Imperialism: Political Systems, Causes, Colonial Empires and Consequences

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Unit 13: Imperialism 1. Political systems Two different political systems coexisted between 1870 and 1914: Parliamentary systems prevailed in Western Europe. Many countries adopted the universal vote for men while suffragette movements began to arise claiming the vote for women. This was only achieved in Finland (1906) and Norway (1913). Outside Europe, the United States adopted universal male suffrage and Japan introduced a parliamentary system. Autocratic systems persisted in Central and Eastern Europe. – The Austro-Hungarian Empire consisted of multiple nationalities.

Beginning in 1867, it became a dual monarchy formed by two crowns, each with its own organisation, Austria and Hungary, all the while retaining a common foreign policy and the figure of the emperor. – The Russian Empire approved the emancipation of the serfs in 1861, but was ruled under an autocratic system in which the Parliament had no power. – The Ottoman Empire maintained autocratic rule over people of multiple nationalities. 1.2 The international situation In Europe, the United Kingdom continued to be the strongest commercial and financial power in the world during the so-called 'Victorian Era' (1837-1901).

But then, it lost its industrial primacy in favour of Germany and the United States. After unification, Germany became the second most important economic power in the world under the reign of William II (1888-1914) and France remained amongst the other great powers of the world. The Mediterranean countries and the Austro- Hungarian, Russian and Ottoman Empires experienced lesser growth. Outside Europe two new powers grew stronger. After the Civil War (1861-1865), the United States colonised the central prairies (the conquest of the American West), and the Northwestern cities were quickly industrialised. As a result, the country became a leading industrial power.

In Japan, the Meiji era (1868-1912) brought about the replacement of the feudal monarchy with a constitutional parliamentary system and the triumph of westernisation. Economic reforms led to rapid industrialisation, which converted Japan into a major power in the Pacific. 2. Imperialism and its causes From 1870, European colonial expansion turned to Africa, Asia and the Pacific and entered a new phase known as Imperialism. Unlike the previous form of Colonialism, whose main objective was to dominate the economic resources of the colonies, Imperialism implied the military, political and economic control of the European minority over the dominated territories.

The new colonial momentum was due to different causes: Political and strategic. The possession of colonies assured the power and the international prestige of countries or allowed trade routes and strategic territories to be controlled. Demographic. The colonies provided territories where excess population could be sent in order to reduce unemployment and relieve internal social tensions. Economic. Increased production brought about by the Second Industrial Revolution required having territories which could supply raw materials for industry and purchase the manufactured products without customs barriers. Furthermore, colonies provided cheap labour and places to invest capital. Ideological.

Certain ideologies manipulated the ideas of Darwin (social Darwinism), and proclaimed the superiority of the white race along with its 'mission' to 'civilise' the rest of the world. 2.1 The forms of colonial rule The major imperialist powers were Great Britain and France. They were soon joined by other European countries like Germany, Belgium, Italy, Spain and Russia and by non- European countries like the United States and Japan. These powers used diverse forms of colonial rule: The concessions were commercial advantages obtained from independent countries, such as the transfer of ports for trade.

This was the case of China, whose territory was divided amongst the great powers into 'areas of influence'. The protectorates maintained their indigenous governments, but the colonial power controlled foreign policy, the army, and the exploitation of certain resources. This was the case of India and Egypt. The colonies were territories under the sovereignty of the metropole. Strategic colonialism controlled strategic points such as the British Cape colony. Settler colonialism involved the large scale settling of foreign population and were self-administered, such as in the British dominions of Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Exploitation colonialism was mainly indigenous.

The colonies were administered by the metropole which had exclusive right to exploit its resources. This was the case of the Belgian colony of Congo. 3. The formation of the colonial empires Until 1870, any European presence in Africa had been limited to certain coastal points. From then on, the major powers set out to explore the continent and create continuous empires. To prevent possible clashes, European powers met at the Berlin Conference in 1884, where they established rules for the occupation of the continent: the possession of a coastal strip gave the right to occupy the interior, provided that effective control of the territory was demonstrated.

Free navigation on the Niger and the Congo Rivers, and free trade in Central Africa were also recognised. The years following the conference saw an accelerated occupation of Africa. The United Kingdom tried to form a continuous colonial strip from Cairo, in the north, to the Cape, in the south. France extended its rule between Senegal, on the west, and Somalia, on the east. Other countries, like Belgium, Germany, Portugal, Italy and Spain completed the division of the continent. Imperialism in Asia, Oceania and America In Asia, well-organised States like China and Persia, meant that systems of concessions and distribution in areas of influence prevailed.

Even so, certain territories were taken over by the United Kingdom (India, Burma), France (the rest of Indochina, except Siam), and the Netherlands (most of Indonesia). Furthermore, Russia incorporated Siberia and extended its rule towards India and China; Japan tried to annex Korea and Manchuria, clashing as a result with China and Russia; and the United States drove Spain out of the Philippines. In Oceania, the United Kingdom incorporated Australia into its empire and the United States occupied archipelagos like Hawaii. In America, the United States extended its influence to Cuba and Puerto Rico and occupied the territory where the Panama Canal was being built. 4.

The consequences of Imperialism The metropoles and the dominated nations experienced different consequences. Colonialism was generally positive for the metropoles. It meant political power, wealth (raw materials and new markets for their manufactured goods), greater social peace and the knowledge of other civilisations. But it also intensified international, political and economic confrontations that would lead to World War I. For the dominated nations, colonialism was negative.

Local governments were removed or controlled by foreigners and internal conflicts were aggravated due to the arbitrary drawing of borders.Traditional economy was altered because the colonising powers replaced subsistence agriculture with export agriculture; they prevented industrialisation, imposed uneven trade and created infrastructures based on their own interests. Society was divided into a foreign minority, who controlled the government, wealth, and lived in luxurious neighbourhoods, and the indigenous majority, forced to work and confined to separate neighbourhoods or reserves. The cultures of the colonised peoples were also displaced by the foreign cultures of the colonising powers.