Imperialism and Industrialization Review

Motivations of Imperialism

• Europeans were motivated by God, Gold, and Glory, leading to a cycle of gaining resources, producing goods, and seeking more resources, always looking for resource-rich colonies.

Industrialization

• Industrialization is the shift of a country's economy from agriculture (farming) to manufacturing (producing goods in factories).

Factors Leading to Industrialization

• Population growth due to new world plants and farming machinery led to a larger population, and people moved to cities, creating a cheap labor force for factories.
• Inventions sponsored by Europeans, such as the water frame, spinning jenny, and steam engine, allowed for faster production.
• Imperialism provided Europeans with raw materials from colonies in the Americas, Africa, and Asia, which were used to build and maintain machines and produce finished goods.

Revolution in Transportation

• The steam engine powered factories and new transportation, such as steam-powered ships and railroads, making transportation faster, more reliable, and cheaper.

Impact of Industrialization

• Industrialization led to massive wealth for factory owners, who hired workers for minimal wages to keep profits high.
• Working conditions were poor, and there were no government regulations to protect workers.

Expansion of Railroads

• The late 1800s saw a massive expansion of railroad networks across Europe.

Economic Systems: Mercantilism to Capitalism

• Mercantilism is an economic system that developed in Europe in the 1600s, designed to increase monarchs' wealth through international trade.

Mercantilism

• The primary goal of mercantilism is to maximize profit for the monarch.
• The Dutch East India Company was a key example of mercantilism, owning strategic trade routes and bringing great wealth to the Netherlands.
• Monopoly, a characteristic of mercantilism, leads to no competition, maximized profit, high prices, and little innovation.

Capitalism

• Capitalism is based on three key principles: private ownership, profit for individuals, and a free market.
• Early capitalists wanted a different system than mercantilism because they wanted to promote individualism and competition.
• A free market is a market where individuals and businesses are free to make their own economic decisions.
• Capitalist thinkers believed in four key ideas: the desire for profit motivates people to work, people compete out of self-interest, individuals have the right to own private property and accumulate wealth, and production, ownership, and distribution of goods should be in the hands of private enterprise.

Adam Smith and The Wealth of Nations

• Adam Smith, a Scottish economist and philosopher, outlined the ideas of capitalism in his book "The Wealth of Nations".
• Smith criticized mercantilism and monopoly granting, arguing that individualism and competition were good for the economy.
• According to Smith, the government does not need to regulate the economy, as the "invisible hand" of the market will naturally guide economic decisions towards the greater good.