“If imperialism is not banished from the country, China will perish as a nation. If China does not perish, then imperialism cannot remain”. This is what former President and military leader Chiang Kai-Shek said when foreign imperialism was introduced in China. Evidently, this example demonstrates the negative effects of imperialism on a country; yet, there are numerous other historical examples that yielded the same result, such as The Scramble for Africa, The South African diamond rush, and European imperialism in Asia. These imperialist nations feign idealism, convincing us of their selflessness, while being exploitive of other country’s resources for their own benefit. Indeed, the true motive for imperialism has always been driven by economic,
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At first, the continent offered phenomenal trading posts along the coastlines. Soon, European empires realized these exotic territories represented a feeding source that could fuel and grow the Industrial Revolution that ignited across Europe. Unfortunate for the European empires, most of these rare and precious resources – which could propel their industries to new heights -- did not exist on their land. Wisely, European powers quickly learned that in order to reap these economic benefits, they needed to control, colonize and operate these resourceful nations. However, no single country tried to educate or to liberate the countries in Central Asia; rather, their sole purpose was to secure the resources necessary to continue maintaining economic powers in the world. Their exploitive manner had its own consequences: during The Great Game, the British wanted the benefits of controlling countries in Central Asia in their empire so badly, they ended up starting four wars with Russia and other dominant powers. By the end of the imperialistic era, barely a handful of countries outside of the western hemisphere remained independent. While Europe was at the epicenter of global economic domination of the world, the colonized nations did not experience the same fate. As a result of imperialism and resource imbalances, millions of Asian lives were altered by the economic …show more content…
The discovery of diamonds in 1867 forever changed South African history, triggering a “diamond rush” that attracted people all over the world. Identical to its colonization of Asian countries, the British successfully set their colonies in South Africa, motivated by hunger for their natural resources. They soon realized that they must fully take advantage of the great revenues for its economy, so they sought to find ways to keep labor costs low. Therefore, the industry quickly developed a discrimination pattern of labor recruitment and treatment. White immigrant skilled workers were paid relative high wages; in contrast, African migrants were unskilled and low-paid, earning less than one-ninths (10 percent) the wages of white miners. To strategically support its colonization, the British found that it was important to define territorial boundaries clearly – to gain an advantage and a competitive edge over other imperialist nations. They exercised jurisdiction over property rights in the territories of African neighbors and, more particularly, to collect customs duties from persons trading on neighboring coasts. Britain not only took control of the mining industry and earned huge profit from it, but also forced black slave laborers to plant peanuts, cocoa and other cash crops and then imported them to other British sphere of influence. Even less ideal, South
At first, the continent offered phenomenal trading posts along the coastlines. Soon, European empires realized these exotic territories represented a feeding source that could fuel and grow the Industrial Revolution that ignited across Europe. Unfortunate for the European empires, most of these rare and precious resources – which could propel their industries to new heights -- did not exist on their land. Wisely, European powers quickly learned that in order to reap these economic benefits, they needed to control, colonize and operate these resourceful nations. However, no single country tried to educate or to liberate the countries in Central Asia; rather, their sole purpose was to secure the resources necessary to continue maintaining economic powers in the world. Their exploitive manner had its own consequences: during The Great Game, the British wanted the benefits of controlling countries in Central Asia in their empire so badly, they ended up starting four wars with Russia and other dominant powers. By the end of the imperialistic era, barely a handful of countries outside of the western hemisphere remained independent. While Europe was at the epicenter of global economic domination of the world, the colonized nations did not experience the same fate. As a result of imperialism and resource imbalances, millions of Asian lives were altered by the economic …show more content…
The discovery of diamonds in 1867 forever changed South African history, triggering a “diamond rush” that attracted people all over the world. Identical to its colonization of Asian countries, the British successfully set their colonies in South Africa, motivated by hunger for their natural resources. They soon realized that they must fully take advantage of the great revenues for its economy, so they sought to find ways to keep labor costs low. Therefore, the industry quickly developed a discrimination pattern of labor recruitment and treatment. White immigrant skilled workers were paid relative high wages; in contrast, African migrants were unskilled and low-paid, earning less than one-ninths (10 percent) the wages of white miners. To strategically support its colonization, the British found that it was important to define territorial boundaries clearly – to gain an advantage and a competitive edge over other imperialist nations. They exercised jurisdiction over property rights in the territories of African neighbors and, more particularly, to collect customs duties from persons trading on neighboring coasts. Britain not only took control of the mining industry and earned huge profit from it, but also forced black slave laborers to plant peanuts, cocoa and other cash crops and then imported them to other British sphere of influence. Even less ideal, South