Pros And Cons Of Imperialism

Words: 493
Pages: 2

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines imperialism as, “A policy or practice by which a country increases its power by gaining control over other areas of the world.” Basically it means that imperialism is the subjugation of one country under another, more powerful country. Generally the dominating country controls either the natural resources, economy, or military power of the other country, although sometimes all three.
At the beginning of the 20th century, there were many imperial powers in decline, although some persisted through to the late 20th century. The few that were left still fairly powerful were the British, French, Russian, and Ottoman Empires. The advantages of a strong empire for the lead country were many. The subjugating
…show more content…
While the pros were that your economy was stronger and your military as well, at any point you were subject to the whim of another country. A case for this is when in the late 19th century and early 20th century the various conflicts in the Balkan states under Ottoman control eventually led to the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire. The Turkish Sultan had enough military power to sweep through the Balkans at any moment and destroy complete villages if he wished. So while there was some autonomy under Ottoman rule, it could be revoked at any …show more content…
While at the end of the 19th century, European imperial powers were scrambling for parts of Africa, once the 20th century began they were able to look rather closer to home. The collapse of the control the Ottoman Empire had over the Balkan States made for an appealing piece of territory to gain influence and control in. Russia especially, being that their empire was one of the closest, was headed straight for the area as though drawn by a magnet. If the Ottoman Empire had not lost control of the Balkans it’s possible that tensions would not have been as high by the time the Serbian nationalists assassinated Franz Ferdinand and the war, which would like have still happened, might not have included so many