European Imperialism in the 19th Century

• European Imperialism occurred in the 19th Century and is also called New Imperialism

Background

• Age of Discovery: Early European Colonial expansion (Old Imperialism, 16th – 18th centuries) occurred in the Americas and coastal Africa
• 18th – 19th centuries saw many European colonies in the Americas become independent due to decolonization
• Asia and Africa became the major focuses of European colonial expansion of the 19th century during New Imperialism
• 18th - 19th centuries included the Industrial Revolution driving the need for raw materials and large overseas markets
• European powers began competing over raw materials and markets in Asia and Africa
• The White Man's Burden was a popular concept in the late 19th century, justifying European colonialism in Asia and Africa as a ‘civilising mission' to 'civilise' / 'educate' the 'inferior' Asians and Africans through the spread of Christianity

Old vs New Imperialism

• Events relating to Old Imperialism include the Industrial Revolution and American decolonization

European colonial expansion in Africa (19th - 20th centuries)

• In the mid-19th century, Europeans began to escalate their expansion in the African interior as rich resources were discovered leading to the Scramble for Africa
• The Berlin Conference (1884-1885) was attended by 14 countries, like Britain, France, Germany, Italy and established consensus over the colonial partition of Africa
• By 1914, only Liberia and Ethiopia remained independent

European colonial expansion in Asia (19th - 20th centuries)

• Gunboat diplomacy forced Asian countries to accept Western demands for trade, for example China during to the Opium Wars
• Japan was opened up by the US Navy
• Trading companies (Chartered Companies) were set up to trade and govern Asian regions and colonies
• The Dutch East India Company (Indonesia), and British East India Company (India) are examples of chartered companies
• Siam (Thailand) remained the only independent country in Southeast Asia
• British colonies included India, Burma, Ceylon, and Malaya
• French colonies included Indochina
• Dutch colonies included Indonesia
• Japan later emerged as a colonial power

Impacts

• Colonial conflicts arose among European countries, increasing rivalry between the major powers and included European political dominance
• Most Asian and African territories were ruled and governed by Europeans leading to discrimination and oppression of locals and Racism
• Political modernization led to the introduction of European Political systems, the Parliamentary and judicial systems and the Rule of law
• Economic exploitation by the Europeans caused loss of natural resources and Economic imbalance, focus on cash crops and slow industrial development
• Traditional self-sufficient economies were destroyed and served economic interest of the European suzerains / metropoles leading to economic impoverishment due to famines
• Infrastructure was developed including transportation (railways) and communication (telegraph)
• Improvements to living conditions like hospitals, schools were implemented
• Introduction of Western culture occurred including European languages, education, religion, and customs
• Population changes led to multi-ethnic societies
• Indian and Chinese indentured labourers were employed in European colonies as a source of cheap labour (known pejoratively as coolies)
• Large Chinese communities in Southeast Asia (e.g. Malaysia & Singapore) emerged
• Macanese people 土生葡人 and culture involved a Mixture of Portuguese, Asian, and Chinese culture in Macau