The West and the World: Empire, Trade, and War, 1650-1850

The WestThe West

CHAPTER 19

The Rise of the British Empire

• Seventeenth century - Britain acquired colonies in North America and the Caribbean, and trading posts in India

• Eighteenth century - British influence extends into Southeast Asia and the South Pacific

• The British empire had little administrative coherence, but a shared identity, as British subjects, united diverse colonies and territories

The Scattered French Empire

• Paralleled British empire in North America and India, but with less success

• Decline of French power, due to military defeats and colonial rebellions, throughout the eighteenth century

• French expansion continued and increased in North Africa

The Commercial Dutch Empire

• Acquired the majority of colonial possessions in early seventeenth century

• Possessions in Africa, North America, Asia, and the Caribbean

• The Netherlands became the center of the global economy

• Colonies were almost exclusively dedicated to trade

The Vast Spanish Empire

• Spain controlled the greatest expanse of colonial possessions in North and South America, the Caribbean and Asia

• More centralized and authoritarian system of control than the British

• Bourbon reforms in the eighteenth century made the empire more efficient and profitable, but fueled colonial resentment

The Declining Portuguese Empire

• Portugal had been the first European power to acquire overseas possessions

• Military weakness led to extensive losses of land to other European states

• Brazil experienced great economic and demographic growth

• Administrative reforms provoked colonial resentment

The Russian Empire in the Pacific

• Russia was the only east European state to acquire an overseas empire in the eighteenth century

• Explorers and traders ventured into the Pacific Ocean

• After 1789, Russia founded a chain of trading posts along the Pacific coast of North America

Mercantile Warfare

• Mercantilism - decreased imports and increased exports, in order to monopolize world trade

• Protection and expansion of trade became the principal motive for warfare between European states

• Territorial expansion continued to fuel some military conflicts

Anglo-French Military Rivalry

• A “second Hundred Years’ War” fought in Europe, Asia and North America

• Periodic naval and military engagements

• France lost the majority of its American and Indian possessions to the British

• Britain emerged as the dominant military, colonial and commercial power in the world

The Atlantic Economy

• Europe acquired agricultural products from the Americas - coffee, tobacco, rice, cotton and cacao

• American colonies acquired manufactured products from Europe

• The Atlantic Ocean became the commercial center of the world

The Atlantic Slave Trade

• Slave trading was the basis of the Atlantic economy

• An unparalleled demographic occurrence - ca. 9.5 million slaves arrived in the Americas

• Distinctly commercial venture - slaves were dehumanized into commodities

• Slave trade declined when it became less economically worthwhile and provoked greater moral and religious opposition

Cultural Encounters in the Atlantic World

• Creation of colonial societies with greater ethnic, religious and social complexity and diversity than western Europe

• Fostered an emergent idea of white racial superiority

• Transmission and exchange of political and religious ideas between Europe and the Americas

British Political Control of India

• Military conflict in Bengal led to the British East India Company acquiring financial and political power in the province

• This prompted a cycle of ever increasing territorial acquisitions across India

• The Sepoy Mutiny, 1857-1858, led to the abolition of the East India Company and the imposition of direct rule from Britain

Changing European Attitudes Towards Asia

• Widespread admiration and idealization of Asian culture, during mid-eighteenth century

• Exertion of Asian influences upon European art, architecture, fashions and design

• Negative perceptions of Asia increased in the later eighteenth century

• Emergent ideas of racial difference and white superiority were extended to Asians

The Crisis of Empire

• 1780-1825 period of crisis and revolution against European rule

• British, French and Spanish lost the majority of their American possessions

• Movements for independence fueled by colonial resentment of distant metropolitan rule

• Influenced by Renaissance and Enlightenment ideas, and radical political theories

The Atlantic Revolutions

• The American Revolution, 1775-1783

• The Haitian Revolution, 1789-1804

• The Irish Rebellion, 1798-1799

• National Revolutions in Spanish America, 1810-1824

The Rise and Reshaping of the West

• The West expanded geographically and gained control of the world economy

• The Atlantic Ocean became the geographical center of the West

• American territories, even after their independence, became culturally part of the West

• Cultivation of a sense of Western superiority