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European Imperialism Research Paper

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Over the course of a century, nationalism spread throughout Europe. This new patriotic breakthrough changed the way Europeans looked at themselves. Rather than associating themselves with only a small area similar to their local town or area, like they did in the past, they are now beginning to associate themselves with their country as a whole. This trend escalated around 1830s, with states becoming unified with a common language, culture, and territory. Nationalism is important to modern day history because it is through this that many countries were formed and is also the reason for how the world is today. Without nationalism, monarchs could still not be treating people the way with respect, imperialism would not have happened at the scale …show more content…

Italy was dealing with ideals of nationality and political dis-unification since the fall of Rome. The political fragmentation and the economic inequality of the north and south led to Emmanuel II and Benso to expand Emmanuel’s rule and unify Italy. Along with Giuseppe Mazzinni, who was a product of the revolution of 1848, was able to unify the nation. At the same time, Germany was also seeking unification via Austria or Prussia. Prussia was currently the economic powerhouse of the Rhineland Because of this, Prussia was able to take control of and create the North German Confederation. Civilians now had a country to look up to and connect to. Before, most countries had an incredibly diverse group of people living within it. Different ethnic groups, language, and traditions all contributed to people not being able to relate to their country as a whole and only feel pride for their smaller community. At this point, people have sought to seek their own nation that they can relate to and these movements increased throughout the years. “There is no doubt that the number of nationalistic movements increased considerably in Europe in the 1870s” (Hobsbawan 145), showing how the nationalist movement grew over the course of a few decades. Though these revolts did not always work out, they set a standard for rulers that they now had to respect and listen to their people. This also built pride within the nation to know that the people held some power. After the unifications, European nations felt as if their own country was by far the most superior and felt as if they should be the one to control most of the world. This nationalistic idea led to imperialism. Along with the lack of resources countries had for their ever-growing populations, European nations set for the “Scramble of

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