Imperialism is the domination of a weaker country by a stronger country. For instance Britain dominated India and China in the mid 1880s to the beginning of the 20th century. Imperialism has had both a positive and negative effects on the countries involved. Britain was imperialistic for many reasons, it could dominate because it had the technology and power to do so. They also needed land to acquire raw materials for growing markets.
One country that had imperialism was India. By the mid-1880s, the British East India Company controlled three fifths of India. The cause of British domination was that the land was very diverse and the people could not unite and that the British either paid local princes or used weapons to get control. Positive effects of imperialistic rule in India were that the British set up a stronger economy and more powerful industries. They built roads and railroads.
British rule brought peace and order to the countryside. They revised the legal system to promote justice for the Indians regardless of class. Indian landowners and princes, who still owned territory grew rich from exporting cash crops such as cotton and jute. The British introduced the telegraph and the postal system as a means of communication. These improvements and benefits from British rule eventually lead to Indian nationalism. The exposure to European ideas caused an Indian nationalist movement, the people dreamed of ending Imperial rule. The Indians wanted to have more power to themselves. They looked forward to self rule and therefore united. In 1885, nationalist leaders organized the Indian National Congress who called for greater democracy which they felt would bring more power to themselves. Other Indian nationalists, took a more radical, anti-British stand. I believe this is positive because I feel that the first instance of British resistance was the first step towards independence. Negative effects of the imperialistic rule in India were that there was a rapid population growth , hence, there was a strain on the food supply, especially since farmland was turned into cash crops instead of food. They cleared new farmlands which led to massive deforestation and other environmental destruction. Also, in the late 1800s terrible famines swept India. The railroads could not carry food to the suffering areas, but overall, millions of Indian peasants sank deeply into poverty.
Another country that had imperialistic rule was China. The British forced the Chinese to trade with them. As the result of the Opium War, which China lost, they had to accept extraterritoriality. In 1894, Japanese pressure on China led to war. Japan crushed China and western powers moved quickly to carve out spheres of influences on the Chinese coast. Imperial powers accepted the idea of an Open Door Policy, where trade was open to everyone. Negative effects China had were that there land was carved up, they most many rights and people due to wars. Poverty and misery increased, while no nationalism occurred. Chinese leaders did not want to have anything to do with western ideas because they saw it as dangerous because it threatened Confucian ways. A ant foreign group called the Boxers attacked foreign communities across China. The Boxers were quickly defeated. This was a turning point in Chinese history because the defeat forced Chinese conservatives to support westernization. China expanded economically, mining, shipping, banking, and exports of silk, tobacco and other commodities grew. A small-scale Chinese industry developed along with a small business class that emerged and a new urban working class began to press for rights. Chinese nationalism spread and a republic developed. It soon ended when Ci Xi died and a two-year old boy inherited the throne. But for a while from the early 1900 to 1908 China has some positive effects from imperialistic rule by the dominant countries.
Imperialism is when one country takes over another country or colony. For instance Britain dominated India and China in the mid 1880s to the beginning of the 20th century. Imperialism has had both a positive and negative effects on the countries involved. Britain and other European powers were imperialistic for many reasons, they could dominate because they had the technology and power to do so. They also needed land to acquire raw materials for growing markets. India and China were able to achieve some things for a short amount of time but for the majority of the time these countries struggled and were in constant war.