Imperialism

Oxford Dictionary defined Imperialism as a policy of extending a country’s power and influence through 

colonization, use of military force.

Colonialism vs. imperialism

Imperialism is different from colonialism. Edward Said,  Palestinian literary theorist,  said imperialism involves “the practice, the theory and the attitudes of a dominating metropolitan centre ruling a distant territory’. He says colonialism is the “implanting of settlements on a distant territory”. Robert Young, post-colonial theorist, supports this thinking as he puts forward that imperialism operates from the center, it is a state policy, and is developed for ideological as well as financial reasons whereas colonialism is nothing more than development for settlement or commercial intentions

They're the same in terms of expanding outside a country's borders. Though both the words underline suppression of the other, Colonialism is where one nation assumes control over the other and Imperialism refers to political or economic control, either formally or informally. In simple words, colonialism can be thought to be a practice and imperialism as the idea driving the practice.

Colonialism is a term where a country conquers and rules over other regions. It means exploiting the resources of the conquered country for the benefit of the conqueror. Imperialism means creating an empire, expanding into the neighbouring regions and expanding its dominance far.

How Imperialism Changed the World

Positive Changes

imperialism was responsible for spreading the positive elements (i.e., health, education, welfare, etc.) of more advanced countires to the less developed ones in the 18th and 19th centuries.

increased power and wealth of nations doing the colonizing

increased world trade, and in relation, the trade of the country being colonized

Negative Changes

Whole cultures wiped out by assimilation

Changed the technology of war, making it easier and mroe convenient

It eventually led up to WW1

Pros and Cons of Colonism

Positive Effects

New technology, brought new religion, better farming methods, universal language, trade routs, roads, health, care, curing sicknesses

New Technology
Colonialism brought modernization to regions that were technologically underdeveloped. Modernization projects included building railroads for open trade, needed medical advancements and schools providing a modern education. These advances helped underdeveloped nations improve their global status as centers for trade.

e.g. Heugseon Daewongun was a regent of Joseon during the minority of King Gojong in the 1860s and until his death a key political figure of late Joseon Korea. His main policy was seclusion, which means keeping the tradition and blocking all of religion, culture, or thought coming from other countries. However, due to the Japanese's colonization, Korea was able to take a step to modern society. America can be one of examples too. While European use gun powder and cannon, American natives use spear and bow. Since European gave them new technologies, they are able to develop themselves.

Ending of Poor Tradition

After India was colonized, the long-standing practice of Sati was finally abolished. Sati was the practice where the first wife of a deceased husband would throw herself, or be thrown, onto the funeral fire with her husband as a show of mourning. It was not until the colonization of India that the rest of the world learned about the practice and moved to outlaw it.

High Quality of Education

The improvements to education provided an opportunity for colonized students to compete with foreign students in fields including literature, art, math and science.\

Negative Effects

Enslaved people, destroyed culture, killed people, made the people poor, took resources, made country borders that brought wars

Segregated Benefits

Many of the benefits of colonialism, such as education, were restricted to specific classes of individuals, usually based on skin color or ethnic origin.

e.g. The extreme racial segregation in South Africa, known as the apartheid, is a partial result of African colonialism. The education segregation left an economic disparity in South Africa that resulted in continued segregation after the colonial period and a legacy of poor civil rights and human atrocity.

Resource Drain

One of the primary goals of colonialism was the establishment of a resource-generating system through which natural resources from colonized regions were gathered and traded by the colonizing nation. This process reduced the availability of natural resources in the colonized nations, leading to times of hunger, poverty and need. Some colonies were heavily farmed, with food stores shipped to feed populations elsewhere while locals survived on less. Further, this created a system where a colonized country could be farmed for its natural wealth, but receive no monetary benefits.

Colonization in India

This is a timeline of colonization in India under Britain.


The British East Indian Company
1 Jun 1757
The Battle of Plassey established the British East India Company's dominance over India.The Company defeated the Nawab of Bengal and installed a puppet ruler, enabling British business ventures in the region and allowing the Company to control trade from the national to the local level.

The British Government establishes rule over India (establishes the Raj)
2 Aug 1858
This period of British rule is often referred to as the Raj. This was because the Company controlled most of India by 1858, the India Act effectively transferred that control to the British crown. Throughout the British colonization, tensions ran high between the European power and the conquered Asian nation. Great Britain took taxes that stifled Indian industrial and commercial growth to gain more prosperity.

Gandhi's Salt March
12 Mar 1931
Gandhi protested high British salt taxes by marching to the sea more that 200 miles away with more than 100 followers. There people would extract salt for them selves without paying taxes. The protest drew both international press and the ire of British authorities.





Pakistan and India declare Independence
14 Aug 1947
Disputes between India and Pakistan stem from the 1947 British partitioning of India that two independent nations.The border between the two states was conceived and finalized by the British lawyer Cyril Radcliffe. Boundaries were drawn hastily, using outdated census reports and maps.


Gandhi assassinated
30 Jan 1948
Gandhi was assassinated by a Hindu radical who believed Gandhi was too sympathetic toward the Muslim population.

Scramble of Africa

The Scramble for Africa (1880-1900) was a period of rapid colonization of the African continent by 
European powers. But it wouldn't have happened except for the particular economic, social, and military evolution Europe was going through.


Before the Scramble for Africa -- Europeans in Africa up to the 1880s
By the beginning of the 1880s only a small part of Africa was under European rule, and that area was largely restricted to the coast and a short distance inland along major rivers such as the Niger and the Congo.



What Caused the Scramble to Happen?
There were several factors which created the impetus for the Scramble for Africa, most of these were to do with events in Europe rather than in Africa.


End of the Slave Trade
   Britain had had some success in halting the slave trade around the shores of Africa. But inland the story was different. Muslim traders from north of the Sahara and on the East Coast still traded inland, and many local chiefs were reluctant to give up the use of slaves. Reports of slaving trips and markets were brought back to Europe by various explorers, such as Livingstone, and abolitionists in Britain and Europe were calling for more to be done.






Exploration
   During the nineteenth century barely a year went by without a European expedition into Africa. The boom in exploration was triggered to a great extent by the creation of the African Association by wealthy Englishmen in 1788. As the century moved on, the goal of the European explorer changed, and rather than traveling out of pure curiosity they started to record details of markets, goods, and resources for the wealthy philanthropists who financed their trips.
Capitalism
   The end of European trading in slaves left a need for commerce between Europe and Africa. Capitalists may have seen the light over slavery, but they still wanted to exploit the continent - new 'legitimate' trade would be encouraged. Explorers located vast reserves of raw materials, they plotted the course of trade routes, navigated rivers, and identified population centers which could be a market for manufactured goods from Europe. It was a time of plantations and cash crops, dedicating the region's workforce to producing rubber, coffee, sugar, palm oil, timber, etc for Europe. And all the more enticing if a colony could be set up which gave the European nation a monopoly.

Revolt - (What and Why?)

What is revolt?
According to Oxford dictionary, it is defined as taking violent action against an established government or ruler; rebel:
 -Revolt was not always violent in history. e.i. Gandhi (nonviolent revolution)


Why?
   Independence is an important word for most countries in the world. It means freedom, but to most nations it means more. The freedom they have now did not always exist. For most countries, being independent means they have been released. Before that time, they were usually colonized. Colonization is a system that generally allowed one population to benefit from the often unjust treatment of another population. 
   Colonization often involved unjust and shameful acts. Foreigners took over land from natives, and when they did, they sometimes used crooked, vicious, and brutal methods. In many cases, the natives were treated as a lower class or were exterminated. Land was divided according to the will of the foreigners who broke up communities and forced people from their homes. The foreigners exploited the land, caused war among the natives, and kept most of them in poverty.
   For a country to be independent means it is a nation whose people are recognized collectively. They are identified by the character, morals, and beliefs they have chosen for themselves. An independent country has the right to establish a constitution which outlines it fundamental principles. It has the right to develop its own system of government and to see its own people as the heads of that government. People often gained rights that should never have been denied, such as the right vote and the right to choose a religion.

Colonization - What, When, and Why?

What is colonize?
According to Oxford dictionary, it is defined as sending settlers to (a place) and establish political control over it.


When did colonization happen?
There were 2 big European colonization waves. One is in 15th century and the other is in 19th century.
In the first big wave, India, America and some Asian countries were colonized. Colonization of Africa largely did not take place at this time. However, European interests in Atlantic slave trade in Africa during this period.
The second wave  started in the second half of the 19th century with the New Imperialism period included Scramble of Africa.


Why colonization happened?
National Security
- In order to remain a strong country, Imperialists believed:
1. Needed to have strong industrial economy
2. Needed to have steady supply of raw materials
3. Have a strong military
    Furthermore, imperialists countries did not want other countries to get ahead of them.
Social Darwinism
1.European believed they were better than the people they colonized or ruled
2.They believed this made it ok for them to rule other people.
Industrial Economies
1.Raw materials and cheap labor
Missionary Impulse
1. Religious zeal in Spanish and Portuguese played a large role  overseas activities. Church sent missionaries to convert to the Catholic faith the indigenous of other continents.
2. With modern inventions and technology, European wanted people in colonized countries to live better. 


Triangle Trade:
Raw materials (sugar, tobacco and cotton) were imported to the metropolis and then processed and redistributed to other colonies. Thus, the slaves were bought in Africa with textile, rums and other manufactured goods, and sold in the New World against raw materials.

Colonization of Korea

Continue to the last post, i'd like to show you why I disagree with the statement "revolt is the only way out of the colonial situation"

Colonization of Korean

Outright control by Japanese began on February 1, 1906. The Resident-General was invested with full authority in regard to Korea's diplomacy, domestic administration and military affairs. Through the Council for Improvement of Korean Administration, he pressed the Korean government to accept Japan's aggressive policy in the fields of finance, banking, agriculture, forestry, mining, transportation, education, culture, jurisprudence, internal security, local administration and the royal household. <http://www.asianinfo.org>

 

Japan colonized Korea, since they need natural resources and assistance in World War II. There were lots of revolt in Korea. For instance, on October 26, 1909, An Jung-geun assassinated Ito Hirobumi, the first Prime minister of Japan. On March 1, 1919, all of Korean students and people shouting for the independence in every single road, which is 3.1 Independence Movement. Like these two examples, Korean tried lots of ways for independent. However, none of them works. They only showed their spirit. Korea became independence after American nuclear weapon dropped in Japan in middle of 1945.

Even though there was a revolt, Korean could not be independent if Japan won WWII.

Revolt is the only way out of the colonial situation

 Memmi wrote a book named "Wasaʹse: Indigenous Pathways of Action and Freedom". He said that "revolt is the only way out of the colonial situation, and the colonized realizes it sooner or later. His condition is absolute and cries for an absolute solution; a break and not a compromise." 

I somewhat agree with this statement. In 1775, April 19, American revolution began. This revolution against British created the United States. The war lasted from 1775 to 1781. These are some fast facts of American revolution.

• In the mid-1700s, Britain bested France in a struggle to control the American colonies.
• In an attempt to raise revenue, Britain imposed a series of taxes on the colonies. These taxes severely strained American-British relations.
• British soldiers and American patriots started the war with battles at Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts.
• Colonists in America wanted independence from England.
• The British government attempted to pass some laws, enforce several taxes, and increase more control over the colonies. The colonies strongly objected to these laws and taxes.  They wanted England to have no control over them.
• For ten years before the war actually started, there was a lot of tension between England and the colonies.
• The colonies had no central government at the beginning of the war, so delegates from all the colonies were sent to form the first Continental Congress.
• George Washington, a former military officer and wealthy Virginian, was appointed Commander in Chief of the Continental Army.
• Members of the Continental Congress wrote a letter to King George of England outlining their complaints and declaring their independence from England.
• On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence, in which the colonies declared their independence from England.
• The war ended in 1783, and the United States of America was born.

Glossary

Just for fun

• Continental Congress: an assembly of colonial delegates that first convened in 1774 to address the colonies increasingly strained relationship with Britain.
• Declaration of Independence: a document written in 1776 by Thomas Jefferson that proclaimed American freedom from British rule.
• Hessians: mercenary soldiers recruited by the British from Hesse-Cassel and other German states to fight against colonial rebels.
• Minutemen: special groups of American militia that excluded men loyal to the Crown and that could fight at a minute notice; best known for service at Lexington and Concord.
• patriots: Americans who opposed and/or fought the British.
• redcoats: British soldiers, so named for their crimson jackets

 As the result of the American revolution, I see that revolt is one way to be independent. However, I do not think it is the only way. 

effects of colonization on current society

I researched how colonization effects on current society.
I figured out that the example of it can be found right next to us.
Canada used to be colonized by British before 1867.
However Quebec City shows the effects of colonization more clearly.





This is a picture of European-looking buildings in Quebec City.
Quebec is founded by the French explorer Samuel de Champlain in 1608.
Early settlers from France brought building traditions of France at a time when Gothic building methods may be said to have just become extinct. As you see, the architectures in Toronto are totally different from architectures in Quebec.
In religion, the Catholic faith from France played a significant role in settling and development of Quebec City. And Catholic used to be not only played a large role in the government and legislation, but also in the social lives of residents. After invasion of Quebec, the residents were permitted to continue practicing Catholicism under the Act of Quebec in 1774.
Also, Quebecers speak French instead of English.


The effects from colonization will last forever, if there is no huge innovation , although colonization happened hundreds years ago.

Colonization of Africa in 19th century

This map shows the colonization of Africa in 19th century. In mid to late 19th century, Europe colonized Africa in what was known as "The scramble for Africa". Slave trade and other exploitative practices were engaged by European countries for a long time. I am pretty sure that European people wanted products from Africa like coffee, tea, and cocoa which were high demand products at that time. 

In my opinion, two main ideas that Europeans had justify their treatment of Africans:

1. Belief that Africans were inferior

2. Christian idea that Africans needed to be civilized. Also called the "White Man's Burden"

----------------

The White Man's Burden

Take up the White Man's burden--

Send forth the best ye breed--

Go bind your sons to exile

To serve your captives' need;

To wait in heavy harness,

On fluttered folk and wild--

Your new-caught, sullen peoples,

Half-devil and half-child.

Take up the White Man's burden--

In patience to abide,

To veil the threat of terror

And check the show of pride;

By open speech and simple,

An hundred times made plain

To seek another's profit,

And work another's gain.

Take up the White Man's burden--

The savage wars of peace--

Fill full the mouth of Famine

And bid the sickness cease;

And when your goal is nearest

The end for others sought,

Watch sloth and heathen Folly

Bring all your hopes to nought.

Take up the White Man's burden--

No tawdry rule of kings,

But toil of serf and sweeper--

The tale of common things.

The ports ye shall not enter,

The roads ye shall not tread,

Go mark them with your living,

And mark them with your dead.

Take up the White Man's burden--

And reap his old reward:

The blame of those ye better,

The hate of those ye guard--

The cry of hosts ye humour

(Ah, slowly!) toward the light:--

"Why brought he us from bondage,

Our loved Egyptian night?"

Take up the White Man's burden--

Ye dare not stoop to less--

Nor call too loud on Freedom

To cloke your weariness;

By all ye cry or whisper,

By all ye leave or do,

The silent, sullen peoples

Shall weigh your gods and you.

Take up the White Man's burden--

Have done with childish days--

The lightly proferred laurel,

The easy, ungrudged praise.

Comes now, to search your manhood

Through all the thankless years

Cold, edged with dear-bought wisdom,

The judgment of your peers!

This famous poem, written by Britain's imperial poet, was a response to the American take over of the Phillipines after the Spanish-American War.  There are definite examples displaying broader attitudes toward it from throughout Europe. In the first stanza, the author speaks of leaving your sons and going off to complete the duty that you have been given, and catch the half-humans that roam about Africa. This could be seen as a glory thing, where imperialism and what it represents is an honor to participate in. In the second stanza it displays what is said to be the proper show of dignity when a man has to “check his show of pride.” This implies that those whom he is speaking to are not at the level of prowess as he, and he needs to be mindful of that. After the author states, “By open speech and simple,” which to me means that it is understood that the people that the Europeans made contact with in Africa are not educated, so they need to 

stoop down to their level of language to be understood. <http://world-history.nmhblogs.org>

The poem describes how the white race is superior to all others.

uhm....

Hello