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20th Century European Empires

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Introduction Prior to the outbreak of War, Europe experienced a strong economic environment allowing the transformation of some powerful states to empires. However, there were already clear empires during this period. The conflicts of both World War one (WWI) and World War two (WW II) can be seen as similar in the sense that as powerful states underwent continued growth and modernisation, then begun imperialising in order to access more resources by annexing land, much like the British Empire during the 19th century. However, established powers endeavoured to halt the expansionism expressed by these states. As a result of complex alliances, all of empires (both emerging and established) were at war during the 20th century. Established Empires of the 20th Century While the definition of an empire is open to discussion, Lieven (1995 p. 609) explains an empire has a governing individual or body that benefits the people and is recognised by the majority of the population. While this is definition can be applied to a number of countries not experiencing civil unrest, in addition Thompson (2013 p. 196) explains, in order for a country to be an empire there needs to be a large population, access to resources and a strong economy able to generate a surplus of wealth in order to generate a military. Moreover, Thompson (2013 p. 196) explains in recent years …show more content…

393). Britain has historically been a major power as the empire had control over the ocean with its navy (Nye 2015 p. 393). Moreover, Britain had a strong economy and abundant resources which derived from ample land and a large population (Nye 2015 p. 393). However, Britain started to become fearful of its power once other countries too started gaining access to resources, population, modernised and subsequently started building military power (Palmer et al. 2002,

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How could these documents be used to explain a driving force behind European imperialism in Africa? These document could be used to explain through a few of different things like technological advancements, African colonies and raw materials they had, and economic factors. These are three reasons to help explain the driving force behind European imperialism and also could answer questions that go along with the main question like why the Europeans imperialized Africa. Why did it have to be Africa at all? These are all questions and ways to explain the main question.

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At the end of World War II, Western European powers sought political stability after a period of turmoil and devastation. Germany was divided into two spheres of influence: East Germany, controlled by the Soviet Union, and West Germany, controlled by the Allies. Western Europe attempted to unify in the post-war economy, and various views arose regarding this potential unity. The unification of Western Europe was met with opinions that were largely motivated by a nation’s own economic and political interests.

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Next, there is the extent of territory, for a long time, the extent of territory did not have a game-changing effect until after European nations left the feudal systems. Furthermore, an empire cannot gain benefits from additional territory unless they have the means of protecting it from enemies. Another element of sea power was population. During the time between 800-1805 there was a limited population per state; thus, there was a hinders effect on other European countries since economic roles were key to sea power. Not having a larger enough population to sustain economic roles is why other countries were not able to compete with Great Britain and ultimately lead to Britain gaining command of the sea.

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Imperialism In the 19th and 20th centuries, various powerful nations sent colonizers to dominate weaker nations and expand their influence. This domination is called imperialism, which is still practiced today in moderation. Among the many countries shaped by imperialism were India and China. These two large countries were both colonized by the British who were one of the greatest imperialistic powers at that time.

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New Imperialism: Economically Driven In the late nineteen century, a new imperialism emerged in Britain and the rest of the world. This New Imperialism was characterized by the rapid growth in the territories controlled by the British and other countries around the world. For Britain, they acquired the majority of their new territory by participating in the ‘scramble for Africa’.

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Nationalism in the 19th century truly set the boundaries for Europe’s newly reformed nations. With technological innovations like the steam engine and Maxim rifle European countries now held a power truly feared by others. With this power, they began to triumphantly expand all over the world. Africa was the country that bore the most sufferable pain. Europe imperialism over Africa resulted in situations where people like King Leopold completely abused and mistreated entire African tribes.

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The superiority allowed them to advance as the opposition was far inferior. This superiority was what had gained them many of their new colonies however, as mentioned earlier not everywhere was so quick to back down such as the Ottoman empire and without the germs many of these empires may not have backed

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The early 20th century had a remarkable impact on human kind, creating ripples in the continuum of history that are still felt in modern times. The biggest and by far the most remarkable event was World War 1. It's main trigger being the assassination of Archduke Franz the war began tragic and tense. In an attempt to prevent Germany from becoming too powerful, other European joined powers for what was to be an exhausting and long battle of attrition. The war was essentially a huge chain of events, tracing back to the Franco-Prussian War and the actions of important people like Otto Von Bismarck.

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When empires start developing, it indicates a nation has reached the second phase in the social season of summer. This is the point in the evolutionary cycle where there is a sense of national confidence a tested military. It sets out to flex its presence on other nations. Britain built an empire by establishing trade then trading posts, slowly started the process of encroachment by enlisting indigenous groups as part of a militia force. They used enticements to draw in the local elites, with the intention to set up colonies and strengthen trade and political influence.

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The fifth example is what the imperialist empires, in regards to other races considered below them and inferior to them, believe their purpose in the world to be. For example, the British empire believed that its role was “educating and Christianizing the ideigenous population to the point where they could expect someday, even if that day were long off, to govern themselves. They believed they were bringing progress and improvement to people who had fallen under the sway of ‘oriental despots’ but who, because they were born rational men and with exposure to liberal reforms, eduation, free trade, and Christianity, could learn the ways of self- government” (Kent 216). Imperialist empires secondarily used race, after intervening with other

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Following the end of the Industrialist Era and the emergence of countless technological advancements, the United States entered the world stage. The United States was attempting to create an empire by expanding to land outside of its own borders in order to benefit the country’s economic interests. Many citizens, whose views were greatly influenced by their understandings of national identity, saw this overseas expansion in conflicting ways. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, these groups differed in their opinions on the idea of expansion due to either their wanting to remain a democratic country built on the ideals of freedom and liberty to preserve their sense of national identity, or their wanting to expand for economic reasons and nationalism. Imperialism, which is the extension of a country’s power and influence through expansion, began as early as the 17th century, when Britain colonized the New World in order to expand economically and gain natural resources for manufacturing.

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During the 1800s, the Ottoman Empire, the ruling government of much of the Islamic world since the 15c, grew weaker In relation to Europe. Since it grew weaker i dint think that it can be avoided. Slowly the Empire began to lose its lands In North Africa and the Balkans to European powers and nationalist movements. At the same time, Western cultural and economic influence grew in some parts of the Middle East. The "Age of European Imperialism" brought further losses of territory until, by 1914 at the beginning of World War I, the Ottoman Empire consisted only of Turkey, Palestine, Syria, and the Arabian Peninsula.

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Economic and political problems have led empires to collapse. Although the Roman empire and the Ottoman empire were powerful empires, they could not evade their problems with in their empire. The Romans dominated Europe, parts of Africa, and parts of the Middle East for centuries, but they economic and political problems that made them lose it all. Commerce had disappeared due to the lack of customers, piracy on the seas, and insecurity on roads. Trade in everyday use had also disappeared, but trade in luxuries prospered.

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