Topic 6.2 State Expansion from 1750 to 1900
Learning Objective
Compare processes by which state power shifted in various parts of the world from 1750 to 1900.
Historical Developments
Some states with existing colonies strengthened their control over those colonies and in some cases assumed direct control over colonies previously held by non-state entities.
Non-state to state colonial control:
European states as well as the United States and Japan acquired territories throughout Asia and the Pacific, while Spanish and Portuguese influence declined.
European states that expanded empires in Africa:
Many European states used both warfare and diplomacy to expand their empires in Africa.
Europeans established settler colonies in some parts of their empires.
Settler colonies established in empires:
The United States, Russia, and Japan expanded their land holdings by conquering and settling neighboring territories.
Learning Objective
Compare processes by which state power shifted in various parts of the world from 1750 to 1900.
Historical Developments
Some states with existing colonies strengthened their control over those colonies and in some cases assumed direct control over colonies previously held by non-state entities.
Non-state to state colonial control:
- Shift from the private ownership of the Congo by King Leopold II to the Belgium government
- Shift from the Dutch East India Company to Dutch government control in Indonesia and Southeast Asia
European states as well as the United States and Japan acquired territories throughout Asia and the Pacific, while Spanish and Portuguese influence declined.
European states that expanded empires in Africa:
- Britain in West Africa -indirect rule
- Belgium in the Congo- shift from private to state rule
- French in West Africa- direct rule
Many European states used both warfare and diplomacy to expand their empires in Africa.
Europeans established settler colonies in some parts of their empires.
Settler colonies established in empires:
- New Zealand
The United States, Russia, and Japan expanded their land holdings by conquering and settling neighboring territories.
Imperialism in South Asia (India)
-India: A Center for Trade
India has always been featured in world history as a destination for merchants around the world. Even though India did not have a huge empire like the Mongols or the Spanish, India has been a powerhouse for trade. Located at the heart of the Indian Ocean, India produced luxury goods that were in high demand like cotton, sugar, spices, and other goods. India was so popular that it became the crucial reason why Europeans like Columbus were “discovering” new routes to get into the Indian Ocean.
Foreign Rule over India
Before the Modern Period, Indians were being ruled by two foreign groups. First, the Mughals (pronounced moo-galls). The Mughals were the Islamic rulers that conquered all but the southern parts of India. Since the majority of Indians practice Hinduism, the Islamic Mughals had to ensure their government doesn’t not anger the masses. While relations between Muslims and Hindus were initially pretty peaceful, overtime the Mughal emperors became less tolerant of non-Muslims, creating negative tension between the two religious groups. The other power that began influencing India came from Europe. Western European countries like Britain and Portugal were eager to get into India for the riches of the Indian Ocean trade. First, they created trade ports along the southern coast of India, then they began to fight for control over India. The real matchup was between France and Britain, which was ultimately decided in the Seven Years War. The British emerged victorious and became the sole European influence over India. Keep in mind, the Mughals were still in control over northern India. The British made agreements with the Mughals to only be in India for trading purposes and were not allowed to spread any British culture to the locals.
British Encounters with India- Gaining Control
After the Seven Years War, the British government decided to have a company called the British East India Company (BEIC) control the trade activities in India. The British wanted to keep India under their influence so they could continue the supply of cotton and other natural resources from India to their industrial factories back in Britain. To achieve this, the British government allowed the BEIC to create an army for their own use. The BEIC could not build a large army with just European soldiers, so they employed both Hindu and Muslim men into their private army. These Indian soldiers were called Sepoys (see picture on the right). They were trained by the BEIC and paid good wages due to the profits the BEIC gained from trading in India. Initially, many of the British officers were very open to the cultures of India. They studied various Indian languages, ate the local cuisine, collected Indian art, and attended their religious rituals. Some officers even married Indian women and started multi-racial families. But over time, new generations of BEIC officers began to despise the cultures of India, seeing them as “backward” or “uncivilized.” BEIC officers wrote to the British Government about how they should “civilize” India by teaching the Indians to speak English and forcing them to adopt British culture. Some British officers sent Christian missionaries to convert Indians, but this created tension between the British and Indians.
The Sepoy Rebellion of 1857- Shift from private control to state control
The event that truly begins Britain’s rule over India was the Sepoy Rebellion of 1857. The Sepoy armies received a new rifle which had a gun cartridge greased with pig and cow fat. The Sepoys were trained to rip the top of the cartridge with their mouth and pour the gunpowder from the cartridge into their rifle. This was a major issue to both Hindus and Muslims: Muslims don’t eat pork because it’s considered “unclean” and Hindus don’t eat beef as they recognize cows as sacred animals. Combined with the British attempts to convert Indians to Christianity, the Indian Sepoys felt the British were corrupting their religious beliefs and organized a massive violent rebellion against the BEIC. Their goal was to free India from any influence of the British. The Sepoys even got support from the remaining Mughal leaders. The Sepoy resistance was strong enough to defeat the BEIC, but not the British Empire. Sent by Queen Victoria, the British military swiftly invaded and defeated the sepoys. Leaders of the rebellion were publicly executed. The rule of the Mughals ended along with the Sepoys’ dream of freeing India from the British. While Indian historians sometimes refer to this rebellion as the First War of Indian Independence, the British called it the Sepoy Mutiny*, which emphasized how the British saw the Indian people as “disobedient,” “violent” and “needs to be controlled.” The British government sent British men to be the top government officials that control the colony. But just like the sepoys in the BEIC army, the British allowed Indians to work in lower-level government positions. The British Empire would rule over India until 1947.
The British Raj-indirect and direct rule
In the 1890s in India, there were fewer than 1,000 British administrators supposedly ruling over 300 million Indians. The vast majority of British troops at any given time in India, more than two-thirds, were in fact Indians under the command of British officers. Almost two thirds of the territory of India was ruled by Indian princes that had previously ruled. This isn't to say that indigenous rulers were simply puppets. Often, they retained real power.
Consequences of British Imperialism
The British shut down iron mining and production. They also shut down ship building and forced the use of British ships on Indian merchants. Lastly, they outlawed the mass manufacture of cotton. This led to a de industrialization of India's economy.
Subsistence farming where small families produced for their own needs disappeared. The people of India were forced to grow cash crops for the world market especially cotton and opium to supply China. To achieve this goal, farmers were taxed and could pay by working in the plantations. Many lost their lands and began working in those plantations. So that meant they did not grow a surplus for themselves resulting in the Great Famine of 1878. Eight million died in the famine. Two more famines killed 30 million total. These economic practices led to great poverty in India.
India has always been featured in world history as a destination for merchants around the world. Even though India did not have a huge empire like the Mongols or the Spanish, India has been a powerhouse for trade. Located at the heart of the Indian Ocean, India produced luxury goods that were in high demand like cotton, sugar, spices, and other goods. India was so popular that it became the crucial reason why Europeans like Columbus were “discovering” new routes to get into the Indian Ocean.
Foreign Rule over India
Before the Modern Period, Indians were being ruled by two foreign groups. First, the Mughals (pronounced moo-galls). The Mughals were the Islamic rulers that conquered all but the southern parts of India. Since the majority of Indians practice Hinduism, the Islamic Mughals had to ensure their government doesn’t not anger the masses. While relations between Muslims and Hindus were initially pretty peaceful, overtime the Mughal emperors became less tolerant of non-Muslims, creating negative tension between the two religious groups. The other power that began influencing India came from Europe. Western European countries like Britain and Portugal were eager to get into India for the riches of the Indian Ocean trade. First, they created trade ports along the southern coast of India, then they began to fight for control over India. The real matchup was between France and Britain, which was ultimately decided in the Seven Years War. The British emerged victorious and became the sole European influence over India. Keep in mind, the Mughals were still in control over northern India. The British made agreements with the Mughals to only be in India for trading purposes and were not allowed to spread any British culture to the locals.
British Encounters with India- Gaining Control
After the Seven Years War, the British government decided to have a company called the British East India Company (BEIC) control the trade activities in India. The British wanted to keep India under their influence so they could continue the supply of cotton and other natural resources from India to their industrial factories back in Britain. To achieve this, the British government allowed the BEIC to create an army for their own use. The BEIC could not build a large army with just European soldiers, so they employed both Hindu and Muslim men into their private army. These Indian soldiers were called Sepoys (see picture on the right). They were trained by the BEIC and paid good wages due to the profits the BEIC gained from trading in India. Initially, many of the British officers were very open to the cultures of India. They studied various Indian languages, ate the local cuisine, collected Indian art, and attended their religious rituals. Some officers even married Indian women and started multi-racial families. But over time, new generations of BEIC officers began to despise the cultures of India, seeing them as “backward” or “uncivilized.” BEIC officers wrote to the British Government about how they should “civilize” India by teaching the Indians to speak English and forcing them to adopt British culture. Some British officers sent Christian missionaries to convert Indians, but this created tension between the British and Indians.
The Sepoy Rebellion of 1857- Shift from private control to state control
The event that truly begins Britain’s rule over India was the Sepoy Rebellion of 1857. The Sepoy armies received a new rifle which had a gun cartridge greased with pig and cow fat. The Sepoys were trained to rip the top of the cartridge with their mouth and pour the gunpowder from the cartridge into their rifle. This was a major issue to both Hindus and Muslims: Muslims don’t eat pork because it’s considered “unclean” and Hindus don’t eat beef as they recognize cows as sacred animals. Combined with the British attempts to convert Indians to Christianity, the Indian Sepoys felt the British were corrupting their religious beliefs and organized a massive violent rebellion against the BEIC. Their goal was to free India from any influence of the British. The Sepoys even got support from the remaining Mughal leaders. The Sepoy resistance was strong enough to defeat the BEIC, but not the British Empire. Sent by Queen Victoria, the British military swiftly invaded and defeated the sepoys. Leaders of the rebellion were publicly executed. The rule of the Mughals ended along with the Sepoys’ dream of freeing India from the British. While Indian historians sometimes refer to this rebellion as the First War of Indian Independence, the British called it the Sepoy Mutiny*, which emphasized how the British saw the Indian people as “disobedient,” “violent” and “needs to be controlled.” The British government sent British men to be the top government officials that control the colony. But just like the sepoys in the BEIC army, the British allowed Indians to work in lower-level government positions. The British Empire would rule over India until 1947.
The British Raj-indirect and direct rule
In the 1890s in India, there were fewer than 1,000 British administrators supposedly ruling over 300 million Indians. The vast majority of British troops at any given time in India, more than two-thirds, were in fact Indians under the command of British officers. Almost two thirds of the territory of India was ruled by Indian princes that had previously ruled. This isn't to say that indigenous rulers were simply puppets. Often, they retained real power.
Consequences of British Imperialism
The British shut down iron mining and production. They also shut down ship building and forced the use of British ships on Indian merchants. Lastly, they outlawed the mass manufacture of cotton. This led to a de industrialization of India's economy.
Subsistence farming where small families produced for their own needs disappeared. The people of India were forced to grow cash crops for the world market especially cotton and opium to supply China. To achieve this goal, farmers were taxed and could pay by working in the plantations. Many lost their lands and began working in those plantations. So that meant they did not grow a surplus for themselves resulting in the Great Famine of 1878. Eight million died in the famine. Two more famines killed 30 million total. These economic practices led to great poverty in India.
Imperialism and South East Asia
European nations also grabbed land in Southeast Asia and the islands on the edge of the Pacific Ocean. They wanted the area for its resources and because it was close to China. The United States joined this quest for colonies. European powers found that these lands were good for growing such cash crops as sugar, coffee, cocoa, rubber, and fruit. As trade in these items grew, Europeans moved to take more land.
Dutch in Southeast Asia- private to state control
Dutch East India Company (VOC) took control of the Spice Islands (now Indonesia) first. The VOC took over spice trade from Portuguese, setting up various trading posts. Trade was profitable, but the company was corrupt. After the VOC went bankrupt in 1800, the Dutch Government took over and established the Dutch East Indies. Their plantations produced tea, rubber, sugar for export. The Dutch also limited local rice production creating hardship for Indonesian farmers.
French in Southeast Asia-Gaining control and rule
France gained control of Vietnam after defeating China in the Sino - French War (1883 - 1885). The French took control of Cambodia and Laos from Siam. All of the French holdings came to be known as French Indochina. They also used the land for cash crops. They cultivated rubber in Cambodia and Vietnam also hurting local food agriculture.
Consequences of French and Dutch Imperialism
During Imperialism peasants were forced to be part of the cultivation system. Peasants were required to farm 20% of their land in cash crops to be sold to Dutch and or French companies at a reduced price. These same companies would then process the raw materials and make huge profits. This institution led to the imperial powers enriching themselves but the local farmers becoming indebted increasing poverty in South East Asia.
Imperialism in the Oceania and Settler colonies
Settler ColoniesSettler colonies
This type of colonization is similar to the old imperialism. Europeans would settle there hoping to take advantage of the vast amounts of land. They used their military power to displace the natives. The purpose was to take control of the territory for the benefit of the colonizing nation. consequences The initial consequences of this type of colonialism is the genocide caused by warfare or disease. It is also marked by continual clashes with the locals until the natives are completely subjugated. Lastly is the exploitations of labor in the form of blackbirding or kidnapping and fooling people to force them to work in the newly established plantations. For example, about 60,000 Pacific Islanders were taken from their mainly Melanesian homelands to Australia in the 1800s to work on plantations. Long term effects include poverty by the local population. Also forced conversion to western political, economic and social ideas and loss of culture. |
New Zealand & TasmaniaGreat Britain created settler colony in New Zealand in 1839. After many battles and long resistance by the Maori, the British said they would protect Maori’s in Treaty of Waitangi, but there were lots of clashes anyway. Grew to make food for growing Australian colony.
Tasmanian Island
Of an estimated population in 1788 of over half a million, fewer than 50,000 Aboriginal people survived the genocide by 1900. Most died of disease and attacks. |
AustraliaGreat Britain sent prisoners to Australia colony beginning in 1788, and for a long time this was the main purpose of the colony. But it switched to production of goods like wool in the 1830s. Settlers began moving to Australia and were encouraged by the discovery of copper and gold in the 1850s.
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