Rebellions against Imperialism

Raj and Rebellion, 1818–1857 1. The British raj (reign) over India aimed both to introduce administrative and social reform and to hold the support of Indian allies by respecting Indian social and religious customs. 2. Before 1850 the British created a government that relied on sepoy military power, disarmed the warriors of the Indian states, gave free reign to Christian missionaries, and established a private land ownership system in order to ease tax collection. 3. British political and economic influence benefited Indian elites and created jobs in some sectors while bringing new oppression to the poor and causing the collapse of the traditional textile industry. 4. Discontent among the needy and particularly among the Indian soldiers led to the Sepoy Rebellion of 1857.

England & India British East Indian Trading Company had initial control in India They also intro’d policies that led to later nat’list mvmts. Some of these challenged local traditions Militarily, the Br. forced sepoys to accept overseas service, which also violated caste The Br. also ran into trouble w/ the Lee-Enfield rifle : soldiers had to bite the tip off the cartridge, which were supposedly dipped in animal fat (another violation of caste)

Areas of the Sepoy Mutiny, 1857

Sepoy Mutiny, 1857- 58 soldiers who wouldn’t load their rifles were imprisoned…once freed, they killed Br. officers and marched on Delhi, restoring a Moghul emperor to the throne GB took control over the next year, taking control from the E. India Co. thru the Gov’t of India Act (Victoria as “empress”) British reforms in India continued: modern system of education (to train Indian civil servants), economic reforms (post/telegraphs, irrigation, railroads, tea plantations), creation of unified state.

https://youtu.be/2yXKbd5IDzU

Execution of Sepoys: “The Devil’s Wind”

The Rise of Japanese Imperialism: Russo-Japanese War When Russia refused to withdraw its troops from Manchuria after the Boxer Rebellion, Japan attacked and defeated the Russian Far Eastern Fleet anchored at Port Arthur It was the first time in modern history an Asian military force had soundly whipped the army and navy of a major non-Asian imperial power With the victory, Japan gained recognition as a major imperial power President Theodore Roosevelt meets with Japanese and Russian envoys to discuss peace at the end of the Russo-Japanese War.

I. Changes and Exchanges in Africa A. New Africa States 1. Serious drought hit the coastlands of southeastern Africa in the early nineteenth century and led to conflicts over grazing and farming lands. During these conflicts Shaka used strict military drill and close-combat warfare in order to build the Zulu kingdom. 2. Shaka ruled the Zulu kingdom for little more than a decade, but he succeeded in creating a new national identity as well as a new kingdom. 3. In West Africa movements to purify Islam led to the construction of new states through the classic Muslim pattern of jihad. The largest of these reform movements occurred in the Hausa states and led to the establishment of the Sokoto Caliphate (1809–1906). 4. The new Muslim states became centers of Islamic learning and reform. Sokoto and other Muslim states both sold slaves and used slaves in order to raise food.

Imperialism in Africa: Sudan Muhammad Ahmad Abdullah declared himself the Mahdi (rightly guided one) and unified Sudanese tribes under the banner of Islam to attack Ottoman, Egyptian, and British invaders Abdullah was both a religious and a Sudanese nationalist leader

Imperialism in Africa: Sudan After a protracted siege, Abdullah took the Sudanese capital of Khartoum and beheaded the British General George Gordon Gordon became a martyr for the British imperial cause and the British government vowed to avenge his death In 1898 The British invaded the Sudan and eradicated the Mahdist movement The vast Sudanese territories were incorporated into the British Empire Painting of Gordon facing his death

Imperialism in Africa: Zulus In South Africa, the Zulu King Shaka subdued other tribes in the early 19th Century and built a kingdom as large as all of western Europe Shaka had the military power to deal with Western envoys as equals and was interested in establishing mutually beneficial ties with the West

Imperialism in Africa: Zulus However, Shaka was not a benevolent ruler and his reign was called Mfecane or “the time of troubles” When he was assassinated by rivals there was no peaceable system of succession The Zulu kingdom was torn apart by internal disputes which weakened its ability to resist Dutch and British expansion into South Africa British soldiers show a Maxim gun to an elderly Zulu chief in 1901

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmoZBQN2vvY

Imperialism in Africa: South Africa The Dutch East India Company had established a supply station at Cape Town in 1652 and settlers began expanding outward to take up ranching and farming These settlers were called “Boers” (the Dutch word for farmer) or “Afrikaners” (the Dutch word for African) During the Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815), the British took over the Cape and established British rule in 1806

Imperialism in Africa: South Africa British rule disrupted Boer society because it brought in English law and language When Britain abolished slavery in 1833, Boer financial viability and lifestyles were further threatened Chafing under British rules the Boer began migrating eastward where they established several independent colonies such as the Orange Free State (1854) and the South African Republic or Transvaal territories (1860)

Imperialism in Africa: South Africa The lenient British attitude toward this changed when diamonds were discovered on Boer-populated territories in 1867 and gold in 1886 Two “Boer Wars” were fought from 1880-1881 and 1899-1902 with the British winning and putting an end to the Boer independent republics By 1910, Britain had consolidated the provinces into the Union of South Africa Boer guerrillas during the Second Boer War

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACTF7DzDiQE

Imperialism in Africa: Berlin Conference Tensions among the European powers seeking African colonies led to the Berlin West Africa Conference (1884-1885), during which delegates from 14 European states and the US (no Africans were present) devised the rules for the colonization of Africa The conference produced an agreement that any European state could establish African colonies after notifying the others of its intentions and occupying previously unclaimed territory