Developing the Empire Commerce and Imperial Expansion

What were the gains of the Congress of Vienna? West Indies: Britain made permanent territorial gains in Trinidad (from Spain) and on the South American mainland, in Demerara, Berbice and Essequibo (from the Dutch). South-East Asia: Ceylon and Mauritius. West Africa:Sierra Leone (a humanitarian venture begun in 1787, which was designed to serve the interests both of Africans from Britain and North America as well as freed slaves), and trading posts on the Gambia.

The significance of those gains What is the strategic significance of Malta and the Cape etc? –Control through naval bases –Trade taking on world-wide dimensions –Moral implications of global policeman

The significance for Trade Markets for British manufacturers, such as cottons to the Indian sub-continent The crucial role of the Empire as suppliers of raw materials and food, such as sugar from the West Indies. The prime importance of areas outside formal political control, such as the southern states of the USA, as suppliers of raw cotton for the developing industry in Lancashire.

The dynamics of economic change The dynamics of economic change involves both growth and decline Consider the rapid growth of British manufacturing predominance and the decline of manufacturing in India.

Empire-building: Strategy or Opportunism? The growth of Britain's empire in Africa, India and elsewhere in the eastern hemisphere by 1815 is sometimes seen as the systematic search for a new empire to replace the wealth of the lost American colonies. Not only is there little evidence of such conscious planning and implementation, but the value of the western empire to Britain remained enormous, completely overshadowing her Asian trade until the 1840s.

So: Empire in “A fit of absent-mindedness”? Seeley’s famous quotation from 1870 is actually a frivolous remark which does capture some truth The reality was more subtle, shaped by the vagaries of global warfare and the unpredictable encounters of the British with widely different local societies and their rulers… Africa is another story….

The role of the Navy The massive size of the Royal Navy by 1815 which, together with control of a network of bases, gave Britain command of the world’s oceans. Consider the relative power of ships of war by comparison with land forces: discuss the advantage in the projection of force worldwide this gave Britain.

What did the Navy do from ? Investigate the role of the navy –in the suppression of piracy –in the First and Second Opium Wars –in the policing of anti-slavery legislation –in the development of world trade –as the arm of British foreign policy

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