Colonialism: Imperialism, Economic Impact, and Global Effects
Colonial Imperialism and Racial Ideology
The idea of a white master race, whose intelligence and industrial capacity gave it the right to impose itself on other races, was presented as scientific fact in almost all European countries. They also imposed the idea that this justifiable domination could be exerted by any means, including war. This was considered a way of reasserting the power and cultural superiority of each country.
Economic Colonization
The colonizers took over land, abandoning traditional crops that ensured the survival of indigenous families, and replaced them with large plantations to grow products that benefited the metropole. The indigenous people were forced to work in the plantations and had to buy food because the settlers imposed a cash market economy.
Social Dismantling
Ethnic groups were divided or united artificially, which forced opposing groups to live together. The colonizers recruited some indigenous people into the army and civil service.
Conquest of Overseas Territories
The search for new territories led to a number of scientific journeys and geographical explorations, carried out by the British and the French. Internal rivalries between tribes and ethnic groups were exploited to pit them against each other and recruit troops.
Boer and Opium Wars
News of large gold deposits found in the Transvaal led the British to invade those republics and annex them. All the colonial powers wanted to be part of the China market because of its large population.
India and British Colonialism
Its large population made India a major market for British products and an important supplier of raw materials. Thus, it was the main colony of Britain.
Energy Sources and Industrialization
The invention of Gramme’s industrial dynamo in 1869 made it possible to generate electricity in hydropower plants. As well as the invention of the alternator and the transformer in 1897, which made it possible to transport electric current.
European Population Increase
Agricultural reforms, industrialization, and advances in medicine and hygiene caused a huge reduction in the death rate in Europe, and because the birth rate didn’t decline as rapidly, the population increased.
Migration from Europe
The majority who migrated were poor peasants, people without a trade, and middle-class people in search of better opportunities. They would work as farmers or become part of the colonial administration, or, for the poor, they became wage earners.
World War I Alliances
Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy vs. Serbia, Russia, France, and Great Britain. Tsarism (White Army) vs. Bolsheviks (Red Army).
New Markets and Economic Expansion
Colonial powers sought to sell their supplied products, as well as to obtain raw materials and colonial products. Also, they wanted to invest their excess capital.
Occupation of Colonies and Overpopulation
Demographic growth caused overpopulation, encouraging people to emigrate to colonies on other continents.
Territorial Expansion and Political Power
After the unifications of Italy and Germany, established European countries could only increase their political power by occupying other continents. Creating colonial empires was a way to demonstrate their influence on international diplomacy.