FROM THE FIRST TO THE SECOND EMPIRE (17th – 19th)

I- Towards a history of the British Empire and of the world

A- An intro to the historiography of Brit emp
Postcolo studies
Subaltern studies
“new imp history”

B- Imp history also a political issue

C- Definitions and periods

II- The “first” British empire

A- An empire in the making
Indentured labour (for convicts mostly)
Land owners not permanently in colo
Eco relied on sugar
Seven years war: Brit gained territories

B- Mercantilism
= collection of nation-states in world competing for limited amount of wealth -> export > import
Navigation acts: only Brit could engage trade; colo goods only sold to Brit; goods from Brit sold in colo
subject to import duties; colo forbidden to export competing goods
PB: smuggling, 7years war expensive; rise of nationalism vs taxes in US…
Mercantilism criticized => slow shift Adam Smith free trade
1846 repeal of the Corn laws

C- Slavery and slave trade

10-12 million African transported to America
In Brit, booming towns, prosperity based on sea trade (Bristol, Liverpool)
Eventually challenged: war Am indpdce 1775-83
Less profitable in Carribean
Ireland rebellion in 1798

III- The making of the second empire (1780-1830)

A- In a “fit of absence of mind”
In 1793 Brit had 26 colonies: in 1815 had 43 colo
In 1750, 12.5 inhabitants: in 1815 up to 200 million
Take-off (ind rev) in 1780’s -> leading banker, manufactory, investers…
In 1830, 1/3rd of world trade with colonies
In 1860’s, Brit = 2% people of world population and 40% manufactured goods

No official imperial policy

-> Seeley in 1883 “we seem to have conquered half of the world in a fit of absence of mind”
 B- The expansion of the emp
Informal empire expands
markets, spheres of influence, intervention
ex: Opium war 1839-42; Latin America

Expansion of formal emp

New Zealand 1840
Malta 1815
India larger (Burma 1842)
Hong Kong 1842, Singapore 1819
Africa later but first Cape town in 1806

C- Capitalism and abolition of slavery

1807 abolition of slave trade
1833 abolition of slavery

Liberal interpretation: Brit abolished it bcse was not chrisian, pbc opinion, agitation petitioning and
boycott 1787-8, 1791-2, 1806-7
Or: Empire declining; competition sugar trade with others. Still Indian indentured labour profitable
Or: Renegotiate identity: evangelicalism, leader of mankind…
Compensate slave owners = 40% state budget
After 1835 relies on “indentured” or “free labour”

D- The “Great divergence”

between western industrial world and eastern; dvpmt but dfft standard of living

THE HEYDAY OF IMPERIALISM (1870-1940): TERRITORIAL EXPANSION, COLONIAL

WARFARE AND ECONOMIC DOMINANCE

“the empire on which the sun never sets” GB 2% world pop, 0,2% world lands -> Empire ¼ world pop
Settlement colo: ½ million white people in 1815 -> 19million in 1911

I- The settlement colonies or Dominions

A- Canada
Biggest after loss of USA. Diversity of provinces; gradual westward expansion.
Government= king almighty
Rebellion 1837-8 defeated by Brit
Lord Durham Report on affairs of British North America in 1839: pb crush rebellion and risk revolutionary
war as in USA?
=> grant self-government where possible; local assemblies, chosen by settlers
1867 merge of 2 Canadas into Federal dominion of Canada (example for other dominions)

B- Australia
Captain Cook 1770.
Convicts colonies until 1850’s (criminals transported there)
 Gold discovered in South -> 1851-60 one million settlers
Provinces added gradually
“White Australia” policies (= other immigrants expelled, aborigenes considered out)
Doctrine of “terra nullus” (as land not occupied before Brit came)
Federal Commonwealth of Australia (dominion) in 1901

C- New Zealand
Whalers; missionaries to convert Maori people…
New Zealand company created 1830’s (private business, immigration organized)
Treaty of Watangi in 1840 supposed to distribute land Maori-settlers
Wars in 1840’s and 1860’s. Maori lost 95% of land.
From 1840 had 100,000 Maori and 2000 Europeans -> 42,000 M and 700,000 E in 1896

D- South Africa
Cape colony used on route for India.
Anglo Zoulou war 1879
Diamon 1867, gold 1885 => conquering over the Boer (dutch origins) settlers
Anglo-Boer wars: 1880-1 and 1899-1902
Union of South Africa dominion in 1910
But dfft: native English speakers are a minority; mostly Boer “afrikaners” and non-whites
Discrimination until official segregation “apartheid” in 1948

II- The “crown colonies”

A- Racism and colonial warfare
Ideological: vs black Africa, Maori, aborigines, Asian…judged incapable
“Racial anthropology” seen as a science; stages between apes and humans and whites
Practical: “Gunboat diplomacy”
Pax Britannica 1815-1914; image empire based on trade not violence
BUT in fact “small wars” native people casualties

B- India
Rivalry with Russia: the “great game” in s-e asia: 1855 crimean war; Afghnaistan as buffer state wars in
1838-42 and 1878-80
India’s pop up to 1/6 world pop in 1911 + many resources (spices, sugar, coffee, tea, dyes…)
Before colo, huge cotton manual ind; competition with macanized Brit productivity killed it
“East Indian Company” prevailed and governed
“Great mutiny” in 1857, rebellion violently crushed; but company judged no longer able to deal
Government of India Act in 1858 (gov appointed, called “vice-roy”)
Indian national congress in 1885

C- South east Asia

Collaborating kings, rather than annex territories, advise…

D- Africa
“Scramble for Africa” between European powers 1870-1900
By 1911, Brit took over 7 million km² and 40 million people
 E- Red spots on the globe
West Indies sugar colonies (Jamaica, Trinidad, Tobago, Barbades) 18% trade in 1815 -> 0,5% in 1914
Islands in Atlantic (Falklands, St Helena…) and Pacific (Mauritius, Fiji, Solomon) and Mediterranean
(Gibraltar, Malta, Suez canal)

III- Eco domination and informal empire

A- Economics and imperialism
“by informal control where possible… rule when necessary” (Gallagher)
Brit = “first globalization” world trade multiplied by 10, City center, sterling leading, telegraph com

B- China
East Indian company and opium trade until 1917
Opium wars in 1839-42 (gained Hong-Kong) and 1856-60 (concessions)

C- Ottoman empire and Egypt

Suez canal opened in 1869
Protectorate of Egypt with powerful Brit consul in 1882
Soudan : invasion of Fashoda in 1898 almost war with France

D- Latin America
Links: polo resemblance; commercial (invest); export for Brit (Arg free trade since 1825)

E- Europe
Portugal dpdt on trade with Brit. North France textile sector, railways…

F- The USA?
Cotton in South exported to Lancashire; GB invested after Confederacy 1865

In 1914: GB Empire: 390 million people, 33 million km²

France 48 10
Germany 18 3

THE “EMPIRE PROJECT”

I- An imperial federation?
A- “Greater Britain”
Ch Dilke’s journey “in essentials the race was always one”
John Seeley “homogeneous people, one in blood, language, religion and law, but dispersed over a
boundless space”
Pb of distance, first empire not contiguous
Solution: a federation with imperial parliament in London in project
 B- Technology and Empire
- Railways
Reduced distance. Transformed country. Distribution easier (newspaper, mail)
- Steamships
First cross of Atlantic in 1833. Costs reduced, speed and safety better. Opening of Suez canal.
- Telegraph
S Morse 1838. Red cable around the globe (completed in 1902). Kipling’s “deep sea cables” 1896

C- Imp federation scheme and polo eco of emp

Imp Fede League 1884 for strengthening links unity; avorted in 1893. Free trade zone even rejected
People in self-gov coutries refused it.
Canada 1879: National Policy, high tariffs on manif imports protectionist
Less and less free trade in emp
1903 Brit conservatives, Jo Chamberlain, “liberal imperialists” => imperial tariff zone; but denied
11 colonial/imperial conferences from 1887-1937

II- An imperial monarchy

A- From seclusion to imp monarchy
First half of 19th century: monarchy rather impopular. Wave of republicanism in 1870’s. Disraeli
convinced Queen Victoria => “Empress of India” title in 1876 with Royal titles Act
in crowning also “ruler of the Brit dominions beyond seas”
Jubilees 1887-1897 and King’s speech… Monarchy becomes THE symbol of empire

B- A ubiquitous queen
Buildings, Mumbay Victoria terminus, Victoria falls, courts… emblems, stamps, money, statues…
Anthem…Schools with history of England
Birthday of Vic 24 MAY 1904 became “Empire day”
Royal events coupled with colo imp events
Tours, visits of emp: Georges in 1901, future Edward VIII in India in 1921

III- The impact of WW1

A- The war contribution from the emp
Declaration of war in name of whole Brit emp. Most colonies accepted involvement in war.
Some resistance: in Canada riots in Quebec French speakers; in Australia gov split up on conscription in
1916; in South Africa rebellion among Afrikaners but crushed; in Ireland divided but Easter rising in april
1916 but defeated
Cost in casualties + supply of raw material, resources…

B- Centrifugal forces in the dominions

Imperial war cabinet in 1917
Dom heads invited to Paris peace conference of 1919
Equal status after war: Balfour report in 1926; Westminster statute in 1931
-> Brit prlimt not legislate on dom matters, laws voted by dom not cancelled, crown smbl free assoc

C- The rise of nationalisms

- GB expansion
 Mesopotamia, ex german terr in Africa, mandate on Palestine +2million km² and 8m people
- Nationalisms rising in empire
Egypt riots -> indpdce in 1922
Iraq in 1932, eventually indpdt
Iran, China negociate compromise
India protests (bcse denied dom status, only 1% pop right to vote…); Amritsar massacre in 1919; civil
disobedience, Indian national congress earned in 1930; 1935 gov of India act

AN “EMPIRE ON THE MOVE”: MIGRATION IN THE BRITISH WORLD

I- Leaving the British isles

A- Internal migration
Common for Brit people: migrate inside UK, search for employment moving to work
1800= 75% in countryside -> 1851= 50% in towns -> 1901= 78% in towns

B- Numbers of emigrants
From 1840-1940: 50 million European people emigrated
1815-1914: 22,6 million indiv left Brit isles. Brit makes 36% of total European flow though is 10% pop
Irish emig patterns dfft: great famine pushed 2,1/2,6 million emig

C- State policies and the charities

- Push factors
Poverty and demographic booming
Transportation forced emig (way of getting rid of convicts and the poor)
- Migration policies
1824 emig of skilled workers forbidden
Malthusianism
1834 new Poor law (workhouses replace charity)
Private business: National colo scty created in 1830 by e g Wakefield
Guide emigration, with National Assoc promoting state direction
Charities and philanthropists: Salvation army; theories children of working class in danger, “agrarian
myth” (organization by Dr Barnardo on until 1967)

II- Destinations, passage and itinerant migration

A- Pull factors
Victorian gold rush
Therapeutic (for tuberculosis…)
Career migrants (planters, admin, managers, soldiers…) but mostly wanted farmers in colo

B- Destinations
Majority to US 57%; then 20% to Canada, 13% to Australia and NZ, 4% South Afr

C- Passports and passage

Free passage if pay; no passport until 1900

D- Temporary, itinerant and accidental migrations

III- Migration from Africa, Asia and South pacific
A- The Indian substitute to slavery
Need of local workforce: indentured labour = systematic supply until WW1; some freely
Gradually replaced slaves in sugar (1m; 5,1m)

B- Plantation economics

“AT HOME WITH THE EMPIRE”: IMPERIALISM IN BRITISH POLICIES, SOCTY AND CULTURE

I- The politics of imperialism

A- From little England to Greater Britain
Until 1870, Emp not central in politics: conquering judged useless and expensive
Nationalist arguments, Brit race
Great depression after 1873, eco declining: colo seen as solution

B- The Conservatives: party of Empire

Benjamin Disraeli prime minister in 1874; Crystal palace speech in 1872 accused Gladstone of
“dismantling the emp”: has other objectives: “maintain institutions of emp”, “elevation of condition of
people”, “uphold the emp of England”
Several organizations: “Primrose League” created in 1883, 1million members in 1890

C- The liberals and imperialism

Liberal illusionists; Chamberlain became colonial secretary 1895-1903
1900 “Khaki election”, jingoism
Charles Dilke, John Seeley, C Rhodes, Jo Chamberlain
“Scramble for Africa”
Home rule bill in 1886
Party less unanimous for sppt of emp

D- Winston Churchill: an imperial destiny

Went to various places; wrote a lot
“the Aryan stock is bound to triumph” 1900
“ I am strongly in favour of using poisoned gas against uncivilized tribes” Iraq 1920
“he ought to be lain bound hand and foot” abt Gandhi

II- The culture of Empire

A- From Seeley to Said and Mackenzie
From Seeley Expansion of England “fit of absence of mind”. Imperial history.
Said Orientalism
Mackenzie domination of colo emp, Manipulation of pbc opinion

B- Popular imperialism
Clement Attlee (1895) “we believe in our great imp mission”
Boys’ stories in magazines; Baden-Powell Scouting for boys (1899); Empire day; Missionary scties and
 churches; Music; Press (mass selling newspapers); Colo goods; Geog, zoolo, botanic; Exhibitions
(attracted millions); Advertising (Lipton teas)

C- B Porter’s revisionist theory

The absent minded imperialists in 2004

RELIGION AND KNOWLEDGE IN THE BRITISH EMPIRE

I- Religion, missionaries and the Emp

A- 19th Britain: a Christian country
Strong influence of churches
1828 Non conformists allowed to hold pbc offices ; 1829 Catholic emancipation; 1858 Jewish disabilities
repealed

B- The “evangelization of the world”

Missionaries scties: Anglican church miss scty (1799); London miss scty (1795) to convert
Belief their faith is above culture of others; conflicts with natives
Commerce – Civilization – Christianity
In some areas successfully converted (today still Anglican communion makes 80m members) but mostly
hostitlity

II- Knowledge and colonialism

A- Scientific exploration and Empire
Charles Darwin, Beagle voyage, Origin of species (1859)
Foreign office demanded explorations with Royal Geog scty
David Livingstone (1813-73)
Explorers, permitted expansion; dvpped careers in admin

B- Geography
Royal Geog Scty; promoted scientific exploration overseas; teaching geog

C- Botany
“imp science”
Kew royal botanic gardens (30,000 plants)
Classification, reproduction, cultivation, dvppt eco, distribution
Tropical medicine

FROM BRITISH DECOLONISATION TO THE MODERN COMMONWEALTH (1930-1970)

I- The inter-war Empire: growing doubts and looming crisis

Ireland war of indpdce 1919-21
Balfour declaration; Westminster statute
 Politicians mostly willing to maintain Brit authority: Gov of India act (1935); West indies wave of labour
protests; concessions in Iraq
Among elite: rise of anti-protest

II- The second world war

A- Colonies and war
Dominions contributed until 1940. Forced labour.

B- Propaganda wars
Psted as war for freedom and democracy vs totalitarianism; emphasis on “partnership”
Worst defeats in South est asia; fear losing India… Authority of settlers diminished.

C- Impact of WW2 on Emp?

“Quit India” mvmt 1942, crushed (90,000 jailed); partition in India; self-gov promised but postponed

III- From decolonization to modern Commonwealth

A- The dissolution of Emp
Speed (1945: 700m -> 1970: 5m)
Bcse colo people wanted to; Brit no longer pay taxes; ONU, US and USSR sppted decolo
Fast in India: indpdt in august 1947, and partitioned Pakistan (west-east)
Palestine 1948
Ceylon and Burma 1948
Suez canal pb 1956
Gold coast, Nigeria, Cyprus 1960
Sierra Leone 1962
Kenya 1963

B- The modern Commonwealth

Brit kept terr overseas (Falklands, Gibraltar, Hong kong until 1997)
54 member states. 1,7 billion people.
“Commonwealth realms” 16 states recognizing queen.
Propaganda?

NO: J.R. Seeley Expansion of England (1884) “in a fit of absence of mind” indffce of people in England
Bernard Porter Absent-minded imperialists (2004) unknown empire at home

YES: John Mackenzie Propaganda and Empire (1984) =empire pst everywhere at home (newspapers, radio, cine,
stories, school, adverts as Lipton, exhibits…)
Imperialism and juvenile literature J Richards
Boys stories
Writers W.H.G. Kingston and R.M. Ballantyne
Magazine Boy’s own paper created in 1879
Second wave end century: R. Kipling and G.A. Henty (With Clive in India 1884, With Wolfe In Canada 1887, With
Kitchena in the Sudan 1903)

J.A. Hobson Imperialism: a study (1902) =criticism of “new imperialism” made for capitalistic purposes
Dffce between “colonialism” settler dominions, and “imperialism” conquer bcse competition
Emp benefitting financial classes, officials, merchants, church, army navy and politicians + Pbc opinion manipulated
“panem et circenses” (propaganda, empire as diversion for masses)

“To think imperially” Chamberlain in 1904

1899 “constructive imperialism” increasing

Scientific and social studies

Malthus Principle of population (1798)

Darwin Origin of species (1859)
Rob Knox The races of man (1850)

Charles Dilke “Greater Britain” ever growing expansion, pride of pax Britannica and western values, Anglo-saxon race
with characteristics; social darwinism

D. Camadine Ornamentalism

John Gallagher and Ronald Robinson The imperialism of free trade= also informal empire, far greater, and preferable

John Stuart Mill Consideration Brit gov starting intervention

+ utilitariasm: “greatest happiness for greatest number” (Jeremy Bentham) = colo good for economy, profit, and
emigration + benefits for everyone, dvppmt of colo (Brit, and colo civilized… private interests but also “welfare”)

T. Carlyle Past and present (1843)

E. Said Orientalism (1978) =discourse of western writers and their repstation of oriental people; post-colo theories

Disraeli Crystal place speech (1872)

Kipling’s poem “white man’s burden” =bring light of civilization and religion, peace, progress + search for manhood,
glory BUT burden =tax, useless, critique?

Bernard Porter The lion’s share (1850-2004) =imperialism as symptom and effect of decline of Brit; empire
controlling Brit more than inverse; empire moulded by events

Edward Gibbon Decline and fall of Roman Empire -> Brit decline?

“A large shining map marked with all the colours of a rainbow. There was a vast amount of red, good to see at any
time, because one knows that some real work is done there” (Conrad)