Colonialism/Imperialism
I. Terms
A. Colonialism: political control of one country over another
B. Imperialism: more broadly refers to political or economic control (formal or informal)
II. Types of Colonies
A. Colonies of Settlement
1. migration of citizens from one country to another
2. migration of foreign crops and animals
3. settler culture substituted for existing one
4. native inhabitants excluded from settler’s society
5. settlement often involved violence and/or exposure to diseases brought in by settlers
6. settlements usually in temperate zones (like Europe)
7. examples include U.S., Canada, and Australia
B. Colonies of Exploitation
1. involves smaller numbers of settlers
2. settlers include planters, administrators, merchants, military
3. foreign powers establish political control, often thru force
4. native societies (indigenous cultures) not displaced nor necessarily destroyed
5. territories usually associated with production and exportation of crops or natural raw resources (spices, cotton, palm oil, minerals, etc.)
C. Contested Settlement Colonies
1. permanent residence by European settlers with own independent government
2. settlers preserve own cultural and political identity
3. native people’s usually dominated by whites
4. native population still majority and major work force
5. native population eventually contested whites for control
III. Motives for Colonization
A. Economic Mercantilism and Free Trade
1. crop exports
2. raw materials/mineral wealth
3. slave trade
B. Religious and Strategic Motives
1. spread of European religions
2. elimination of other religions
3. Roman-Catholic countries set to convert non-Christian peoples
4. Protestant countries used religion as motive for expansion
5. some populations converted; some populations combined religions
6. strategic reasons included military goals and control of transportation routes
7. humanitarian reasons often cited as justification
IV. History of Colonialism
A. Some Early Examples
1. ancient Greeks and Romans through the 4th Century ACE
2. Vikings through Anglo-Saxon period
3. Christian Europeans from 11th century to 13th century (Crusades)
4. Mongols during 13th and 14th centuries
5. Ottoman Turks from 13th century to 20th century
B. Age of Exploration (1450-1700)
1. competition among European nation states
2. expansion linked to struggle for political and economic power
3. primary early powers: Portugal, Spain, Netherlands, England, France
4. trade considered a form of war
5. early modern Europeans (especially Catholics) gave high priority to converting people with other beliefs
6. other early missionary groups often settled elsewhere in order to avoid religious persecution
7. colonies
a. Spanish: conquistadors take over Aztecs and Incas (Mexico and Peru), marking beginning of Spanish Empire; mined for silver and gold
b. Portuguese: began settlements in Brazil; took over land and forced native population to work it; also set up a system on trade and war; established strategic bases on Persian Gulf, coast of India, and others
c. Dutch: supplanted the Portuguese by early 17th century as primary European colonial power in Asia; instituted a plantation system for cash crops where labor was a commodity thus making slave labor its central feature; also colonized parts of North America (ex. Henry Hudson)
d. English: maintained monopoly of trade with East India Company, trading with Africa, Virginia, and elsewhere
e. French: colonized parts of Canada while establishing missionaries funded by fur trade; expansion later occurred westward (i.e. Louisiana)
C. European Merchant Empires (1700-1815)
1. above empires more powerful by 18th century; broken into regions
2. Atlantic Ocean system
a. North Atlantic Ocean: included Western Europe, Russia, the Baltic, Scandinavia, Newfoundland, New England, Canada, northern U.S.; relied heavily on French, Dutch, and English colonies
b. South Atlantic Ocean: included Spanish colonies in South and Central America, Caribbean islands, West Africa; death rates from imported diseases high
3. Indian Ocean world system
a. trade primarily in spices, silk, and luxury goods; Industrial Revolution allowed Europeans to increase productivity of labor and gain advantage; Europeans also had military power
b. British were particularly powerful in Asia
D. Imperialism of Free Trade (1815-1870)
1. Britain was dominant economic and political power in world; “The sun never sets on the British Empire”
2. French recovering from revolution
3. Dutch were on decline
E. New Imperialism (1870-1914)
1. surging rivalry with Germany entering expansion
2. same motives as earlier expansions, just more countries involved
3. scramble for Africa: Germans got southwestern Africa; Portuguese got territory in southern Africa; Belgium took the Congo; France got Senegal and colonies in eastern Sudan and Central Africa; British got the rest (Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, etc.)
4. Pacific: British, French, Germans faced competition from America for Hawaii, from Spanish for Philippines, from Japanese for Korea, from French for Indochina (Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos); spheres of influence established in China
F. Mandates and Trusts (post-WWI)
A. colonial possessions of WWI losers called “mandates” and put under direction of winners, particularly Britain and France; areas included Africa, the Pacific, and the Middle East; really just colonies under new names
B. the Middle East: France and Britain have administrative control over Palestine, Transjordan, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon;
C. outside Middle East mandates, Britain exerts control and influence over Egypt and holds protectorate treaty with Kuwait, Oman, UAE; the French hold colonial power over Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia; Iran is controlled and influenced by Britain, U.S., and Russia;
D. Japan also a growing imperial power; territories included Philippines, Indonesia, Burma, Malaya, and Indochina, and Korea; rule often severe
E. after WWII, United Nations labeled mandates as trusts and set target dates for independence, gradually leading toward decolonization throughout world, though it would take years…
above information derived in large part from:
Cell, John W. “Colonialism and Colonies.” Microsoft Encarta. 2009. Web. 08 Sept. 09.