The Age of Imperialism 18751914

1
The Age of Imperialism1875-1914

• Imperialism the act of extending ones rule over
  others
• European countries needed raw materials to supply
  their industries.
• Prestige was associated with owning many or large
  territories.
• Missionaries wanted to spread Christianity.
• New markets were needed for European products.

2
Britains Lead is Challenged

• Up until the late 1800s Britain was the most
  powerful nation in the world.
• Germany and the United States begin to challenge
  Britain for economic power.
• Countries begin to tax imported British goods to
  protect their own industries.
• Britain has few sources of raw materials and
  desperately needs them for production.

3
Rivalries

• Competition among the European nations for
  territories was strong.
• Just as Britain saw the advantages of colonies,
  so did other European countries.
• Almost every European country competed for
  colonies as did Japan and the US.

4
European Superiority

• Europeans believed that the new technology
  developed during the Industrial Revolution proved
  their superiority.
• They would be able to successfully manage
  colonies from far away by railroads, telegraph
  cables, and steamers.
• Europeans also believed that their religion and
  morals were the right way to live and felt a
  strong sense of duty to show others the right
  way.

5
Imperialism in Africa

• Competition for colonies in Africa was so fierce
  that European countries feared war.
• A meeting in Berlin in 1884 was called to settle
  land disputes. (No African rulers were invited)
• European countries agreed that any European
  country could claim land by sending in troops to
  occupy that area.
• Border lines were drawn without regard to the
  native cultures.

6
European Countries in Africa

• The following countries all had colonies in
  Africa
• during the 1900s.
• Britain
• France
• Germany
• Italy
• Portugal
• Belgium
• Spain

7
Africa became a continent of colonies

• By the 1900s only two countries remained free
  from colonial rule the rest of Africa had been
  carved into colonial territories.
• Liberia A country set up by former U.S. slaves
  with American support.
• Ethiopia Benefited from its mountainous
  geography, strategic position between three major
  colonial powers and its own strong leader.

8
Three types of imperialistic rule

• Colony total rule
• Protectorate military presence / self rule
• Sphere of influence pay taxes to preserve
  self-rule

9
The importance of South Africa

• Location of the Cape of Good Hope
• Discovery of diamonds

10
The reality of Imperialism in Africa

• African were expected to work and pay taxes
• Many were forced to work against their will
• Africans were treated as second class citizens
  and faced discrimination
• Europeans found a wealth of mineral resources in
  Africa
• Europeans also used the land for cash crops
• They also introduced Christianity to Africans

11
Imperialism in South Asia

• Britain found in India what it did not in Africa.
• A supplier of raw material for European factories
• A large market for British goods
• A large workforce for factories built in India
• The British East India Company set up trading
  posts in India in the 1600s.
• India became a sphere of influence under the
  British East India Company.
• Even though the company was under the control of
  the British Crown, the company was free to govern
  India as it saw fit. It even had its own army.
• The British Crown did not intervene until it had
  to suppress an uprising called the Sepoy
  Rebellion.

12
The Sepoy Rebellion

• Sepoy Indian soldiers working for the British
  East India Company
• Angered by deception of the British East India
  Company, led a rebellion.
• The British East India Company could not control
  the revolt, so the British troops set up a colony

13
Britain controls India

• Britain built transportation and communication
  systems
• Projects built and funded by Indians and their
  taxes
• Indians were treated as second class citizens and
  faced discrimination

14
Imperialism in China

• China was a self-sufficient country which meant
  it did not need to trade with other countries. It
  had little interest in European goods.
• English merchants smuggled opium into China and
  created a demand.
• The Opium War was fought to try to end the
  British control of the substance but China was
  defeated.
• The Treaty of Nanking was signed which allowed
  Britain to establish spheres on influence in
  China.

15
Open Door Policy

• China was carved into spheres of influence
• Americans saw what was happening in China and
  feared they would lose their trading
  opportunities in China.
• The Open-Door Policy was established to enforce
  an open-door or the freedom to trade and sell
  to China for all merchants of all nations.
• This prevented China from being colonized but its
  fate lay in hands of other nations.

16
Chinese Nationalism

• Many Chinese citizens also felt like second class
  citizens in their own country.
• Most of their major cities were controlled by
  outsiders.
• Nationalist groups such as the Boxers begin to
  form and protest foreign occupancy.

17
Japans isolation

• Like China, Japan had practiced isolation for a
  long time
• Fearing loss of independence, Japan conceded to
  trade with the U.S. and agreed to demands of
  Mathew Perry
• Japan began to industrialize and modernize its
  country
• Japanese studied the ways of Westerners and
  adopted the best ones
• Japan was smart with its finances and stayed out
  of debt

18
Imperialism in the western hemisphere

• A demand for Latin American goods began to grow.
  Latin American countries borrowed money from
  American and European banks to fund enterprises.
  
• Unable to repay their debts, many of the lending
  nations began to take over the industries in
  Latin America and influence the countries
  politically.
• Roosevelt Corollary

19
The Pacific Islands

• The Pacific Islands were rich in resources and
  had military advantages.
• The U.S. was interested in Hawaii and made it a
  territory in 1898.
• The U.S. acquired the Philippines and Guam as
  a result of the Spanish- American War.