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During the course, we have been dealing with some concepts related to England that were pointed out in the very first class. This essay aims to analyze how Imperialism, power, and a sense of superiority have been reinforced throughout the lessons. It will be using analyzing poems and the bibliography related to the history of England that these concepts are going to be strengthened.
To begin with, it should be noted that it was during the nineteenth century that England, under Queen Victoria’s rule, expanded its Empire globally. It was a great exhibition that showed some of the English pride, greatness, and superiority. They exposed their achievements and progress such as railways, sculptures, and machinery. “Nineteenth-century imperialists justified their projects by saying that their investment in infrastructure-railroads, harbors, and roads-and their social reforms would fulfill Europe’s secular mission to bring civilization to the rest of the world”. After the Napoleonic wars, England seized the opportunity to conquer lands with the excuse of bringing civilization and prosperity to those conquered territories. In reality, Imperialism was a measure towards keeping market clients and emblazon naval supremacy. The poem by Rudyard Kipling, “The white man’s Burden”, illustrates the English reasoning behind justifying their expansion and conquering. He pictures the conquering of territories as a “duty” relegated to the English due to their being superior and civilized. According to the writer, England committed to bringing progress to those lands which were suffering from famines, lack of technology, and lack of “culture”. The second argument was Social Darwinism, the application of Darwin’s theory of evolution to the way society worked. The survival of the fittest was taken in its literal written form. However, this had nothing to do with the real theory of evolution, it was the rationale for England’s superiority over colonies. [1: Cole, Joshua & Symes, Carol (2014) Western Civilizations Their history and their culture. Imperialism and Colonialism, 1870–1914. 729]
It should be pointed out that the conservatism from this period called “unionist leaders” had vested interests in consolidating the English empire on foreign soil. “Britain was losing European markets to Germany and American ones to the United States. New colonies meant new markets protected by the Union Jack and British arms from foreign competition. There would be new sources of raw material, and the natives of Africa and Asia might be expected in return for the blessings of civilization to provide cheap and willing labor without strikes or demands for political rights” This is in line with what Lenin states about Imperialism being an integral part of capitalism “With domestic markets saturated and growth limited by competition at home, capitalists were forced to invest and search for new markets overseas, producing an even more intensive pressure for the expansion”. Taking into account this quotation, it is clear that England decided to conquer other territories to obtain raw materials, cheap labor and to be the most powerful nation of all. [2: Thorn, John, Lockyer, Roger & Smith, David. (1964) A history of England. Imperialism; The Last Years of Victorian England. 518]
It is important to expand on the definition of Imperialism since it can take different forms. Imperialism can be exercised through direct rule, indirect rule or it can be informal. The direct rule means that “the colonizing nation annexed territories outright and subjugated the peoples who lived there”. This was the case in Africa. England was interested in the diamonds that lay on South African soil. Cecil Rhodes, who was an English politician, wanted to expand the English empire to the south by saying that the natives would improve culturally. He wanted to build a South African empire and by doing so, England would attain raw materials (gold, diamonds, and sugar) and would be able to export goods. There was resistance from the Boers, who fought against the English twice, but finally, those African territories were taken under British control and English was established as an official language on those lands. [3: Cole, Joshua & Symes, Carol (2014) Western Civilizations Their history and their culture. Imperialism and Colonialism, 1870–1914. 729-730]
English Imperialism in China had begun some years earlier due to the Asian nation providing silk, tea, and porcelain, key goods for the British aristocracy. Eventually, the opium trade between these two nations was the issue that gave rise to a conflict. Chinese authorities decided to block English ships in the ports because the English smuggled Opium into China, which led to the Opium Wars. The matter was that England wanted to trespass on every land since it was the Empire that ruled overseas. The war was a British victory: “After a second war, the British secured yet more treaty ports and privileges, including the right to send in missionaries” China lost the island of Hong Kong and was submitted by the English. This was a case of Informal Imperialism since China remained independent, this means that it was not a colony, but her sovereignty was reduced. [4: Cole, Joshua & Symes, Carol (2014) Western Civilizations Their history and their culture. Imperialism and Colonialism, 1870–1914. 738]
In India, English imperialism was more violent since there were many revolts to cast the British East India Company out of India due to some grievances: religious ones, as the suttee were abolished and widows were allowed to remarry; annexation of territories to the British Empire from Dalhousie and economic reasons: there was high unemployment.
Eventually, the revolts were halted due to a lack of Indian leaders and population involvement. The Mutiny Act in 1857 established no more British expansion for some time; moderation towards the Indians and a bad relationship between the two countries as the British executed the rebels right after the Mutiny Act. After this, England had to reorganize the Indian Empire. “The East India Company was abolished, replaced by the British crown. The British Raj (or rule) was governed directly, though the British also sought out collaborators and cooperative interest groups. Princely India was left to the local princes, who were subject to British advisers. The British also reorganized the military and tried to change relations among soldiers. Indigenous troops were separated from each other to avoid the kind of fraternization that proved subversive” This was proof that clearly, the British kingdom wanted to have under her wing all Middle East markets and other foreign affairs without any complaints. Thus, indirect rule was established on Indian soil. That is to say that there was an Indian elite that had been chosen to link the empire and the colony. “Queen Victoria, now empress of India, set out the principles of indirect rule: “We shall respect the rights, dignity, and honor of native princes as our own, and we desire that they, as well as our subjects, should enjoy that prosperity and that social advancement which can only be secured by internal peace and good government.” This quotation asserts that the Indians should be thankful to their rulers for they will obtain only betterment. [5: Cole, Joshua & Symes, Carol (2014) Western Civilizations Their history and their culture. Imperialism and Colonialism, 1870–1914. 736-738]
Regarding Queen Victoria, she was labeled the Empress of India by Disraeli. She was a symbol of tradition and stability during her rule since she stayed more than sixty years on the English throne. “In 1887 she entered the fiftieth year of her long reign and it was celebrated as a year of jubilee. The celebrations began when the Queen, accompanied by the cavalcade of European princes who were her sons, sons-in-law, and grandson, went in procession to Westminster Abbey. They continued with a review of an army and the Grand Fleet and a conference of representatives from all the colonies”. This also denotes what a symbol of tradition and English values she had become. She was devoted to not only expanding the Empire around the world, but locally there were some reforms to reinforce the ideas of the Victorian times. First, the question of education. Some acts were passed to make sure that every child attended school. There was no cultural equality since there were public schools for the rich and Sunday schools for the poor. However, the Elementary Education Act passed in 1880 and the Free Education Act passed in 1891 focused on compulsory attendance and the state payment of school fees respectively. Punishment for misbehavior was very strict. The use of the cane and the dunce’s hat was implemented on those students who were naughty or rebellious. Learning difficulties were unthinkable at that time. Second, the question of gender and sexuality. On the one hand, men belonged to the public sphere. They could be businessmen or politicians. They were supposed to be as masculine as possible since homosexuality was criminalized. They had to have a beard and wear hats. On the other hand, women stayed in the private sphere of society. They were only wives and mothers. [6: Thorn, John, Lockyer, Roger & Smith, David. (1964) A history of England. Imperialism; The Last Years of Victorian England. 516]
To conclude this essay, it can be stated that my viewpoint regarding the concepts of Imperialism, sense of superiority, and power have not changed throughout the course. After analyzing the different sources, it is clear that England was such a great power in the nineteenth century that nowadays there are footprints of that Empire everywhere around the world.
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