Summary of Modern Global History Overview

## Introduction Imperialism refers to the policy by which powerful states extend control—political, economic, and territorial—over weaker regions. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries the era known as **New Imperialism** saw industrialized powers intensify direct rule and territorial conquest across Africa, Asia, and the Pacific. This study guide explains what happened, why it happened, the justifications used, the resistance it provoked, and its lasting legacies. ## 1. What Happened? The Global Conquest ### The Scramble for Africa - Between the 1870s and 1914 European states partitioned almost the whole African continent. - The **Berlin Conference (1884–1885)** formalized colonial claims and drew borders without consulting indigenous peoples. - Result: Africa shifted from roughly 10% to about 90% under European political control within a few decades. > Definition: The Scramble for Africa — rapid, competitive annexation of African territories by European powers during the late 19th century. ### Subjugation of Asia - Britain established direct crown rule in India and expanded influence across South Asia. - China was subjected to coercive foreign influence through unequal treaties and carved into spheres of influence by multiple powers. ### Direct Rule and Atrocities - New Imperialism favored direct administrative control and intensive resource extraction rather than merely trading posts. - Example: King Leopold II’s Congo Free State, where forced labor, mass violence, and systemic mutilations occurred to extract rubber and other resources. > Definition: Direct rule — a form of colonial governance in which the imperial power administers a territory through its own officials rather than local intermediaries. ## 2. Why Did It Happen? Key Catalysts Break the causes into three interrelated categories: ### Economic Drivers - **Industrial hunger for raw materials:** Growing industries demanded rubber, oil, cotton, copper, and other inputs not sufficiently available at home. - **Search for markets:** As production increased, industrial economies sought foreign consumers to buy mass-produced goods. ### Strategic and Political Drivers - **Geopolitical rivalry:** Empires sought control of strategic ports, coaling stations, and chokepoints (for example, routes like the Suez Canal) to protect trade and project power. - **Prestige and national power:** Territorial empires became symbols of national greatness. ### Technological and Organizational Drivers - Advances in weaponry, steamships, and communications allowed distant conquest and administration on a larger scale. > Definition: Neo-imperial motivations — the combined economic, strategic, and technological forces that drove late 19th-century territorial expansion. ## 3. Ideologies and Resistance ### Justifications Used by Imperial Powers - **“Civilizing mission”** and **Social Darwinism**: Imperialists used pseudoscience to argue Western superiority and to morally justify domination as a duty (e.g., the “White Man’s Burden”). > Definition: Social Darwinism — a misapplication of Darwinian ideas to human societies that claims stronger societies naturally dominate weaker ones. ### Military and Naval Competition - The scramble for colonies fed a naval arms race as powers sought to protect sea lanes and colonies; increased militarization intensified distrust among rivals. ### Anti-Colonial Resistance - Colonized peoples frequently resisted: notable episodes include the **Sepoy Mutiny** in India, the **Boxer Rebellion** in China, and resistance in southern Africa such as the Anglo-Zulu conflicts. Fun fact: The Congo human-rights scandal exposed by missionaries and journalists in the early 1900s led to one of the first major international human-rights campaigns against a colonial ruler. ## 4. Connections across Time - Imperial competition deepened rivalries between industrial states and contributed to a tense international environment. - Expansion by non-European powers