Imperialism and the Path to the First World War

The Process of Colonial Settlement

Until 1870, settlement responded to private initiatives that acted ahead of the state. These came primarily from:

• Geographical Societies: Scientifically examined geographical societies became centers of propaganda and ideology, preparing colonization routes. The most significant were concentrated in Africa and were related to the natural sciences and anthropology, such as the search for the sources of the Nile and the exploration of the Niger and Congo rivers (Livingstone).
• Missionary Activity: Missionaries followed the explorers. Catholics vied with Protestants, causing a great impact on indigenous populations. They taught new farming methods and health techniques, although they also tried to Westernize them. Governments took advantage of this influence.
• Private Initiatives: Established businesses sought treaties with indigenous territories, which offered barely any counterpart.

These tracks were a peaceful conquest method at first and were the primary means for the formation of colonial empires. As the technical and military superiority of the colonizers made conquest easy enough, it also involved ethnic and tribal factors.

Consequences of Imperialism

Economic Consequences

Exploitation of mineral and agricultural resources of the colonies and their deindustrialization for the benefit of the metropolis generated an unequal situation of underdevelopment in the colonies and economic growth for the imperialist powers, which has still not passed even after independence.

Social Consequences

• Cleavage of indigenous tribal structures following the imposition of the European urban model.
• Social exclusion, racial segregation, and even genocide of indigenous peoples.
• Explosion of the local population due to new medical advances; not being accompanied by parallel economic growth, this caused the spread of hunger.

Political Consequences

• Loss of political independence and submission to European colonial authorities.
• Imposition on subject nations.
• Control of international rivalry through the creation of many colonies and a system of military alliances that led to the First World War (1914-1918).

Cultural Consequences

Loss of cultural identity of indigenous people due to the imposition of the European cultural model.

Background of the First World War

The Moroccan Crisis

The Germans opposed a French protectorate in Morocco:

First Crisis (1905)

William II landed at Tangier and was appointed defender of Morocco, creating a diplomatic conflict. The solutions were reached at the Algeciras Conference of 1906:

• Spanish possessions in the Rif.
• French Protectorate in Morocco.

Second Crisis

German landing in Agadir to force pro-German trade agreements (obtaining extended territories in central Africa at the expense of the French Congo). This resulted in the strengthening of the Anglo-French alliance against Germany.