The British Empire, 1857-1967 Flashcards
(158 cards)
1
Q
What was the peak size of the British Empire?
A
At its peak, the British Empire encompassed 13 million square miles.
2
Q
What fraction of the world’s population did the British Empire rule?
A
The British Empire ruled over almost a quarter of the world’s population.
3
Q
During which monarch’s reign did the British Empire expand significantly?
A
The British Empire expanded during the reign of Queen Victoria.
4
Q
When did the British Empire reach its territorial height?
A
The British Empire reached its territorial height between the First and Second World Wars.
5
Q
What years mark the rapid dismantling of the British Empire?
A
The British Empire was rapidly dismantled between the 1940s and 1960s.
6
Q
How is the British Empire still present today?
A
Every year, Queen Elizabeth II honours praiseworthy British citizens with the Order of the British Empire.
7
Q
In which Commonwealth countries is the Queen the head of state?
A
The Queen is the head of state in Jamaica, Australia, and Canada.
8
Q
What do the streets and public buildings in Britain commemorate?
A
They bear statues and names commemorating soldiers, traders, missionaries, and administrators of the Empire.
9
Q
What recent scrutiny has the memorialization of the Empire faced?
A
The way empire is publicly memorialised has come under unprecedented scrutiny in recent years.
10
Q
How many memorials to imperial figures were estimated to be removed in Britain between summer 2020 and January 2021?
A
It is estimated that 70 memorials to imperial figures were removed.
11
Q
What is the slogan of the pressure group protesting the statue of Cecil Rhodes?
A
‘Rhodes Must Fall’ is the slogan of the pressure group protesting the statue.
12
Q
Where is the controversial statue of Cecil Rhodes located?
A
The statue of Cecil Rhodes is located at Oriel College, University of Oxford.
13
Q
Since when have protests regarding the statue of Cecil Rhodes been ongoing?
A
Protests regarding the statue have been ongoing since 2016.
14
Q
Who was Cecil Rhodes?
A
Cecil Rhodes was a British businessman and colonial politician who grew extremely wealthy from mining in southern Africa.
15
Q
What were Cecil Rhodes’ views on imperialism?
A
He was a zealous imperialist who instigated a number of bloody wars in pursuit of gold and diamonds.
16
Q
What is a zealous imperialist?
A
Someone who strongly supports and passionately promotes their country taking control over other lands and people.
17
Q
What is a notable quote by Cecil Rhodes regarding race?
A
“I contend that we are the finest race in the world and that the more of the world we inhabit, the better it is for the human race.”
18
Q
What did Cecil Rhodes think about parts of the world inhabited by other races?
A
“Just fancy those parts that are at present inhabited by the most despicable specimens of human beings, what an alteration there would be if they were brought under Anglo-Saxon influence.”
19
Q
What happened to Cecil Rhodes’ statue at the University of Cape Town?
A
In 2015, after student protests, his statue was removed from the campus.
20
Q
Where else is a statue of Cecil Rhodes located?
A
A statue of Rhodes stands at Oriel College, University of Oxford.
21
Q
What was the reaction to Cecil Rhodes’ statue at the University of Oxford?
A
The protests against his statue at the University of Cape Town soon spread to the University of Oxford.
22
Q
What prompted a backlash in Britain regarding colonial memorials?
A
The removal of colonial memorials has prompted a fierce backlash from those who celebrate the imperial past.
23
Q
What did a YouGov poll in March 2020 reveal about British attitudes towards the Empire?
A
A third of respondents saw the Empire as something to be proud of, and over a quarter wanted Britain to have the Empire back.
24
Q
When did British empire-building begin?
A
British empire-building has its roots in the Elizabethan period.
25
What were the Protestant 'plantations' in Ireland?
They involved the confiscation and colonization of Irish-owned land by British Protestants, seen as a precursor to later colonialism.
26
What three themes were significant in the colonial experience?
1. Ruling people represented as savage. 2. Intertwining colonialism with Protestant religious zeal. 3. Use of violence to repress resistance.
27
What challenges did early colonists face?
Many of the first colonists died of starvation.
28
How did indigenous Americans respond to European encroachment?
They often tried to build alliances with the English, which broke down as the newcomers encroached further on their lands.
29
What justification did the English use for their actions against indigenous Americans?
They claimed superiority in technology, religion, and culture.
30
What did John Locke argue about indigenous Americans in the 1690s?
He claimed they were not making efficient use of their agricultural land and therefore deserved to be displaced.
31
Was the land in the Empire truly empty when the British arrived?
No, the places in the Empire were anything but empty when the British arrived.
32
What does 'terra nullius' mean?
'Nobody's land'
## Footnote
This term is used to justify colonisation of land not inhabited by Christians.
33
When did 'terra nullius' enter legal use?
In the late nineteenth century.
34
Since when was the concept of 'terra nullius' used?
Since the fifteenth century.
35
What was the population of the 13 British colonies by 1775?
Around 2.5 million, including an estimated 500,000 enslaved people.
36
What contributed to Britain's wealth in the 18th century?
The unpaid labour of millions of enslaved workers forcibly taken from West Africa to the plantations of the Americas.
37
What was the Barbados Slave Code of 1661?
A set of laws enacted separate regulations for black and white people and threatened violent reprisals for resistance.
38
What significant event occurred in 1776 regarding the American colonies?
The 13 American colonies declared independence.
39
What was the impact of the American colonies' declaration of independence on British imperial focus?
It prompted a period of imperial self-doubt and a greater interest in Asia, Africa, and Australasia.
40
What was the outcome of the Battle of Plassey in 1757?
The British East India Company took over large parts of the Mughal Empire, notably Bengal.
41
When was the British government's abolition of the slave trade?
In 1807.
42
When was slavery abolished in the Caribbean colonies?
In 1834.
43
What compensation did the British government agree to pay to slave-owners after abolition?
Vast sums amounting to €20 million.
44
How did the British perceive their status after the abolition of slavery?
They revelled in the moral rectitude of their new status as anti-slavers.
45
What was the context for the new Victorian imperialism by the 1850s?
It was burnished in the minds of its adherents with zeal and righteousness.
46
What is historiography?
Historiography is the study of the historical scholarship that has been written about a particular subject.
47
When were the first history books about the Empire written?
The first history books about the Empire were written while it still existed.
48
What narrative did early history books about the Empire tend to convey?
They tended to tell a story of imperial progress.
49
Who wrote 'The Expansion of England' and when?
J.R. Seeley wrote 'The Expansion of England' in 1883.
50
What was the aim of J.R. Seeley's 'The Expansion of England'?
It used the imperial past to call for a closer relationship between Britain and the colonies.
51
Which works were critical of the Empire in the early twentieth century?
J.A. Hobson's 'Imperialism' (1902) and Lenin's 'Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism' (1917).
52
What did Lenin's work focus on?
It provided a Marxist analysis of colonial exploitation.
53
What influence did Marxism have on historiography into the 1970s?
Marxism continued to inspire works written by people from colonised nations.
54
Who is Walter Rodney and what is his notable work?
Walter Rodney was a Guyanese scholar who wrote 'How Europe Underdeveloped Africa' in 1972.
55
What was the purpose of the Subaltern Studies Group formed in the 1980s?
Their aim was to seek out new sources to understand the Empire from the point of view of the colonised.
56
What does the term 'indigenous peoples' refer to in this study?
'Indigenous peoples' is used as a blanket term for the first groups of people living in countries colonised by the British.
57
How does the meaning of 'indigenous peoples' vary?
The term has different meanings in different settings, especially in areas that have been colonised multiple times.
58
What does 'indigenous' mean in academic terms?
'Indigenous' often refers to specific communities, such as the Naga people of northern India and Myanmar.
59
How were groups like the Naga portrayed due to European notions of racial hierarchy?
Groups like the Naga were portrayed as savages and became more marginalised than other colonised peoples.
60
What are the consequences of the marginalisation of groups like the Naga?
The consequences of their marginalisation are still felt today.
61
What is a traditional view of the British Empire's growth?
The traditional view suggests it was driven by a desire to seek out new foodstuffs and resources such as valuable minerals.
62
Are the reasons for the growth of Britain's empire simple?
No, the reasons are actually far more complex than the traditional view suggests.
63
What are foodstuffs?
Foodstuffs are things people eat or use to make food.
64
When can British interest in Africa be dated from?
British interest in Africa can be dated from the loss of Britain's American colonies at the end of the eighteenth century.
65
What event prompted Britain's 'Swing to the East'?
The end of empire on the American continent sent the British on a 'Swing to the East, looking for influence in Asia and Africa.
66
What technological advancements helped Britain establish footholds in Africa and Asia?
The massive industrial revolution in the nineteenth century, steamships, and weapons production made it possible to establish footholds in these continents.
67
What were the British colonies along the east coast of North America by the eighteenth century?
The British had a number of well-established colonies along the east coast of North America.
68
What caused disputes between the British and the American colonists?
Disputes arose partly because of taxes imposed by Parliament in London and colonial resentment at having to buy imports from British merchants and export goods to Britain.
69
When did war break out between Britain and the colonial rebels?
War broke out in 1775.
70
Who led the colonial rebels during the war?
The colonial rebels were led by George Washington.
71
What was the outcome of the war between Britain and the colonial rebels?
The British were defeated.
72
What was formed by the former colonies in 1783?
The former colonies joined to form the United States of America.
73
Who introduced the concept of 'Swing to the East'?
Vincent Harlow, a prominent British historian in the early twentieth century.
74
What does the 'Swing to the East' concept explain?
A shift in Britain's imperial priorities by the turn of the nineteenth century.
75
What regions did Harlow emphasize a change in British interests towards?
Africa and Asia.
76
What continued interests did historians recognize in Britain?
A continued interest in British North America and the Caribbean.
77
What did Harlow suggest was the focus of British interests during the 'Swing to the East'?
A desire for control through trade and economic dominance, rather than through settler colonisation.
78
When did British merchants start trading with West Africa?
British merchants had traded with West Africa since the 1500s.
79
What goods were initially sought by British merchants in West Africa?
British merchants sought gold and ivory from elephant tusks.
80
What took precedence over the trade of gold and ivory in the eighteenth century?
The slave trade took precedence.
81
How many Africans were exported by Britain to its American colonies and Caribbean plantations by 1807?
By 1807, Britain had overseen the exportation of three million Africans.
82
What was the key reason for British expansion in Africa in the late nineteenth century?
The key reason was trade, specifically the prospect of further trade.
83
What facilitated further trade opportunities in Africa during the late nineteenth century?
The opening up of new routes inland and the discovery of minerals and resources.
84
What considerations emerged after accessing materials, markets, or routes in Africa?
Further considerations included investment opportunities and strategic interests.
85
What did trade increasingly mean in the nineteenth century?
Trade increasingly meant imperial expansion.
86
What was often involved in maintaining lucrative profits during the Empire?
Infrastructure investment, military intervention, and colonisation.
87
What type of infrastructure investment was common?
Railways.
88
What is infrastructure?
Infrastructure is the basic physical and organizational structures and facilities needed for a society or economy to function—like roads, bridges, power lines, water systems, and schools.
89
Why was military intervention necessary?
To protect investments.
90
What was the purpose of colonisation?
To prevent local uprisings or the encroachment of other European empires.
91
Who pressured political elites to safeguard profitable investments?
Financiers in London.
92
What did financiers in London advocate for?
Colonial intervention to protect investments.
93
What resources were sought in Africa in the second half of the nineteenth century?
Coal, iron, and timber were sought to feed the demands of British industry.
94
What developed as a result of Britain's industrial productivity growth?
A cycle of dependency developed whereby Britain exploited African resources to manufacture goods.
95
What types of goods did Britain manufacture to sell back to Africa?
Britain manufactured goods such as textiles and weapons to sell back to Africa.
96
What economic period did Europe experience from 1873 to 1896?
Europe experienced the Long Depression, known as the 'Great Depression' until the 1930s.
97
What led to the growth of personal influence of British merchants in Africa?
Increasing trade led to a growth in the personal influence of British merchants in Africa.
98
Who were notable merchant-imperialists in Africa?
Notable merchant-imperialists included George Goldie and Cecil Rhodes.
99
What did British public and political interest in Africa stem from?
British public and political interest in Africa was stimulated by mid-century Victorian explorers.
100
What did Victorian explorers do in Africa?
They sought and traced the continent's waterways, publishing their findings and producing maps.
101
How did explorers contribute to the perception of Africa?
They spread tales of adventure, creating a sense that much of Africa was being 'discovered' for the first time.
102
What was the explorers' reliance on during their expeditions?
Explorers relied on local geographical and environmental knowledge.
103
What shift occurred in the British middle class perception during the first half of the nineteenth century?
A strong sense of morality emerged, dividing the world into 'good' and 'evil'.
104
How is the sense of morality reflected in the culture of the time?
It is reflected in the novels of Charles Dickens, where characters are often depicted as either 'good' and innocent or 'evil' and facing consequences.
105
What rigid belief system was applied to the wider world?
The belief system categorized the world into 'civilised' and 'non-civilised' spheres.
106
What factors led to colonisation in West Africa?
The commercial and strategic factors were often intertwined, with Britain's coastal interests demanding protection.
107
What was built along the Gold Coast to protect British interests?
A string of forts and coastal defences were constructed in Sierra Leone and Gambia.
108
What strategic interest led to the establishment of a colony at the Cape?
The temperate climate and deep water port of the Cape provided advantages over other harbours.
109
When was Cape Colony seized by Britain?
Cape Colony was seized in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars.
110
From whom did Britain seize Cape Colony?
Cape Colony was seized from the Dutch allies of the French.
111
Why was Cape Colony strategically important for Britain?
It protected the sea route to the Middle East, China, Australia, and India, giving Britain considerable power over these routes.
112
What moral principles did many British people in the Victorian era hold?
Many British people living in the Victorian era had what they considered to be strong moral principles.
113
What did Christian missionaries believe was their moral duty from the 1860s?
Christian missionaries saw it as their moral duty to spread their faith among non-Christian peoples.
114
How did missionaries view the Empire?
They viewed the Empire as a force for 'civilisation'.
115
Who is a famous example of a missionary explorer?
David Livingstone is the most famous example of a missionary explorer.
116
When did David Livingstone go to Africa?
David Livingstone went to Africa in 1858.
117
What were David Livingstone's goals in Africa?
He aimed to make an open path for commerce and Christianity.
118
What is commerce?
The exchange of goods or services between two or more parties, often involving monetary transactions (of money).
119
What is the relationship between exploration and colonisation in the Victorian era?
While exploration does not have to intrinsically result in colonisation, Victorian exploration often did.
120
By what year had most of Africa been added to European maps?
By 1857, most of Africa had been added to European maps.
121
When was the course of the Congo River charted by Europeans?
The course of the Congo River was not charted by Europeans until 1867.
122
What types of raw materials did explorers locate in Africa?
Explorers located vast reserves of raw materials such as gold, palm oil, and diamonds.
123
Who sought to exploit and trade the raw materials found by explorers?
European merchants sought to exploit and trade the raw materials.
124
What was the Berlin Conference?
A meeting of European leaders in 1884-85 to agree on claims to African territory.
125
Who hosted the Berlin Conference?
The conference was hosted by German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck.
126
What was the main concern that led to the Berlin Conference?
Fears that skirmishes between European nations over colonial territory could escalate into full-scale war.
127
What was largely ignored during the Berlin Conference?
The wishes or needs of African communities, including differences in race, language, culture, and traditions.
128
What is the term used to describe the European nations' actions in Africa during this period?
The scramble for Africa.
129
What dictated Britain's presence in Africa until the second half of the nineteenth century?
Britain's presence in Africa was dictated more by trade than by sovereignty.
130
What represented Britain's formal control in Africa before 1857?
The West African settlements (Sierra Leone and the Gold Coast), trading networks along the Niger River, and Cape Colony in the south.
131
What significant changes occurred in Britain's influence in Africa between 1857 and 1890?
Britain extended its Empire and influence across African territory.
132
When was Basutoland established as a protectorate?
1868, by treaty.
133
What happened to Griqualand West in 1880?
Settlement established and subsequently absorbed into Cape Colony.
134
What occurred in Transvaal in 1877?
Transvaal was occupied.
135
How was Zululand established as a protectorate?
Zululand was established by war and annexed to Natal in 1887.
136
What was the status of Egypt and the Sudan in 1882?
They were occupied, establishing a client state.
137
What type of rule was established in Southern Nigeria in 1884?
Chartered company rule.
138
When was British Somaliland established as a protectorate?
1884, by treaty.
139
What occurred in Bechuanaland in 1885?
Bechuanaland was established as a protectorate by treaty.
140
What type of rule was established in Northern Nigeria in 1885?
Chartered company rule.
141
What happened in Gambia in 1888?
Settlement established.
142
What type of rule was established in British East Africa in 1888?
Chartered company rule.
143
What type of rule was established in Uganda in 1888?
Chartered company rule.
144
What is a protectorate?
An area with its own ruler, but placed under the rule of the British crown, which controlled it militarily and usually influenced domestic policies through advisers.
145
What is a settlement?
A loose term to denote an area containing British settlers with various levels of government control.
146
What is an occupied territory?
An area containing British settlers/military forces but not under British control.
147
What is a client state?
An area with its own ruler but with strong British influence which restricted that ruler’s independence politically, militarily and economically.
148
What is chartered company rule?
An area run by a trading company (through local rulers from the indigenous population) with a special licence from the British government which gave it political and economical rights.
149
When did formal British expansion in the Cape accelerate?
Formal British expansion really accelerated in the 1890s.
150
What characterized the period between 1857 to 1890 for British expansion?
The period was characterized by a desire to maintain and safeguard existing possessions and economic influence further afield.
151
Who was a particular rival to British expansion from 1857 to 1890?
France was a particular rival.
152
What companies were chartered to implement British claims in Africa?
Companies such as the Royal Niger Company, the Imperial British East Africa Company, and the British South Africa Company were chartered.
153
What was the role of British companies in Africa?
These companies were tasked with ensuring that other Europeans were excluded from lucrative British bases.
154
How did British intervention in Egypt differ from other areas?
In Egypt, intervention was more direct, although the British still claimed to be acting on the defensive.
155
What was the idea of Egypt falling under British control like in 1857?
It would probably have been laughed at.
156
How did British traders view Egypt historically?
As an important route between Europe and Asia.
157
Since when had Egypt become a key route to India?
From the eighteenth century.
158
What was Britain's attitude towards the Muslim rulers of Egypt?
Largely hostile.
