Download Imperialism 1880-1914

Imperialism 1880-1914
Chapter 26-2
The Berlin Conference

Provisions:
No Slavery
No imperial power could claim a territory in
Africa unless it effectively controlled that
territory

To Prevent conflicts between European nations
Hosted by Bismarck and Jules Ferry

The Scramble for Africa: England

Egypt was the model

The Sudan: After Egypt, the British pushed
south
Battle of Omdurman (1898) General Horatio
H. Kitchener defeated Sudanese tribesmen and
killed 11,000 with machine guns.
28 Brits died


England in Africa

The Fashoda Incident (1898):

France and Britain nearly went to war over the
Sudan.

France backed down. (Partly because it was in
the midst of the Dreyfus Affair)
England in Africa



South Africa and the Boer War (1899-1902)
Cecil Rhodes had become Prime Minister of
Cape Colony in South Africa
Was the main architect of the Cape to Cairo
dream: where Britain would dominate the
African continent
England in Africa





The Boers were descendents of white Dutch
settlers
They controlled the Transvaal region
Gold and diamonds were discovered there
Cecil Rhodes went after it
Initially, the Boers successfully repelled British
troops
England in Africa




1902 The Kruger Telegram: Kaiser Wilhelm II
sent a telegram to the Boers congratulating them
on defeating the British without need of
German assistance
Brits angry at Germany
Massive British force drove the Boers out
1910 Brits combined the Transvaal, the Orange
Free State, Cape Colony and Natal to form the
Union of South Africa
England in Africa

By 1890 the Brits controlled Nigeria, Kenya,
Uganda and Zanzibar

Germany recognized the above in exchange for
British recognition of a German naval base in
the North Sea
The French in Africa

Algeria Since 1830 the French had controlled
Algeria in North Africa

The attack on French ships by the Barbary
pirates was used as an excuse to conquer Algeria

It remained under French control until the early
1960’s
The French in Africa

Tunisia: 1881 France justified its annexation of
Tunisia due to frequent raids on Algeria by
Tunisian rebels

Tunisia became a French protectorate

Brits DID have claims there but let it go at the
Berlin Conference
The French in Africa





French control of the North Congo Basin was
also recognized at the Berlin Conference
Somaliland (Somalia) gave the French territory
on the east African coast
1896 The French seized Madagascar
France controlled French West Africa (including
the Ivory Coast and the Sahara)
By 1914 France controlled most of Morocco
The French in Africa

The Brits recognized French claims in Africa in
return for the French recognition of British
control of Egypt and the Sudan
Germany in Africa

Before 1884 Bismarck was not very interested in
colonialism. He was more concerned about
Russia on his east and France on the west

The Berlin Conference guaranteed that
Germany would be a major player in Africa
By WWI, Germany controlled territory in Africa
5 times the size of Germany

Germany in Africa

1884 Germany took Cameroon and Togoland
in West Africa

1885 Germany claimed Tanganyika (renamed it
German East Africa)

Southwest Africa: Germans killed over 50,000
men, women and children who rebelled
Italy in Africa






Italy was last in the Scramble for Africa
1880’s took Eritrea on the Red Sea coast
Abyssinia (Ethiopia)
Italy was the first European country to be
defeated
6,000 Italian troops killed, thousands taken
prisoner. Mussolini will get even later
Italy took Libya in 1912
Portugal in Africa

Portugal took Angola in southwest Africa and
forced the people to accept what amounted to
slavery

All Europeans exploited Africans
Imperialism in Asia



China: The Opium Wars with Britain
First Opium War 1839-1841) Brits occupied
several coastal cities and forced China to
Surrender
Treaty of Nanking (1842)
Hong Kong to Brits (until 1997)
 4 more treaty ports open to Brits
 British residents in China and their guests were not
subject to Chinese law

China

Second Opium War 1856-1860

China was forced to open 6 more ports to
British and French trade indefinitely

China was forced to accept trade and
investments on unfavorable terms
China

Taiping Rebellion 1850

Caused by different Chinese factions opposed to
Manchu rule
Manchus defeated the rebels with British help
20 million people died


China

Spheres of influence: By the late 19th century
much of eastern China had become dominated
by Britain, France, Russia, and Japan and
Germany

Japan gained Taiwan as a result of the SinoJapanese War (1894-1895)
China




Britain gained a trade monopoly along the
Yangtze River
France in Canton Bay and Indochina
Russia in Northern Manchuria. Wanted to build
a railroad there
Germany gained a 99-year lease on the port of
Qingdao and permission to build 2 railroad lines
in Shandong Province
China

The U.S. demanded an “Open Door” policy to
trade in China

Resulted in an agreement that the imperialist
powers would not interfere in any treaty port on
the interests of another power
India

The Jewel of the British Empire

Mongul Empire (controlled by Muslims) fell
apart in the 17th Century

After the Seven Years’ War (1763) The British
East India Company was given control of India
and was directly accountable to Parliament
India

Robert Clive captured military posts in Madras
and England ousted the French in India

BEIC took the last native state by 1848

The Sepoy Mutiny 1857-1858 Insurrection of
Hindu and Muslim soldiers in British army
spread to Northern and Central India. Was
crushed.
India




The Sepoys had resented the British control in
India
Short-term cause: British use of animal fat to
grease rifle cartridges
Was sacrilege to both Muslim and Hindu faith
After 1858 India was ruled by British Parliament
in London and was administered by a tiny allwhite civil service in India
British reforms in India







Modern system of progressive secondary
education (to train Indian civil servants)
Irrigation projects
25,000 miles of railroads by 1900
Tea trade
Cotton industry became 4th largest in the world
Jute plantations
A unified state
Other British Colonies in Asia



Burma 1820’s
Malay Peninsula (Malaysia)
North Borneo (Indonesia)
The French in Asia

Indochina (modern-day Vietnam, Cambodia,
Laos) became French protectorate 1880’s-1890’s

French took Tahiti and New Caledonia in the
South Seas
Germany in Asia

Germany controlled the Marshall Islands and
Samoa in the South Pacific
Spain and U.S.

Spanish-American War 1898: U.S. defeated
Spain and took control of Guam, the
Philippines, Cuba, and Puerto Rico
China’s response to imperialism




The Boxer Rebellion 1900: a patriotic rebellion
of Chinese nationalists against Western
domination
Defeated by a multi-national force of imperial
powers
Manchu Dynasty fell soon after
Dr. Sun Yat-sen (Chinese revolutionary) tried to
establish a republic
Japan




1850’s Commodore Perry (U.S.) forced Japan to
open ports to foreign trade
Previously had only allowed one Dutch ship
annually
Japan was the only Asian power to resist
Western domination
1867 The Menji Restoration: a series of
reforms to compete with the West
Japan

War with China 1894-95


Gained Formosa (Taiwan) and independence for
Korea
Russo-Japanese War: 1904-05: due to
competition with Russia in Manchuria
Defeated the Russian fleet in 1905
 The West was stunned

The Treaty of Portsmouth






Mediated by TR
Japan won major concessions:
Russian sphere of influence in Manchuria
Korea as a protectorate
Half of Sakhalin Island
Impact: Russia returned attention to the
Balkans
Anti-Imperialists


Karl Marx in Das Kapital 1867: Since the
bourgeoisie needed to constantly expand
markets, quest for profits would lead to
conquest
J.A. Hobson
Imperialism benefitted only the wealthy.
 Bankers and businessmen unduly influenced gov’ts
 Big influence on anti-imperialists and socialists

Lenin

Believed that imperialism would lead to colonial
rivalries which would result in war….like WWI