The "New" Europe
After the age of absolute government was over, a new ideology emerged, known as imperialism. The concepts of nationalism were key factors in the growth of imperialist thinking in European nations during the nineteenth century. Imperialism, by definition, was an ideology in which more developed countries, mainly European ones, began ruling over less developed countries to gain political and economic prowess. European societies justified imperialist domination abroad through the desire to achieve the goals of civilizing colonized peoples, competing for economic dominance, and increasing political prominence throughout the world.
A very prominent theme in European colonization was the concept of "the white man's burden." Rudyard Kipling wrote in his poem "The White Man's Burden", that the colonizers perceived the colonized people as "half-devil and half-child. Take up the White Man's burden... why brought he us from bondage, our loved Egyptian night?" The poem depicts white men as Biblical saviors coming to rescue the "half-Devil, half-child" indigenous peoples from "bondage". The concept of social Darwinism further contributed to the idea that it was the "burden" of the colonizers to civilize the people they colonized. In Herbert Spencer's 1859 document "Survival of the Fittest", Spencer claims that "intermediate forms, less fitted for special spheres of existence... [are] an inference which is in harmony with what we know respecting races of men and... animals". Spencer's philosophy stated that, through many years of natural selection, white people evolved to become the superior race; thus, they had a duty to civilize the so-called "lesser" races, through conversion missions, and, sometimes, force. In a letter to his missionaries in 1883, King Leopold of Belgium instructed the missionaries to "evangelize [convert to Christianity], but your priority must be Belgium's interests...so that they stay forever in submission to the white colonialists". These horrific instructions prove the amount of power that the colonizers hold over the people they colonized, defended as looking out for their country's "interests". The "white savior complex" displayed by European colonizers was justification enough for their terrible treatment of the people they colonized.
Economic motivations were also used to justify imperialistic practices. In the nineteenthcentury, European countries were the most powerful in the world, and increased business overseas made it necessary to protect each country's investments. As Joseph Chamberlain described in the British Parliamentary Debate of April 3, 1893, "in one year—the last year for which we have Returns—it nearly doubled, increasing from 72,000 to 131,000 tons". British traders made tremendous profits from the exploitation of natural resources in Uganda, improving the British economy overall. For that reason, many European nations justified their colonization of Africa as "financially necessary". Since colonization brought large profits to the host country, whichever country had the most colonies held significant advantages over other countries. In Friedrich Fabri's 1878 document "Does Germany Need Colonies?", Fabri writes, "but anyone who looks at the globe and notes the steadily increasing colonial possessions of Great Britain, how she extracts strength from them, the skill with which she governs them". In the late nineteenthcentury, Great Britain was the most powerful country in the world, with a vast number of colonial investments, a flourishing economy, and good connections with other powerful nations that allowed Great Britain to thrive. Other countries, such as Germany, wanted to share in Great Britain's power and therefore followed its lead when setting up colonies. The promise of an improved economy through colonization justified the imperialistic behaviors exhibited by nations such as Great Britain.
Besides the "white man's burden" and promised economic prominence, Europeans justified imperialism with heightened political influence in the world. Japan and the United States were prime examples of a country gaining more influence through colonization; Japan by colonizing parts of Russia and South Korea, and the United States by colonizing the Philippines. As certain nations got increasingly stronger, the surrounding countries tried hard to match up. As Fabri wrote in his document, "Does Germany Need Colonies?", "it would be wise for us Germans to learn about colonial skills from our Anglo-Saxon cousins and to begin a friendly competition with them. If New Germany wants to protect its newly won position of power for a long time, it must heed its culture-mission and, above all, delay no longer in the task of renewing the call for colonies". Fabri noticed that as countries surrounding Germany became steadily more powerful, Germany was growing weaker, and so, to help Germany return to its "newly won position of power", colonies needed to be established. It was a matter of not only economic interest, but also national pride. Besides national unity, the strength of each nation depended on its power abroad, which could be measured through economic power and expansion. Nations competed with each other to defend their pride and positions of power, and because of this "friendly competition", the number of colonies set up by European nations increased significantly.
European societies used the concept of the "white man's burden" and increased economic and political dominance to justify imperialism. Although imperialism was detrimental to the colonized countries, the ideology allowed European countries to thrive and prosper long after the age of imperialism was over. The age of imperialism marked the beginning of "New Europe": the golden age of modern European power, and hope for a bright future for Europe.
