European Imperialism In Italy

“I affirm that the fundamental, if not the absolutely essential datum for the political, and therefore the economical and moral power of nations is their ability to increase their population. Let us speak quite clearly. What are 40,000,000 Italians compared to 90,000,000 Germans and 200,000,000 Slavs? Let us town toward the West. What are 40,000,000 Italians compared to 40,000,000 Frenchmen plus 90,000,000 inhabitants of France’s colonies, or compared to 46,000,000 Englishmen plus 450,000,000 who live in England’s colonies? Gentlemen, if Italy is to amount to anything, it must enter into the second half of this century with a population of at least 60,000,000 inhabitants… If we decrease in numbers, gentlemen, we will never create an empire

The British took provisional control over India by means of the British East Indian Company as early as 1763 at the cease of the 7 Year’s War, but even that was not the beginning of the true age of European Imperialization. The age of absolute European control over subservient nation-colonies began when the Sepoys (Indian soldiers) rebelled against the British in 1857. The cause of the rebellion is noteworthy. The soldiers were disquieted by the fact that the cartridges they were being forced to use by the British overseers included a type of grease that was produced from beef. Being forced to bite through the cartridges in order to load their weapons, this was a dietary offense to Hindus – but not Christians. This cultural difference should have been an early indicator of problems to come, but it was not heeded. The rebellion was put down, and the British government took total control of India, disposing of the former British East India

Moreso was the ideology ruling Europe itself. One key idea was Social Darwinism – a proposition of Herbert Spencer that posited that some groups of humans were more advanced than others (whites more than blacks) and as such the whites were just in subjugating the blacks in a case of survival of the fittest. Another prominent motivation was the need for cheap labor and raw materials to keep the booming economy and production abroad afloat. All of which contribute to the ultimate goal of being a world superpower. Every nation in Europe wanted to be a superpower, and all of the respective nations recognized that this endeavor would require a massively powerful navy. Not only that, but it would require that the naval bases available be placed strategically, periodically, and regularly around the whole planet, as to provide a resting port for soldiers and a fueling station for ships. The undeniable lust for social prominence is recorded by the 19th Century German historian Heinrich von Treiscke when he says, “Every virile people has established colonial power. All great nations in the fullness of their strength have desired to set their mark upon barbarian lands and those who fail to participate in this great rivalry will play a pitiable role in time to