Chapter 24 Outline – Industrialization and Imperialism: The Making of the European Global Order
V. The Modern Era (1750 – 1914)
B. Industrialization and Imperialism: The Making of the European Global Order
- Before the Industrial Revolution, Europeans expanded overseas to get materials they couldn’t produce
themselves
 From Africa they got precious metals
 From America they got precious metals and land to grow sugar and coffee
 From Asia they got spices as well as manufactured goods like cotton and silk textiles
 Europeans also expanded overseas to spread religion through missionary activities
- After the Industrial Revolution (especially after 1800), the reasons Europeans expanded changed
 Europeans needed raw materials for their factories (ex: metals, dyes, cottons, and hemp)
 While missionary activity was still active, European governments were no longer sponsoring it
 European technology became so advanced, they could now take over areas inland, not just the coast
1. The Shift to Land Empires in Asia
- Europeans had been expanding and taking over land well before the 1800s
 Reason for expanding was mostly to trade and make profits
 European governments usually allowed private companies to run the overseas trade (ex: Dutch East
India Company, British East India Company)
 The companies didn’t want to take control of land and build empires, just wanted to make money
- The officials sent by the companies to manage the colonies got drawn into local politics
 Even though the companies didn’t want them to, many officials began taking land and building large
colonies (companies just wanted to make profits, didn’t want headache of governing a colony)
 So, prior to Industrial Revolution, most colonial acquisitions by Europeans done by local officials
acting on their own (this is how the Dutch acquired Java, and British acquired India, see just below)
a. Prototype: The Dutch Advance on Java
- Java (the most populated island in Indonesia today) became a Dutch colony
 The Dutch East India Company was in charge of setting up trade in Java, and it established its
headquarters in Batavia with the goal of monopolizing spice trade, not governing a colony
 But, beginning in the 1670s, officials sent by the Dutch East India Company got involved in local
power struggles between Java rulers
 Each Java ruler wanted the Dutch on his side, and the Dutch kept getting more land as payment
 By the 1750s, the Dutch had gained so much land they took over control of all of Java
b. Pivot of World Empire: The Rise of the British Rule in India
- British colony of India began when British East India Company selected to run British trade in India
 British Raj = British rule in India, which British established by beating France in a series of wars
 Sepoys = Indian troops that served the British East India Company
 Indian princes were constantly fighting, and each wanted the British on their side, and eventually the
British emerged as a serious threat
- The British first acquired India after winning a series of wars against France in the 1700s
 The British were able to expand inland and become a major land power in Asia after winning the
Battle of Plassey (1757) in Bengal, which is in northeast India
 British only had 3,000 troops but defeated Indian army of 50,000 because many Indians spied for the
British (the Indians who were Hindu did not like the Muslim ruler of Bengal)
c. The Consolidation of British Rule
- After victory at Plassey, British East India Company officials fought Indian princes in the surrounding
areas and got more land
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 As the British were expanding in India in the late 1700s, the Mughal Empire was declining
 British usually left defeated princes on the throne and controlled them through British advisors
- The British were easily able to defeat Indian princes for several reasons
 Indian princes continued to fight with each other, so they never united to defeat the British
 Many Indian people eager to serve in British army - better weapons, nicer uniforms, and good pay
- From 1800 onward, the most important British colony was India
 India had the highest population of all the colonies, and was major market for British goods
 India had large amount of valuable raw materials
 Sepoys provided troops for the British, and were used throughout the empire
 Indian ports were very important to British power in Asia
 India became major market for British manufactured goods and a source of key raw materials
d. Early Colonial Society in India and Java
- At 1st, the Dutch in Java and the British in India left the social institutions the same (didn’t change much)
 Only a small amount of Europeans moved to the colonies, and they formed a new social class at the
top of the existing class structure
 The British and Dutch usually left local rulers in place, as long as they obeyed the British and Dutch
- Europeans had to adapt to local culture to survive the hot and tropical environments
 Instead of building large cities and buildings, they built low dwellings with spaces in between to
capture breezes
 Instead of tight-fitting wool clothing, wore looser-fitting cotton clothing
 Englishmen smoked Indian hookahs (water pipes)
 Worked in morning then took break when very hot, and returned to work late afternoon
- Most British and Dutch who went to Asia were men, so often had liaisons with Asian women
e. Social Reform in the Colonies
- Until 1770s, British East India Company officials saw their time in India as chance to make money, and
exploited Indian peasants and even stole money from the company
 1770 - famine in Bengal and 1/3 of population died (largely due to corruption of British officials
 British Parliament/government took more active role in running the colony (India)
 Lord Charles Cornwallis driving force behind changes to stop corruption
 Cornwallis made it so Indians could no longer participate in government (didn’t trust them)
- Evangelical movement spread in England in late 1700s, and it spread to British owned colonies
 Evangelicals helped end slave trade, and now pushed to end abuse of Indian people
- By 1800s, British, thinking their culture superior, tried to “help” Indians and make them more like British
 British pushed for end to sati, which had become widespread in India (outlawed by British in 1830)
 British introduced telegraph, railroad, and scientific farming methods (which increased production)
 British introduced western style education (mostly impacted Indian elites)
2. Industrial Rivalries and the Partition of the World, 1870-1914
- By late 1800s, Germany, U.S., France, and Belgium industrialized & added colonies (caught up to G.B.)
 Countries added colonies to enhance power (military bases, free raw materials, markets to sell to)
 New technology (telegraphs, railroads) made it easier to communicate with, and run, colonies
 Adding colonies popular amongst working class people, gave them sense of nationalism – since
more and more countries becoming democracies, governments added colonies to be popular
- By 1900, Western nations competed for colonies, and major rivalries and hatreds grew
a. Unequal Combat: Colonial Wars and the Apex of European Imperialism
- Industrialization made it easier for European countries to acquire colonies
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Europeans had much more advanced weapons than Africans or Asians - light, mobile artillery made
old cavalry and infantry charges that Asians and Africans used suicidal; faster firing, breech-loading
rifles replaced muzzle-loading muskets; and by the 1880s, Europeans used machine guns in combat
 Railroads allowed Europeans to move troops and equipment quickly
 European navies much more advanced – steam engines, iron hulls, and massive guns
- Despite Europeans having superior technology, Africans and Asians often resisted being taken over
 Used guerilla attacks and sabotage to offset huge technological advantage of Europeans
 Many used religion as way to win (ex: Boxer Rebellion against foreigners in China in 1898)
- By the start of WWI in 1914, almost the entire earth was colonized by Western powers
 All of Africa had been divided by Europeans, except Ethiopia
 All of SE Asia was taken over except Siam
 Americans controlled the Philippines, Dutch controlled much of Indonesia
 While China, Persia, and the Middle East were not occupied, Western powers had huge political and
economic influence on them
3. Patterns of Dominance: Continuity and Change
- By 1900, 2 types of European colonies existed
 Tropical dependency = small number of Europeans moved to colony and rule over the local people
(this was the most common type of colony)
 Settlement colony = large number of Europeans moved to colony; this was less common
o Settlement colonies in which many locals died out from disease and Europeans made up majority
of population were called White Dominions (Canada and Australia)
o Settlement colonies where many indigenous survived and lived alongside the many European
settlers were called Contested settler colonies (South Africa, New Zealand, Hawaii)
a. Colonial Regimes and African and Asian Peoples
- In late 1800s, Europeans continued to separate and exploit native people (divide and rule)
 Generally, Europeans lived in capital city (separated from the indigenous people) and ran colony
 Sometimes used indigenous people to help rule, usually from the elite groups and Western educated
- In Java and India, Western schools set up by the government, but in Africa they were set up by the
Church
 In Africa, less emphasis by European governments to establish schools, hurting Africa intellectually
b. Changing Social Relations Between Colonizer and Colonized
- Over time, the way Europeans interacted with the indigenous people in their colonies changed
 As more Europeans moved to colonies (including officials bringing over their wives and children),
they isolated (segregated) themselves more and more from indigenous people
 Laws that mandated racial and ethnic segregation were passed in for the colonies
c. Shifts in Methods of Economic Extraction
- European merchants made the profits on goods from Africa and Asia
 Roads and railways built to move materials from the interiors to the ports
 Mining grew significantly in the colonies, thanks to European technology
 In place of food crops, Europeans had colonists grow commodities lie cocoa, rubber, and hemp
 Raw materials taken to Europe to be manufactured into finished goods
 African and Asian workers poorly paid, if paid at all (in some cases, like Belgian Congo, villagers
killed, and women and children held hostage, if they failed to meet production quotas)
 Colonial economies were reduced to dependence on European economy
d. Settler Colonies and White Dominions: South Africa
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Contested settler colonies (mix of natives and Europeans) similar to White Dominions (mostly Europeans
with few natives) in many ways (ex: Contested settler colony of South Africa similar to White
Dominions of Australia and Canada in many ways)
 In South Africa, Dutch originally lived on coast, then moved inland – same as British in Australia
 In both, climates were moderate, so crops could be grown, livestock raised, and diseases not too bad
 The Boers (Dutch in South Africa) and Australians both moved into sparsely populated areas and
faced little resistance in taking land (this is unlike Canada, where Native Americans resisted)
- The Boer farmers enslaved the peoples they encountered, called the Khoikhoi
 Interracial relations common, which is why South Africa had large colored population to this day
(that racial group is seen differently than the black Africans)
 British arrived after Dutch in South Africa, and took it over, leading to tension b/t Boers and British
- In 1850s. Dutch fled north and established to republics (Orange Free State and Transvaal) which they
tried to keep free from British influence
 When diamonds were discovered in Orange Free State in 1867, and gold in Transvaal in 1885, the
British moved in, led by entrepreneurs like Cecil Rhodes
 British settlers upset Boers were limiting number of British settlers allowed into South Africa, and
the Boers were also limiting the civil rights of the British settlers
 Boer War (1899-1902) = British fought against the Boers, began process of South Africa breaking
away from being a European colony, paved way for Boer minority to rule over the majority of
Africans, which would be major problem throughout 1900s
e. Pacific Tragedies
- When Europeans set up colonies in the South Pacific, it had devastating results for the South Pacific
people (ex: South Pacific had long been totally isolated, so its people had no immunities to diseases)
1. The case of New Zealand (Maoris = natives of New Zealand; went through 2 periods of disruption)
- 1790 = timber merchants and whalers set up settlements along coast
 Maoris living near these settlements afflicted with alcoholism and prostitution spread
 Got firearms through trade with Europeans, which made warfare between Maori tribes more
deadly and disrupted the balance of power
 Diseases (smallpox and tuberculosis) reduced Maori population (1740 = 130,000, 1840 = 80,000)
 Maoris adjusted - learned to farm and trade with merchants and many converted to Christianity
- 1850 = British arrived and added New Zealand as a colony - Maoris suffered again
 Maoris fought back against the British, and were driven further inland, away from fertile land
 Maoris used religious prophets for help vs. British, but didn’t work and Maoris near extinction
 Maoris showed great resilience - built up resistance to diseases, and learned British laws and
began to successfully defend themselves in courts of law against the British, allowing Maoris to
have survived as a culture
2. The case of Hawaii
- Hawaii was under Western influence since the late 1700s, well before it became an American colony
 Captain James Cook = opened Hawaii to the West in 1777-1779
 Cook first welcomed as a god, but eventually killed by the Hawaiians
 Hawaiians at the time were very primitive in technology (Neolithic technology – no iron or steel)
 Kamehameha = Hawaiian prince who wanted to Westernize in order to unite Hawaii (which had
regional rulers that constantly fought against each other); he was successful and Hawaii was
united by 1810, and Western merchants were welcomed to Hawaii (many arrived)
- Hawaiian culture began resembling Western culture
 2 powerful queens emerged and Hawaii shed tradition that women were subordinate
 Missionaries converted many Hawaiians to Christianity in the 1800s
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 Missionaries had profound effect on culture: women had to wear clothes, and school system was
established (previously Hawaiians had to written language)
Hawaii experienced many political and cultural changes during this time
 Diseases spread and Hawaiian population shrunk (1850 = 80,000, down from high of 500,000)
 Westerners set up whaling communities, as well as commercial crops, especially sugar
 Missionary families bought up the land
Hawaiian monarchy encouraged Western business b/c it benefited from the revenue
 Great Mahele = 1848 law making land private property (previously shared by the people)
 King and nobles got most of the land, and eventually sold it to the West
 Many Americans came in and set up sugar and other plantations
 Since Hawaiians dying from diseases, Asians brought in to work estates
The Western planters (especially Americans) became very powerful, and king was almost powerless
 Planters pushed for treaties to with the U.S. that would promote their sugar exports, U.S. got
naval base at Pearl Harbor in 1887, and by 1898, the U.S. annexed Hawaii
Like New Zealand, Western control was combined with respect for Polynesian culture
 Americans not as racist towards Hawaiians as they had been to other Native American groups
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