Expansion and colonization were a major movement for many European countries. From the exploration of the sea to invasion of the land surrounding the borders, much was achieved. However, by taking a look at Willard Sunderland’s Taming the Wild Field and John C. Weaver’s The Great Land Rush it is obvious that not every empire’s approached colonization in the same way. Sunderland explores Imperial Russia while Weaver investigates the British Empire and the settlement of the United States of America. Through exploring each empires approach to the allocation of land and the movement of people it can truly be seen that colonization was not an identical experience. Willard Sunderland’s account of Russia’s colonial history shows that unlike most
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This was done because Russia did not want to leave the area empty in the new land, doing this made them vulnerable to outside forces, but they also did not want to decrease the population back home. During this time period, nothing much happened besides the initial start of population movement. It was not until the enlightenment and the reign of Catherine the Great do we see major progress. She believed that the steppe needed to be enlightened.[ 55] Catherine led Russia to great success in colonization. A major event that helped was the annexation of a few region such as khanate that provoked a war between Russia and her neighbors.[ 56] The obstacles that once stood in their way were now removed, allowing for an ease of movement of goods and settlers.[ …show more content…
Weaver focused on the British Empire and its systematic takeover of the United States. Like Russia, people and land were a major factor in the success of the colonization. Unlike Russia however, the British Empire went overseas and approached their settlements in a more organized manner. To start they implemented property laws and proper documentation, this allowed for an accurate representation of where the population was and who owned what. These laws were authorized by the government and land was given out based on that. No one could sell property privately without permission and everything had to be done with contracts.[ ] Obviously, this was not always followed but just by having this system in place it allowed for the British to colonize faster and with more ease than the Russians. The property laws favored the settlers it did not, however, favour the Native Americans.[
This was done because Russia did not want to leave the area empty in the new land, doing this made them vulnerable to outside forces, but they also did not want to decrease the population back home. During this time period, nothing much happened besides the initial start of population movement. It was not until the enlightenment and the reign of Catherine the Great do we see major progress. She believed that the steppe needed to be enlightened.[ 55] Catherine led Russia to great success in colonization. A major event that helped was the annexation of a few region such as khanate that provoked a war between Russia and her neighbors.[ 56] The obstacles that once stood in their way were now removed, allowing for an ease of movement of goods and settlers.[ …show more content…
Weaver focused on the British Empire and its systematic takeover of the United States. Like Russia, people and land were a major factor in the success of the colonization. Unlike Russia however, the British Empire went overseas and approached their settlements in a more organized manner. To start they implemented property laws and proper documentation, this allowed for an accurate representation of where the population was and who owned what. These laws were authorized by the government and land was given out based on that. No one could sell property privately without permission and everything had to be done with contracts.[ ] Obviously, this was not always followed but just by having this system in place it allowed for the British to colonize faster and with more ease than the Russians. The property laws favored the settlers it did not, however, favour the Native Americans.[