Chp. 12 The New Imperialism (Unit 1 &

2)By: Kaeo F.

Section 1: A Western Dominated World

The New Imperialism and Its Causes

• Imperialism: Is the domination by one country of the political, economic, or cultural life of another country or region.• After 1492, European states won empires in Americas.• Also established colonies in South Asia.• Gained toeholds on the coast of Africa and China.• Industrial Revolution greatly enriched European economies.

Economic Interets

• Industrial Revolution created needs and desires overseas.• Manufacturers wanted access to natural resources such as rubber,

petroleum, manganese for steel, and palm oil for machinery.

Political and Military Interests

• Steam powered merchant ships and naval vessels needed bases around the world to take on coal and supplies.• Industrial Powers took on islands or harbors.• When France moved to West Africa, Britian and Germany seized

nearby land to halt French expansion.

Humanitarian Goals

• Westerners felt a genuine concern for their “little brothers.”• Missionaries, doctors, and colonial officials believed they had to

spread what they saw as the blessings of Western civilization.• Blessings included medicine, law, and Christian religion.

Social Darwinism

• A sense of racial superiority grew in the West.• Many Westerners applied the idea of natural selection and survival of

the fittest to human societies.• European races thought they were superior.• Thought destruction of weaker races were natures was of improving

the human species.

The Success of Western Imperialism

• 1870 to 1914, imperialist nations gained control over much of the world.• In Europe, imperial expansion found favor with all classes.

Weakness of Nonwestern States

• As European nations grew stronger in the 1800s others declined.• West Africa had wars among African peoples and the draining effect

of the slave trade had underminded established empires, kingdoms, and city states.• Other African states were not stong enough to resist the onslaught.

Western Advantages

• Europeans had strong economies, governments, and armies and navies.• Technology and improved medicienes helped Europeans survive

deadly diseases.• Europeans also had Maxim machine guns, repeating rifles, and steam

driven warships.

Resistance

• Africans and Asians strongly resisted western expansion onto their lands. • The ones who fought back weren’t strong enough to compete.• Western educated Africans and Asians organized movements to expel

the imperialists from their lands.

Criticism at Home

• In the west a small group of antiimerialists emerged.• Some said colonialism was a tool of the rich and was immoral.• Others pointed out that they were moving towards greater

democracy at home.

Forms of Imperial Rule

• Imperial powers established colonies.• Also set up protectorates and spheres of influence.

Colonies

• French practiced direct rule.• Direct Rule: Sending officials and soldiers from France to administer

their colonies.• Goal was to impose French culture• British relied on a system of indirect rule.• Indirect Rule: To use people like sultans, chiefs, or other local rulers to

govern their colonies.• Encouraged local ruling class children to be educated in Britain.• This is so they can have a new “westernized” generation of rulers.

Protectorates

• Protectorate: Local rulers were left in place but were expected to follow the advice of European advisers on issues such as trae or missionary activity.• Protectorate cost less and didn’t need a large army.

Spheres of Influence

• Sphere of Influence: An area in which an outside power claimed exclusive investment or trading privileges.• Europeans carved out these Spheres in China to avoid self conflict.• U.S claimed Latin America as its Sphere of Influence.

Section 2:The Partition of Africa

North Africa

• North Africa includes the Sahara and the land along the Mediterranean.• Early 1800s they had close ties to the Muslims.• Most of North Africa was under the rule of the declining empire of

Ottoman.

West Africa

• On the grasslands of West Africa, Islamic reform movement brought big change.• Leaders like Usman dan Fodio preached jihad, to purify and revive

Islam• Jihad: A holy struggle• Several Muslim states arose, built on trade, farming, and herding• Tributary states wanted to turn to Europeans and others to help them

defeat their Asante rulers.

East Africa

• Port cities like Mombasa and Kilwa carried on profitable trade, most often slaves.• Ivory and copper were also traded for goods from India such as

firearms and cloth.

Southern Africa

• Early 1800s Southern Africa was in turmoil.• Shaka united the Zulu nation.• Mass migrations and wars caused pleanty chaos in the region.

Slave Trade

• Early 1800s European nations began to outlaw the transatlantic slave trade.• Slave trade continued in Middle East and Asia.• Britian and the U.S helped freed slaved resettle.• 1787 British organized Sierra Leone in West Africa as a colony for

former slaves.

European Contacts Increase

• 1500s to 1700s Europeans traed alonf the African coast. • Diseases and difficult geography mand it hard to reach the interior. • Medical advances and river steamships change all that in the 1800s.

Explorers

• Early 1800s Europeans explorers began pushing into the African interior.• Mungo Park and Richard Burton set out to map courses of African

Rivers including Nile, Niger, and Congo.• Being foreigners it made it hard for them.

Missionaries

• Catholic and Protestant missionaries followed the explorers.• They planned to win the people to Christianity.• They wanted to help, so they built schools and medical clinics

alongside churches.• They saw Africans as children in need of guidance.• Pushed western civilization on them.

Livingstone

• Dr. David Livingstone, best known explorer-missionary.• He explored Africa for 30 years.• Created steping stones for other explorers.

A Scramble for Colonies

• After King Leopold II of Belgium hired Stanley to explore the Congo River basin and arrange trade treaties with Africian leaders.• King Leopold’s activities in the Congo set off a scramble by other

European nations.• Britain, France, and Germany were pressing rival claims to the

regions.

Berlin Conference

• 1884, European powers had an international conference to avoid bloodshed.• Took place in Berlin, no Africans allowed.• Recognized Leopolds private claims to the Congo, but called for free

trade on the Congo and Niger rivers.• Agreed that European powers could not claim any part of Africa

unless it had a set up government office.• 20 years after the Berlin Conference almost the entire continent was

claimed by European powers.

Horrors in the Congo

• Leopold and other wealthy Belgians exploited the riches of the Congo, including copper, rubber, and ivory.• Belgian overseers brutalizing villagers, forcing them to work.• Population dropped drastically in some areas.• International outrage forced Leopold to turn over his colony to the

Belgian Government.

French Expansion

• France took a giant portion of Africa. • 1830s France invaded and conquered Algeria in North Africa.• Thousands of French dead and many times more Algerians.• At its peak the French empire in Africa was as big as the U.S

Britain Takes its Share

• Britain's. share of Africa was more scattered.• But their regions were more populated and had more resources.• Britain gained control of Egypt.• British clashed with the Boers, Dutch descendants.• Many Boers fled Britain rule and went North.• Late 1800s gold and diamonds in the Boers land led to conflict.• Which led to The Boer War, lasted from 1899 to 1902.• Britain Won

Africans Resist Imperialsim

• Samori Toure fought the French forces in West Africa.• The British battled the Zulus and the Asante.• After the Asante King died, the went under their queen, Yaa Asantewaa.• She led war against the British.• Nehanda took over as military leader and was very clever.• She was later captured and killed.• Germany fought harsh wars against people like the Yao and Herero.• They only won after the used the scorched-earth policy.• Scorched-earth policy: Burning many acres of land, leading to starvation.

Ethiopia Survives

• Ethiopia was the only successful resistance.• Ethiopia divided among a number of princes who ruled their domains.• Late 1800s, reforming ruler Menelik II, modernized his country.• Hired European experts to plan roads, bridges, and schools.• Menelik imported the latest weapons.• When Italy invaded the Ethiopians smashed the Italian Invaders.

New African Elite

• The Age of Imperialism a western educated African elite rose.• Elite: Upper class• Middle class Africans admired western ways and rejected their own

culture.• Others valued the African tradition.