Imperialism is a policy that has positively impacted nations and their development for centuries. This was especially true during the late 1800s and early 1900s, when many European nations began to expand far beyond their borders. Imperialistic policies were not only good for the development of countries that were expanding, but in many cases, the countries that were being expanded into as well. From the start, there were many beneficial reasons for a European nation to imperialize, and by far, one of the most appealing reasons to imperialize other nations was access to raw materials. By the late 1800s, many European nations were seeing rapid growth in industry and manufacturing, but did not have the resources within their continental borders …show more content…
Prior to the arrival of the Europeans, people around the world lived with awful conditions, as they lacked more modern innovations. Such innovations included indoor plumbing, roads, and faster means of transportations (Hobson 103). With the Europeans introducing the native people to these types of inventions, it’s clear that positive development ensued, as only good can come from many things that the Europeans had brought with them. Especially in Africa, which came almost completely under European control in 1884 following the Berlin Conference, the territories developed for the better. Indoor plumbing, among many other things brought better sanitations, ultimately leading to less disease (Lynn). Developed roads and faster means of transportation, including steam boats to move goods from continent to continent, meant it was considerably easier to maintain international trade. With faster transportation, Africans were introduced to a number of products that had previously been unavailable, because of the length of time needed to ship them. They were also able to export goods, typically through the European nation that was controlling them, which brought in a new source of income (Said 114). Imperialism often did good for the people living in in areas that were significantly …show more content…
First of all, the Europeans brought Christianity with them, and in their minds, unless a person believed in Jesus Christ, they were set to go to Hell. With this idea in mind, the Europeans taught the people they had colonized the ways of Christianity, thus saving them from their savagery and spending an eternity in Hell (Palmer et al. 575). Europeans also set up schools in many places that they colonized, and while often very exclusive, they still brought education to areas where most children learned their parents trade, and nothing more (Hobson 211). Perhaps most importantly, Europeans brought new forms of government to many of their colonies, especially in Africa, which was made up of mostly tribes (Said 154). These tribes didn’t exactly get along very well, leading to constant warfare and instability across the continent. When the Europeans came in, they brought new ways of controlling populations that by no means stopped fighting, but to an extent, reduced some of the violence, as there were consequences put in place (Lynn). Reducing violence was not something every European nation was able to ensure for their colonies, but when it did happen, those nations developed for the
In conclusion, European imperialism had a both positive and negative effect on Africa and Asia, while the majority of people fail to comprehend the positive facet of the topic. Europe introduced education, religion, trade, and government to the people, but the way in which they forced these things upon the native people is where they went wrong. When they forced themselves on the native people it ruined the interactions between
The concept of imperialism is one that has pervaded nearly every major society or empire throughout human history. It seems to be a natural consequence of societies growing in size, power, and knowledge. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries vast changes occurred in Western Europe (and soon spread elsewhere) that spurred a new round of imperialism the likes of which had not been seen before. The changes were the industrial revolution that was taking place. Countries were rapidly advancing to industrial societies producing much greater quantities of goods at much lower costs. The goods produced ranged everywhere from cotton textiles to military machinery, all of which would play important roles in rounds of imperialistic expansion that
Imperialism is a policy of extending a country power or influence through either military or by trade. Imperialism was a legitimate policy for the United states to follow in the beginning of the nineteenth century, because it spread Christianity, increase economic power and profits and it benefit the weaker countries that united states take over.
Imperialism is a factor that has transformed societies and nations over the course of history. In the past, nations such as France, Great Britain, Germany, and Spain have been categorized as “imperialistic” nations. These nations referred to advanced technology as power. The industrial revolution and increase in new technology gave them the idea to want to spread their ideas to other countries around the world. This involved taking over nations and building colonies to benefit the mother country.
With the late 19th century came a great change in the ideas of expansionism in the United States, but also a continuation of its ideals. The idea of imperialism, where the United States would extend its power around the globe, stood in contrast with the original Manifest Destiny ideal of the 1840s and 1850s when America was expanding west from ‘sea to shining sea.’ However, the inherent social and cultural sentiments were still present in the late 19th century expansionism, though the economic and political purposes had changed.
Throughout the history of the world, imperialism has played a major role. Imperialism is one country’s complete domination of the political, economic, and social life of another country. Imperialism has many positive and negative effects. The Age of Imperialism is considered 1800 - 1914. During this time Europe became a major world leader. European countries set up colonies all over Africa, Latin America, and Asia, and encouraged their citizens to populate them. European imperialism boosted Europe’s economy, and made them a world power. Imperialization had an entirely different effect on Africa, Latin America, and Asia. People of these countries were mistreated, they lost their culture, land, and self respect. The negative effects of
Was it nationalism, industrialization, militarism, or racism? The American and the Europeans were imperialistic because of many reasons. One of the main reasons they were imperialistic was due to money. Both the European and Americans were industrialized, therefore if their nation did not have a raw material they had to go wherever the raw material is located.
The United States became an imperialist nation at the end of the 19th century because Americans wanted to expand overseas with their belief in manifest destiny. The three factors that started American imperialism were political and military competition including the creation of a strong naval force, economic competition among industrial nations and a belief in the racial and cultural superiority of people of Anglo-Saxon descent.
In the late 19th century, a desire for expansion and control swept through Europe. Today, we know this as the age of imperialism. Influential powers like Britain and France competed to gain more land and to spread their influence throughout the world. The purpose of imperialism was to gain political power by means of land and wealth. The more power an empire held, the more influence it had on worldly matters. With this power came racial tensions, and a strong sense of nationalism. Britain was the leading power in the race for imperialism, leading many of its citizens to believe that they were above those not of English origin. Growing powers meant new opportunities for the citizens of the growing imperialistic empire. Anna Leonowens, a British
I am for imperialism because it was a logical and effective decision for the United States to do during that time. The American mindset had always veered towards some form of imperialism even though American Imperialism didn't officially begin until the late 1800s. For instance, when the American citizens had the constant desire to expand their territories and settle west in hope for land and more opportunities, they conquered the land previously owned by Indian and placed them on horrific reservations. Later, the Americans sought to americanize the Indians because they felt that the Indian’s lifestyle was inferior to that of theirs and thus needed help from Americans, who had the superior style of living and should come in and change the Indian ways. Americans essentially repeated this process again in the late 1800s/early 1900s
Imperialism is the policy of extending the role of authority of a nation over a foreign country, usually in material gain. In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, the United States went through an era of imperialism. At the time, the US was quite powerful, but was looking to continue to spread their territory, make themselves even stronger, and have multiple trade routes to have all the resources they needed and wanted.
Since there were many nations involved, there were many attributes that led up to imperialism. Firstly, the Europeans wanted economic expansion. Since the industrial revolution had taken place, the Europeans were in need of more natural resources. They also wanted new markets for the sake of selling industrial products. To achieve this they had to look for more places outside of Europe and colonize it.
Imperialism is defined as a policy of extending a country 's power and influence through diplomacy or military force. Countries during the Industrial Revolution wanted to imperialize due to social, political, and economic reasons. As early as the mid 1800’s, the European countries craved the idea of power and conquering new lands in order to obtain resources/raw materials. They took over Africa, the Ottoman Empire, India, and Southeast Asia due to this as well as for their convenient location. They believed that the more land one owns, the stronger the country would be. Although some can argue the fact that imperialism had a detrimental effect because these countries lost their culture and independence, the end result of this was definitely more positive than negative both short term and long term. These countries would not be as thriving today if this had not happened. European Imperialism in parts of the Middle east, Africa, and Asia had more of a positive impact on the world due to education, modernization, healthcare/sanitation, and more trade/resources used.
Europeans sought out lands that provided new sources of raw materials, cheap labor, markets, areas of investment, and military boosters. As European nations became competitive with one another, there was an increased pressure to practice Imperialism to maintain power. New Imperialism was motivated greatly by the Industrial Revolution and its advancements, and efficiency of manufacturing and supplying products. European nations also focused on opening trade routes that would give them places to sell their goods. Also significant was the Europeans desire to Christianize and “civilize” other nations through missionary work and the enforcement of European cultures and beliefs. The new Imperialism brought on social changes as well. Many people urged the taking up of the “White Man’s Burden”, bringing the European version of civilization to the rest of the world, regardless whether they wanted it or not.
Imperialism is the domination of a weaker country by a stronger country. For instance Britain dominated India and China in the mid 1880s to the beginning of the 20th century. Imperialism has had both a positive and negative effects on the countries involved. Britain was imperialistic for many reasons, it could dominate because it had the technology and power to do so. They also needed land to acquire raw materials for growing markets.