Imperialism, Alliances, and War

I.               Imperialism

A.     Old Imperialism and the New Imperialism

1.     Old Imperialism

a.     European powers had practiced a form of imperialism between the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. During this period, Portugal, the Dutch Republic, and England built trading-post empires along the coasts of Africa, India, and Indonesia.

b.     The New World was a notable exception to this pattern. Spain established an enormous empire in Central and South America while England colonized the east coast of North America.

2.     New Imperialism

a.     Beginning in 1870, European nations exercised increasing economic and political control over Africa and Asia. No longer content to trade with other peoples, European nations now aimed to directly rule vast regions of the world.

b.     The imperialist powers seized control over some areas such as German East Africa and French Indo-China. In other areas, they established protectorates where the dependent country had its own government but was still subject to the authority of the imperial power. Lastly, the great powers established spheres of influence over large parts of China.

B.     Motives for the New Imperialism

1.     Industrialists searched for new sources of raw materials and new markets for their finished goods.

2.     Militarists and nationalists sought power and prestige.

3.     Social Darwinists believed that strong nations had a natural right to dominate weaker peoples.

4.     Missionaries believed that Europeans had a duty to undertake a “civilizing mission” to bring Christianity and the blessings of advanced technology to less fortunate people.

C.     The “Scramble for Africa”

1.     The most aggressive example of the new imperialism took place in Africa.

2.     The so-called “Scramble for Africa” became so frenetic and rapacious that Otto von Bismarck called for an international conference in Berlin. The 14 nations that attended the 1885 Berlin Conference established rules for dividing Africa.

3.     Led by Great Britain, France, and Germany, the European powers successfully partitioned almost the entire continent of Africa. Only Liberia and Abyssinia (Ethiopia) remained independent.

D.    Consequences of the New Imperialism

1.     Damaged and sometimes destroyed native cultures

2.     Created a global economy

3.     Intensified European rivalries