The German Creation of Colonies in Africa - Term Paper Example

?The German Creation of Colonies in Africa and the British Expansion of Its Colonial Empire in India and South Asia The following paper will describethe colonial politics of Germany at the end of the 19th century and the formation of the British Empire. The comparisons between the two countries will be made, underscoring the differences or the similarities. Colonial Politics of Germany in 1870-1900 Germany owned four colonies in Africa: German East Africa (Tanzania), Togoland (Togo), Kameruun (Cameroon) and German Southwest Africa (Namibia)1. Germany has never had as many colonies as Britain, it got itself into the race for colonies quite late comparing to Britain or France, and it has never been a great colonial empire. Nevertheless, it was involved in hard campaigns against the countries it was trying to possess. The Chancellor of Germany of that period Otto von Bismarck was not interested in the colonial expansion, but under the influence of German society and leadership that claimed that Germany needed colonies to maintain its economic domination in Europe, he agreed to take this step. After the unification of Germany in 1871 it was obvious that this action should happen because the pressure was too great. The main groups that were lobbying for the colonial expansion were the West German Society for Colonization and Export (1881) and the Central Association for Commercial Geography and the Promotion of German Interests Abroad (1878). Bismarck thought that the future German colonies would be stabilizing power that will influence domestic politics of the country. The colonies were to emphasize nationalism and to raise the prestige and greatness of Germany on the international level. In 1884-1885 Germany was the host of the international Berlin Conference, where European claims in Africa were sanctioned. The requirement was that the claims of possession in Africa must be manifested by the physical occupation of the territories. In 1873 African Society in Germany (Afrikanische Gesellschaft in Deutschland) was organized. The goal of the society was geographical exploration of Africa. In 1882 German Colonial Society (Deutscher Kolonialverein) appeared. More than 15000 supporters of the colonial politics united in this society. In 1887 it joined the Society for German Colonization (Gesellschaft fur Deutsche Kolonisation), which goal was the practical realization of the colonial plans.2 Desiring to strengthen his political position, and counting upon the support of the National Liberal Party at the elections to Reichstag in 1884, Bismarck announced that the German government will take under its guardianship all the international possessions of the German businessmen. Besides that, he thought that this action will weaken the flow of German emigrants to America and will direct this flow to the German colonies. During that period of time the following territories were moved under the protection of the German government: The land purchased by the Bremen businessman Adolf Luderitz at the territory of the modern Namibia. In April 1884 German Southwest Africa was formed here. The lands of Adolph Woermann – German Cameroon in July of 1884. German Togo in July of 1884 German East Africa (Tanzania) that previously belonged to Carl Peters and The Society for German Colonization, in February of 1885. Protectorate of Witu (modern Kenia) that belonged to brothers Denhardt. German New Guinea and Bismarck Archipelago In 1885 Bismarck abandoned the idea of the consistent colonial politics, and concentrated his efforts on the relationship with England and France. Colonies were used only as a bargaining chip in negotiations. At the Berlin Conference of 1884-1885 years, Africa was divided among the European powers, and according to Helgoland-Zanzibar agreement of 1890 African protectorate Witu was traded for the strategically important for Germany island of Helgoland in the North Sea. Under Wilhelm II Germany tried to enlarge the sphere of its colonial influence by increasing the number of commercial representatives. Nevertheless, Germany did not manage to grow its expansion a lot at this period of time. It got a few territories in the Pacific Ocean in 1888; Chinese military base Kiautschou in 1898; few islands in Micronesia in 1899; in 1900 – western part of Samoa – German Samoa; part of the territory of the French Congo. African Colonies of Germany German East Africa German East Africa was the biggest German colony with the largest population. Local people were quite loyal to the Germans, and the territory itself had a well-developed infrastructure. There were three war campaigns fought by the Germans at this territory. They are Abushiri Rebellion in 1888-1890, HeHe War in 1891-1898, and the Maji-Maji Revolt in 1905-1907.3 The Abushiri Rebellion began in 1888. Arabic traders initiated it against the German East Africa trading company, which managed to gain control over some trading routes that belonged to the Arabic traders before. A few of the coastal tribes were not happy about this too since the German’s influence over their territory was growing. The instigator of the rebellion was Abushiri ibn Salim al-Harthi. Under his command local tribes and Arab merchants united in an effort to remove Germans from the territories. The German trading company appealed to the German government for help. Hermann von Wissmann was sent to the colony as the first commissioner. He had with him the troops that were called “Shultztruppe” that were able to put an end to the uprising by December 1889. Wissmann was moving deeper into the territory with his troops, thus enlarging the territory of the colony. The Shultztruppe were enlarged because the local natives joined it too. Nevertheless, Germans met some resistance from the local population, for example, HeHe, who announced his independence from Germans in 1891. The German government appointed another commissioner Emil von Zelewski to take care of the situation. In one of the fights Zelewski was killed and Germans were defeated. This conflict was going on for a few years and ended only in 1898. Kameruun (Cameroon) Germany got involved with Kameruun in 1894, when there were trade treaties signed with Dovala chiefs, though no major conflicts happened there, but still there was a series of small wars against local tribes. Togoland Here in Togoland the Germans did not have s Shultztruppe, but they had para-military police force, though this police force acted like Shultztruppe and even looked similar to them. In Togoland there were not major fights as well, but smaller ones against rebellious local tribes. One of such rebellions happened in 1877. The German lieutenant Valentine von Massow and his forces attacked Dagombe and Konkomba warriors, after that they took the Dagombe city Yenbi and thus ended the rebellion. German South-West Africa This territory became a field of the most extensive fights of the German Schultztuppe, because of its good lands that the Germans viewed as their future settlements. What happened is that Germans organized conflicts between the tribes, which weakened them and thus they were unable to resist German troops after all. The German control over the territories was gradually expanding. The first opposition came from Hendrik Witbooi, who refused to sign treaty with Germans. The Witboois war turned out to be very exhausting for the Germans, it lasted for two years – 1893-1894, though in the end they did gain control of this territory and people. The British Expansion of its Colonial Empire in India and South Asia The First British Empire (1583-1783) In contrast to Germany, British colonial empire was the greatest one, and it originated as early as the end 16th- the beginning of 17th century, while the German colonies have only been established at the end of the 19th century. The British Empire was growing steadily during two hundred years. British Empire facilitated the spread of technology, trade, English language and its form of government around the world. The English language was brought to the colonies, and administrative and legal framework were created in the colonies in the image of the United Kingdom. If in Germany the establishment of colonies was more a matter of politics and raising the prestige of the country on the international level, for Britain the colonies were mainly of the economic interest. Many colonies were only considered to be the places that supplied resources and raw material, and they received minimal infrastructure. British West India initially represented the most important and profitable English colonies, but before this happened a few attempts of colonization have failed. In the beginning of the 17th century Britain established the first settlement on the American continent – in Jamestown in 1607. Here the colony of Virginia was established. In comparison with the West India, the colonies on the continent were less successful financially, but the large areas of good agricultural land attracted greater number of English emigrants who preferred its temperate climate. Southern colonies economically focused on large-scale farming with the widespread use of slave labor. The north was dominated by small-scale farmers, as well as woodworking and shipbuilding. In 1672 the Royal African Company was launched, which received a monopoly on the slave trade in the British colonies of America. Slavery was the foundation of the economy of the First Empire. At the end of the 16th century England and the Netherlands challenged the Portuguese monopoly of trade with Asia, forming private joint-stock companies to finance traveling – English (later British) East India Company, and the Dutch East India Company, founded in 1600 and 1602, respectively. Their main purpose was to seize the lucrative spice trade, and they have focused on the source of the trade – Indonesian archipelago, and the most important site of all trading network - India. Close contacts between London and Amsterdam across the North Sea and the intense competition between them led to a conflict between the two companies. As a result, the Netherlands got the domination in the Moluccas (a former stronghold of Portugal) after the departure of the British in 1622, and England got settled in India, Surat, after founding the factory in 1613. The feud between England and Holland ceased after the Glorious Revolution of 1688, when the Dutch Stadtholder William of Orange ascended the English throne, bringing peace to both countries. The deal between the two nations left the spice trade with the Indonesian archipelago for the Netherlands, and the textile industry in India - for Britain. In India, the British East India Company shifted its focus from Surat, the center of the spice trade, to Fort St. George (later Madras), Bombay, and to the village Sutanuti (Sutanuti ), which later merged with two other villages and formed the city of Calcutta.4 In the 18th century England (and later Great Britain) became the world’s leading colonial state, while France was its main rival on the way to the imperial domination. The Seven Years War, which began in 1756, was the first war led on the global scale – the battles were going on in Europe, India, North America, West Indies, the Philippines, and on the shores of Africa. The signing of the Treaty of Paris had important consequences for the future of the British Empire. In North America, the French colonies were virtually eliminated. France recognized British claims to Rupert's Land, gave New France to the United Kingdom, leaving a significant part of French-speaking population under British control, and ceded Louisiana to Spain in compensation for the loss of Florida that was also taken over by Britain. In India, under the French control its enclaves remained, but the number of military garrisons was limited and France was obliged to supply the British satellite, putting the French colonies in India in a subordinate position in relation to the British. Thus, the British victory over France in the Seven Years War made ??it the world's dominant colonial power. Second British Empire (1783—1815) In 1775 the war for independence has started at the American continent. The independence was proclaimed next year. In 1883 the war was won with the help of France, Spain and Netherlands and Britain had to acknowledge the USA as the independent state. The loss of the strategically important territories in British America is seen by as the margin between the "first" and "second" British Empire. The British East India Company was the force that played the major role in the colonization of India. At the beginning of its activities, the East India Company mainly concentrated on the trade operations in India. But in the battle of Plassey in 1757, the British, led by Robert Clive, defeated the French and their Indian allies. The British gained control of Bengal, and became the leading military and political force in India. In the second half of the 18th century, the company expanded its possession, ruling the Indian territories either directly or via local puppet rulers. The main method of colonial occupation of India was signing of "subsidiarity contracts", a system which was first invented by the French colonialists, however, used by the British in a big way. Under this system, the company has consistently forced Indian states one after the other to sign a contract to pay "subsidies” to keep its mercenary army, as well as to lead their international business only through the British Resident. The collapse of the centralized state of Mughal led to the breakup of India into several hundreds of independent principalities, which greatly facilitated the expansion of the British Empire. In 1857 the whole territory of India was under the rule of the East-India Company. The same year the Sepoy Munity happened that put an end to the rule of the Company in India. Instead of it the direct government of the British Crown (“British Raj”) at this territory began. Colonial authorities led by the Governor-General were incorporated into the traditional feudal hierarchy. Queen Victoria was crowned the Empress of India. East India Company was eliminated in 1858. The difficulty of creating a state under the British rule was in the fact that the British Empire did not overtake the centralized state, but there were a number of different regional entities, which Britain was trying to unite under one rule and proclaim one state. But even within the areas under their control, the British were not as successful as they would have liked, in transforming zamindars of the north, merchants of the west, plantation workers of the east, or priests of the south into homogenised Indian subjects of the empire.5 Nevertheless, the British tried to create a centralized empire in India providing common currency, establishing common laws, and building lines of communication across the whole continent. Britain established British-style parliamentary system and proclaimed a unitary state. The new rulers also protected princes, thus hoping that this will help them to prevent future unrests in the region. It would not be an understatement to claim that India was central and the most important factor in the establishment of the British colonial empire. Not only it guaranteed the economical prosperity of the British Empire, but also was a decisive factor in declaring British nationalism and the feeling of self-worth. In order to preserve its imperial interests, Britain tried to extend its domination to the other regions of the South Asia, which included Sri Lanka, some territories of the modern Nepal, and for some time Burma was also incorporated into the British India. At the end of the 19th – beginning of the 20th century British India was comprised of the eight provinces. They were under the rule of either a Governor or a Lieutenant Governor. The rule of Britain over India lasted until the 1947 when Indian British Empire got divided into two states – India and Pakistan. Conclusion Comparing the German acquiring of the colonies in Africa and the British expansion of its colonial empire, the motives for such expansion should be underscored. As it was mentioned in the paper, the main motives of the German government to acquire colonies were the political ones. Through expanding its territories thanks to colonies, the German government hoped to establish its dominant position at the international political arena, as well as empower nationalism within the country. As far as the motives of the British Empire, they were mainly economical. Through expanding its territory Britain sought to find new sources of raw materials and resources, and thus strengthen its economy. Of course, the time periods of the colonial expansion should be mentioned. Britain has started the colonization policy as early as the end of the 16th century, and has led it more often successfully than not during three centuries. As far as Germany is concerned, it only started to make moves in the direction of colonization in the 1870th, under the Chancellor Otto von Bismarck. The character of the colonization process was different in both countries. Taking a look at the British history of colonization, it is obvious that Britain fought many battles with the other states for the rule over the new territories. Those states were mainly Holland and France. The wars with the local population were not as furious as the fights of Germans. Germany got its colonies mainly from the German businessmen and merchants who had some territories under their rule, and being unable to keep those territories passed them under the rule of the German government. In contrast to Britain, Germany led quite bloody wars with the local rebels, which were quite exhausting. Bibliography Beck, Paul. The Colonial Wars of Imperial Germany. http://www.savageandsoldier.com/articles/africa/GermanWars.html Domestic Origins of Germany’s Colonial Expansion under Bismarck. Past and Present. 1969: 140-159 Piers, Brendon. The Decline and Fall of the British Empire, 1781-1997. Random House. 2007. Sanjay, Joshi. Colonial notion of South Asia. http://www.sas.upenn.edu/~dludden/Sjoshi04.htm Read More