Africa Asia and Shrinking Empires Western Dominance By
Africa, Asia, and Shrinking Empires
Western Dominance By the late 1800 s, the countries of Great Britain, France, the Netherlands, Germany, the US, and Russia (Eastern Europe) were far ahead of the world Their economies were far more developed, their populations more wealthy, and their technology and production far ahead of everyone else Examples: bolt-action rifle, machine gun, steamships, factories, etc. While Western Europe, the US, and Russia had grown, the formerly- powerful states of Portugal and Spain had failed to develop industrially As a result, the once-mighty Iberian empires lost their non-American colonies to other Europeans Additionally, in the Americas, nearly all European holdings had been lost to revolutions in both North and South America by the 1870 s and 1880 s This deprived industrial Western countries of cheap, quick access to raw materials
Africa To replace their flow of raw materials, they continued to buy from their former colonies, but they also set their sights on new colonies for these materials Disease had once kept Europeans from exploring and conquering the interior of Africa, quinine and steamboats helped Europeans penetrate into the jungle Quinine = anti-malaria Steamboats = no need for horses / traveling upstream These new discoveries, along with their superior tech. , allowed Europeans to sweep in and conquer/divide all of Africa in just a couple decades Known as the ‘Scramble for Africa, ’ nearly all European countries hurried to claim portions of Africa for raw materials Even small, new countries such as Belgium and Italy got in on the action, along with the larger states of France, Germany, and Great Britain
Scramble for Africa The British took large portions of West Africa (Ghana), the Dutch and Britain in the South, the Belgians in the Congo (W. Africa) In North Africa, the French and Italy conquered and removed the O. E. , and the Germans took many colonies in Central and Eastern Africa While some Africans were treated humanely, Europeans maintained a very condescending and racist view of both Africans and Asians as they were conquered Humane = Great Britain Inhumane = King Leopold II of Belgium Additionally, after fighting with each other over territory, the Europeans decided to organize their conquering of Africa, and ‘civilize’ the continent in an orderly fashion Rather than fight with each other, Otto von Bismarck organized the Berlin Conference in 1884, and Europeans literally divided Africa amongst themselves for raw materials
British Empire
Berlin Conference
European Colonies in Africa
Decline of the Ottoman Empire In Africa, Europe, and the Middle East, the Ottoman Empire began to decline and crumble very quickly, as they themselves had failed to industrialize with the West Europeans chiseled away at the un-industrialized and agrarian-based Ottoman Empire first in the Balkans Greece (1830) and later the Balkans (Slavic people) began fiercely fighting for independence based on their race and language similarities Additionally, France, Italy, and Britain began to take away Ottoman holdings in North Africa and the Middle East While still a part of European politics and alliances, the ‘sick man of Europe’ was more or less insignificant by the end of the 19 th century
Contraction of Ottoman
Asia – New Markets While the focus of conquests in Africa was to exploit Africa for cheap labor and raw materials, Asian countries offered far fewer raw materials Aside from the Middle East (oil), Asia was seen as a place to sell their manufactured goods to To do this, Europeans would conquer and control these formerly-great empires either rule them directly (India), or indirectly by bribing or forcing native leaders (China) Rather than compete for the business of Asia people with other Europeans or Asia producers themselves, Europeans would control an area and force natives to buy their goods Areas of Asia were used by specific European states to sell their goods to, and only their goods were accepted or preferred
Asia – China Europe would force the Chinese to accept and buy their goods on two occasions Opium Wars: First (1839 -1842) and Second (1856 -1860) While the Chinese had no need to buy goods from Europe, the British found something many Chinese would buy: opium Harvested from their imperial holdings in the Middle East and Central Asia, the British shipped and sold this addictive drug to the Chinese, addicting millions The Qing gov. officially requested the British stop polluting their country with opium, and when they refused, the Qing began seizing British opium ships In response, the British (and French during the Second), took military action, and forced the Qing to re-accept opium trade They also forced the Chinese to give up five trade port cities to the British, such as Hong Kong
Chinese ‘Spheres of Influence’ – 1890 s -1910 Once the British and French had easily defeated and exploited the Qing Dynasty in the Opium Wars, the rest of Europe saw an opportunity Europeans realized the Chinese could not defend their sovereignty (ability to rule themselves independently), and began to further take advantage in the 1890 s In the 1890 s, the states of Europe essentially divided China into pieces called ‘Spheres of Influence’ Within these ‘spheres, ’ Britain, France, Russia, Germany, and even Japan, held exclusive trading rights, and setup their own factories and businesses While the Qing Emperor was still in charge, he essentially was forced to let the Europeans operate factories and businesses in China While there, the Europeans could ignore Chinese laws and customs, and sell their goods to the people of China
India – Direct Rule In India, the British East India Company had managed and controlled political and economic factors since the late 1700 s The British in India did and would rule directly, governing India as a colony throughout the 19 th and half of the 20 th century In India, they controlled raw materials, and established thousands of miles of railroads to promote British economic interests They also incorporated Indians into the military, and used them for cheap labor in the mines, farms, and factories setup there
Social Darwinism How would Europeans and Americans justify the conquest and subjugation of so many people? Because they thought they were biologically and culturally superior Social Darwinism was the belief that human races and society were based on the Darwin ideals of ‘Survival of the Fittest’ To them, the conquest and education of inferior people was a positive and natural process of the strong taking over the weak To do this, areas were conquered, and Europeans or Americans were ‘obligated’ to ‘civilize’ these peoples and their cultures (a. k. a. the ‘White Man’s Burden’) Example: Native Americans in reservations were educated in boarding schools that taught them how to be ‘civilized Americans’(Americanized)
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