19th Century European Imperialism: An Analysis

Words: 524
Pages: 3

In the 19th century European colonization had begun in Africa. Two of the largest European colonial powers were France and Britain. “Europe justified its colonization of Africa on grounds that it was its moral duty to uplift Africans from their primitive state.” (Graham, 2013, p.106) These European colonial powers believed that they were trying to ‘civilize’ the people of Africa. They believed it was their “Manifest Destiny” to take over Africa.” (Graham, 2013, p.106) They had these motives because they wanted to transform Africa’s education systems, religion systems, status, economic structure, political structure, and overall, the continent as a whole. France and Britain’s motives were deeply rooted in their own desire for economic and political gain for their own country. Imperialism is the concept of outspreading a country's power and influence upon another country. France and Britain tried to expand their political growth by overpowering Africa. They ultimately desired power and especially wanted certain locations in Africa as their own that would help them …show more content…
The first being an opportunity for new markets. They had an excess amount of manufactured goods caused by the Industrial Revolution and these new markets created in Africa would help and be a solution to their problem. The second reason was the raw material supply was becoming threatened. France and Britain saw Africa as a potential source of raw materials. Especially with Africa’s abundance of cotton, coffee, and cocoa. France and Britain also set up trade systems within Africa to other countries in Europe to further help their own economic success. Lastly, they saw opportunities in expanding and investing in Africa’s hopefully new-found wealth. Meaning, European countries could eventually invest in their surplus of goods and capita. As well as now the Europeans could get cheaper labor in