Scramblin' thru... Imperialism Over Time
The Real Life 'Risk'...
Remember the board game Risk? Remember losing summer nights to "The Game of Global Domination"? The game that turned close friends and relatives into imperialistic mini-Hitlers? Remember how everyone ganged up on you? Remember flipping the board and walking away? If you do,
then you've experienced imperialism... minus the whole "walking away" thing. That
usually didn't happen.
Over time, imperialism has taken many forms. In any given historical period, certain forms tend to be more prevalent than others. The concept of imperialism dates from Antiquity, the time when Ancient Greek and Roman civilizations flourished – so, yea, it's been around for awhile. Historically, strong countries dominated weaker ones in order to promote their own national self-interest. Promote their "brand". If you were an indigenous population, your way of life... and religion... and language... and territory... and children... were doomed. By the 1400s, the "white man" decided to leave the confines of Europe... and really mucked things up. Comedian Louis C.K. explored being "white" in one of his classic rants: "I'm a very lucky guy. I've got a lot going from me. I'm healthy. I'm relatively young. I'm white. That is a huge leg up, are you kidding me? I love being white, I really do. Let me be clear - I'm not saying that white people are better. I'm just saying that being white is clearly better. Who could even argue? If being white was an option, I would re-up ever year. 'Oh yeah, I'll take white again this year. I've been enjoying that, so I'll stick with white, thank you.' Here's how you know white people have had it easy. I could get in a time machine and go to any point in history... and it would be awesome when I got there. That is exclusively a white privilege. Black people can't mess with time machines. A black guy in a time machine is like, 'Anytime before 1980? Um, yea, no thank you, I don't want to go.' A white guy can go to any time, like the Year 2. I don't even know what was happening then, but I know when I get there, it'll be like, 'Welcome, we have a table right here for you, sir.' And I'd be like, 'Why thank you. It's lovely here in the Year 2.' Seriously, white people can go to any time in the past. Of course, I don't want to go to the future and find out what happens to white people, because we're going to pay hard for this, you gotta know that! Oh, and I’m a man. How many advantages can one person have? I'm a white man, you can't even hurt my feelings!” Boom. And just like that, imperialism was underway. |
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Antiquity Imperialism (300 BC - 476 AD)
In the Ancient world, imperialism was seen
as a series of great empires
that arose when one group of people (usually representing a particular civilization and religion) attempted to dominate all
others by creating a unified system of
control. The empire created by Alexander
the Great in the 4th Century BC and the empire created by Rome from 27 BC until 476 AD are
perfect examples of "Antiquity Imperialism". When new cultures and civilizations were absorbed into these massive empires, the people either assimilated... or they were eliminated. Alexander the Great encouraged his soldiers to marry into the populations they conquered, blending traits and creating new "mixes" of people. He carried Greek literature, mythology, and ideas out of the Mediterranean and into areas like Egypt and India, where they blended with his own Macedonia heritage to create the Hellenistic culture. His conquest of the Persian Empire in 331 BC has been seen by scholars as opening the floodgates for the spread of Greek culture, and the foundation of cities was his way to do just that. Alexandria in Egypt, one of the cities established by Alexander, became a center of learning in the ancient world. The Hellenistic Era, which began with Alexander's death in 323 BC and continued until Rome conquered Greece in 146 BC, became a period of cultural advances across many fields. Rome then began its little conquest of the known-world, and soon its ideas of straight roads, indoor plumbing, togas, and gladiators took root in areas outside the Italian Peninsula. Without a doubt, they came... they saw... they conquered... and, more importantly, they created a "How To" blueprint for future world conquerors, including your Uncle Mitch and his unhealthy obsession for the game of Risk.
Medieval Imperialism (476 - 1400)
Antiquity Imperialism reached its climax
under the long-enduring
Roman Empire, the
eastern part of
which lasted until
late into the
Middle Ages (350-1450) as the Byzantine
Empire. In Western
Europe, no true
empire arose to
replace Rome after it fell in 476; the Holy Roman
Empire, despite the
aspirations of its
rulers, was little
more than a
confederation of princely
states. In short, the Holy Roman Empire was anything but
holy, Roman... or an empire. But that didn't stop imperialism from continuing as "Medieval Imperialism" (476-1400) during this tome. In the Middle
East and North
Africa, the Arabs
and the Ottoman Turks built large empires. This, of course, brought Islam into contact with the Christian Byzantine Empire, inevitably resulting in the Crusades (1095-1272). Aside from being horrifically savage wars between Muslims and Christians (who, ironically, both preach peace and worship the same God), the Crusades had a huge influence on European colonialism, marking the first time significant numbers of people left to carry their culture and religion abroad. While short-lived, the Crusaders managed to create four Christian colonies (called Crusader states) in the Middle East. (All four were eventually crushed.) Islamic science, medicine, and architecture was transferred to the West during the Crusades. (Europeans even copied the idea of stone castles from the Muslim ones they fought against with the new realization that stone is much harder to burn than wood.)
Farther east, besides the huge, if unstable, empires of the nomadic Mongols and others arising out of Central Asia and India (e.g. Mughal Empire), there were long-lasting and complex imperial organizations exemplified by various Chinese dynasties (e.g. Qing Dynasty). The second largest empire in history, the Mongol Empire was actually the largest contiguous land empire EVER, meaning every bit of land that it controlled was touching. (That's right! No fancy-dancy islands on the other side of the globe to "pad" its numbers!) Mix in their brute military strength... and ruthless leader Genghis Khan... and you had an unstoppable force responsible for the death of 40 million people that controlled 22% of Earth's territory and almost 26% of its inhabitants by 1227. The Mongols took naturally to the idea that they were the master race. Under Genghis, their empire swelled like a pregnant pig, and his forces were able to overwhelm opposing armies thanks to the stirrup (a Chinese invention that they took and perfected), which allowed them to fight on horseback. Mongolian imperialism was rather simple. Defeated people were given the ultimatum: death... or allegiance to the Khan.
From the religious slaughter of the Crusades to the pillaging of Asia by the Mongols, imperialism during this time clearly put the "evil" in Medieval. (OK. That was too easy...)
Farther east, besides the huge, if unstable, empires of the nomadic Mongols and others arising out of Central Asia and India (e.g. Mughal Empire), there were long-lasting and complex imperial organizations exemplified by various Chinese dynasties (e.g. Qing Dynasty). The second largest empire in history, the Mongol Empire was actually the largest contiguous land empire EVER, meaning every bit of land that it controlled was touching. (That's right! No fancy-dancy islands on the other side of the globe to "pad" its numbers!) Mix in their brute military strength... and ruthless leader Genghis Khan... and you had an unstoppable force responsible for the death of 40 million people that controlled 22% of Earth's territory and almost 26% of its inhabitants by 1227. The Mongols took naturally to the idea that they were the master race. Under Genghis, their empire swelled like a pregnant pig, and his forces were able to overwhelm opposing armies thanks to the stirrup (a Chinese invention that they took and perfected), which allowed them to fight on horseback. Mongolian imperialism was rather simple. Defeated people were given the ultimatum: death... or allegiance to the Khan.
From the religious slaughter of the Crusades to the pillaging of Asia by the Mongols, imperialism during this time clearly put the "evil" in Medieval. (OK. That was too easy...)
European Imperialism (1400 - 1700)
Imperialism was "reborn" in the West with the emergence of the modern nation-state and the Age of Colonialism/Exploration and discovery. (A nation-state is an independent country mostly inhabited by people that share a common culture, history, and language.) By contrast, "European Imperialism" (1400-1700) took the form of colonial expansion. Rather than one country trying to unify the known world (as had happened during Antiquity), the competing empires instead established political control over different territories in South and Southeast Asia and in the "New World" of North and South America.
Or, as Louis C.K. would call it: "white" imperialism.
Imperial systems at this time were organized according to the doctrine of mercantilism, an economic system in which colonies were established to supply the mother country ("Mom") with materials and markets in order to reduce its dependency on other nations. Think of mercantilism as Twitter. You create a Twitter account NOT because you really think what you have to say has any profound, life-changing merit. You create one because you're lonely and the number of followers you can attract are there only to serve your narcissistic need of feeling important or loved. Mother countries only created all of these colonies (or "followers") to benefit themselves. Little concern went into the well-being of the colonies (or your Twitter followers; I mean, how many followers do you, in turn, actually follow?) so long as they continue to provide the mother country with materials... and love.
European ("white") colonies developed in a very distinct way. The Spanish established authoritarian regimes in Mesoamerica (Mexico and Central/South America) and imposed strict controls over the natives. (They clearly had inferiority complexes. Or they were short.) The Dutch and French created fur-trading empires in North America in which natives kept their lands and autonomy. (They did this because they were Rex from "Toy Story" - big and probably scary at some point but really just a shell of who they once were... and they don't like confrontation.) The king of moochers, England, operated settler-colonies, which were populated with European emigrants and African slaves. (They did this because they were Spencer Pratt before Spencer Pratt was Spencer Pratt.) The English also excluded Native Americans and pushed them further to the west, establishing a dangerous pattern for the future. (Again, the English were like that one friend who is the last to leave the party. The party that ended six hours ago. The party they weren't even invited to.)
Or, as Louis C.K. would call it: "white" imperialism.
Imperial systems at this time were organized according to the doctrine of mercantilism, an economic system in which colonies were established to supply the mother country ("Mom") with materials and markets in order to reduce its dependency on other nations. Think of mercantilism as Twitter. You create a Twitter account NOT because you really think what you have to say has any profound, life-changing merit. You create one because you're lonely and the number of followers you can attract are there only to serve your narcissistic need of feeling important or loved. Mother countries only created all of these colonies (or "followers") to benefit themselves. Little concern went into the well-being of the colonies (or your Twitter followers; I mean, how many followers do you, in turn, actually follow?) so long as they continue to provide the mother country with materials... and love.
European ("white") colonies developed in a very distinct way. The Spanish established authoritarian regimes in Mesoamerica (Mexico and Central/South America) and imposed strict controls over the natives. (They clearly had inferiority complexes. Or they were short.) The Dutch and French created fur-trading empires in North America in which natives kept their lands and autonomy. (They did this because they were Rex from "Toy Story" - big and probably scary at some point but really just a shell of who they once were... and they don't like confrontation.) The king of moochers, England, operated settler-colonies, which were populated with European emigrants and African slaves. (They did this because they were Spencer Pratt before Spencer Pratt was Spencer Pratt.) The English also excluded Native Americans and pushed them further to the west, establishing a dangerous pattern for the future. (Again, the English were like that one friend who is the last to leave the party. The party that ended six hours ago. The party they weren't even invited to.)
Merchant Imperialism (1700 - 1815)
The
foundations of European Merchant Empires were laid out during the 16th and 17th Centuries. By the 18th
Century, however, these empires were extremely
powerful. Much of the expansion during "Merchant Imperialism" also came in the form of
colonialism. As more countries looked to flex their imperialistic muscles, and
with only so much land to go around, many of them were dragged into conflicts
as their empires overlapped. And just like that, we had a European Bro-Down in the New World! The French, Dutch, and British often battled
for superiority in North America during this time.
Territories along the eastern North
American seaboard changed hands as the British took Dutch areas
and as the French and British
fought a series of wars. Following
the French and Indian War (1754-1763),
Britain gained control of Canada
and all French territories east of the Mississippi
River. The war determined that British
ideas and institutions (and NOT French) would soon dominate North America. (Of course, I think we all know how that story ended...)
Since few Europeans migrated to the New World until the late 18th Century, the new industries were desperate for workers. This labor shortage became a problem after the Europeans introduced the plantation system, which became the main form of production in their new colonies. The plantation system was big in the sugar-producing areas of the Caribbean and Brazil and up into the southern colonies of North America, where cotton and tobacco were king. And while North America gets a bad rap for its involvement in the African slave trade and for the genocide of Native Americans (all valid points), nobody perfected slavery or the use of biological warfare quite like the Spanish in Central and South America and the Caribbean. In fact, the North American mainland was a minor destination in the global slave-trading network. Less than 4% of all African slaves were sent to North America. The vast majority of enslaved people ended up in the sugar-producing regions of Brazil and the West Indies. Slavery became a staple of the Spanish colonial economy, and millions of Indians died from diseases introduced by Spanish conquistadors. (See! This is exactly why Louis C.K. says not everyone can travel back to any given point in history quite as easily as the white man!)
Since few Europeans migrated to the New World until the late 18th Century, the new industries were desperate for workers. This labor shortage became a problem after the Europeans introduced the plantation system, which became the main form of production in their new colonies. The plantation system was big in the sugar-producing areas of the Caribbean and Brazil and up into the southern colonies of North America, where cotton and tobacco were king. And while North America gets a bad rap for its involvement in the African slave trade and for the genocide of Native Americans (all valid points), nobody perfected slavery or the use of biological warfare quite like the Spanish in Central and South America and the Caribbean. In fact, the North American mainland was a minor destination in the global slave-trading network. Less than 4% of all African slaves were sent to North America. The vast majority of enslaved people ended up in the sugar-producing regions of Brazil and the West Indies. Slavery became a staple of the Spanish colonial economy, and millions of Indians died from diseases introduced by Spanish conquistadors. (See! This is exactly why Louis C.K. says not everyone can travel back to any given point in history quite as easily as the white man!)
Free Trade Imperialism (1815 - 1870)
From
1815-1870, "Free Trade Imperialism" flourished. Despite losing the American colonies in 1783, Britain remained the dominant economic and political power in the world. They faced little competition
from other European powers. The French
were recovering from the French
Revolution (1789-1799) and the Napoleonic
Wars (1799-1815). The Dutch
had declined in power and were, well, the Dutch. Left unchallenged on the high seas, the British were able
to extend their power through informal
influence without asserting formal
political control, which kept down administrative and defensive
costs. The British did not establish many formal colonies during this time (that was soooo 18th Century) and instead controlled other nations via imperialism (and illegal drug trades), although they made an example out of India by turning it into a colony after Indian soldiers rebelled against the British Army. There was even a popular saying about this British dominance: "The sun never
sets on the British Empire." This was a legitimately true statement since Britain's span across the
globe was so vast that the sun was actually always shining on at least one of its possessions! It was quite clear that the British were well on their way to creating the world's biggest empire... ever. Still,
Free Trade Imperialism was short-lived.
By the tail end of the 19th Century, other European powers were once again
on the imperialism bandwagon. Ah, bugger...
New Imperialism (1870 - 1914)
The lack
of competition changed in the late 19th Century as other European powers again became
interested in expanding. This
was certainly true of Germany,
which had become a unified country
in 1871. (Oh how the world loves a good, unified Germany!) Almost all of the European powers now battled for colonies. This rivalry drove "New Imperialism" (1870-1914). Although
European expansion at the end of the 19th Century was called "new" imperialism,
the motives remained the same as
in earlier periods. They sought economic advantages, but these were hard to
disentangle from political and strategic motives. The main differences came in the number of competing
countries and the parts of the world they were after. Almost all European powers sought expansion in Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific... and they went about it in pretty deplorable ways, using Social Darwinism and the "White Man's Burden" to justify their actions. (The "New World" lost its charm after the U.S. and Latin American colonies gained their independence.) Even
the U.S. became imperialistic thanks to a victory in the Spanish-American War in 1898 and interventions in the affairs of Latin
America, who, by this time, had become the world's favorite punching bag.
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Modern Imperialism (1945 - Now)
Imperialism took some time off from 1914-1945 thanks to two world wars and a depression. After World War II, formal
empires dissolved, and "Modern
Imperialism" (1945-Present) began.
Today, control over other nations is exercised more
informally and less blatantly. The U.S., for example,
still influences Third World countries
because of its economic power
and its dominance within organizations
like the World Bank, which aids
developing countries. Similarly,
European powers continue to poke around their former colonies. (Britain just can't let go of the Falkland Islands and a smattering of other places throughout Latin America. Just ask Argentina...) As a result, the U.S. and Europe are accused of neo-colonialism, which occurs when a
country indirectly maintains or
extends its influence over another without direct control. (And anything with the word "neo" in front of it, outside the name of the main character in "The Matrix" trilogy, can't be good...) As
bizarre as it sounds, some of the most successful U.S. imperialistic "tools"
include democracy, blue jeans, the National Basketball Association
(NBA), Disney, McDonald's, and... pornography. Foreign
countries that import these items inadvertently import America. And once you go American, you never go... um... there again? Wait, that doesn't work... Ahhh, shut up and supersize that combo meal...
OK. Let's get down to brass tacks. Who had the biggest empire of all time? It's gotta be Rome, right? WRONG! Here are the Top 5 Biggest Empires... EVER, presented in reverse order (so we can keep the suspense going):
5. Umayyad Caliphate (Arab): Lasting from 661-750 AD, it controlled 10.07% of the world's land and 28.8% of its people. 4. Spanish Empire: Lasting from 1740-1790, it controlled 13.04% of the world's land and 12.3% of the its people. 3. Russian/Soviet Empire: Lasting from 1721-1917 and 1922-1991, it controlled 15.31% of the world's land and 9.8% of the its people. 2. Mongol Empire: Lasting from 1206-1368, it controlled 22.29% of the world's population and 25.6% if its people. 1. British Empire: Lasting from 1583-1997, it controlled 22.43% of the world's land and 20% of its people. What?! No Rome?! No Macedonia? No... U.S.A.?! Hogwash! To see where these empires rank, and for more information about the Top 5 Empires, click here to visit the "History's Biggest Empires" page. |
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Hopefully by now you know that Christopher Columbus did NOT discover America in 1492. And obviously the "New World" he floated into was rather old. Before colonies began dotting the Western Hemisphere during the 1500s and 1600s, these locations had already greeted visitors, most notably
the Viking Leif Erickson
in 1000 and the Italian navigator Amerigo
Vespucci in 1499.
Leif Erickson (also spelled: Ericsson, Eiríksson, or Erikson) is considered to be the first European to set foot on North American soil. As the story goes, Erickson left Greenland (where he was living with his father) and voyaged to Norway (the homeland of his family). Once there, Norway's King Olaf I converted Erickson to Christianity and sent him back to Greenland to win its Viking settlers over to the Christian faith. Journeying westward, Erickson lost his way and landed in Newfoundland, Canada around 1000. At the invitation of King Manuel I of Portugal, Amerigo Vespucci participated in several voyages that explored the northern and eastern coasts of South America between 1499 and 1502. On the first of these voyages, Amerigo was aboard the ship that discovered that South America extended much further south than previously thought. In 1507, German mapmaker Martin Waldseemüller produced a world map on which he named the new continent "America" after the feminine Latin version of Vespucci's first name, which is Americus. The name originally only referred to what is now South America. In 1516, the name was applied to both North and South America. (Of course, when residents of the United States hear the word "America", they take it to mean, well, "America"... as in "The America"... the United States. This is Waldseemüller's 1507 map of America re-drawn on an cylindrical map projection (which wasn't around until Gerardus Mercator's "Mercator Map" appeared in 1569). This re-sizes Waldseemüller's interpretation of South America's size, which appeared distorted on his original map. [Click picture for a larger version.]
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If we've learned one thing about taxes, it's this: unless you let people have a say in what (and how much) you're taxing, you can kiss your colony goodbye!
The French
and Indian War left Britain in deep debt. To help pay this off, Britain taxed
its 13 North American colonies. This resulted in the American Revolution (1775-1783) and the independence of the United
States.
The
harsh rule and taxes Spain inflicted on its New World colonies resulted in the Latin American Wars of Independence (1807-1824).
These wars gave birth to Mexico and the many countries in Central/South
America.
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Western powers controlled their new empires
through either indirect or direct rule. Sometimes a power could
accomplish its goals through occupation
and working with local rulers.
In these cases, indirect rule was used. Local rulers kept their status and positions of authority. Indirect rule had less impact on local culture and lowered costs because fewer officials
had to be trained.
However, when local rulers resisted, they were removed from power and replaced with a new set of officials brought from the mother country. In these cases, the "mom" now ruled them directly. This is exactly what happened to India following their Sepoy Mutiny against Britain. |
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According to
colonial records, the first slave owner in the United States was... a black man. Prior
to 1655, there were no legal slaves
in the 13 American colonies - only indentured servants. All masters were
required to free their servants after their maximum time expired, which was seven
years. Upon their release, indentured servents were usually granted 50 acres of
land. This included any "Negro purchased
from slave traders". Black indentured servants were also granted 50 acres at the end of their seven years.
Anthony Johnson was a black man from modern-day Angola. He was brought to the U.S. in 1619 to work on a tobacco farm. When Johnson was released, he was legally recognized as a "free Negro" and ran a successful tobacco farm. By 1651, he owned 250 acres and had five indentured servants (four white and one black). In 1653, John Casor, the black indentured servant (whose contract Johnson bought in the early 1640s), claimed that his indenture had expired seven years earlier and that he was being held illegally by Johnson. A white neighbor, Robert Parker, intervened and persuaded Johnson to free Casor. But when Parker offered Casor work, and Casor signed a term of indenture to the planter, Johnson grew upset and promptly sued Parker in Virginia's Northampton Court in 1654 for the return of Casor. The court initially ruled in favor of Parker but later reversed its decision and declared that Johnson could hold Casor indefinitely and gave judicial sanction for blacks to own slaves "of their own race". As a result, Casor became the first permanent slave... and Johnson the first slave owner. (Casor was now a "slave for life".) Whites still could not legally hold a black servant as an indefinite slave until 1670. In that year, Virginia's colonial assembly passed legislation permitting free whites, blacks, and Indians the right to own blacks as slaves. By 1699, the number of free blacks in Virginia prompted fears of an insurrection, so the colony ordered the repatriation of all freed blacks back to Africa. Looking to avoid having to make the return trip to Africa, many freed blacks sold themselves to white masters. (The nations of Sierra Leone and Liberia both originated as colonies of repatriated former black slaves.) However, black slave owners continued to thrive in the U.S. By 1830, there were 3,775 black families living in the South who owned black slaves. By 1860, there were about 3,000 slaves owned by black households in the city of New Orleans alone. (If you didn't utter "WTF?!" while reading that, please do so now...) |
Ah, the American Empire. Always a topic of lively discussion. And whether the sun has set on the "glory days" of old, there will always be a strong demand for
U.S. intervention globally. Failed states and rogue states are the biggest
threats to world peace, and only the U.S. has the will and resources to do
anything about them. (After all, the U.S. is the UN.) Even those who detested
the invasion of Iraq in 2003 plead for the U.S. to bring order to places like Darfur, a province in Sudan where
genocide is occurring. The U.S. cannot shrug off the burden of leadership, at
least not without catastrophic cost to the world. The U.S. certainly finds
itself in a Catch-22 situation (damned if
you do; damned if you don't), and the future of the American Empire is being written in its foreign policy decisions of today. (Of course, the world will always comes calling when the Aliens attack...)
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