The Age of Imperialism was a significant part of the 19 th Century. “Imperialism is, by definition, empire building. It is when one country or one continent is much more powerful than other countries / continents , and conquers them” (What Is).
The superior nation prospered while the inferior nation was taken advantage of as a result of the superior nation’s colonization of the inferior nation (What Is).
Although its impact was felt worldwide, no continent felt the impact of European Imperialism more powerfully than Africa. Many things in history led up to and resulted from the Age of Imperialism.
What were the causes of Imperialism in Africa, the effects of Imperialism in Africa, and the effects of Imperialism on the world? No one thing was solely responsible Imperialism in Africa, but rather a collection of many things. One major cause was the Industrial Revolution, which provided Europe with new technology and more money and power. These advantages allowed Europe to colonize in Africa. The nationalism that followed Napoleon’s rule also contributed to Imperialism in Africa by feeding Europe’s desire to conquer and gain new territories (What Were).
Also adding to their desire to conquer and control new territories was the “racist belief in European superiority” (Schmiechen).
This is not all. The availability of Africa’s raw materials and its potential as a new market drew Europe’s imperialistic interest to Africa. Europe saw Africa as a territory where a great amount of money could be made to benefit Europe. At the time, Europe had made many technological advances, especially in weaponry. These advancements allowed their military to overpower the powerless African continent (What Were).
The Essay on Imperialism European World Nations
... introduced a new form of imperialism, as industrial nations scrambled both for markets ... centuries, European greed enriched one small continent at the expense of the rest ... as they grabbed huge amounts of territory for European settlement. A string ... of human beings from across Africa helped pay for the gigantic ... of capitalist civilization have been immense. Europe found itself immensely enriched but ...
It is evident that many things contributed to Imperialism in Africa.
Many things, positive and negative, resulted in Africa due to Imperialism. “For example, the native people of the colonized territory received none of the profits from their hard work, only the mother-country received the profits” (What Were).
Also, the natives’ economy fell and they were not treated fairly at all. Another result of Imperialism in Africa was that when the Europeans came, they brought their religion, Christianity, and forced it upon the natives, whom they believed to be inferior (What Were).
The Europeans put the natives to work or sold them as slaves. During the four centuries of the slave trade, millions of Africans fell victim to this traffic in human lives.
European Imperialism greatly impacted the entire world. Even though “trade between nations grew greatly and a world economy developed” (Schmiechen), it “created bitter rivalries among the imperial powers and hatred among the colonized people” (World).
World War I was one major effect of the “Europe-wide scramble for territories and money” (What Were).
The Europeans’ belief that they were superior to other races, especially those in Africa, was never quenched and racism has continued to be found on every continent. Another lasting effect was the spread of Christianity as “religious denominations sent out missionaries, who investigated the land at the same time they preached Christianity” (Linder).
Although there have been many viewpoints on Imperialism, most people believed that Imperialism “changed the modern world plenty and pretty much made it a harder world to live in at that time” (Effects).
The Essay on Imperialism 2 Negative Effect
... Africa to be ruled all over its continent by different European powers, due to the effect of nationalism which helped the idea of imperialism ... Revolution and nationalism. It has existed in every age of history from ancient times like the Zhou (Chou) and Qin (Ch ... it also had many positive and negative effects on the world. The positive effects were long-term effects that helped the different areas of ...
Imperialism has played a key role in the formation of the modern world. It “has proven both destructive and creative” and “has destroyed traditional institutions and ways of thinking and has replaced them with the habits and mentality of the Western world” (Imperialism).
Though there were many negative aspects of Imperialism, there were also a large number of positive aspects. Without Imperialism, the slave trade might not have taken place. Without the slave trade, though horrible for what it was, Africans and their culture might have never come to what is now America. Without Africans, America would not be the melting pot that it has come to be.
Africa would not be how it is today, nor would the world, if it had not been for Imperialism. The Age of Imperialism was an unforgettable period of time in the history of the world. “Effects of Imperialism.” 2 November 2003. Linder, Bertram L. A World History. New York: Science Research Associates, Inc.
, 1979. Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia ’99. “Imperialism.” Washington: Microsoft Corporation, 1998. Schmiechen, James.
A History of Western Society: 6 th Ed. Study Guide Vol. II. Boston: Houghton, 1999. web > “What is Imperialism?” New European Imperialism in the 19 th Century: The Building of an Empire.
4 May 2001. 2 November 2003. “What were the Short Term and Long Term Causes and Effects of the New European Imperialism?” New European Imperialism in the 19 th Century: The Building of an Empire. 4 May 2001.
2 November 2003. World History: People and Nations. Austin: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 2000.
