Imperialism basic level student
IMPERIALISM
British Imperialism 1870-1914
INDEX
(I) EMPIRE AND IMPERIALISM
DEFINING IMPERIALISM
(II) HISTORY OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE before 1914
The Old Empire - part 1 - 1600-1770
- THE ATLANTIC SLAVE TRADE
The Old Empire - part 2 - 1770-1870
- WHAT WAS “DIFFERENT” ABOUT THE WEST INDIES?
The New Empire 1870–1914
(III) THE BRITISH EMPIRE in 1913
MAP
(IV) INTERPRETATIONS OF IMPERIALISM
1. NATION AND EMPIRE
2. HISTORIANS
3. INTERPRETATIONS OF IMPERIALISM
(V) ECONOMIC IMPERIALISM
British foreign investment 1830-1914 (Table, Charts)
FLOW OF BRITISH FOREIGN INVESTMENTS 1830–1914
UK imports & exports 1870-1914 (Table, Charts)
(VI) CULTURAL IMPERIALISM
1. Imperialism and westernization
2. Popular imperialism in Britain (Text and Documents)
Imperialism as Racial Destiny
Imperialism and Social Darwinism
What were State School students being told about Africa in the early 1900s?
What was being said in literature?
3. Images of Imperialism (Cartoons and Advertisements)
CARTOON - The Rhodes Colossus
ADVERTISEMENT - The White Man’s Burden
(VII) ROUND TABLE DISCUSSION
(I) EMPIRE AND IMPERIALISM
Brainstorming - work with a partner/small group and list everything you associate with or know about.
Use the questions below to help you start discussing and then put all your information together with
the rest of the class
Empire – Imperialism – Colonialism - Colony – Slavery - Slave Trade
What do you associate with these terms?
Do you know about any empires and colonies in the past?
Can you describe them?
How big were they?
Where were they?
Who was involved?
How and why were they involved?
Why did these Empires end?
Why did they develop in the first place?
Were they all the same?
What were the special features, characteristics of these Empires?
Do all empires have features in common, similar features?
What are the differences?
Do past Empires still have an effect on our lives today?
What languages are spoken where in the world?
In this module you are going to look at one particular period of colonial and imperial development:
the one in the late 19th century when European countries, in particular Britain, expanded
A) DEFINING IMPERIALISM
1 ) Pair work: your teacher will give one of you information about Imperialism, and the other about
Colonialism. Ask and answer the questions below and together fill in the table with your information.
a) When did Colonialism / Imperialism really begin?
b) Which areas did it affect at first?
c) Who was colonising?
d) How fast did it spread?
e) How large were the areas it affected?
f) Why did the European countries occupy these areas?
g) Did the imperialist country’s government control the territory directly or indirectly?
BEGAN
a) When?
b) Where?
c) Who?
d) Speed of process
e) Size of Areas
f) Reasons for
occupying
COLONIALISM
IMPERIALISM
g) Type of control
2) With your partner, decide which of the following is a characteristic of imperialism and which of
colonialism. The first one has been done for you
I) It was a very rapid process of conquest: Imperialism_____________________________________
II) Expansion took place for economic commercial reasons only: ______________________________
III) There was direct Government intervention in the conquest of new territories: __________________
IV) Large areas of land were appropriated (taken over): ______________________________________
V) Small areas, just enough for commerce, were usually directly controlled by traders: _____________
VI) Slow penetration into specific areas: __________________________________________________
VII) Worldwide expansion: ____________________________________________________________
3) Pair work: use your answers to questions 2 to help you write a short definition of Imperialism and
of Colonialism check it with the rest of the class. Decide together on the best definition.
Colonialism: ________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
Imperialism: ________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
(II) HISTORY OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE before 1914
The Old Empire - part 1
1600 - 1770
BEGINNINGS:
The British Empire began to develop after 1600 as private trading companies began to explore the
world looking for opportunities to do business. In 1600, Queen Elizabeth I of England gave formal
permission to the East India Company to develop trade with India.
Soon after, in 1606, the Virginia Company was set up. It founded the first English colony in North
America one year later. In 1624, King James I brought the Virginia Company's settlements on the East
Coast under direct British rule: it was first time the British government had become directly involved in
colonial affairs.
EXPANSION:
The old British Empire grew fast in North America, stretching out down the east coast from
Newfoundland (1583) and through Nova Scotia (1628) today both in Canada. There was a small gap
where the French had control, but from then on there was a wide coastal strip that ran continuously
south to meet the northern border of today’s Florida which was controlled by Spain. By 1700, there
were 13 British Colonies on the East Coast
Spain had already claimed most of the Caribbean, but Britain was there too, with Barbados (1605), the
Bermudas (1609), Jamaica (1655) the Bahamas (1666) and most of the small islands in the archipelago
between the Virgin Islands and Trinidad in the south, which were taken over, one by one, between
1623 and 1763. The Dutch had Curacao, the French, S. Dominique and a few of the other islands in the
archipelago. Spain controlled the rest of the area.
COMMERCE:
For Britain, the most profitable part of this old colonial Empire was the West Indies. The huge sugar
plantations of the Caribbean islands were worked by slaves shipped over from West Africa and the
profits from sugar, tobacco and slavery were so important for British trade that, in the 1700s, the
British government spent a lot of money to protect British territories in the West Indies from their
commercial and colonising rivals in the area: the French, Spanish and Dutch.
1) Pair work: answer the following questions:
a) In which two areas of the world did Government approved trading companies first start trading? (1)
________________________________________________________________________________
(2) ________________________________________________________________________________
b) Why and in what year did the British Government become directly involved in the colonies for the
first time? __________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
c) Go back through the text and underline all the countries and areas mentioned and decide who had
occupied which areas in North America and the Caribbean. Then complete the table below.
Europeans
BRITAIN
Areas of occupation / settlement in North America and the Caribbean DATE
FRANCE
HOLLAND
SPAIN
d) What made the West Indies so profitable for Britain? ________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
e) Look back at question c) and choose a colour for each European Country - Britain, France,
Holland and Spain – and find the places/areas occupied by each one on the map on page 6.
Colour that area in with the country’s colour and put the date when it was colonised too.
f) What about in the rest of North America? Where were Spain, France and Britain in North
America during the 16th and 17th centuries?
1) Task: You need a map of North America today, use it to draw a sketch map of the North American
Continent. Read the passage below and find the States and cities that have been underlined on your
map and answer the questions in the text as you read. Note where they are on your sketch map.
a) Virginia the colony was named for Queen Elizabeth I of England and Caroline County in Virginia
was named for Queen Caroline of England when it was founded in 1728. These settlers came from
__________________________________________________________________________________
_
b) Where did the people who settled in New England come from?
______________________________
c) Boston is an old town in Lincolnshire, UK, as well as a city in New England. These settlers came
from ______________________________________________________________________________
d) What about New Orleans? Where, in Europe, is ‘old’ Orleans? ______________________________
e) You won’t find Nieuw Amsterdam on your map, that was the name the original settlers gave this area
when they bought the land from the Indians. Where were these settlers from in Europe?
__________________________________________________________________________________
_
f) Another country soon bought Nieuw Amsterdam off the first settlers and changed its name to New
York. York is an ancient Roman city in the UK. So they were _________________________________
g) On the West Coast there are San Francisco, San Diego and Los Angeles. Who do you think settled
there first? _________________________________________________________________________
h) And in Florida? ___________________________________________________________________
2) Look at the names of towns, cities and States all over the continent. On your sketch map put an F, an
S, a B or an H when you find several places with European place names close together. Are they
concentrated around one or more main areas? If they are those may be older, if not original, areas of
occupation. You might also be able to identify areas where later European immigrants, who came
during the 19th century, have tended to concentrate.
7
8
1
THE
ATLANTIC
2
3
SLAVE
TRADE
5
6
4
9
TASK: Match each image to the right caption. No: 1 has been done for you. Decide where the
images came from. A) Advert; B) A personal Diary; C) Instruction manual; D) popular middle class
magazines; E) Photo of Museum exhibit; F) Textbook / encyclopaedia.
no:
Caption
From?
Poster for a Sale of Slaves in Charleston (N. America)
A
The wooden yoke used to tie slaves to each other in the coffle
1
A slave coffle (group of captive slaves) West Africa
Branding irons used by slave owners to mark their slaves.
Loading Slaves for transportation
Diagram showing how to load a cargo of slaves
Slave Auction, Christiansburg, Virginia, 1850s
An Advertisement for a slave auction, some as house servants
A
A Coffle, in the jungle (Nigeria)
SLAVERY: Slavery and slave trades have existed, for thousands of years in many societies and
cultures. In Africa, slaves had been bought, sold, captured and taken to other countries, for centuries
long before the Europeans arrived and started up as slave traders in the late 16 th century.
British merchants in particular, soon became very active in what is called the Atlantic Slave Trade, or
Triangular Trade. This trade was very important for the British economy throughout the 17 th and 18th
centuries.
PROFITS: Slaving was a profitable business: first, because the plantation owners in the West Indies
and North American colonies desperately needed workers for their plantations, so it was easy to sell the
slaves; second, because the traders had managed to solve the problem that a ship which sails with no
cargo loses money.
TRADE ROUTES: Instead of sending ships back to Africa empty to get more slaves, they would fill
them up with goods (sugar, tobacco or cotton) produced in the colonies and send these goods to be sold
in Britain or Europe. Here the ships would be loaded with manufactured goods (guns, pots and pans
etc.) and supplies for the colonies in Africa. Once in Africa, and empty, they would load up with slaves
and set off across the Atlantic again.
1) Complete the diagram below putting in the missing information about the most important
cargoes carried in merchant ships at each stage of their three way journey, the write a brief
description in your own words.
The TRIANGULAR TRADE:
NORTH
AMERICA
BRITAIN
&
EUROPE
CARIBBEAN
AREA
Slaves
AFRICA
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
LOCAL POPULATIONS: most native populations declined fast after the Europeans came. They were
either killed resisting the invaders, who had guns, or died from the new diseases the colonists brought
with them, or they died from overwork and starvation, or were pushed away to other places. Estimates
show that about a million people lived in Cuba before the colonists came; twenty-five years later about
2,000 of these native Cubans were still alive. And the same happened in other parts of the Caribbean
too, where many local tribes (Caribs) have died out completely.
THE PROBLEM: the decline in the local population was a problem for the colonists as they needed
these people to work for them on the plantations or in the mines.
THE SOLUTION: So the plantation owners decided to import their labour, workers: slaves from
Africa. About 15 million Africans are thought to have been transported to North and South America
and the Caribbean between 1540 and 1850. But as many as half may have died on the journey and so
never reached their destination. To make as big a profit as possible, slave traders would put as many
Africans as they could onto each ship and the conditions were often terrible. Many died from disease,
hunger, overcrowding, or suicide. But an African could usually be sold as a slave in the Americas for at
least 6 times the price the trader had paid for him or her in Africa, so even if half the “cargo” was lost
there was still plenty of profit and plantation owners always needed slaves because those that survived
and were sold in the slaves markets, would often die from the terrible conditions they had to live in on
the plantations, from overwork and illness, or they would sometimes run away.
2) Pair work: take turns asking and answering the questions (on the left in italics) and finding the
answer (right in bold)
1) Why did the Atlantic Slave Trade start?
2) When did the Atlantic Slave Trade develop?
A) Because there was a constant demand
for labour from the plantation owners
and the slave could be sold for a much
higher price than he/she had been.
3) What happened to the Caribs?
4) Which country dominated the
Atlantic Slave Trade?
5) Why was slaving profitable?
B) As many as half.
D) Because it meant that ships never needed to
travel with no cargo for selling. So there was
always a profit for the owners.
6) Why did the triangular trade develop?
7) About how many Africans had arrived in
the West Indies by 1850?
8) How many of the slaves probably died
on the journey.
C) In the 16th century.
E) Because the West Indian plantation
owners needed labour.
F) They were killed either by guns or by
diseases or by overwork and starvation.
G) About 15 million.
H) Britain.
3) Now read on and underline the reasons Europeans involved in slavery and slaving gave to explain
why the Slave Trade was natural and right and maybe even a good thing for the slaves!
THE JUSTIFICATIONS: Europeans justified slavery in many ways, by saying that Africans were
different, so not really human; that they were ‘inferior humans’, they didn’t have the same feelings and
were not “civilised”, so it was right and natural for “superior” humans (like the Europeans) to use these
inferior people to serve them. Some even said it was good for these inferiors, that slavery was for the
slaves’ benefit, as it gave them the chance to become Christians and thus to be saved!
Complete the following
a) Europeans argued that slavery was alright because: _______________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
b) Slavery was good for Africans because: ________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
_
HOW IT ENDED: In Europe, as time went on, more and more people began to oppose slavery. Antislavery campaigns started. France was the first European country to abolish slavery, in 1794, but
Napoleon re-started it in 1802 and it continued to be legal until 1848.
In 1807 the British Parliament passed the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act and in 1827, passed a law
that made slaving piracy, which was punishable by death. In 1833, Britain passed another anti-slavery
law which freed all slaves in the British Empire. By the middle of the 1800s, all European nations had
passed laws to abolish and the Atlantic Slave Trade died out.
However, even though it is illegal, slavery still flourishes in many parts of the world today.
4) Use the words in the box to fill in the gaps in the paragraph below:
in 1833 – has - in 1848 - 3rd - passed laws - mid-1800s - 1st - in the British Empire - in 1794 - has not - 8
France was the _____ European country to abolish slavery, in ___________, but re-started it ________
years later and only stopped it completely in ____________. In _________ Britain passed the _______
and last anti-slavery Act which gave all slaves in
_______
_______________ _________________
their freedom. All European nations had __________
________ abolishing slavery by the _______ _______ . The Atlantic Slave trade __________ ended
but Slavery __________ not.
LEFT:
In a Slave Market, Cuba; 1820s
The Old Empire - part 2
1770-1870
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA IS FOUNDED:
In 1776, the 13 North American colonies rebelled against Britain and the American War of
Independence started. It ended in 1783, with the Peace Treaty of Paris. The 13 colonies separated from
Britain and became the United States of America. Britain kept her Canadian territories and the West
Indies.
____________________________:
Losing the North American colonies was a problem for Britain. The money that had come from there
into Britain, profits from trade and taxes, had been important for her economy. Now there were no
more taxes coming in and less trade was going on, so Britain began to look for other sources of raw
materials, for new markets and for opportunities for investment.
____________________________: Britain looked East, towards India, where she had been slowly
extending her influence and control over the Indian subcontinent since the 1600s.The slow conquest of
India began in 1608 when the East India Company set up a trading post in Bombay (today Mumbai).
For the next two centuries, both through agreements to trade made with local rulers and through
military action and conquest, British influence and control spread all over the subcontinent .By 1858,
Britain was in control of the whole area covered by today’s India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Ceylon
(today Sri Lanka) was first occupied in 1795.
____________________________:
Britain looked even further too, to Australia, which although it began life as a convict colony in the late
1700s, soon became a settlement colony. More than 4 million British emigrants went there during the
19th century. New South Wales was first settled in 1788, followed by Tasmania in 1803 and, by 1836,
the whole continent was under British control. Nearby New Zealand became part of the Empire in
1840. While in South America, Britain occupied just one area, British Guiana, on the North East coast,
which was conquered in 1803
____________________________:
The Old Colonial system was gradually broken up between 1815 and 1870. One by one the colonies of
settlement, first Canada then Australia, then a little later, New Zealand and South Africa, all in fact
except the West Indies, were granted self-government, although they remained part of the Empire and
subject to the British Sovereign (Queen Victoria at the time). This split the Empire into two: the
dependent empire, under direct rule from London; and the self-governing settlement empire.
1) These are subtitles for each of the paragraphs in the text above. Give each paragraph its title (or
write a better one yourself if you like).
ONE SOLUTION
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ARE FOUNDED
ANOTHER SOLUTION
BREAK UP
BRITAIN HAS A PROBLEM
2) Work with a partner and answer the questions below. Find the information in the texts then check
your answers with the rest of the class
a) When did the British Government take control of a colony for the first time? _______________
b) Why were the West Indies so profitable for Britain? ___________________________________
c) Where was Nieuw Amsterdam? ___________________________________________________
d) Which European nations were also Britain’s main rivals in North America and the Caribbean?
_____________________________________________________________________________
e) Were there any conflicts between these four nations? __________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
f) What event forced Britain to begin to look for new areas for trade and colonies in the late 18 th
century? _____________________________________________________________________
g) What was the Treaty of Paris, what did it do_________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
h) Which country, one where Britain had been for a long time, now became very important?
_____________________________________________________________________________
i) Which other country became important in the 19 th century? _____________________________
j) Did Britain go to this country for trade? ____________________________________________
k) Why, by 1870, was the British Empire “divided in two”? ______________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
l) Although the West Indies was an area of settlement it was not treated like the other settlement
colonies and did not become self-governing. Can you think of any reasons why this might have
been? Was it different from the others? If so what was different? Make notes. _____________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
3) Pair work: take turns asking and answering questions about the following topics. Ask questions
about both the West Indies and the Settlement colonies; note your answers in the table below.
Check them with the rest of the class.
WHAT WAS “DIFFERENT ABOUT THE WEST INDIES??
The population:
A)
Who were the colonised and what happened to them?
B)
Where did the colonists come from?
C)
Why did the colonists come?
D)
What did they do when they got there?
E)
Did all the current “occupiers” of the territory freely choose to go there?
F)
Which group, colonisers or colonised among the population was numerically bigger?
The economy:
G)
What was produced?
H)
How / where was it produced (method of production)?
I)
How important was the colony for the British economy?
J)
Was it important to Britain for any other reasons, for example social or military or …?
K)
How similar would the culture in the colony have been to that in Britain?
WEST INDIES
CANADA - AUSTRALIA - N. ZEALAND
POPULATION
A
B
C
D
E
F
ECONOMY
G
H
I
J
K
Left: Drawing
showing how slaves
were loaded into
cargo ships on the
“Middle Passage” of
the Atlantic Trade.
The New
Empire
1870 – 1914
British industry, trade and overseas investment grew during the years of imperial expansion (1870 –
1914). Government involvement in imperial affairs increased and imperial rivalry between European
States grew too, mainly in Africa and Asia.
AFRICA: Here, Britain’s main rivals were France and Germany. Portugal had already had two
colonies for a long time and did not seemed just to want to keep what she had, while Spain and Italy
started late. This ‘race’ is often called The Scramble (1) for Africa. The European countries were
scrambling, fighting, arguing, racing to see who could take possession of, and control the most territory
fastest in Africa. The Berlin Conference (1884 - 1885) was called to try to settle these disputes between
these nations but while agreements were reached, the struggle for more and more territory continued,
and even accelerated, right up to World War I, by which time only two areas, Liberia and Ethiopia,
remained independent, outside direct European control.
(1) A scramble is when a lot of people try to do the same thing, in a great hurry, at the same time (and usually
end up arguing
1) Answer the questions.
A) What was the Scramble for Africa? __________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
B) Who were the main contenders for territory in Africa? ____________________________________
C) Why was the Berlin Conference called? ________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2) Work with a partner and study the timeline showing when the British occupied various areas in
Africa. At the Berlin Conference, Britain’s right to control the areas she already had, was confirmed.
TIMELINE BRITISH OCCUPATION OF AFRICA: date of first settlement / conquest
Gambia
1618 Egypt**
1882 Zanzibar
1890
Gold Coast
1650 Nigeria
1884 Uganda
1890
Sierra Leone
1787 Somaliland
1884 Nyasaland (Malawi)
1891
Cape of Good Hope*
1806 Bechuanaland***
1885 Ashanti (Ghana)
1896
Natal*
1824 Zululand *
1887 Sudan
1899
Lagos (Nigeria)
1861 Br. East Africa
1888 Orange Free State *
1900
Basutoland (Lesotho)
1868 Rhodesia****
1888 Transvaal/Swaziland* 1900
KEY
*
**
***
****
Today all part of South Africa
Egypt: was under British military control after 1882 and ruled jointly with the Egyptian
government in Sudan after 1899. Egypt became formally a part of the British Empire in
1914 when the Ottoman Empire collapsed.
(Botswana)
(Zambia and Zimbabwe)
Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica 1911, Vol. IV, p.607. Gutenberg Project: http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/19699
3) What happened after the Conference? Decide whether the statements below are true or false and
explain your answers:
a) Britain started to trade in Africa very early.
b) Most of the early trading settlements were probably involved in the slave trade.
c) Britain was satisfied with the areas she was allocated in Africa at the Berlin Conference.
d) Most British conquest in Africa took place after the Berlin Conference.
e) Britain was early on interested in South Africa
f) Britain had no colonies in West Africa.
g) Most British Colonies were in South, East and Central Africa.
h) Many of these colonies still exist today but many changed their names when they became
independent in the 1960s and 1970s.
ASIA: In the rest of the world too, Britain continued to expand, taking over large areas. Many areas in
Asia too had begun as trading posts, or were taken for military reasons: the Straits Settlement (1786)
(Malaysia area today), the Federated Malay States (1874) and also parts of Siam (Thailand), which
were taken over in 1909. In the same area too were others who were part of the Empire:
Hong-Kong
Labuan
1841
1846
North Borneo
Papua
1881
1881
Sarawak
Brunei
1888
1888
PACIFIC: Islands in the Pacific were added too, starting with Fiji in (1874) and including Union,
Ellice, Gilbert, Southern Solomon, and many other groups and islands such as Christmas, Fanning,
Penrhyn, Suvarov all in 1898; the year after, 1899, Choiseul and Isabel Is. (Solomon Group) were
added; and, lastly, Tonga and Niué (1900).
WORLD: Britain had already settled on many isolated islands which were used as places for British
ships to stop in and take on coal, water and food for the crews, as journeys were long by sailing ship,
which is how most people and goods travelled in those days. Some of the more important of these
islands, which are scattered all over the Globe, are:
St Helena
1651
Virgin
Islands
1666
Turks & Caicos 1678
Islands.
Falkland Islands 1765
Pitcairn
Island.
Seychelles
1780
Mauritius
1810
1806
Ascension &
Tristan da Cunha
1815
MEDITERRANEAN: Lastly, Britain controlled three very strategic places in the Mediterranean:
Gibraltar (1704) which controls the entrance to the Mediterranean, Malta (1800) which controls the
narrowest passage between Europe and Africa, and Cyprus (1878), which provided a good base for
military purposes as it was near the Middle East and close, through the Suez Canal, to India and Asia.
By 1913, the British Empire covered more than 11,400,000 square miles of territory. It was the largest
empire the world has ever known and kept on growing. By 1921, it covered over 14 million square
miles of the globe. It was often said that “the sun never sets on The British Empire” and it was true!
3) Underline the names of the countries in the British Empire and the dates they were taken over.
(III) THE BRITISH EMPIRE in 1914
MAP WORK
At the beginning of the 20th century the British Empire covered more than 11,400,000 square miles of
territory. It was the largest empire the world has ever known. Label the countries and put the date they
became part of the British Empire. Add any other information you think important. (You may need to
use a modern atlas to help you)
Europe: UK, Ireland, Gibraltar, Cyprus, Malta; Aden
Australia,
Canada,
New Zealand
Asia: India (which includes what is now Pakistan), Ceylon (Sri Lanka today) Burma (today
Myanmar), Malaya, Singapore, Hong Kong, Sarawak, New Guinea
Pacific islands Fiji, Tonga, New Hebrides, Solomon Islands
Indian Ocean: Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles, Andaman Islands, Cocos Islands
Atlantic Ocean: Ascension Is. St Helena, Tristan da Cunha.
Africa: Gambia, Gold Coast, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Northern Rhodesia, Southern Rhodesia (today’s
Zimbabwe and Zambia), Nyasaland, British East Africa (today’s Kenya), Uganda, Egypt, Sudan,
British Somaliland, South Africa
West Indies: Bermuda, Bahamas, Grenada, Trinidad ,Jamaica Barbados
Central America: British Honduras
South America: British Guiana, Falkland Islands.]
THE BRITISH EMPIRE in 1914
(IV) INTERPRETATIONS OF IMPERIALISM
1) Brainstorming
(Pair work): answer the following questions and check your answers with the rest of the class.
What are the main differences between Colonialism and Imperialism?
What is the difference between the dependent and the independent empire?
Name three countries of the dependent Empire
Name three countries of the settlement Empire
1) Read the text, Nation and Empire and do the task below
1. NATION AND EMPIRE
An empire is very different from a nation which is usually made up of people with a common language,
religion, and political institutions and a clear geographical location with recognised borders. The
British Empire was made up of people with very different languages, religions and political institutions,
thus it cannot be studied as if it were a nation.
The British Empire from 1815 to 1914 can be defined as a system of political control imposed the
British Government in London, on all the colonies. This control could be direct, as in the dependent
Empire when the colony was controlled directly by Britain’s representatives sent to the colony, or
indirect, like in the settlement colonies, where although they were self-governing, the policies of their
elected governments were still often influenced by the British government in order to help British
interests, rather than to look after the interests of the colony.
However, Britain had a different power relationship with each country in the Empire because each had
a different economic, political, social and cultural situation. At one extreme were the white settler areas,
such as Canada, and Australia which, after 1870, were independent in all but name. (New Zealand was
later, 1901). At the other extreme were the areas, mainly in Africa, which were still under direct British
rule when WWI started in 1914.
2) Match the first part of the sentence (in column A to the correct ending in column B. One has been
done for you
.
1
2
3
4
5
6
A
ANSWER
A nation is usually made up of
people with …
An Empire was made up of people
with …
The British Empire was…
The British Government in
London…
One type of control was direct; this
type of control is found in…
Direct control means that…
1-G
7
One type of control was indirect;
this type of control is found in…
8
Indirect control means that…
9
Each country in the Empire had…
1
0
Power relationships were different
because ...
B
A … a different power relationship with
Britain 9
B … a system of political control.
C … controlled the colonies.
D … the settlement colonies.
E … very different languages, religions and
political institutions.
F … each colony had a different economic,
political, social and cultural situation.
G … a common language, religion, and
political institutions and a clear
geographical location with recognised
borders.
H … the colony was controlled directly by
Britain’s representatives who were sent to
the colony.
I … the colony was self-governing however
Britain was still able to control policy there
to serve her own interests.
J … in the dependent Empire.
2. HISTORIANS
Historians have many problems when they analyse Imperialism, when they try to interpret and explain
what happened and why it happened. This is not only because there might not be enough good data
available (often a problem) but also because the complexity of any historical analysis, where many
factors, economic, cultural, social and political must be looked at, is itself a problem. Furthermore the
historian’s own point of view almost inevitably will intervene. The perspective (point of view) from
which he/she looks at a problem will be affected by many things, such as personal life experience,
culture, ideology, or the reason why he/she has decided to study this particular event or process.
Historians tend to view data from one of three main perspectives:
- Top-down: looks at sources close to the centre of imperial power and explains the imperialist’s point
of view.
- Bottom up: looks at imperialism from the point of view of the subject populations and of those
Europeans who were active in the colony but were not part of the colonial government administration
(missionaries, traders, businessmen, explorers etc.).
- General view: looks at British imperialism in the context of international economic and political
developments from the point of view of both colonist and colonised.
1) Circle the correct answer:
a) Historians do / do not have difficulties analysing imperialism.
b) There is /isn’t always enough data.
c) Historians do / do not always look at things in the same way.
d) A Historian’s past life experience affects / does not affect his/her point of view.
e) The reason why a historian is studying something will / will not affect their point of view.
f) Historical events are a mix of many factors which does / does not make it easy for historians.
2) Write a short explanation, in your own words, of why historians may have problems analysing
Imperialism. Use your answers to the exercise above to help you. Choose from the linkers below to
join your sentences.
Firstly – secondly - thirdly ...- because – (and) then – moreover –
furthermore – not only ... but also – as well as – last but nor least – and
Historians have problems analysing Imperialism because _______________________________:
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
3) Top down TD, Bottom up BU and General G: which box gives which point(s) of view?
Colonists’ (not
British Govt)
point of view
BU & G_
Imperialist’s
point of view
International
point of view
___________
___________
Colonised
populations’
point of view
______ ______
3. INTERPRETATIONS OF IMPERIALISM
As you read the first paragraph, find definitions of the following and copy them in below. 1) has been
done for you:
1
Liberal Capitalism where there was no government control of the economy
)
2
Protectionism
)
3
Monopoly
)
4
Finance Capital
)
EARLY THEORIES
The main theories of Imperialism appeared soon after 1900 and were usually economic explanations,
which described changes in 19th century Liberal Capitalism (1) where there was no government
control of the economy, was changing and now: a) governments were protecting industries; b) some
firms were becoming monopolies and were large and powerful enough to control prices and markets;
and c) more and more people were lending money world-wide and earning by charging interest (2) on
this growing amount of finance capital. Two important theorists at the time were the British writer J. A.
Hobson (Imperialism, 1902) and R. Hilferding, an Austrian social-democrat (Finance Capital, 1910)
both identify imperialism as a process linked to the development of finance capital and to the need to
encourage investment.
MARXIST THEORIES
Here the best known theory is (Imperialism the highest stage of Capitalism, 1917) by Lenin, who
based many of his ideas on both Hobson and Hilferding. He said that the changes in Capitalism were
due to the international expansion and power of monopoly capital (3) which will always try to divide
up the world and linked to the protectionist policies of imperialist states.
SOCIALDEMOCRATIC AND LIBERAL INTERPRETATION
A social-democratic interpretation was developed from Hobson and Hilferding’s analyses. The best
known analysis is that by the Austrian economist J. A. Schumpeter (Sociology of the Imperialism,
1919) which says imperialism is an irrational (4) instinct to dominate and is the exact opposite of the
spirit of Capitalism which tries to rationalise resources (5) and avoid waste and so make the most profit
possible.
THE CONTEMPORARY DEBATE
There is still a lot of debate among contemporary historians about the causes of imperialism.
Economic theories on this period were re-examined and developed by Eric Hobsbawm in (The Age of
Empire (1987). Hobsbawm starts from economic analysis but at the international level, not the specific
situation of any one country. He says that by opening up new markets, imperialist conquest was the
first important step towards economic ‘globalisation’. Historian David Fieldhouse was one of the first
to offer a ‘periphery’ (6) centred approach to Imperialism. He argues that interpretations of imperialism
are too Eurocentric (7), and should look more at what was happening in the colonies as often the
imperialists were reacting politically and militarily to what was happening there.
(1) Liberal Capitalism: system where there is no government intervention in the economy
(2) interest: money that a person or institution such as a bank charges you for lending you money
(3) Monopoly Capital is the capital controlled by huge corporations / multinationals (Monopolies)
so big they can control and influence worldwide market forces and, consequently, States’ policies, thus distorting
competition (after Paul Sweezy & Paul A. Baran, (Monopoly Capital: An Essay on the American Economic and
Social Order (1966)).
(4) Irrational: not rational
(5) Rationalising resources: using resources as efficiently as possible, cutting down on waste
(6) periphery: the edge, the area a long way from the centre
(7) Eurocentric: they focus too much on Europe
1) Work with a partner to do the tasks below. Check your answers with the rest of the class.
Link the people to the things they would have said or argued: one (Lenin) has been done for you:
J. A. Hobson
“imperialism as a
process is linked to
the development of
finance capital and
to the need to
encourage
investment.”
“imperialism is an
irrational instinct
to dominate and is
the exact opposite
of Capitalism”
J. A. Schumpeter
WHO SAID WHAT?
“changes in
Capitalism were
due to the
international
expansion and
power of
monopoly capital”
“by opening up
new markets,
imperialist
conquest was the
first important
step towards
economic
‘globalisation’”
“Imperialism was the result of changes in
Liberal capitalism”
“in the colonies as often the imperialists were
reacting politically and militarily to what was
happening there”
R. Hilferding.
Eric Hobsbawm
“interpretations
of imperialism
are too
Eurocentric, and
should look
more at what
was happening
in the colonies”
V. I. Lenin
David Fieldhouse
2) Not all of these interpretations and explanations of imperialism are economic explanations. Which
aren’t?
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
______
(V) ECONOMIC IMPERIALISM
1) Pair work and class discussion
a) Study the table below with your partner and decide which of the following statements is correct.
Check your answers with the rest of the class.
A - Table 1 shows where British investments went in specific years.
Yes / No
B - Table 1 shows which countries were investing in Britain in these years. Yes / No
C – It gives the percentage of Britain’s investment in each area or country. Yes / No
D - It shows the total invested in £ sterling in all areas or countries.
Yes / No
Table 1: British foreign investment 1830-1914 (regional distribution %).
Country
1830 (1)
1854 (2)
1870 (3)
1914 (4)
Europe
66
55
25
5
United States
9
25
27
21
Latin America
23
15
11
18
British Empire - India
22
9
British Empire - Dominions
2
5
12
37
Other Regions
3
9
Total
100
100
100
100
Total investment (£m.)
110
260
770
4,107
2) Below are graphs which show the same data as in the table but in a different way. Read the
descriptions of the United States, British Dominions and Latin America. Fill in the missing percentages
as you read, the first has been done for you.
United States
(1) UNITED STATES
After 1830, when 9 % of all British foreign investment
30
went to the United States, there was a steady rise in the
percentage of Britain’s financial investment going to the
20
area. In 1854, _______% one quarter, of Britain’s overseas
10
investments went there. The amount of British investment
0
in the US continued
British Empire - Dominions
1
2
3
4
to increase but more
Period
slowly until 1870,
40
_______% but from
35
then on declined between until 1914 when only _______% of
30
25
British foreign investment went to the US.
(2) BRITISH EMPIRE DOMINIONS
£ million
£ million
Source: Kenwood and Lougheed, The Growth of the International Economy 1820 – 1960,
Allen & Unwin 1971 p.43
20
15
10
5
0
1
2
3
Period
4
In 1830 there was little if any investment in this area, only _______%, although it more than doubled in
the second period and, by 1854, _______% of British foreign investment was going to the area it was
still not much. But in the third period shown, the percentage of British investment in the Dominions
accelerated rapidly and jumped from _______% in 1870 to _______% at the end of the period.
Latin America
£ million
(3) LATIN AMERICA
UK investment fell steadily after 1830 when it was
_______%. By 1854 it had decreased only _______
%, of Britain’s and by 1870 it had dropped to 1870
_______%. After 1870, it began to rise again slowly
but steadily until 1914 when the area was receiving
_______% of British total foreign investments.
25
20
15
10
5
0
1
2
3
4
Period
3) With your partner read through the three
descriptions again and underline all the words and phrases that describe movement Going up, Going
down, or Other how the investment moved (fast, slow etc.), how much (Quantity, amount) and Time and
put them into the table. Check your results with the rest of the class.
Going up
Going down
Other
to rise (rose
risen)
fell (fall fell
fallen)
to accelerate
Describing how
it was moving
rapidly
Quantity,
amount
more than
doubled
Time
After (date);
By the end of
4) Pair work: with your partner write similar descriptions of the graphs below: put in the percentages.
(4) BRITISH EMPIRE INDIA
__________________________________________
£ million
British Empire - India
25
20
15
10
5
0
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
1
2
3
4
__________________________________________
Period
(5) OTHER REGIONS
£ million
Other Regions
10
5
0
1
2
3
Period
4
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
Europe
(6) EUROPE
__________________________________________
70
__________________________________________
60
__________________________________________
£million
50
__________________________________________
40
__________________________________________
30
__________________________________________
20
__________________________________________
10
__________________________________________
0
1
2
3
4
Period
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
5) Read out your descriptions to students near you, but don’t say the name of the area. See if they can
tell you which area you are describing.
FLOW OF BRITISH FOREIGN INVESTMENTS 1830–1914
Britain was a major capital (finance) exporting country for much of the nineteenth century. However,
the regions where Britain was investing at any one moment changed over time.
1) Re-organise the data in (Table 1) into the chart below to show the countries in descending order
(highest – lowest) of rank (R) according to the percentage of investment they were receiving in each
year shown. 1830 has been done for you.
R
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
T
1830
Europe
Latin America
United States
B.E. Dominions
110
%
66
23
9
2
1854
260
%
1870
770
%
1914
4,107
%
KEY
R = rank (1st, 2nd, 3rd …); B.E. = British Empire; T = Total invested in £ (pounds) million
2) Try adding investment in the British Empire Dominions and British Empire India together; what
difference does that make to the ranking. Fill in the table and answer the questions below
R
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
1870
%
1914
%
a) Was the main recipient of this investment in 1870 still the US? ______________________________
b) Did it change the rank of any other area?
_______________________________________________
c) In 1914, was their any change in the rank of other areas?__________________________________
3) Complete the sentences to describe what happened in each area using both old and new tables.
Europe has been done for you
EUROPE was in 1st place in 1830 and 1854, but its share had fallen sharply by 1870 (55% - 25%) when
it was in 3rd place. By 1914 it was in 5th and last place.
UNITED STATES There was little change. In 1870 ________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
BRITISH EMPIRE (India and Dominions) Added together these make the British Empire __________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
BRITISH EMPIRE (India) In 1870 India _________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
BRITISH EMPIRE (Dominions) From the lowest in 1830 by 1914 _____________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
LATIN AMERICA In 5th place in 1879 and in _____________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
OHER REGIONS Investment tripled (3% - 9%) ___________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
UK EXPORTS AND IMPORTS 1870 – 1913
Most people, and most countries, try not to spend more than they earn. Between 1870 and 1913 Britain
constantly bought more abroad than she sold, spent more than she earned. Luckily, profits from her
financial investments overseas brought in money and some say the Empire helped too, especially India,
from where there was a large, steady, flow of wealth into Britain throughout this whole period.
1) Look at the chart and table which show UK Exports and Imports between 1870 and 1913, and do
the tasks below.
The Chart and Table 2 UK Exports & Imports 1870 – 1913 both show the same data but in a
different format. Use them to find out more about what was happening to UK imports and exports in
this period
UK Exports & Imports 1870 - 1913 (£ million)
800,000
700,000
600,000
500,000
EXPORTS
IMPORTS
400,000
300,000
200,000
100,000
0
1870
1874
1878
1882
1886
1890
1894
1898
1902
1906
1910
TABLE 2 UK Exports & Imports 1870 – 1913 (£ million)
Year
1870
1871
1872
1873
1874
Exports
199,660
222,530
255,970
239,430
239,430
Imports
304,810
331,230
352,330
370,600
367,630
Year
1880
1881
1882
1883
1884
Exports
222,790
233,950
241,480
239,820
232,920
Imports
409,500
395,660
411,950
426,380
390,120
Year
1890
1891
1892
1893
1894
Exports
263,530
246,810
227,060
218,490
226,400
Imports
421,530
436,160
424,240
405,360
416,950
Year
1900
1901
1902
1903
1904
Exports
291,450
280,280
283,490
290,900
300,820
Imports
524,050
522,650
529,340
543,390
551,600
1875
223,460
372,800
1885
213,010
370,680
1895
226,400
416,950
1905
330,200
565,470
1876
200,590
372,230
1886
212,450
349,760
1896
240,230
442,260
1906
375,600
608,240
1877
198,800
392,570
1887
221,410
362,400
1897
234,360
451,720
1907
426,300
646,050
1878
192,810
363,710
1888
234,460
387,180
1898
233,390
470,790
1908
377,200
593,400
1879
191,510
362,280
1889
248,970
428,220
1899
264,660
485,300
1909
378,300
624,950
Year
1910
1911
1912
1913
Exports
430,600
454,300
487,500
525,500
Imports
678,740
680,480
745,240
769,340
2) Pair work: complete the following sentences then make three statements about British trade between
1870 and 1913 using the information in the table and chart.
a) Between 1870 and 1913, UK trade (exports / imports) _______ ___ ____________ overall even
though there were fluctuations (trade rose and fell a little) from year to _______ ___.
b) By 1913, exports had _______ ___ to 525,500 (£ million) from the 1870 figure of _______ ___
(£ m.). Imports rose from _______ ___ (£ m.) in 1870 to _______ ___ (£ m.) in _______ ___ the
gap was fairly _______ ___ .
c) This means that the UK was _______ ___ _______ ___ abroad than she was _______ ___ from
the export of goods and _______ ___ .
Three statements
1 _________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2 _________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
3 _________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
d) Compare your statements with others in your class put your ideas together see how many things you
can say about Britain’s imports and exports in the years between 1870 and 1913.
(VI) CULTURAL IMPERIALISM
1) What does the title of this section mean? What is Cultural Imperialism? Read the dictionary
definitions of culture, cultural and imperialism underline the meaning you think is right here?
cultural adj 1 relating to music, literature, and other arts: London is still very much the cultural
capital of the country * The country enjoys a rich and diverse cultural life * - culturally adv: The
two cities are culturally very similar 2 relating to the culture of a particular group, country or society:
an improved understanding of ethnic and cultural diversity * respect for racial and cultural identity
* the cultural traditions of our society * a misunderstanding that was cultural rather than
intellectual
culture noun 1 activities involving music, literature and other arts: If you’re looking for culture then
Paris is the place for you * Britain’s literary culture 2 a set of ideas and beliefs and ways of behaving
of a particular organisation or group of people: The two firms have different corporate cultures *
some organizations encourage a culture of secrecy 2a. a society that has its own set of ideas, beliefs
and ways of behaving: people from different cultures * ancient cultures 2b. a set of ideas, beliefs and
ways of behaving of a particular society: societies that share the same language and culture *
exposure to Western culture through literature and music 3 science a group of bacteria or cells that
have been grown in a scientific experiment: a collection of animal cell cultures 3a. science the
process by which a group of bacteria or cells are grown in a scientific experiment: tissue culture
imperialism noun 1 the actions of a powerful country that tries to take control of other countries,
often using military force 2 the actions of a powerful country that tries to gain control or influence
over the economic political and social life of weaker countries: Opponents see globalization as a
form of economic imperialism.
imperialist noun 1 imperialist or imperialistic wanting to take control of other countries: imperialist
tendencies 2 adj relating to imperialism
Advanced Learners Dictionary, Macmillan Education, ISBN 0 333 96668 6
2) Which definitions seem to be the most useful here to explain cultural imperialism? _____________
___________________________________________________________________________________
3) Read the definition below and underline the main points which tell you what cultural imperialism is.
Cultural imperialism is when one nation imposes its culture or language on another. Usually a large,
economically or militarily powerful nation will impose its culture on a smaller, less important nation.
This cultural imperialism can take the form of an active, formal policy or a more passive, general
attitude. Thus it can refer to either forcing a subject population to conform the dominant culture
(stopping them using their language or practising religious, traditional rites and ceremonies, etc.). It can
also be a voluntary act, by an individual, from the subject population, carried out because the less
powerful subject gets some advantage from absorbing the other culture. It is a very general term. It is
often used in a negative sense.
4) What forms can cultural imperialism take? ______________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
5) In the author’s opinion is it a clear term? _______________________________________________
CLASS DISCUSSION – decide on a definition of imperialism
1 Imperialism and westernization
British and European culture, its beliefs and values were spread all over the world by Imperialism but
did not affect everyone equally. In the dependent countries only the native elites were really affected.
They were often encouraged to co-operate with Britain and many would send their sons to England to
be educated. These young people became westernised, they were educated into the British culture,
westernised, but also had their own native culture and its values and beliefs to refer to as well. This
made it easier for them to work with the British and vice versa, it also made it easier later on for them
to lead the struggle for independence in their country they knew how the British would react better than
the British could know what they would do.
One famous example of a westernised independence leader is Mahatma Gandhi, who led a peaceful but
effective campaign against the British presence in India. He was a native Indian, a Hindu, and also a
western-educated lawyer and both western-derived ideology and his own social and cultural origins
influenced his strategies when organizing resistance to Britain.
1) Decide whether the following statements are true or false and explain why
a. The cultural imperialism of western countries affected only a minority of educated indigenous people
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
b. The children of the elite became westernised because they were educated in England
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
c. ‘Westernization’ was a new cultural phenomenon helped preserve the Empire
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
d. Gandhi strongly opposed westernization
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
e. Westernised people knew more about how both the British and their own people would react and
think this helped them to organise politically.
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2 Popular imperialism in Britain
1) Brainstorming: before reading think about popular culture in Victorian times in Britain:
Popular culture is the types of entertainment that most people in a society enjoy, today for example
it would mean films, television, radio, popular music and literature but few of these existed a
century ago, so what did people do for entertainment in those days?
Towards the end of the nineteenth century there was increased enthusiasm for Empire among the
ordinary people of Britain which MacKenzie, (1984, 1986) called popular imperialism.
Popular culture was often used a means of promoting the values and beliefs of Imperialism, of
spreading popular imperialism by influencing public opinion so the population would accept and even
support government imperial policies.
Promotion started in schools, where British school children were encouraged to feel proud that they
were part of a nation which ruled the world's largest empire ever. The Public Schools (private schools
for the rich) with their emphasis on Character, Manliness, and Sport, taught the future leaders of the
Empire. In State Schools too, children were taught ‘facts’ about the Empire that supported the idea that
there were no problems, that imperialism was good for everyone.
There were direct and indirect references to Empire everywhere, in Church, with hymns referring to
doing God’s work in the Empire; in literature, the imperial romances of H. Rider Haggard, Robert
Louis Stevenson and Rudyard Kipling were all widely read and usually showed imperialism as a noble,
civilising endeavour; something which was good for the natives.
Popular imperialism extended to activities and organisations that taught discipline and a sense of duty
to young people. Many organisations were run on military lines, for example the Boy Scouts (1907)
were founded by Lord Robert Baden-Powell, who “drew directly on his own imperial experiences in
shaping the group's ethos, activities and uniform” (Rosenthal, 1986; Springhall, 1977).
The Salvation Army was an evangelical organisation, it too was organised on military lines. It did a lot
to help people in need both in Britain and overseas, often migrants, in the Empire.
And then there were exhibitions, and international trade fairs, to give people visual images of the
Empire and the dramas and emotions of imperial conquest were also shown on stage to entertain them
in Theatres and Music Halls.
The more extreme public expressions of patriotism even got their own name: 'Jingoism' which was
used to describe people’s aggressive assertions of national pride and power, the firm belief in British
superiority.
Like many, J. A. Hobson believed the music halls and the press manipulated the patriotic emotions of
the public and corrupted the democratic process. He called Jingoism an explosion
“of national hate [and] a primitive passion [ which], among large sections of the middle and labouring
classes, the music-hall, and the public-house (pub) […] are a more potent educator than the church,
the school, the political meeting, or even than the press [and ] served to glorify brute force and an
ignorant contempt for foreigners”. J. A. Hobson, The Psychology of Jingoism (London: Grant
Richards, 1901), pp. 2-3.
2) Pair work: find and underline information in the text to answer the questions. Share your answers
with the rest of the class.
A. Why was popular imperialism promoted? __________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
B. What values and ideals did it spread and reinforce
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
C. With no radio or TV available, how was it transmitted?
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
D. Who it was mainly aimed at, what type of people :
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
E. Public Schools played an important role in training who?
_____________________________________________________________________________
F. Explain Jingoism to your partner and decide together on a definition.
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
Imperialism as Racial Destiny
Some argued that imperialism was the destiny of the Anglo-Saxon race.
In 1877 Cecil Rhodes, the man who gave his name to Northern and Southern Rhodesia, had just begun
to make his fortune in the Kimberley diamond fields of South Africa when he wrote about his attitude
to Empire saying how it was right for the 'Anglo-Saxon race' to expand. He said:
“[...] we are the finest race in the world and the more of the world we inhabit the better it is for the
human race. Just fancy [how it would be better if] those parts that are at present inhabited by the most
despicable specimens of human beings [...] were brought under Anglo-Saxon influence [...].
I contend that every acre added to our territory means in the future birth to some more of the English
race who otherwise would not be brought into existence. [. . .] Africa is still lying ready for us it is our
duty to take it. [...] more territory simply means more of the Anglo-Saxon race, more of the best the
most human, most honourable race the world possesses.
Cecil Rhodes, 'Confession of Faith', 1877
1) Underline:
A) Rhodes’ descriptions of the Anglo Saxon race i.e. the British/English
B) Rhodes’ description of non Anglo Saxons.
C) Why he thinks it is at advantage for Anglo Saxons to possess a lot of territory?
D) Why he thinks the British should take Africa?
Imperialism Social Darwinism
The association between nation and race patriotism based on ethnic identity began to be made in
theories of Social Darwinism which applied Darwin’s Law of Natural Selection to human society.
Darwin’s law had explained the evolution of animals and when applied to human society, it became an
ideological justification and explanation of both political and economic competition between nations
and of the natural superiority of one race over another.
Late-Victorian social theorist Benjamin Kidd saw imperialist expansion as a natural process that could
not be stopped: He said:
“When a superior race comes into close contact and competition with an inferior race, the result seems
to be much the same, whether it is arrived at by the rude method of wars of conquest, or by the silent
process which we see at work in Australia, New Zealand, and the North American Continent” ,[…] The
Anglo-Saxon has exterminated the less developed peoples with which he has come into competition
even more effectively than other races have done in like case; not necessarily indeed by fierce and
cruel wars of extermination, but through the operation of laws not less deadly and even more certain in
their result . The weaker races disappear before the stronger through the effects of mere contact.”
Benjamin Kidd, Social Evolution, (New York: Macmillan, (1894) p. 46
Indeed, the Carib populations of the West Indies were already all extinct. Native American populations
were declining as European settlers spread West, taking land from the farmers, killing them by gun,
disease, and starvation, pushing native peoples onto reservations. The same was happening in Australia
to Aboriginal people and in New Zealand to Maoris, too.
1)
Discuss the following quotation with your partner and then with the rest of the class: MAKE NOTES
“The Anglo-Saxon has exterminated the less developed peoples with which he has come into
competition”. Think about what “less developed” means to you when talking about countries. What
are the developed and less-developed world? (1st and 3rd World) Do you think Rhodes meant the same as
you do? Choose from the list which would mean developed to you and which to Rhodes and add
your own examples / ideas / associations with the terms “ developed” & “less developed”.
a)
with a different culture /way of life
b)
living in towns and cities
c)
with no big industries
n)
__________________________
d)
wearing different clothes
o)
__________________________
e)
not Christian
f)
living in small villages
p)
__________________________
g)
not living anywhere, nomadic
q)
__________________________
h)
different social structure, laws
r)
__________________________
i)
inferior races
s)
__________________________
j)
agricultural economy
t)
__________________________
k)
__________________________
u)
__________________________
l)
__________________________
v)
__________________________
m)
__________________________
w)
__________________________
x)
__________________________
y)
__________________________
z)
__________________________
B)
What is meant the by the “silent process which we see at work in Australia, New Zealand, and the
North American Continent”
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
C)
a) “The weaker races disappear before the stronger through the effects of mere contact”. True?
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
b) Why did the Caribs disappear?
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
c) What has happened to North American Indians
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
D)
(Future) PROJECT: Find out about North American Indians, Maoris (NZ) and Aborigines in
Australia today. Report back to the class.
What were British school students being taught about
Africa at the time?
This “Atlas of Universal Geography” was
Atlaspublished
used by aby
17-year-old
John Marshall
British
andgirl
Company,
training 42
to be
Pa
notes she took about Africa, probably from dictation as they are very formal language, but s
below.
In Morocco, Jafilet is noted for its dates.
British South African Company Territories
The land governed by the British South African Company (Zambesia and Rhodesia) is the vast region of
the Southern Zambesi bounded on the west by German and in the east by Portuguese Territory. The
two most important countries of this region are Matabeleland & Mashonaland. Both of them are rich in
cattle, both are excellent cattle-rearing countries & the climate is in most parts dry & healthy for
Europeans. The land is admirably suited for agriculture. As yet there is little attention paid to it but
this must increase with the growing demands of the mining settlements. Salisbury is the seat of
administration there are townships at Bulawayo, Victoria & Umtale. The carrying trade of the country
is at present done by ox-wagons; but a railway is penetrating Mashonaland on the east from Beira in
Portuguese Territory & another is being pushed on from Mafeking to Palapye. Salisbury is in
telegraphic communication with the Cape & is one of the posts in a line of telegraphs ultimately
destined to connect Cape Town & Egypt. Salisbury can be reached within 33 days after leaving London.
Most of what was once the Bechuana Land Protectorate is now administered by the British South
African Company.
Low ranges of hills skirt the Nile Valley on both sides & thus protect it from drifting sands of the
great deserts. Mauritius is a tropical island & it is famous for the wondrous beauty of its landscape.
1) She was writing about the Bechuanaland protectorate, later part of Southern Rhodesia, now
Zimbabwe. What sort of picture do her notes give us of life in this area of Africa positive or negative?
POSITIVE POINTS
NEGATIVE POINTS
2) What features and facts were presented as positive (and important)?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
3) Whose point of view is presented, colonist or colonised?
___________________________________________________________________________________
4) What are the main industries?
___________________________________________________________________________________
5) What important means of communication are currently being developed?
___________________________________________________________________________________
6) Who administers the area?
___________________________________________________________________________________
7) Look through her notes and with your partner decide what was she given information about?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
8) What is said about the natives?
___________________________________________________________________________________
_
9) Is there any criticism of what was happening, any other view offered
___________________________________________________________________________________
What was being said in literature?
Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936) wrote The White Man's Burden in 1899. The poem was published in
McClure’s, a popular US magazine. He wrote it partly to help influence popular opinion in the US and
get people to accept their country occupying the Philippines (1899). This poem and others he wrote
soon became part of the folklore, of the assumptions taken as fact, of imperialism,
The poem opens with the command: “Take up the White Man's burden” and every verse starts with the
same words, like a refrain. The poem praises the spirit of self-sacrifice among colonists and the
colonising powers that “send their best” young people to “exile” in the colonies in order to serve the
native people. In lines 3 - 5 of the first verse (below) Kipling even seems to suggest that it is not just
the native people who are enslaved, but the functionaries of empire too as they feel equally caught up,
frustrated and powerless while in Colonial service. He ends by describing the natives as half devil, (not
Christian) and half child, (irresponsible, unable to reason).
This is the first verse of the poem:
Take up the White Man's burden -Send forth the best ye (1) breed-Go bind your sons to exile
To serve your captives' need;
To wait (2), in heavy harness (3),
On fluttered (4) folk and wild-Your new-caught, sullen (5) peoples,
Half-devil and half-child.
In the poem Kipling recognises that the colonists’ task was not easy and they often fail because
colonised people do not always co-operate and, either out of laziness or by directly opposing them stop
the occupiers from always doing what they want. Kipling also refers to the ungratefulness of the
natives who are angry about the efforts of the Colonist to help them and would prefer to remain
“uncivilized”. He ends by saying that however hard the white man tries to do his best, no one will ever
say thank you.
(1) ye = you
(2) to wait (on) = to serve
(3) in heavy harness = doing difficult tasks
(4) to flutter = to make short quick light movements, associated often with an idea of inconstancy,
unreliability, irresponsibility
(5) sullen peoples = uncooperative attitudes and behaviour
1) Look at the first verse and underline all the phrases used by Kipling when he talks about the natives
and the colonists. Fill in the table and then write a brief description of each as if you were Kipling.
COLONIST
NATIVE
The colonists are ____________________________________________________________________
The natives are ______________________________________________________________________
2) These are the words of a popular Music Hall song of the time where people would join in the chorus,
singing together. Does it reflect the same ideas as and values as Kipling expresses in his poem? Is it
critical of Empire? What idea does it give you of a colonist (an “Empire builder”)?
Have you heard how centuries ago, boys
Young John Bull (6) all at once began to grow, boys
Learnt to walk and packing up his things
Broke away from Mammy's apron strings
Joined in the scramble, sailing far and wide
Building an Empire way beyond the tide.
(6) John Bull is a catchword that makes people immediately think of a stereotype of an Englishman, not just the
physical person, but all the ideas and beliefs surrounding being English, power fortitude, honesty.... etc.
THE BRITISH EMPIRE 1897
3 Images of Imperialism
1) Before reading find the right definition for each of these words make sure you know what they mean.
1
catchword
C
(A) all the things people believe to be true, things they are
2
symbol
3
association of ideas
4
set of beliefs
sure of and often do not question
(B) the thoughts that come into your mind when you see a
symbol or an image or a word, what you associate it with
(C) a word used and understood, to mean a particular idea,
or set of beliefs etc. that many people have
(D) a picture or shape or object used to represent something,
interpretation of a symbol is culturally determined
Images, symbols and catchwords which would be recognised and understood in the same way by a
large section of a population are very important for understanding the society that produced them. They
often reveal what the general public was thinking, or being encouraged to think at the time.
In this period the type of image people usually saw was a drawing, a cartoon, an artist’s impression of
an event, sketches etc, there were few photographs published as yet and they were mainly portraits.
Social and political cartoons transmit a message, an opinion and comment on events or situations using
words, images and symbols. Advertisers also need to transmit a message, one which must be easily
understood by as many readers as possible, so adverts in particular reflect popular culture, belief and
aspirations as the catchwords, images and symbols it uses will reflect mass, popular culture.
Both cartoons and adverts try to start the chain of associations that people automatically make when
they see the message (word / image / symbol). These almost automatic associations are culturally
determined, that is, they are influenced by the individual’s previous knowledge and experience and by
his/her social and economic position, politics and beliefs. So often the advert or cartoon is aimed for
one type of audience and not another. Sometimes, through frequent use, a symbol or catchphrase may
even become permanently associated with a person, a country or a concept.
The meaning of a symbol often changes
over time, as societies’ values change and
the message in these two types of image
can give historians a good insight into what
the majority of the population thought and
accepted at a particular period in time.
IMAGES OF EMPIRE: A PAINTING
The Secret of England’s Greatness (1863)
by Thomas Jones Barker is a powerful
image of Empire. It shows Queen Victoria
presenting a bible to a kneeling African
chief in the Audience Chamber at Windsor.
Her husband Albert is behind her. The
painting was reproduced in engravings and
was very popular at the time.
CARTOON
The Rhodes Colossus
Spanning Africa from Cape to
Cairo
The Rhodes Colossus is an iconic (very
famous) cartoon about the Scramble for
Africa. The person shown is British
colonist, Cecil Rhodes. The cartoon was
drawn by Edward Linley Sambourne and
first appeared in 1892, in Punch, a British
weekly satirical magazine.
1) In pairs or small groups answer the
following question (make notes) then share
your results with the rest of the class
a) What do you remember about Rhodes
and his ideas about Imperialism?
b) What do you remember about the
Scramble for Africa?
c) In her notes the Victorian school student
mentions “Cape to Cairo”, in what context?
d) What do you know about the original
Colossus of Rhodes?
2) Why did the cartoonist entitle the cartoon The Rhodes Colossus, what associations does he want
you to make?
___________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
_
3) Work with a partner and describe the image
a) Describe Rhodes
• What he’s wearing? ______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
•
What do you associate with his dress ________________________________________
•
Where is he standing? ____________________________________________________
•
Why do you think he is standing like this? ____________________________________
•
What impression does he give? Confidence, power, or what? _____________________
b) Comment on the perspective from which the figure has been drawn
•
What is the first thing you see in the image, closest to the viewer? __________________
•
What do you associate with this image? ______________________________________
•
Why is this first image important? ___________________________________________
•
What is the next closest object to the viewer? __________________________________
•
What do you associate with this image? _____________________________________y
•
Rhodes is holding a hat or rather a solar topee in his right hand. This is a special hat
widely used by European colonists when in India and Africa to protect their heads from
the sun (topi means hat in Hindi). What association do you think the cartoonist wanted
the viewer to make? ______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
•
What is Rhodes holding in both his hands? ____________________________________
•
Does the fact that the viewer is looking up at Rhodes affect how he /she sees him? Is it
important? ______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
4) Class discussion: What message have you understood?
5) Class discussion: Was the cartoonist pro or anti imperialist?
ADVERTISEMENT
The White Man’s Burden
Kipling’s verbal image “White Man’s Burden” quickly became a popular catchword, not only in
Britain, indeed, it became so widely known, understood and accepted as a set of beliefs that among
others (1) the advertisements of a major soap manufacturer, Pears’, began to use it as a slogan in its
adverts because the company was so confident about the positive associations of ideas it would set off
in people’s minds.
All advertisers rely on symbols as well as words because symbols amplify a message by exploiting
culture based associations of ideas. They will obviously only use those triggers they are sure will create
positive feelings towards their product. Look at the advert below, which was being published in the
early 1900s. Then analyse it. But before you do with your partner:
(1) It was not only used by them to
catch attention but also in a very
different way by Edward Morel, for
example, a British (anti-imperialist)
journalist in the Congo Free State, used
it to attract attention to his 1903 article
on the abuses of imperialism when he
entitled it “The Black Man’s Burden”,
The article was a severe criticism of
imperialism and of King Leopold II’s
Congo Free State in particular.]
BRAINSTORMING:
When was the advertisement
published?
How much do you know, can you
remember, about Britain in that
period?
About her economy?
About where she was in Africa and in
the rest of the world?
About her relations with Europe and
with the countries of the Empire?
What did people think about the
Empire at the time?
Put your ideas together with the rest of
the class to build up the context, and
idea of the period when the cartoon
was published.
2) Analyse the text underneath the image:
The first step towards lightening
The White Man’s Burden
is through teaching the virtues of cleanliness.
Pears’ Soap
is a potent factor in brightening the dark corners of the earth as
civilization advances, while amongst the cultured of all nations
it holds the highest place- it is the ideal toilet soap.
1
2
When was the advert being
published?
TEXT
a) Underline the key words and
phrases in the advert that refer to
Kipling’s poem and ideas and list
them here.
Early 1900s
a) __________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
b) How strong is the link between
the ad and the poem?
b) __________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
3
MAIN IMAGE
a) Describe the main character
A) Where is he?
B) What is he wearing?
C) What is he doing?
D) What do you think about him.
____________________________________________
a) main character:
A) __________________________________________
B) __________________________________________
C) __________________________________________
D) __________________________________________
E) __________________________________________
E) Would you like to meet him,
why?
____________________________________________
b) __________________________________________
b) Are there any symbolic objects?
c) What associations do you have
with these symbols?
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
c) __________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
F) Do you know his name?
G) Is he a stereotype?
F) __________________________________________
G) __________________________________________
4
FRAME
a) analyse the frame
top left:
top right:
bottom left:
bottom right:
a) frame
tl: __________________________________________
____________________________________________
tr: __________________________________________
____________________________________________
bl: __________________________________________
____________________________________________
br: __________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
associations
b) What do you associate these
associate images with?
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
3) Lightening has two meanings it could be
Lightening - as in make lighter, remove weight
Lightening - as in make paler, remove colour
Which meaning do you think Kipling wanted to convey? Either, Neither or Both. Explain your choice
to your partner
4) What sort of market, what sort of person do you think Pears’ was trying to reach and sell their
product to? Give reasons for your choice.
a) Working classes?
b) Middle classes?
c) Upper classes?
d) Everyone / Anyone?
e) Colonists in particular?
f) Other: _____________________
5) What does this tell you about popular opinion regarding Imperialism in the early 1900s? Was it seen
as necessary? As good? Or bad? Or some of each? Did people just accept and not ask too many
questions about what was going on? Did most people agree with Kipling’s view? Explain your ideas
and discuss them in class.
IMAGES
Of all the images in this text which do you think best describe Imperialism? Choose the 3 or 4 you
think re “best” and explain why you think so to your partner.
What about the rest of the class?
Which image is most popular, are their reasons the same?
Draw up a list from most to least popular. Does one type of image appeal more than another?
Do a Class Survey, keep score on the board.
(VII) ROUND TABLE DISCUSSION
Find out about one of the people listed below who lived at that time; their lives, their attitudes, their
beliefs and approach to Imperialism.
Edward Morel (journalist, anti-imperialist, active in the British Congo Reform Campaign)
Jules Ferry, (French Prime Minister)
The Kaiser (Ruler of Germany at the time)
American Anti-Imperialism League (a member or representative)
Dr David Livingstone (Scottish Missionary – explorer)
Henry Morton Stanley (U.S. Journalist – explorer)
Hermann von Wissmann. (German explorer and (1888) imperial commissioner for East Africa)
Pierre Paul François Camille Savorgnan de Brazza (French Naval Officer – explorer and …)
Lady Florence Baker (East European - British Traveller)
Mary Kingsley, (British Explorer, naturalist missionary)
King Leopold II of Belgium
Cecil Rhodes, (businessman, explorer, colonist)
Rudyard Kipling (British popular writer)
Mahatma Gandhi (in South Africa from 1893 – 1914 then India)
Joseph Conrad (British author – experiences in the Congo told in Heart of Darkness - 1890)
Lord Baden Powell (Founder of the Boy Scout movement, South Africa – Mafeking)
Salvation Army representative
And anyone else you can think of who lived in the period 1870 – 1914 who was involved in the
European Empires, in some way or another.
Take a role: be the person you have studied and act as they would during a round table discussion about
aspects of Imperialism: Start from the supposition that
IMPERIALISM means PROGRESS (FOR ALL)
Or any other issue that you would like to discuss, prepare your arguments, that is, what your character
would think and say and ... see what happens.