Download Realism, Nationalism & Imperialism

Realism, Nationalism &
Imperialism
1850-1914
Realism & Materialism
Art & Literature
• Writers turn to the lives of those impacted
by the material reality
– Charles Dickens wrote about slums, factories,
orphanages & corruption
– Gustave Flaubert used a precise, unsentimental
style to tell the tale of middle class
disillusionment
• Artists reflected the downtrodden
– Jean-François Millet painted peasants & laborers
– Gustave Courbet captured manual labor
Notice that in both of these the
emphasis is on the action, not on
the faces. This is a change from the
focus on faces.
Jean-François Millet, The Gleaners
Gustave Courbet, The Stonebreakers
Positivism
• French philosopher, Auguste
Comte, proposed the theory
– History has had 3 phases
• Theological
• Metaphysical
• Scientific
– The reason the revolutions of
1789-1848 failed was that
they were too abstract
• Progress depends on empirical
investigation of reality
Marxism
• Karl Marx called himself a “scientific
socialist”
– Worked with Engels within the First
International
– Wrote Das Capital
• A critical analysis of capitalism and its practical
economic applications
– The ultimate source of profits was that employers paid
workers the market value of their labor, but the value of
what they produced exceeded market value.
– Included German philosophy, British
industrialism and French radicalism
Pillars of Marxian
Socialism
• Alienation of Labor
– Marx blamed specialization (division of labor)
for alienating laborers
• Labor Theory of Value
– Marx believed the value of the product
equaled the amount of labor needed to
produce it
• Any profit represented “theft” by the factory owner
Pillars of Marxian
Socialism
• Dialectical Materialism
– Based on Hegel’s ideas of the clash of opposing
forces (Thesis
Antithesis
Synthesis), Marx said
that antagonistic material forces produced
change = economic determinism
• Class Struggle
– Those that own the means of production
(bourgeoisie) and those that produce
(proletariat) will struggle against each other
• Result is socialism
Pillars of Marxian
Socialism
• Revolution
– Marx condemned the “unrealistic” schemes
of the utopian socialists and anarchists of
eastern and southern Europe
• The proletariat could only gain ruling power
through organization, agitation & planning
• He believed revolution was the main way, but
could be achieved through democratic means
National Unification
The Crimean War
• The Ottoman Empire, the Sick Man of
Europe, had decreased in power
– Constantly under attack from the Russians
• Wanted a warm water port
• OE assured Napoleon III that Christians in
the empire would be protected (had a
long history of tolerance)
– Russians demanded same treatment – but GB
& France feared their intentions
The Crimean War
• The Ottoman Empire, the Sick Man of
Europe, had decreased in power
– Constantly under attack from the Russians
• Wanted a warm water port
• OE assured Napoleon III that Christians in
the empire would be protected (had a
long history of tolerance)
– Russians demanded same treatment
– GB & France urge sultan to reject Russian
demands & promise aid in case of war
The Crimean War
• Russian navy broke Ottoman navy
– Moved into Romania
• GB & France go to war against Russia
– Austria owed the Russians but took advantage
by moving into Moldavia & Wallachia
• Crimean War is first modern war
– Used trenches, telegraphs & railways
– Poor communication, strategic errors & disease
increased loss of life
The Crimean War
• Florence Nightingale started nursing as a
profession
• Tsar Nicholas I died
– Alexander II realized Russia could not win
• Treaty of Paris, 1856
– Russia demilitarized Black Sea & halted
expansion
The End of the Concert of
Europe
• Crimean War crushed the agreements
between the countries
– Gave France a false sense of military strength
– British were angry over the cost of the war
• Adopted a policy of “splendid isolation”
• Ignored the unification of Italy & Germany
– Austria relied on diplomacy & isolated itself
– Russia started on internal reforms
– Piedmont-Sardinia gained recognition
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Background & Romantic Nationalism
• Nationalism of Fr. Rev. & policies of
Napoleon revived political awareness
– Failed to expel foreign rule
• Turned to Piedmont-Sardinia for leadership
• Il Risorgimento (Italian Nationalism)
rebounded after Congress of Vienna
– Led by Giuseppe Mazzini (Young Italy) &
Giuseppe Garibaldi (Red Shirts)
• Represented Romantic nationalism
– Camillo Benso di Cavour was most effective
Role of Piedmont-Sardinia & Cavour
• PS was seen as a leader for unity because
of their anti-Austrian actions in the
revolutions of 1848
– 1848-49 King Charles Albert granted a
constitution & tried to unite other Italian states
in a revolt against Austria
• He failed – resulted in abdication in favor of his son,
Victor Emmanuel II & appointment of Prime Minster
Cavour
Role of Piedmont-Sardinia & Cavour
• Treaty of Plombières joined France (N III) and PS
against Austria
– Victories set off revolts in northern Italy
• France feared loss of control protecting Pope
– signed agreement with Austria - PS gained Lombardy
• Cavour told Garibaldi to unite the south
– Red Shirts rallied the countryside to unite
• Cavour wanted to avoid Rome (Pope & Fr)
– Garibaldi turns conquests over to PS
– Plebiscites vote to unite N & S
• March 1861 = new Italian kingdom (VE II is king)
Role of Piedmont-Sardinia & Cavour
• Italy gained Venetia in 1866 & Rome (not
the Vatican) in 1870
• Many problems continued
– Economic underdevelopment, corrupt political
system (trasformismo), vast cultural &
economic differences between N & S
– Attempted to make up for its weaknesses
through aggressive colonization
German Unification
German Dualism
• Why had no absolutist king taken power?
– The elective nature of the HRE
– Conflicts between HRE & Pope
– Religious conflicts
– Emergence of 2 main powers (dualism):
• Austria
• Prussia
German Dualism
• Prussia had been on decline since Frederick
the Great (d. 1786)
– Badly beaten by Napoleon
– Austria & Metternich had dominated @ C of V
– Humiliation of Olmütz (1850) forced on them by
Austria after failed revolution of 1848
• Agreed not to try to unite Germany
• William I takes over – wants to restore power
– Reformed military
German Dualism
• Constitution of 1850
– Representatives to Reichstag (Parliaments lower
house) were apportioned by a 3 tiered system
• Favored the wealthy Junker class
• No longer useful as Germany industrialized & middle
class Liberal Party grew
– Prussia was plunged into constitutional crisis as
Liberal Party and conservative Junkers clashed
The Work of Bismarck
• 1862 Otto von Bismarck named Chancellor
– He was a Junker who embraced realpolitik
– Represented Prussia to France, Russian & the
German Confederation
• Bismarck did not plan the unification of
Germany – he was an opportunist
– He told Liberals they had no power to block
constitutional reforms
• Appealed to Prussian patriotism, “blood & iron”
• He ignored Parliament’s attempt to block tax reform –
ordered tax office to collect taxes
The Work of Bismarck
• Unification meant 3 separate battles
– 1863 Poland revolted against Russia
• All nations voiced support – none was
provided
– Bismarck backed Russia – gained their support
– 1864 Denmark took control of 2 German
speaking provinces
• Rather than diplomacy, he had Austria join in
occupying the territory – Denmark is out
– Creates conflict between Austria & Prussia
» As Bismarck intended!!
The Work of Bismarck
• Austria turned to German Confederation
– Prussia declared WAR!
• Austria was isolated - - Russia backed
Prussia, he bought off the French, promised
Venetia to Italy - - Britain maintained its
“splendid isolation”
• Austro-Prussian War 1866 lasted 7 weeks
– Prussia had better rail system, organization & the
needle gun (breech loading rifle)
– William I wanted vengeance – Bismarck was
lenient with Austria
The Work of Bismarck
• Austria lost Venetia & had to step out of
the German political picture
• Prussia annexed the northern German
states
– 1867 Bismarck created the North German
Confederation
• Reichstag elected by universal male suffrage
– Passed the Indemnity Bill of 1866 – to retroactively
legalized the taxes Bismarck had illegally collected
The Work of Bismarck
• Bismarck worried about France
– Convinced the mostly Catholic German
states to ally with his North German
Confederation
• 1870 Spain’s throne was offered to a
Hohenzollern (relative of William I)
– France objected (vehemently)
• William relented
• France demanded an apology
The Work of Bismarck
• Bismarck edited an account of the
meeting with the French ambassador
– Ems Dispatch made it seem like William
had insulted the French ambassador
• Napoleon III declared war!!!
• Bismarck had isolated the French
– Easily defeated in Franco-Prussian War
• N III was captured at Sedan (
)
– Treaty of Frankfurt – France paid 5 billion
franc indemnity & lost Alsace-Lorraine
The Work of Bismarck
• January 1871 German Empire was
proclaimed with William as kaiser
– Bismarck engineered a federal constitution
• Power was still authoritarian – all ministers
reported to the kaiser
– Bismarck concentrated key positions in his own
hands so he could dominate
• German Empire upset balance of power
– Bismarck now worked for peace, but the
foundation for militarism was laid
Other Nation Building
Efforts
France: The Second Empire
• Louis Napoleon was elected president of the
Second Republic
– Consolidated power & dissolved the Chamber of
Deputies
– 1851 coup d’etat – LN rescinded the constitution
– 1852 plebiscite declared Second Empire
• 1878 King Leopold II (Belgium) formed the
International Congo Association
– Private bankers financed this personal venture
• Louis Napoleon became Emperor Napoleon III
+ modernized France
– Lost Mexico, Italy & Germany unified
France: The Second Empire
• N III focused on economic development
– Founded Credit Mobiliér bank, built railways,
promoted industry
– Rebuilt Paris
• Architect, Baron von Haussman tore down old city
– Built modern sanitary system, grand boulevards, opera
houses, theatres & shopping centers
– Allowed more political input after 1860
• Empire ended with N III’s capture @ Sedan
• Workers established Paris Commune
– Crushed by popularly elected Constituent
Assembly which started the Third Republic
Russia: Alexander II
• Started series of top-down reforms
– Too little – too late
• Fearing peasant upheaval – serfdom was abolished
(FINALLY - 1861)
– Peasants had to stay in mirs until they paid for the land
they received
• Legal system was equalized
– No more corporal or capital punishment
• Created local assemblies – zemstvos
• Reformed the army
• Country divided by slavophiles, those who
wanted to westernize and anarchists
Austria-Hungary:
The Dual Monarchy
• Franz-Joseph I (r. 1848-1916)
– Held empire together through bureaucracy,
the army and loyalty to the Hapsburg dynasty
• Focused on internal development after 1848
– Railroads, industry, centralization around the German
language (alienated Slavic & Magyar minorities)
• Formed Dual Monarchy 1867
– Allowed autonomy of Magyars – conflict
continued
– No universal male suffrage until 1907
The Second Industrial Revolution
New Technologies &
Methods
• This period (1875-1900) marks the
greatest concentration of technological
advances (including today)
– Henry Ford pioneered mass production
– Steel replaced iron in construction & in
military uses thanks to the Bessemer
Process
Early Form of Bessemer Converting Plant at Sheffield
Transportation &
Communication
• Steamships mean faster ocean journeys
– Greater mobility, easier to control distant lands
• Suez Canal (1869) & Panama Canal (1903)
• Airplanes (1903) = military not commercial
• Transatlantic telegraph cables laid in 1870’s
– Telephone invented 1874-76
• Standardized time zones made in 1880’s
• Marconi discovered radio waves
Business Cycles and
Managing Markets
• Economy suffered from Boom-Bust Cycle
– Overproduction & unpredictable commodity
prices often caused recession
• Gov’ts fear worker revolts & corporate bankruptcies
– Modern corporations develop
• More organized – complex accounting &
administration
– Cartels grow
• Industries collaborate to control production and prices
– Banks pool resources in consortia
• Wanted to control interest rates
Business Cycles and
Managing Markets
• Two Types of Cartels
– Horizontal Integration
• Holding companies were used to control several
corporations
– This way they could influence the policies of all
– Vertical Integration
• A corporation controlled all phases of production and
distribution
• Gov’ts relied on market & gold standard
– Many turned to protectionist policies
Business Cycles and
Managing Markets
• Technological advances = new goods
– What was once a luxury became a necessity
– Corporations use new communication advances
to market products
• Marks development of consumerism
– Billboards, newspapers & catalogs
– New “white-collar” employment in retail, marketing &
communications
• Paris (naturally) opens the 1st department
store – Bon Marché
The Balance of Power &
Global Integration
• By 1900 Germany surpass Britain in steel,
iron coal mining and chemical production
• US rose as a non-European competitor
– Produced more than Germany or Britain in steel
& coal by 1900
• European capital dominated the world
economy
– Imperial powers invested in Asia, Latin America
& Africa
Motives & Means
• Economic Motives
– Needed access to raw materials & markets
• Political Motives
– Coveted areas for strategic value
• Formed protectorates
– Nationalistic fervor pushed nations to colonize
• Cultural Motives
– Europeans felt a “duty to civilize inferior races”
– Racial Darwinism was enabled by advanced
technology
What was the point of view of
the author of the preceding
political cartoon?
He thought the US &
European nations
were justified in their
colonization work.
He thought the US &
European nations were
unjust and unfair.
The Partition of Africa
• 1885 Bismarck called Berlin Conference
– Established procedures to colonize
• Had opposite of intended effect
– Europeans claimed huge chunks without regard for the
indigenous people
• By 1900 all but Liberia & Ethiopia were under direct
European rule
British Rule in Africa
• Joseph Chamberlain (colonial secretary)
– Favored making tariff union between Britain & her
colonies (bind by “imperial preferences”)
• Feared spread of independence movements
– Eventually led to the commonwealth system
• Areas like Canada were self-governing but maintained
strong economic ties to mother country
• Cecil Rhodes (Prime Minister of Cape Colony)
– Tried to establish a Cape to Cairo connection to
cement UK control of Africa (& protect his diamond interests)
• Had to resign after trying to start wars with the 2 Dutch Republics
British Rule in Africa
• To secure control of Egypt, Britain invaded the
Sudan
– Muslim Mahdists resisted – killed British General
Gordon (1885)
– 1898 British took Omdurman because of their superior
weaponry
• Sudanese lost approx 11,000 to 48 British
• Britain avoided war with the French at Fashoda
but went to war with Dutch
– Policies of Cecil Rhodes embroiled British in the costly
Boer War
• British use of concentration camps and scorched earth
policies led to international condemnation
Expansion
The Kimberly Frog trying to make himself bigger than the Bull (John Bull = GB)
Imperialism in Asia
3 Examples
The British in India
• India & China already had sophisticated
political & social hierarchies
– European imperialists preferred to “plug in” to
the existing power structure
• British in India used political divisions to
gain allies & establish indirect control
– British East India Company accomplished this
• British military used harsh methods to
subdue the Sepoy Rebellion & take direct
control
The British in India
• Queen Victoria – Empress of India
– British changes included:
• Changing India from manufacturing to producing
raw materials only
• Built extensive rail system
• Built schools (taught in English)
• Elites went to British universities to become
effective civil servants
– Learned about nationalism
– Mahatma Gandhi & Jawaharlal Nehru
The Carving of China
• Weakness of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911)
allowed westerners to exploit China
– Europeans wanted everything Chinese
– Chinese only wanted opium from Europeans
• Government attempts to stop opium trade met with
military force
• Treaty of Nanking (1842) imposed trade
concessions on China
– France & GB gain trade rights
– GB gets Hong Kong
– Free trade ports were established
The Carving of China
• Russia & Germany join the fun
– Carve out spheres of influence
• Europeans were subject only to laws of
their homelands (Extraterritoriality)
• US secured the Open Door Policy
– Each country would have access to the treaty
ports of the other countries
• Anger over foreign control resulted in the
Boxer Rebellion (1900) led by Chinese
secret societies & crushed by the west
Japan’s Modernization
• Only Japan seemed able to withstand the
push of the Europeans
– US Commodore Perry (1853) found Japan
prospering though it had been isolated for
about 300 yrs
• Contact with the west led to the fall of the
Tokugawa Shogunate
– Reforming samurai restored the emperor & led
to the most rapid modernization in history
• This was the Meiji Restoration
Japan’s Modernization
• By 1890 Japan was a military, industrial &
imperial power
– Defeated China in 1894 to dominate Korea
– 1902 GB allied with Japan
– Russo-Japanese War 1904-1905
• Japan defeated Russia – marked first Asian defeat of
a European power
– Results:
» Russia turned to the Balkans (sets stage for WWI)
» Russia’s weakness led to Revolution of 1905 (set up
Revolution of 1917)
» Demonstrated that Europeans could be beaten with
their own weapons
Critics & Consequences
• Imperialism was condemned by some
– J.A. Hobson (GB economist) said it was driven by
desire to accumulate capital
• Said corporations should “invest” in the workers, tax excess
wealth & redistribute it to the poor
– V.I. Lenin (Communist revolutionary) said it was
indicative of crisis in capitalism
• By concentrating power in the hand of the few, war (WWI)
was inevitable
• Italy loved imperialism
– They were desperate for a colony & took Ethiopia but
was driven out in 1898
– Finally won Libya (1911) but it was virtually worthless
Critics & Consequences
• How did imperialism change Europe?
– Rise of new powers
• US & Japan (conflicts show up in WWII)
– Intensification of rivalries
• African & Asian colonies are the seeds of WWI
– Conflicts between Russia & GB over Persia and Germany &
France over Morocco helped polarize countries tied in
entangling alliances
– Decolonization & dependency
• Colonial ties loosened after WWI & ended after WWII
– Issues related to dependency & resentment remained
GB
Russia
Persia
(Persian cat . . . get it??
Caption from a 1911 English satirical magazine read: “If we hadn't a
thorough understanding, I (British lion) might almost be tempted to ask what
you (Russian bear) are doing there with our little playfellow” (Persian cat)