:
French Colonial Rule:
The French practiced “Direct Rule”. They would send
officials & soldiers from France to administer the colonies.
The goal of the French colonization was to impose French
culture on their colonies and to turn them into French provinces.
British Colonial Rule:
They relied upon the “Indirect Rule” by using sultans,
chiefs or any other local rulers to maintain order.
The advantage of using this was to slowly convert the rulers
over to western ways.
The rulers would then groom future generations to
“westernized” lifestyle.
The French & British would any force necessary to maintain
control of their colonies
PROTECTORATE
Is where a local ruler is left in place to rule, however they must
follow the advice of the European advisor on issues of “trade” or
“missionary activity”.
The advantage if use a Protectorate was less costly than having a
standing army in a country.
Spheres of Influence
Is an area in which an outside power claims exclusive
investment or trading privileges.
Britain would control China while the US would dominate
Latin American
The Partition of Africa
(Chapter - 25 / Section - 2)
Africa is a huge continent that is four times the size of Europe.
Much of Africa consisted of hundreds of languages and a variety
of governments which existed in small villages or in large states.
North Africa
Throughout history Sahara barrier has culturally separated the
North from the rest of Africa.
The seafaring civilizations of the Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans
and others facilitated communication and migration across the
Mediterranean, the cultures of North Africa became much more
closely tied to Southwestern Asia and Europe.
Long Before the 1800 the area was under the control of the
Muslims. In the early part of the 1800’s North Africa was still
controlled by a declining Ottoman Empire.
West Africa
 A reform movement emerges under the Islamic religion.
 It is an attempt to purify Islam and in doing so over threw
many of the leaders in the area.
 The Asante kingdom was dominating in the forest regions
and was ready and willing to accept the Europeans in trade.
Other regional tribes began to rise up & attempt to defeat the
Asante tribes.
East Africa
 The region was controlled by Islamic rule.
 Islamic control helped promote trade that consisted of Ivory,
copper and slaves that were sent to the Middle East.
 In exchange they would receive clothing or firearms from
Europeans that were used to defeat local advisories.
_________________________________________
Southern Africa
 In the early 1800’s southern Africa was in turmoil. The tribal
factor of family support system was a key factor to the
various groups, like Native Americans in the U.S.
 The conquests of Zulu leader “Shaka” set off great
migrations, wars and chaos across the region.
 By the 1830’s Zulu’s were fighting with the Boers.
Slave Trade
In the early 1800’s Europeans began to outlaw the transatlantic
slave trade.
Britain & the US helped resettle freed slaves. In 1787 Britain
organized Sierra Leone in Western Africa & the US
established in Liberia colonies for former slaves to live.
European Contacts Increased
From the 1500s through the 1700s, difficult geography and
disease prevented European traders from reaching the interior
of Africa. Medical advances and river steamships changed all
that in the 1800s.
EXPLORERS
MISSIONARIES
Explorers were fascinated by
African geography but had little
understanding of the people they
met.
Catholic and Protestant missionaries
sought to win people to Christianity.
Most took a paternalistic view of
Africans. They urged Africans to
reject their own traditions in favor
of western civilization.
The Partition of Africa
 Dr. David Livingston: first white man to do
humanitarian and religious work in Africa.
 Newspaper reports created European interest in Africa.
 By 1914, European nations controlled 90% of the
continent.
___________________________________________
The Berlin Conference
Took place in Berlin & was attended by Great Britain, AustriaHungary, France, Germany, Russia, US, Denmark, Spain, Italy,
Portugal, Netherlands, Sweden, Turkey and Belgium.
 European powers recognized King Leopold’s of Belgium
private claims to the Congo Free State, but called for free
trade on the Congo & Niger rivers.
 Also a European power could not claim any part of Africa
unless it had set up a government office.
 This led to European’s to send officials that would exert power
over the local rulers & people.
Horrors in the Congo
King Leopold would exploit the riches in the Congo by taking as
much copper, rubber and ivory as possible.
However, his treatment of the workers shocked the world in the
beatings, poor wages and the loss of so many lives.
International outrage eventually forces Leopold to turn his control
over. In 1908 it becomes the Belgian Congo and the abuses come
to an end. The Belgians still exploited the people and gave them
little say in the government
French Expansion
France moved to takes it share of Africa. It won battles against
Algeria, Tunisia and took colonies along the West and Central
parts of Africa.
At the height of its empire France had territory as big as the
United States
Britain takes its Share
Great Britain may not have had as much territory then France, but
it held more of the heavier populated areas within Africa.
The British clashed with the Boers in South Africa. The Boer War
1899-1902 came with the discovery of gold & diamonds.
In 1910 Great Britain unites the Cape Colony’s and establishes a
new constitution. The new constitution is run by whites and creates
the foundation for a racial segregation that would last until 1993.
South Africa’s Long Struggle
with Apartheid
In 1910, South Africa won self-rule from Britain.
Over the next decades, the white minority government imposed
apartheid, a system of racial laws which separated the
races and kept the black majority in a subordinate position.
From the beginning, black South Africans protested apartheid.
In 1912, the African National Congress (ANC) was set up to
oppose white domination. Nelson Mandela mobilized
young South Africans to take part in acts of civil disobedience
against apartheid laws. As protests continued, government violence
increased.
In the late 1980s, President F. W. de Klerk abandoned
apartheid, lifted the ban on the ANC, and freed Mandela.
In 1994, Mandela was elected president in South Africa’s first
multiracial elections. Mandela welcomed longtime political foes
into his government.
The Algerians battle the French. The British battle the Zulu’s in
southern Africa and Asante in West Africa. Germans had battles in
East Africa against the Yao & Herero. In Zimbabwe, Nehanda
was a clever tactician & leader. He was captured & later killed.
Ethiopia Survives
King Menelik II held off the colonial advancements by
adopting a series of modernization.
 Upgrades his roads
 Bridges
 Creates a Western School system
 Imports the latest weapons
 European’s train his troops
Ethiopia’s success in beating the Italians at the Battle of
Adowa allowed them to preserve their independence. Liberia
was the only other nation to maintain its independence from
European rule
Why Were They Successful?
In just a few decades, imperialist nations gained control over
much of the world.
1. While European nations had grown stronger in the 1800s,
several older civilizations were in decline.
2. Europeans had the advantages of strong economies,
Well-organized governments, and powerful armies and
navies.
3. Europeans had superior technology and medical knowledge.
Effects of Imperialism on Africa
Imperialists profited from African colonies by obtaining
natural resources
1. Imperialists profited from African colonies by obtaining
natural resources
2. Africans paid low wages imposed taxes that had to be paid
in cash and were subjected to brutal discipline
3. Schools set up taught Africans that European ways were
best
4. Imperialism contrary to western ideals of liberty and
equality
5. Nationalist groups had won their political independence
from European rule by the 1960s and 1970s! Free at Last!
European Challenges to the Muslim World
(Chapter - 25 / Section - 3)
Napoleon’s conquest of Egypt exposed the weakness of the
Ottoman Empire and opened the door for future European contact.
At the height of the Muslim Empires (3) giants ruled, the Mughals
in India, the Ottomans in the Middle East and the Safavids in Iran.
Empires in Decline
The major causes for the decline were due to:
 Central governments have lost control over Nobles,
landowners, military and guilds.
 Corruption within the ruling class
 Undermining the rulers by scholars that endorsed changes.
The Wahhabi Movement
In the late 1700’s & early 1800’s a reform movement began to
sweep across the Muslim world.
_____________________________________________
The Wahhabi:
 Stressed religious piety (devotion to religious duties) & strict
rules of behavior
 Wahhabi made the point that the reform movement principle
was that absolutely every idea added to Islam after the third
century of the Muslim era was false and should be
eliminated.
 Muslims, in order to be true Muslims, must adhere solely and
strictly to the original beliefs set forth by Muhammad
 They wanted recapture the purity and simplicity of
Muhammad's original teachings.
Revolt in Sudan
• Wahhabis revolts against the imperialistic countries
failed yet the movement survived.
____________________________________________
• Muhammad Ahmad announces he is the “Savior of the
faith” and leads the Mahdi against the British expansion
in the Sudan.
Western Imperialism
European Empires used a variety of tactics to establish control
within a region.
Imperialist nations would us force or diplomacy to ensure what
they wanted.
They also secured favorable treaties that helped them in trading
rights.
Nationalist Revolts
The ideas of nationalism spread from Western Europe to the
Ottoman Empire creating the effect of subject peoples
attempting to break away.
The Ottomans ended the revolts yet lost Egypt.
European Pressure
 France wants more territory
 Russia moves to gain territory in the Bosporus & Dardanelles
so they have a greater access to the Mediterranean Sea
 Britain attempts to stop the Russians for fear of losing its
power in the region which is key to India’s exports.
 Germany attempts to build a railway from Berlin to Baghdad
Efforts to Westernize
The Ottoman’s were constantly looking to the West for ideas and
means to improve their empire.
The following would cause unrest and create a growing
population increasing pressure within the lands:
 Bureaucracy and taxation
 Building of railroads
 Modernized military
 Science & technology
 Democratic ideas
 Improved medical care & farm improvements
Young Turks
Were a group of young liberals insisting that reform was the
only way to save the Ottoman Empire.
In 1908 the Young Turks over throw the sultan, yet before the
Young Turks could implement their new reforms the empire was
thrown into a world war.
Massacre of Armenians
 Religious toleration had existed throughout the history of the
Ottoman Empire.
 Nationalism was now causing tensions between Turks and
minority groups seeking their own state.
 The tensions triggered a brutal Genocide (is the
deliberate attempt to destroy an entire religious or ethnic
group) of the Armenians-a Christian people.
 The attack was based upon mistrust in their helping the
Russians over throw the Ottoman’s.
Muhammad Ali
• Called the “Father of Modern Egypt”
• During his rule he introduced a number of economic &
political reforms.
• The expansion of cotton production & industry
development had the effect of increasing Egypt’s growth
in international trade
Muhammad Ali helped Egypt become a future power by:
 Improving tax collection
 Reorganized the landholding system
 Improved irrigation systems to help farm production
 Built a well-trained & modern army
Suez Canal
Future rulers lacked the skills of Muhammad Ali. This created
greater foreign control on the Egyptian Empire.
In 1859 a Frenchman organized a company to construct the Suez
Canal.
The canal greatly shortened the route from Europe to the Far East.
 To Great Britain this became a life line to India.
 In 1875 when the Egyptian ruler was unable to repay the
loans for the construction of the canal it caused the ruler
to sell his shares in the canal to the British.
 British Prime Minister Disraeli effectively gained controlling
interest in the canal.
In 1882 Egyptian nationalists revolt the growing control
of foreign nations.
Britain moves in and makes Egypt a protectorate.
Iran -v- European Powers
 Two nations maneuvered for power with Iran in the early
1900’s.
 Russia attempting to protect their southern frontier
 Great Britain was concerned in protecting its interests in
India.
 The discovery of oil complicated matters.
 The effect was that Russia & Britain persuaded the Iranian
government to give concessions
 Both countries send in troops to protect their interests.
 Iranian nationalists are separated into two different groups:
The middle class wanted a swift move to western ways Muslim
religious leaders condemn the government & any western
influences.
The British Take Over India
(Chapter - 25 / Section - 4)
First ships arrive in India in 1608 and the British East India
Company secures trading rights with the Mughals.
By the mid-1800’s the company controlled three fifths of India
British East India Company1608 - 1858
Control trade and government from late 1770s until 1858
______________________________________________
Controlled India’s foreign trade using sepoys (Indians trained
by the British soldiers)
______________________________________________
Native princes and Mughal court are puppet leaders
______________________________________________
Both Hindus and Muslims resented British harsh treatment
and low pay!
The British were able to conquer the country by exploiting the
diversity of the people.
Different traditions and many languages prevented the Indians
from uniting.
_______________________________________________
Britain encouraged competition among rival princes
_______________________________________________
When all else failed the British used their superior weapons
Cash Crop: a crop grown that is primarily for sale in the
world rather than for the use by the country that produced it.
East India Company
The East India Company’s main goal was to make money.
The British also:
*Improved Roads
*Introduced Western Education & Legal procedures
*Worked toward ending slavery & the cast system
*Improve the position of women within the family
Ram Mohun Roy
In 1803 he composed a tract denouncing India's religious divisions
and superstitions and advocating a monotheistic Hinduism that
would worship one supreme God.
He revived pride in the Hindu culture by setting up educational
societies and advocated freedom of speech and of religion, and
denounced the caste system and suttee.
He was hailed as the founder of Indian Nationalism
Cause of Discontent
The East India Company made several mistakes:
*Required sepoys (Indian soldiers) to serve anywhere in India
or overseas.
*To the Hindus to serve overseas was an offense against their
religion
*The British pass a law that allowed Hindu widows to
remarry.
*Viewed as a Christian law to undermine Muslim beliefs.
*According to Hinduism, three Lords rule the world. Brahma: the
creator; Vishnu: the preserver and Shiva: the destroyer.
*Lord Vishnu did his job of preserving the world by incarnating
himself in different forms at times of crisis.
*They outlawed the practice of Sati – the practice of
throwing the surviving widow into the funeral fire.
*The British issue new rifles to the sepoys. Part of the new
method in firing the rifle is to bite off the tip of the cartridge
before loading them. Cartridges are greased with animal fat
from cows (which are sacred) or pigs (which are forbidden to
Muslims) No firing of gun sent home without pay.
The Rebellion & Aftermath
The sepoys marched onto Delhi (old Mughal capital and hail the
last Mughal ruler as their leader.
The sepoys brutally massacre British men, women & children
British Respond:
The British crush the revolt and revenge earlier attacks by torching
villages and slaughtering thousands of unarmed Indians
Sepoy Rebellion Results:
There were atrocities on both sides but Britain wins the
“prize” and was best described as savage!
1858 British Empire steps in to control situation and set up
colonial government.
British lived like Southern “plantation masters”.
Change in British Policy
In 1858 Parliament ended the rule of the East Indian Company and
put India under the British crown.
The Rebellion had left a bad taste in both sides were filled with
hatred, mistrust & fear.
British Colonial Rule
British policies were designed to fit India into the overall
British economy.
British officials believed they were helping them modernize by
adopting technology and western culture.
_________________________________________________
Britain built:
• Roads & impressive railway systems
• Able develop textile industries
• British flood inexpensive machine made textiles ruining
India’s once thriving hand weaving industry.
• New communication through telegraph
Population Growth & Famine
 Britain introduced new medical improvements and
farming methods
 Led to population growth that put a strain on the food
supply.
 Fields that once produced food were now cash crops.
 Late 1800’s famines sweep across India. (Is the
Westernization good or bad?)
Positive Impact on British Rule
 British creates peace & stability
______________________________________________________
 Legal system promotes justice regardless of class or caste
______________________________________________________
 Communication and transportation enhance Indian
society
______________________________________________________
 Bridge of country allow for understanding among
different sects creating nationalistic feeling
______________________________________________________
 Upper class send sons off to British schools to be educated
Negative Impact of British Rule
 Destroyed ancient traditions
_____________________________________________________
 Indians at the bottom of the “caste” system- social
structure
_____________________________________________________
 Little chance for social mobility
______________________________________________________
 Ruined India’s once- prosperous-hand weaving industry
Indian Nationalism
The British believed that western educated Indians would form an
elite class which would bolster British rule. western______________________________________________________
As it turned out, exposure to European ideas had the opposite
effect. By the late 1800s, western educated Indians were
spearheading a nationalist movement.
______________________________________________________
In 1885, nationalist leaders organized the Indian National
Congress. Its members looked forward to eventual self-rule, but
supported western style modernization.
 By the Indian National Congress was seen as primarily for
the Hindu of the noble and middle classes.
__________________________________________________
 In 1906, Muslims formed the Muslim League to
pursue their own goals, including a separate Muslim
state.
__________________________________________________
 By 1912 the Muslims were calling for their own country!
Mohandas Gandhi:
Father of Resistance of British Rule
• Led a middle class movement for independence
• United Hindu population for Indian independence
• Inspired the civil rights unit in the United States
• Principal of “civil disobedience” came from reading
American writer David Thoreau
Known as the Mahatma, or the Great Soul, Gandhi forced
change and an end to British imperialism through a strict
policy of non-violence, or passive resistance.
His civil disobedience included boycotts such as the Salt March
(1930) and hunger strikes.
______________________________________________________
He also forced change at home by attempting to do away with the
Hindu caste system.
______________________________________________________
The rigid caste system separated religious and political classes
from lower classes of laborers and outcasts with no hope at social
mobility.
Therefore, the strength and will of the common people both
achieved Indian independence and tore India apart.
The story of Mahatma Gandhi and Indian nationalism is one of
history's greatest ironies
Why Was India Patronized ?
The Impact of Imperialism
(Chapter - 26 / Section - 5)
By the 1900’s many of the nations had planted their national flag
upon so much of the world’s foreign soils.
The Great Powers of the world at this time were:
Great Britain / Germany / France / Russia
“The White Man’s Burden”: Promotes the
Glories of Imperialism
Rudyard Kipling
Poem written in 1899 on US occupation of the Philippines
“Take up the White Man's “burden”. Send forth the
best ye breed,
Go, bind your sons to exile “To serve your captives‘
need; To wait, in heavy harness, -On fluttered folk and
wild,
Your new-caught sullen peoples, -Half devil and half
child.”
 Born in British India in 1865, Rudyard Kipling was educated
in England before returning to India in 1882.
 Kipling was thoroughly immersed in Indian culture: by 1890
he had published in English about 80 stories and ballads
previously unknown outside India.
 By the time of his death in 1936, he had come to be reviled as
the poet of British imperialism, though being regarded as a
beloved children's book author.
New Economic Patterns
 During the Age of Imperialism a global economy
emerged.
 Most of the profits from the imperial
global exchange went to the
industrialized nations
 The dominating western powers were France, England,
Germany and the US.
 From these countries the finished good from their industries
would flow into the regions of Asia, Africa and Latin
America.
Changes in local Economy
The US offered an abundance of cheap labor, natural resources and
agricultural goods
_____________________________________________________
The demands of the new world economy disrupted traditional local
economies of Africa and Asia.
_____________________________________________________
Most people of these Continents grew & produced goods by hand
for local use.
Money Economy
The Western capitalists developed plantations & mines but relied
upon a steady flow of local labor. The barter system is replaced with
money economy.
TAXES
 Colonial powers would recover the cost of their territories by
heavily taxing their subject.
 To meet the growing taxes men would travel across the nations to
find jobs that could cover the taxes.
 Families were severely disrupted where the women would have to
fend for all of the family needs.
 Children were sold off as slave labor
ECONOMIC DEPENDENCY
The new industrialized world created mass produced products that
would severely disrupt the traditional handcraft industries.
India was used by Britain to flood the country with cheap factory
made clothing.
Traditional Indian’s that produced hand-made clothing were driven
out of business.
MODERNIZATION
Benefits of Colonial Rule:
 Modern banking system
 New communication systems
 New transportation systems (railroads)
CULTURAL IMPACT
Many of the European countries were convinced that they were
superior. Their task was to civilize the rest of the world
A leading promoter of British imperialism was Cecil Rhodes, “The
more we inhabit the earth the better it is for the human race.”
_____________________________________________________
WESTERNIZATION
The term became to mean the same as modernization during the
age of imperialism.
Identity crisis
 Many of the conquered people began to buy into the
understanding that they were inferior
_____________________________________________________
 The success of the westerner’s undermined the confidence in
their own leaders
_____________________________________________________
 To become part of the western success non westerners would
learn their rulers languages, customs and wear their clothing
_____________________________________________________
 However some would reject the colonial countries ways of life
SCHOOLS
The schools would teach reading and writing.
Schools would train men for factory jobs
HOSPITALS
Medical breakthroughs:
 Vaccines
 Modern methods of hygiene
 Loss useful knowledge of local herbal healers
RELIGION
 Missionaries spread the Christian faith across the globe
 Areas of great success were in Southern Africa where Christian
teachings were adapted to local traditions
NEW & OLD WAYS
 During the age of imperialism, western cultures experienced
many changes.
 Old traditions, such as foot binding in China
This can still be found in remote areas of Africa and Central
America where the oval shaped-head is considered graceful and
beautiful. The effect is achieved at an early age—an infant’s cranium,
while it is still soft and malleable, is bound with bandages and wood
in order to elongate and lengthen its shape.
IMPACT ON WESTERN CULTURE
Changes emerged as colonial powers were exposed to the colonies
customs and resources.
 Food and art made their way into both
NEW POLITCIAL TENSIONS
Imperialism had wide political consequences as it spread across the
world.
 Disrupted traditional political units (tribes)
 Imposed that rival peoples unite, ending civil wars.
 New nationalistic movements emerged from western educated
colonists
 However, the competition among western powers for global
empires caused increasing political tensions.