Scramble For Africa (1/2)

Question 1

British expansion in Africa?

Answer 1

British interest in Africa can be dated from the loss of Britain’s American colonies at the end of the eighteenth century. The end of empire on the American continent sent the British on a ‘swing to the East’, looking for influence in Asia and Africa. Since Britain underwent a massive industrial revolution in the nineteenth century, steamships and weapons’ production made it possible to establish footholds in these continents.

Question 2

What was the ‘swing to the East’?

Answer 2

Vincent Harlow, a prominent British historian in the early twentieth century, introduced the concept of a ‘swing to the East’ to explain a shift in Britain’s imperial priorities by the turn of the nineteenth century. While historians now recognise a continued interest in British North America and Caribbean, Harlow emphasised in particular a change in British business and political interests away from the Western Hemisphere towards both Africa and Asia. This outlook also marked a desire control through trade and economic dominance, rather than through settler colonisation.

Question 3

Reasons for British expansion in Africa?

Answer 3

-Trade and economy
-Personal influence
-Strategic factors
-‘Moral factors’
-Exploration

Question 4

Why was trade and economy a reason for British expansion in Africa?

Answer 4

-Unsurprisingly, the key reason for British expansion in Africa during the second half of the nineteenth century was trade, or, more accurately, the prospect of further trade given the opening up of new routes inland and subsequent discovery of minerals and resources. Once materials, markets or routes had accessed, further considerations emerged such as investment opportunities and strategic interests, which were very important in late nineteenth-century imperialism.
-In the second half of nineteenth century, coal, iron and timber were sought in Africa in order to feed the demands of British industry. Conversely, as industrial productivity in Britain grew so did the need for sales markets. In this way the cycle of dependency developed whereby Britain exploited African resources in order to manufacture goods, such as textiles and weapons, to sell back to Africa.
-This was particularly the case during the economic slump of 1873 to 1896, when Europe experienced the Long depression (known as the ‘great depression’ until the onset of another recession in the 1930’s)

Question 5

Why was personal influence a reason for British expansion in Africa?

Answer 5

Increasing trade led to a growth in the personal influence of British merchants in Africa. Merchant-imperialists such as George Goldie and Cecil Rhodes recognised and capitalised on new commodities and in the process found fame and fortune. British public and political interest in Africa was also stimulated by the mid-century Victorian explorers who sought and traced the continents waterway’s, publishing their findings, producing maps and spreading tales of adventure. Despite their reliance on local geographical and environmental knowledge, there was a sense that much of Africa was still being ‘discovered’ for the first time.

Question 6

Why was strategic factors a reason for British expansion in Africa?

Answer 6

It is sometimes difficult to disentangle the commercial and strategic factors that led to colonisation. Britain’s coastal interests in West Africa, for example, demanded protection, and a string of forts was built along the Gold Coast, as were coastal defences in Sierra Leone and Gambia. However, sometimes strategic interests predominated as, for example, in the establishment of a colony at the most southerly tip of Africa-the Cape. The temperate climate and deep water port of the Cape held advantages over other harbours and, in 1806, during the Napoleonic wars, Cape colony had been seized by Britain from the Dutch allies of the French. Cape colony protected the sea route to the Middle East, china, Australia and, not least, India, thus giving Britain considerable power over the sea routes to the East.

Question 7

Why were moral factors a reason for expansion in Africa?

Answer 7

-Many British people living in Victorian era had to be what they considered ‘strong moral principles’.
-Increasingly from the 1860’s, Christian missionaries, reflecting this wider mindset, saw it as their ‘moral’ duty to spread their faith among non-christian- or, to their way of thinking, ‘heathen’ peoples.
-Their view was that the Empire was a force for ‘civilisation’.
-The most famous example of a missionary explorer is David Livingstone, who went to Africa in 1858 ‘to try and make an open path for commerce and Christianity’

Question 8

Why was exploration a reason for expansion in Africa?

Answer 8

-While exploration does not have to intrinsically result in colonisation, Victorian exploration often did.
-By 1857, most of Africa had been added to European maps, although the course of the Congo river was not charted by European until 1867.
-Explorers located vast reserves, already known to local inhabitants, of raw materials such as gold, palm oil and diamonds, which European merchants then sought to exploit and trade.

Question 9

What does protectorate mean?

Answer 9

An area with it’s own ruler, but placed under the protection of the British Crown, which controlled it militarily and usually influenced domestic policies through advisors

Question 10

What does settlement mean?

Answer 10

A loose term to denote an area containing British settlers with various levels of government control

Question 11

What does occupied mean?

Answer 11

An area containing British settlers/ military forces but not under British control

Question 12

What is a client state?

Answer 12

An area with it’s own ruler but with strong British influence which restricted that ruler’s independence politically, militarily and economically

Question 13

What does ‘chartered company rule’ mean?

Answer 13

An area run by a trading company (through local rulers from indigenous population) with a special licence by the British government which gave it political as well as economic rights

Question 14

What was Britain’s attitude to Egypt in 1857?

Answer 14

• In 1857, the idea that Egypt would fall under British control was laughable
• British traders had used Egypt as an important route between Europe and Asia
• Britain was largely hostile towards the Muslim rulers of Egypt

Question 15

Why did Britain’s interest in Egypt grow?

Answer 15

• During the American Civil War of 1861 to 1865 the British military became starved of cotton
• Egypt, with its good quality cotton, therefore attracted the attention of British companies who began investing heavily in the production of Egyptian cotton
• Isma’il Pasha, who came into power in Egypt in 1863, had the ambitious project of cutting the Suez Canal through Egypt to connect the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea. This canal meant the trading route to India was 55000 miles shorter than via the cape
• The Suez Canal Company, set up in 1858 by a Frenchman, began work in 1859 and it was completed 10 years later
• At first, Britain had little interest because they thought it wouldn’t be suitable for larger ships
• The canal had an immediate effect on world trade, so in 1875 when Isma’il Pasha sold his companies shares in the canal for £4 million, Benjamin Disraeli stepped forwards. This gave Britain more control over Egypt and subsequently encouraged further interest in the country. France still had a greater number of shares in the canal at this time

Question 16

How did Britain establish control in Egypt?

Answer 16

• Suez Canal Shares – Disraeli bought the shares in 1875 off the Khedive Isma’il Pasha who was selling them because Egypt had accumulated large debts. This gave Britain a large stake in the canal and a say in its running
• Dual Control – Due to mounting Egyptian debts the economy seemed on the verge of collapse. British and French ministers were brought in to run the Egyptian economy in 1878. Britain was placed in control of government revenue
• Deposition of Isma’il – Isma’il was deposed in 1879 by the Ottoman Sultan for economic mismanagement. His son Tewfiq became the new Khedive.
• British Influence – British money and support kept the Egyptian economy afloat. British Commissioner Lord Dufferin was therefore able to wield considerable influence on Tewfiq
• Unemployment – Dual control meant taxes were imposed on food and goods. Additionally, the Egyptian army was reduced to 2/3. This led to increased unemployment
• Arabi Pasha Revolt – Unrest increased and led to a nationalist rebellion led by Colonel Arabi Pasha. Tewfiq was forced to appoint Arabi’s allies to key government positions – these ministers were anti-European
• British concerns - Britain was concerned about what the Arabi Pasha revolt would do to British trade and investment. They feared for the safety of 100,000 Europeans in Egypt and the security of the Suez Canal, which had become a key route to India

Question 17

Who was general Gordon?

Answer 17

• Colonel Charles Gordon was sent from Britain to act as Governor-General of Egyptian-administrated Sudan, on behalf of their ‘puppet’ Khedive Isma’il between 1877 and 1880. He was a military leader
• He was against the slave trade and was appointed to try to root it out
• He was eventually considered to be ’quite mad’ and a ‘Christian lunatic’ by ministers and officials in London
• He had a ‘courageous and chivalric character’ ‘ a charismatic gaze’ and a ‘personality which seemed to glow with the beauty of holiness’

Question 18

Who was the Mahdi and what did his followers want?

Answer 18

• The Sudanese Islamic cleric Muhammad Ahmad opposed the British administrators. He self-proclaimed himself the Mahdi (saviour of mankind)
• Drawing on long-term hostility towards Egyptian rule, combined with recent resentment of British influence, Mahdi transformed an emerging political movement into a jihadist army
• They sought to liberate Sudan from outside rule and by 1882, they had taken control over the area surrounding Khartoum
• Both Gordon and Gladstone sympathised with the Mahdi, saying that they were ‘struggling rightly to be free’

Question 19

What did PM Gladstone order general Gordon to do after the death of General Hicks?

Answer 19

• In 1883, a joint British-Egyptian military expedition under the command of General Hicks launched a counter attack against the Mahdi in which Hicks was killed
• Gladstone ordered General Gordon to evacuate the Egyptian and British troops from Khartoum in 1884

Question 20

What happen to General Gordon and the Khartoum garrison?

Answer 20

• Gordon defied Gladstone’s orders and stayed at Khartoum. He was extremely popular and the British public were angry with Gladstone for not sending relief
• Eventually Gladstone sent the ‘Gordon relief Expedition’ of 15 000 troops led by Wolseley. However, there were several setbacks and they arrived 2 days after the death of Gordon
• In 1885, the British-Egyptian forces were overrun
• Virtually the entire garrison were killed and General Gordon was beheaded during the attacks
• Gladstone went from the Grand Old Man to the Murder of Gordon

Question 21

Why didn’t Gladstone retaliate?

Answer 21

• He was anxious to avoid further loss if life and money for no obvious gain
• No other campaigns took place until 1896

Question 22

What happened at the Brussels conference 1876?

Answer 22

• Hosted by King Leopold of Belgium, included explorers and leaders and was largely motivated by the desire to protect Belgian interests in the Congo. It drew attention to the land available in Africa and led to more competition
• It concluded that: Africans were incapable of developing the national resources, therefore European intervention was necessary; the route to Africa’s great lakes needed to be developed by building roads or railways and an international African Association should be established to coordinate the European’s efforts

Question 23

What were the results of the Brussels conference?

Answer 23

• The cooperation that the conference supposedly promoted actually heightened the competition as people were suspicious of Leopold’s intentions
• The IAA hired Henry Morton Stanley to advise in the Congo region but it soon became apparent that Leopold was intent on establishing his own Congo Empire
• The French hired an Italian-born explorer, Pierre de Brazza, to stake their own claims in the region
• The Germans hired the explorer Gustav Nachtigal to assert their influence
• France extended its control from Senegal into Western Sudan in 1879
• Portugal asserted its claims to control the mouth of the Congo river in 1884

Question 24

What was the Berlin conference 1884-85?

Answer 24

• By 1884, although 80% of Africa was under local control, the European powers largely restricted to the coastal areas, the need for regulation became apparent
• The German Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck hosted the conference which was attended by the foreign ministers of 14 European statues and the USA. France, Germany, Great Britain and Portugal were the major players because they controlled most of colonial Africa at the time. Bismarck saw Africa as an opportunity to sow tensions between Britain and France, in the subsequent decade the two powers clashed repeatedly over Egypt, Nigeria, Uganda and the Sudan
• Its initial task was to secure agreements that both the basins and mouths of the Congo and Nigeria river would remain neutral and open to trade
• Representative of major powers negotiated their respective claims to territory which were then formally mapped out

Question 25

What was the conclusion of the Berlin conference?

Answer 25

The conference concluded with saying the General Act: all nations should be permitted to trade in the base of the Congo and its outlets; there should be free trade in those regions; the powers with influence in the area should help protect indigenous people and suppress the slave trade; the powers should support and protect religious, scientific or charitable undertakings; if any power took possession of further land on the coast of Africa it should notify the signatories of the Act, in order to enable them to assert any claims of their own

Question 26

What were the results of the Berlin conference?

Answer 26

• Th principle established was known as ‘effective occupation’. A European power could assert there claim to land that is ‘effectively’ occupied and notify other powers. Only if another power could put in a rival claim was its right to colonise questioned
• The General Act triggered a further scramble for territory across Africa and, by 1900, 90% of the continent was in Europeans hands
• The conference was a success because it allowed European countries to expand their empires without the risk of conflict with one another
• Africa acted as a ‘safe arena’ for competing countries where, thanks to its size, there were unlikely to come into conflict
• The conference did little for indigenous populations. There was no African representation at the conference and European ministers mapped out spheres of influence with little concern for natural borders of ethnic, linguistic or religious division
• Despite the apparently good intentions, it the following years there was no concerted effort to combat the African or Arab slave trade, nor much attention was given to indigenous concerns. The well-being and religious customs of the locals were frequently overlooked

Question 27

What was the relationship with the Boers and Bantu like in Southern Africa 1867-80?

Answer 27

• The discovery of diamonds in 1867 near Kimberly on the Vaal river in West Griqualand created greater friction as it triggered a ‘diamond rush’ attracting both white-settlers and native Bantu-speaking people in the area
• In 1868, the British annexed Basutoland, claiming that the indigenous Africans were seeking British protection from the Boers
• They also took West Griqualand in 1871 which caused 2000 Griquas to move east and establish Griqualand East in 1878 but this was also annexed by the British in1874
• The British went on to propose a federation of the British and Boer territories in 1875, but the Boers gave a firm rejection
• The area suffered from extreme instability as the British and the Boers tried to exert greater control in the area which had become valuable for traders
• In the Xhosa war of 1877-78, the British easily disarmed neighbouring tribesmen and annexed their communities in the cape
• The Boers were less successful in their conflict with the Pedi tribe – they had successfully maintained their independence

Question 28

What happened with the Boers and the Pedi tribe?

Answer 28

• There had been on-going friction because the Boer farmers accused the Pedi of stealing their livestock and the Pedi accused the Boers of stealing their children to use them as slaves – both were probably true
• Gold was discovered at Pilgrims rest in 1873 which made the situation worse as the Boers were crossing the border without paying tribute to the Pedi king, Sekhukhune, he refused to this allow this to continue any longer so the Boers declared war on the Pedi on 16 May 1876
• The Boers were supported by the Swazi and were initially successful – armed with modern weapons, mostly Krupp guns, from Germany
• But they failed to take the Pedi stronghold of Tsate and were forced to retreat but still built a line of fortifications from which they could raid Pedi lands
• Sekhukhune realised his weakness and signed a peace treaty on 15 February 1877, agreeing to pay the Boers 2000 cattle and to become citizens of the Transvaal. Sekhukhune still considered himself an independent ruler however and their land remained there own

Question 29

What did the British do after the Boers failure with the Pedi tribe?

Answer 29

• Seizing on this failure the British announced the annexation of the Transvaal in 1877 claiming that they needed to defend white settlers against the Pedi and the Zulu
• The Pedi were defeated
- Sekhukhune prepared to attack the Europeans in 1878 – encouraged by some Boers who resented the British annexation, even supplying them with weapons. The Zulus similarly sent a gift of gold
- The British were supported by 10 000 Swazi and managed to claim victory on 2 December 1879
- The Pedi people never really united again, they remained poor, divided and subservient to Europeans
• The British launched an invasion of Zululand in January 1879. The British decisively defeated the Zulus, despite them being a strong and successful fighting force, at Ulundi in 1879 and Zululand was absorbed into Natal
- The war had begun despite the colonial sectary saying that he didn’t want a Zulu war, thanks to Sir Bartle Frere and Sir Theophilus Shepstone who wanted to create a British federation in South Africa
- On 22 January 1879, the British were overwhelmed by the Zulus, losing about 1500 men at the battle of Isandlwana
- Despite several further defeats, the superior British equipment, resource and training eventually came into there own and they won more victory e.g. Rourke’s Drift and the last battle of Ulundi on 4 July 1879
- Disraeli was furious at the actions of the ‘men on the spot’
- Cetewayo gained respect for his conduct of the war and even visited Queen Victoria and Gladstone in London, but he died in 1884 of a heart attack
- The war was a disaster for the Zulu nation because of the many casualties but also because they lost unity. The Boers raided the weekend Zululand and stole cattle and people, many young Zulus left to live in British areas and Zululand became an area of famine, disease and instability
- In 1897, Zululand was absorbed into Natal which ended Zulu independence
• Once the Zulus had been defeated, the Boers declared their total independence from Britain in 1880

Question 30

What was the relationship with the Boers and Bantu in Southern Africa like in 1880-1885?

Answer 30

• From 1880, the Boers turned against the British, thinking they had a greater chance of gaining independence under Gladstone. The British had believed that they would have a quick victory over the Boer farmers, however, the Boers knew the landscape far better than the British, the technology was about the same, the British were vastly outnumbered (1800 to 7000) and most of the Boers were excellent marksmen
• They attacked British army garrisons across the Transvaal and winning a series of victories that culminated in a humiliating British failure at Majuba Hill in February 1881 where over 284 out of 350 Britons were killed, wounded or captured, partly because of their bright red uniforms which made them easy to spot. There were 2 Boer deaths
• Gladstone decided not to fight on and granted the Boers their independence – not a popular decision within Britain. The British were forced to sign the Convention of Pretoria which recognised Boer self-government in the Transvaal although the British still claimed a right to control external affairs
• The arrival of Germans in South-West Africa in 1884 raised British fears that the Boers might for an alliance with Germany. Consequently, in 1885, the British annexed a section of territory between German South West Africa and the Transvaal- known as Bechuanaland- in a strategic attempt to prevent the combining of the German and Boer colonies. The annexation was led by Major-General Charles Warren, he led a force of 4000 troops into the area in late 1884. Warren met the Boer leader, Krugger, in January 1885 and was given assurances that the Boers could maintain control in the area. Warren ignored theses promises and forced the annexation

Question 31

What was the relationship with the Boers and the Bantu in Southern Africa in 1886-90?

Answer 31

• In 1886, new gold discoveries at Witwatersrand in Transvaal produced further instability. It was sought by trading companies and brought a mass of non-Boer Europeans into the Transvaal (incl. Cecil Rhodes)
• Rhodes’ ultimate aim was to create a British land route from Cape Town to Egypt
• In September 1890, his company established a fort at Salisbury in Mashonaland, home to the Shona people, bringing yet another area under British control
• Little thought was given to the local Bantu tribes whose and was increasingly eroded by the white settlers. The discovery of diamond and gold did increase the wealth of the region but the wealth belonged to the settlers
• Laws were passed which limited the rights of black Africans to have any claims over the mines- they were therefore forced into manual labour
• Black workers were forced to stay in separated neighbourhoods on mining compounds

Question 32

What happened in 1861-65 with the Suez Canal?

Answer 32

-American civil war
-British mills were starved of raw cotton- British companies invested heavily in the cotton and ambitions modernising programme

Question 33

What happened with the Suez Canal in 1863?

Answer 33

-Is’mail Pasha came to power in 1863
-He was committed to the process of modernisation
-He embarked on the outing of the Suez Canal through Egypt to connect the Mediterranean with the Red Sea and Arab Penninsula
-This helped British trades- 6000 miles shorter

Question 34

What happened with the Suez Canal in 1869?

Answer 34

-The Suez Canal company was set up in 1858 work began in 1859 and was completed 10 years later
-Shares in the project were internationally available. British did not buy large shares as they were sceptical that it would be unsuitable for large ships

Question 35

What happened in 1875 with the Suez Canal?

Answer 35

-Ismail Pasha sought a buyer for his country’s share in the canal for £4 million (about £80 million now)
-Benjamin Disraeli (British PM) stepped forward, this game British greater control over passage to Helia and income from shipping tariffs
-Encourged further interest in Egypt

Question 36

What happened in 1879 with the Suez Canal?

Answer 36

-Due to Anglo-French pressure Isma’il was deposed by the ottoman sultan
-His son, Tewfiq, became the new khedive- but it was British money and political interference that helped Egypt
-Lord Dufferin wielded considerable influences and taxes were imposed on Egyptian food + goods, army was also reduced
-Increase in unemployment and led to nationalist rebellion under Arabi Pasha
-Tewfiq forced to hire Arab’s allies to govt. which provoked British concerns over trade settlers and canal

Question 37

What happened in 1982 with the Suez Canal?

Answer 37

-June 1882, tensions spilled over- streets of Alexandria. 50 Europeans dead, 125 Egyptians dead. Further revolts led to Pm, William Gladstone, to intervene
-British naval forces sent to Alexandria destroyed defences + killed civilians
-Arabi Pasha declared war and the British secured the Suez Canal, this enabled the British to re take Cairo and restore Tewfiq as ‘puppet ruler’
-Major Evelyn Baring Was installed as consul general and the government was amendable to Britain

Question 38

What happened in 1885 with the Suez Canal?

Answer 38

-Britain’s influence, over Egypt was confirmed by the 1885, convention of Lord where an international loan was secured for Egypt gov.
-Behind thin veil of Ottoman Empire and local rule Egypt was firmly under British control- Egypt held a position of a client state, often referred to as a ‘vailed protectorate’

Question 39

What happened with the Alexandria riots?

Answer 39

• Alexandria riots – In June 1882 there were riots in Alexandria. Fifty Europeans were killed. The British Prime Minister Gladstone finally decided to intervene. The Royal Navy bombarded Alexandria
• British campaign to gain control – British launched a military campaign to restore order in Egypt. Despite initial success at Kafr el-Dawwar, Arabi Pasha was defeated by British forces at Tel el-Kebir and Cairo was retaken
• Establishment of the ‘Veiled Protectorate’ – Tewfiq was restored as a puppet ruler by the British. Tewfiq was forced to create government amenable to British interests. He was made to employ British military personnel to supervise the Egyptian army and relied on British advisors. Evelyn Baring was made Consul- General. In reality it was Baring who ruled Egypt from behind the scenes

Question 40

What were the British international relations and colonial policy like after the Napoleonic wars?

Answer 40

-Britain had maintained a policy of ‘splendid isolation’ since the end of the Napoleonic wars in 1815, trusting to its dominant navy to maintain it’s status and empire. The navy was assumed capable of defeating any naval force that challenged it, so the empire was considered safe
-The army, however, was regarded as of secondary importance. It was the second Anglo Boer war of 1899-1902 that forced a drastic review of strategy, since it was felt that the need to concentrate military power in South Africa had left India vulnerable.

Question 41

What 2 alliance systems emerged in Europe in the late nineteenth century?

Answer 41

-Germany made an alliance with Austria Hungary in 1870, which was joined by Italy in 1882.
-This alliance was promptly countered by military agreements between France and Russia in 1982, followed by an alliance between them in 1894
-Britain was left in an uneasy position. Whilst isolation might have been the preferred strategy, it could leave Britain vulnerable to the ambitions of both alliances
-Britain had conflicted with Russia, France and Germany over colonial expansion, although disputes in Africa, had been largely resolved without endangering European peace
-Britain’s clashes with France in North Africa, which had culminated in the 1898 Fashoda incident, had been peacefully resolved, but Britain continued to have concerns about Russian ambitions, particularly in Afghanistan (a buffer state between Russia and India), but also in the ME

Question 42

What was Britain and Russia like before 1907?

Answer 42

-Afghanistan provided a constant source of conflict between Russia and Britain in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries- something known as the ‘Great game’
-The expansion of Russia and the establishment of a Russian railway to Tashkent (within striking distance of Afghanistan) caused concern for the British
-The movement of 300,000 Russian troops in manoeuvres near Afghanistan in February 1900, at a time when Britain was stretched by war in Souhth Africa and had fewer than 100,000 soldiers in the Indian army to defend northern India, added to Britain’s worries
-Britain’s concerns about Russia’s ambitions in the Middle East were also aggravated by a Russian naval presence in Toulon on the Mediterranean, following the military agreements with France in 1892
-This appeared a potential threat to the Suez Canal and, therefore, to British India

Question 43

How did Germany provide a challenge to Britain on the colonies?

Answer 43

-Under its new ambitious Kaiser, Wilhelm II, Germany also challenged Britain in the colonies. After all, colonial possessions were regarded as a marker of international prestige and authority. For example, the Kaiser sent a telegram of support to the Transvaal following the Jameson raid and supplied the Boers with weapons during the 1899-1902 war
-He also established warm relations with the Ottoman Empire, as a means to better access Africa, the Persian gulf and India’s trade markets without depending on the British controlled suez
-It was German money that financed railway construction from Constantinople to Baghdad and huge sums were spent to build up the German navy in what appeared to the British to be a deliberately provocative move to counter Britain’s dominance of the high seas, so essential for the maintenance of empire

Question 44

When did Britain abandon splendid isolation?

Answer 44

-Britain abandoned ‘Splendid isolation’ by signing an entente cordiale with the French in 1904. This did not, however, provide much security, since it ranged Britain against the triple alliance and left it’s relationship with Russia open
-The cost of defending its naval supremacy was a furious naval race with Germany which intensified from 1906. However, after Russia had suffered a humiliating defeat in War with Japan in 1905 (which shattered Russian naval power), a Tsarist power had been shaken by internal troubles, Britain, Russia and France came together in a ‘Triple Entente’ in 1907
-This settled Britain’s main imperial concerns by declaring the Persian gulf a neutral zone and recognising Afghanistan as a British sphere of influence

Question 45

What were the Moroccan Crises, 1905 and 1911?

Answer 45

-The strength of Britian’s support for France was tested when the Kaiser threatened French interests in Morocco on a visit in 1905. After several weeks of tense discussion, the matter was resolved at the Algeciras conference (1906) when Britain stood by the French
-A further crisis erupted when, in 1911, the French sent 20,000 soldiers to disperse Moroccan rebels who had attacked Fez
-The Kaiser sent a warship to the port of Agadir ‘to prevent a French invasion’
-The British, fearful that Wilhelm was planning to seize Agadir (near British Gibraltar) as a base, prepared the Royal Navy for war
-Wilhelm gave away and ordered the panther home

Question 46

What was the imperial war, 1911?

Answer 46

-Against a background of concern over German ambitions, an imperial conference was called in 1911 to forge closer ties between Britain and the dominions
-Foreign secretary Edward Grey successfully conveyed the vulnerability of the Dominions if Britain lost it’s maritime supremacy
-The South African government promised to commit 40,000 men to attack German South West Africa in the event of European conflict, while Australia and New Zealand agreed to take action against German colonies in the pacific

Question 47

What were the British strategies when it came to Germany in 1911?

Answer 47

-Agitation in Britain over the naval race with Germany spread to the settler colonies in particular. A special imperial conference on defence was held in 1909 and the formation of a Dominion fleet considered
-Britain accepted that it was no longer in a position to maintain a ‘two power standard’, whereby it could match the 2 next strongest naval powers; instead it settled for a 60% margin over Germany
-However, even this looked ambitious by 1912. All attempts to come to an agreement with the Germans failed and in July 1912, Britain withdrew the navy from the Mediterranean, in order to redeploy it in the North Sea
-The army was also remodelled for deployment on the European mainland
-Britain was thus reduced to relying on the support of France to protect its Mediterranean interests and the naval approaches to Egypt
-By 1914 Britain appeared to be refocusing away from empire to the defence of Britain in Europe

Question 48

Why did Britain change strategy in 1914?

Answer 48

-Britain’s change of strategy might appear dramatic. British industrial power was entering a period of relative economic decline and the strain of upholding its world wide pre eminence in the face of ambitions of the other European powers seemed to be telling
-However, it would be wrong to exaggerate the degree of pre war change away from empire, since strength in Europe was also vital for Britain’s imperial interests (and vice Vera’s)

Question 49

What else was happening in 1914 which caused Britain to change strategies?

Answer 49

-Russia, Germany and Italy all had hopes of extending their empires in the Balkan area by 1914, where the Turkish Ottoman Empire was in decline. Meanwhile Austria Hungary, which bordered the Balkan states, wanted to crush the Slavs- who were stirring up trouble within the Austria Hungarian Empire and in Serbia
-A series of Balkan wars and the assassination of the heir to the Austrian throne in July 1914 by a Bosnian Serb slab led these powers into direct conflict with one another
-The german invasion of Belgium and the Kaisers failure to reply to the British ultimatum led Britain into war in August 1914
-Not only was this to become an international and imperial war, involving the colonies of the warring states, it was also to be a war that challenged the very legitimacy of European empires and hinted at the urgent desire for national self determination across the globe