Imperialism

1. Imperialism Emerging as a World Power

2. What is Imperialism? • A policy in which a strong nation has political, economic or military dominance of a weaker nation • The United States began following the lead of European countries who had added to their colonies and Asia and Africa during the early 1900s

3. Colonies mean power and money • The imperial country could remove raw materials from the colony and ship them to the home country • This was especially important for countries that were not rich in raw materials like Japan and European countries

4. Excess of Goods • The United States was not short of raw materials but had a surplus of goods and wanted to expand the market overseas “Today we are raising more [crops] than we can consume. Today we are making more than we can use…we must find new markets…” Senator Albert Beveridge

5. Military Strength • Alfred T. Mahan was a military historian and a Naval officer. He believed that in order for the U.S. to become a world power, the country had to have a strong Navy • He also believed in the need to have foreign bases for refueling purposes • By 1900, the U.S. had the 3rd largest Navy and had modernized its Navy

6. Social Darwinism • Imperialists used the idea of Social Darwinism (belief that life consists of struggles in which the strong survive) to justify imperialism • This idea also held that certain races and nations were superior to others and were destined to rule inferior cultures and peoples • The idea of Manifest Destiny was tied to the popularity of Social Darwinism

7. Opening Up the World • Before the Civil War, Japan had opened its trade ports to the United States—not something it had done with anyone else • The U.S. then took control of the Midway Islands and increased trade with Hawaii and received permission to construct a naval base at Pearl Harbor • William Seward (Sec. of State) bought Alaska from Russia and Seward’s Folly turned out to be rich in natural resources including oil and timber • Gold was even found in Alaska