Common questions about Imperialism

Short answers, pulled from the story.

When was the word imperialism coined and by whom?

The word imperialism was coined in the late 1870s by opponents of British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli to describe his allegedly aggressive and ostentatious policies. Joseph Chamberlain later appropriated the term to designate a policy of idealism and philanthropy. The term evolved from a specific critique of Napoleon III's attempts to gain political support by invasion into a global descriptor for the behavior of empires at all times and places.

What was the Cape to Cairo Railway and when did it operate?

The Cape to Cairo Railway was a project that became a potent symbol of British imperialism during the late 19th century. The British Empire sought to establish a practically continuous line of controlled territories from Egypt to Burma and another from Cairo to Cape Town. This ambition was part of the Scramble for Africa where European nations intensified the process of colonizing, influencing, and annexing other parts of the globe.

How did technological advancements enable European military dominance in the 19th century?

Technological advancements such as railroads, telegraphs, steam-driven ocean shipping, and machine guns gave industrialized nations a decisive military advantage over their opponents. European chemists created new explosives that made artillery much more deadly, and by the 1880s, the machine gun had become a reliable battlefield weapon. This disparity in firepower enabled European armies to dominate opponents who were still fighting with arrows, swords, and leather shields, such as the Zulus in Southern Africa during the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879.

What economic theories justified European imperialism in the 19th century?

European powers developed ideological justifications ranging from pseudo-scientific theories of race to religious supremacism. Social Darwinism and a theory of races formed a supposedly rational justification for imperialism, leading French politician Jules Ferry to declare in 1883 that superior races had a duty to civilize the inferior. Environmental determinism further validated this view, holding that the environment in which certain people lived determined their behaviors.

When did the Soviet Union exhibit imperialist behavior according to critics?

Critics argue that the Soviet Union exhibited traits common to historic empires, citing the crushing of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 and the Soviet-Afghan War as examples of its imperialist behavior. Mao Zedong once argued that the Soviet Union had itself become an imperialist power while maintaining a socialist façade. Josip Broz Tito and Milovan Djilas referred to the Stalinist USSR's foreign policies as Soviet imperialism, highlighting the occupation and economic exploitation of Eastern Europe.

When did the British Empire grant independence to India and when did the Italian Empire end?

World War II decisively weakened Britain's position in the world, leading to Indian independence and partition in 1947. The Italian Empire, which had expanded under Benito Mussolini to include Ethiopia and Albania, was forced to relinquish sovereignty over all its colonies in the peace treaty of 1947. Somalia became independent in 1960, ending the Italian Empire's eight-decade experiment with colonialism.

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