Chapter 9 - Trade And Commerce

Question 1

What was the general assumption about trade in 1890?

Answer 1

That more empire would make the country wealthier

Question 2

What percentage did India take of Britain’s exports?

Answer 2

20%

Question 3

What did India export to Britain?

Answer 3

Raw cotton
Tea

Question 4

What did South Africa produce?

Answer 4

Wool
Sugar

Question 5

What did New Zealand produce?

Answer 5

Dairy produce
Lamb

Question 6

What did they produce in Canada?

Answer 6

Beef
Wheat

Question 7

How much of an increase in land did Canada put aside for wheat production?

Answer 7

Six fold

Question 8

What did Britain import from West Africa?

Answer 8

Timber
Cocoa
Rubber
Peanuts
Palm oil

Question 9

What were the main sources of transport for goods?

Answer 9

Steamships
Railways

Question 10

What was disbanded in 1893?

Answer 10

The Imperial Federation League

Question 11

What did this help?

Answer 11

Promote closer colonial ties

Question 12

Where was trade growing instead for Britain?

Answer 12

USA
Russia

Question 13

What were the only things that the empire was the main supplier for?

Answer 13

Cheese
Apples
Potatoes
Mutton

Question 14

What percentage of foodstuffs came from the empire?

Answer 14

10%

Question 15

What was the empire’s total trade worth in 1896?

Answer 15

£745 million

Question 16

What was the value of the trade between the countries of the empire?

Answer 16

£183 million

Question 17

Was trade corresponding with the growth of the empire?

Answer 17

No

Question 18

What did anti-imperialists argue?

Answer 18

The empire cost middle-class people more than it benefited them

Question 19

What was the empire blamed for?

Answer 19

Failing to modernise its industry
Held back developments that would’ve helped raise living standards for workers

Question 20

What did Britain lag behind in?

Answer 20

Chemical + electrical engineering from poor investment and productivity

Question 21

What countries were they behind in with rubber?

Answer 21

French + Russians + Germans made synthetic rubber
B still relying on rubber imports from Africa or Asia

Question 22

Why did people not like importing food from the colonies?

Answer 22

It undermined domestic food production + depopulated the countryside

Question 23

What did the foreign cheap labour do?

Answer 23

Depressed wages within Britain

Question 24

Why were costs of the Empire high?

Answer 24

They had to maintain a large navy
White colonies reliant on defence
Costs of acquiring some of the empire outweighed the returns from it

Question 25

What did Britain increase its investment to between 1900 and 1913?

Answer 25

£2 - £4 billion

Question 26

Where did more capital go?

Answer 26

USA India

Question 27

Why were loans risky to give out in the empire?

Answer 27

They might be used to develop rival manufacturers to B E.g. Indian cotton + jute mills

Question 28

What remained the world’s financial capital?

Answer 28

London

Question 29

What were shares sold in?

Answer 29

Minerals Tobacco Timber Transport Public utilities

Question 30

What Acts helped infrastructural projects?

Answer 30

The Colonial Loans and Colonial Stocks Acts of 1899 and 1900 (Helped rail links in Africa)

Question 31

How many times more did B spend compared to other countries?

Answer 31

2 times the French 3 times the Germans

Question 32

Where did B invest a lot of capital?

Answer 32

Latin America

Question 33

Where else did B get earnings?

Answer 33

From invisibles

Question 34

What are invisibles?

Answer 34

Exports that provide income but don’t have a physical presence

Question 35

What did B force other nations to adopt?

Answer 35

The gold standard

Question 36

What was the gold standard?

Answer 36

Adopted by Bank of England Every pound sterling was backed by a fixed amount of gold held in reserves It aided international commerce Became a symbol of economic strength

Question 37

Who was a pro-imperialist?

Answer 37

Joseph Chamberlain (Conservative colonial secretary)

Question 38

What did he chair?

Answer 38

The 1902 London Colonial Conference for leaders of dominions It discussed creating closer economic ties with an imperial customs union

Question 39

What would the imperial customs trade make?

Answer 39

Mutual customs Protective tariffs against imports against non-imperial powers

Question 40

Why did Chamberlain think imperial trade was preferable?

Answer 40

Because it would be strategically reliable in times of emergency The colonies had potential for greater productivity and growth

Question 41

What was this all called?

Answer 41

Imperial preference

Question 42

Who resisted C ideas?

Answer 42

Manufacturing, shipping and banking industries Wanted free trade Argued mercantilism disappeared + B wasn’t self sufficient

Question 43

When did imperial preference get rejected?

Answer 43

1906 general election Voters favoured liberal party’s commitment to free trade It would’ve put food prices up

Question 44

Who imposed import tariffs to assert their national interests over loyalties to B?

Answer 44

Australia New Zealand South Africa

Question 45

Who did Canada make its own trading agreements with?

Answer 45

Germany France Italy Japan

Question 46

What did Indians do to B goods?

Answer 46

They were boycotted + burned Part of swadeshi (self-sufficiency) movement Wanted to undermine the Raj