Industrial Revolution
A period of rapid growth in the use of machines in manufacturing and production that began in the mid-1700s
Steamship
used steam instead of sails; aided trade, migrations, and imperialism through faster transport and ability to go against currents (like up rivers)
United Fruit Company
An American transnational business trading in bananas that economically dominated trade and business in Central America
Transnational Corporation
A company that conducts research, operates factories, and sells products in many countries, not just where its headquarters or shareholders are located.
Nationalism
Loyalty and devotion to a particular nationality, inspired imperialists to expand their empires and inspired anti-imperialism resistance in colonies
Meiji Restoration
The political program that followed the destruction of the Tokugawa Shogunate in 1868, in which a collection of young leaders set Japan on the path of centralization, industrialization, and imperialism.
Self-Strengthening Movement
A late nineteenth century movement, after the country had been subjected to imperialism, in which the Chinese modernized their army and encouraged Western investment in factories and railways
Abolitionist Movement
Movement to end slavery
British East India Company
A joint stock company that gained a foothold in India by gaining trade and tax rights until the mid 19th century. After the Sepoy Rebellion, the British took over India as a direct colony of the crown.
British Raj
The name given to the period and territory of direct British colonial rule in South Asia between 1858 and 1947--from the time of the attempted Indian Revolt (Sepoy Mutany) to the Independence of India.
Sepoy Rebellion
The revolt of Indian soldiers in 1857 against certain practices that violated religious customs; also known as the Sepoy Mutiny. In the aftermath of the rebellion, Britain made India a colony under the British crown.
Berlin Conference
A meeting from 1884-1885 at which representatives of European nations agreed on rules for the colonization of Africa, triggered the Scramble for Africa
Scramble for Africa
Sudden wave of conquests in Africa by European powers in the 1880s and 1890s. Britain obtained most of eastern Africa, France most of northwestern Africa. Other countries (Germany, Belgium, Portugal, Italy, and Spain) acquired lesser amounts.
Opium Wars
Wars between Britain and the Qing Empire (mind 1800s), caused by the Qing government's refusal to let Britain import Opium. China lost and Britain and most other European powers were able to develop a strong trade presence throughout China against their w
Zulu Wars
War fought in 1879 between the British and the African Zulu tribes. The Zulu attempted to resist British and Boer expansion.
Social Darwinism
The application of ideas about evolution and "survival of the fittest" to human societies - particularly as a justification for their imperialist expansion.
Enlightenment
A philosophical movement which started in Europe in the 1700's and spread to the colonies. It emphasized reason and the scientific method. Writers of the enlightenment tended to focus on government, ethics, and science, rather than on imagination, emotion
Taiping Rebellion
a mid-19th century rebellion against the Qing Dynasty in China, led by Hong Xiuquan, who claimed to be the brother of Jesus. The most destructive civil war in China before the twentieth century.
Boxer Rebellion
1899 rebellion in Beijing, China started by a secret society of Chinese who opposed the "foreign devils". The rebellion was ended by a coalition of European and Japanese troops.
Chinese Exclusion Act
(1882) Denied any additional Chinese laborers to enter the country while allowing students and merchants to immigrate.
Indentured Servitude
A worker bound by a voluntary agreement to work for a specified period of years often in return for free passage to an overseas destination. Before 1800 most were Europeans; after 1800 most indentured laborers were Asians.
Monroe Doctrine
an American foreign policy opposing interference in the Western hemisphere from outside powers
Economic Imperialism
Control of a country's economy by the businesses of another nation or private businesses
Treaty of Nanking (Nanjing)
peace treaty signed by China and Great Britain, ending the Opium War but also greatly restricting Chinese control over their own trade with western countries
Maxim Gun
first fully automatic machine gun; item of technology that helped Europeans conquer Africa
Quinine
a drug used for fighting malaria and other fevers, enabled imperialism into the interior of Africa
Spheres of Influence in China
an area where a foreign nation controlled economic developments such as trade, railroad construction, and mining
Settler Colonies
Colonies, such as those in South Africa, New Zealand, Algeria, Kenya, and Hawaii, where European populations with their families established farms and towns with the intent to start new lives
Xhosa Cattle Killing Movement
Anti-imperialist movement that broke the back of the Xhosa and ushered in a new era of colonial expansion and domination of South Africa by the British. The prophecy was that killing all cattle would bring back ancient chiefs and ancestors to help end imp
Cherokee
In response to the rapid expansion by the United States, this native tribal group formed a national government, sought to modernize their society, but were forcibly relocated in the 1830s.
Manifest Destiny
A notion held by a nineteenth-century Americans that the United States was destined to rule the continent, from the Atlantic the Pacific, resulting in Westward expansion
White Man's Burden
idea that many European countries had a duty to spread their religion and culture to those "less civilized
Pan-Asianism
Concept to unite all Asian peoples in order to repel the influence of Western imperialism. Japanese used this ideology as the basis for their imperialism in East Asia
King Leopold II
King of Belgium (r. 1865-1909). He was active in encouraging the exploration of Central Africa and became the infamous ruler of the Congo Free State (to 1908) until the Belgian government took control due to his abuse of the people in the colony
rubber
key commodity desired for factory-production, harvested in Belgian Congo
Boers
Dutch settlers in South Africa
Ghost Dance Movement
An effort of Native Americans to resist US domination and drive whites from their ancestral lands, came through as a religious movement.