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Imperialism. The White Man’s Burden. New Imperialism. Southeast Asia. Old Imperialists in SE Asia. Who is R uling W ho? . Thailand. The only nation in SE Asia to successfully resist European domination was Thailand. Colonial Regimes. Colonial Economics.
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Imperialism The White Man’s Burden
Thailand • The only nation in SE Asia to successfully resist European domination was Thailand.
Colonial Economics • Stressed the production of raw materials • Burma: Rubber and tin • Malaya: Spices, tea, coffee • East Indies: palm oil • Philippines: Sugar, fruit • Often developed into a large scale plantation system that benefited only the ruling elites and colonial rulers
Positive Affects of Colonial Rule Infrastructure: roads, railroads, bridges, modern urban improvements, medical advancements etc. Encouraged increased trade, expanded economic opportunity and social mobility and the development of a middle class. In the British areas and to a greater extent the American Philippines, schools, and the ideals of western democratic institutions were established.
Resistance • Resistance took many forms in SE Asia. • Some efforts were headed by the traditional rulers, IE Burma • Some efforts were headed by government officials Traditional religious elites often strongly resisted western cultural and religious reforms • Most early efforts and violent resistance were overwhelmed do to the technological superiority of the Westerners • Ironically the more successful efforts were those headed by the growing western educated middle class who learned the lessons of freedom and self rule too well!
West Africa • Britain: Gold Coast, Nigeria • France: Created a huge empire they identified as French West Africa • Germany: Togo, Cameroon
West Africa • West Africa had long been in contact with the western world through the slave trade and this contact had already drastically changed the economies and social and political structures of this region. • The abolishment of the slave trade led to the collapse of this system allowed Europeans to step in and replace the slave trade dominated kingdoms with colonial rule and an economy based on the production and export of raw materials.
North Africa • Egypt after centuries of being ruled by the Ottoman Empire revolts and declared independence under the ruler Muhammad Ali. He attempts modernization and industrialization. • The French obtain the rights to build the Suez canal. • British buy the Egyptian rights to the canal feeling that it is a vital link in their access to their eastern empire. After a revolt against foreign influence in Egypt breaks out Britain takes this opportunity to suppress the revolt and make Egypt a British protectorate in 1914.
Sudan which had been part of Egypt’s territory revolts and the British send troops to crush the revolt and reestablish Egyptian/British control of Sudan in 1885. Not so fast, Charles Gordon and his troops are wiped out and it is not until 1898 that the Brits reestablish control of the Sudan. • The French colonize Algeria and establish control of the government. They spread this control to Tunisia and Morocco. • The Italians attempt to jump in and establish control of Ethiopia. They suffer a humiliating defeat. Later they try again and successfully establish control of Turkish Tripoli which they rename Libya.
Central Africa • Famous explorations of Central Africa such as that of David Livingstone, increase European interest in the region. Despite this interest Britain is not convinced to commit resources to the colonization so Stanley another explorer talks King Leopold II of Belgium into it. He was largely responsible for the colonization of the Congo River basin and Central Africa. • France got worried and jumped on the band wagon claiming the territory north of the Congo River basin.
East Africa • Germans are late to the party. Bismarck did not believe overseas empire furthered his goals of domination of the European continent so he stayed away from it. When Wilhelm II takes the throne he gets rid of Bismarck and jumps into Africa with both feet. Britain, Portugal and Belgium also had claims in this region. • In 1884-5 these powers met at the Berlin conference and carved up east Africa. (of course no Africans were invited to attend).
South Africa • The descendants of the Dutch settlers who arrived in the seventeenth century not called the Boers have reached numbers close to 200,000. • During the Napoleonic Wars Britain gained control of Cape Town and the surrounding area from the Boers. In 1830 the Boers tired of British rule left and moved north to establish what they called the two independent states of Orange free state and Transvaal. They believed in white superiority and established strict systems of segregation and even put many Africans on reservations.
Both the Boers and the British fight wars with the Zulu and eventually the British defeat them. • In the 1880 Cecil Rhodes founded a diamond and gold company and drove the British to gain control of the territory north of Transvaal that he named Rhodesia. • Rhodes was secretly planning ( maybe) an invasion of the Boer South African Republic. The Brits said “It wasn’t us” and pulled him out of Africa but it was too late to stop a war with the Boers. This war dragged on for 3 years with fierce Guerrilla fighting. The Brits finally got sick of it and rounded up 120,00o Boer woman and children sticking them in what amounted to concentration camps with such poor conditions that 20,000 died. The Brits finally won the war and established control of all of South Africa. The created the independent self governing Union of South Africa. They gave the right to vote only to Whites and a very few propertied Africans.
Colonial Rule in Africa • Only Liberia created by the United States as a home for free slaves and Ethiopia ( who kicked the Italians butts!) remained independent. • Any native people who resisted where decimated by the superior military force of the Europeans. • Most of Africa was organized with a system of indirect rule which was cheaper and easier to maintain. In most cases they just went to the local ruler told them they must accept British, French etc. rule and fly the flag of that nation. This kept the old elite in power but the colonial rulers had the final say in all decisions, they traditional rulers job was to enforce this. This system had less disruption of traditional life but also kept people from adapting more democratic forms of government.
Colonial rule in Africa was almost universally corrupt, enriching the elites and oppressing the people. • It was usually based on racism and a view that Black Africans were inferior and incapable of governing themselves or the economies of their nations. • Even in areas where education and economic opportunities were available for Africans they were extremely limited with the best land, jobs and positions only open to Whites. • The French approach was to completely assimilate their colonies, making them speak French and create French style governments. The advantage of this was that Africans were given much more opportunity to hold office, gain status and profit from the new modernized economy. They were even given the opportunity to run for and hold office in the French National Assembly.
African Nationalism • Much as in Asia most nationalist movements in Africa were led by the middle class and elite Africans educated in the west. • They had a love-hate relationship with western ways. On one hand they understood and appreciated the advantages of modern western culture but they also resented the racism and imperialism that made them second class citizens in their own countries. • Over time the educated middle class and elites that develop begin to demand independence from European domination as they will in Asia.
