Colonialism

Conceptual Overview and Discussion

Colonial rule is usually long distance; it involves the imposition of political control by one country over another separate territory. Colonialism is closely related to the word imperialism, which describes the domination by one people or state (or a group of them) over others in a manner advantageous to the former and usually at the expense of the latter. But the two are to be distinguished. Colonialism is only one form imperialism might [Page 166]take. Imperialism can take various forms of indirect control or domination without colonies. The concept of imperialism also implies international politics where great powers exert control over weaker states and/or manipulate colonies as part of international power struggles.

Empire-building through colonial expansion has a long history, dating back to ancient times; an example is the Roman Empire. Before the 16th century, the main type of empire was a land-based empire that grew through the acquisition of territories by expansion over land. This kind of empire was created by various people in different parts of the world. Seaborne colonial empires, by contrast, are more recent. They emerged in the 16th century and lasted until the mid-20th century. They are created through the acquisition of colonies overseas, and they span the oceans.

Most of the overseas empires of the past 500 years were European. A number of writers argue that European colonialism was different from the creation of empires in earlier times in terms of motives, main agents, and outcomes. It was connected to the rise of capitalism, which originated in Europe. Some scholars also distinguish different stages of European colonialism and relate these stages to the development of capitalism. The main distinction made is between the last great wave of colonial expansion in the late 19th century and the colonialism of the previous two centuries.

The colonialism of the late 19th century was the child of industrial capitalism and intensified competition between rival industrialized capitalist states. It differed from its precursors in significant ways, including the type and volume of overseas investment, new markets for industrial goods, the kinds of raw materials and infrastructure demanded by industrializing European economies, and the increased intervention of states in their national economies and its impact on the form of colonial rule. The relationship between colonialism and capitalism has been the subject of voluminous research. Some scholars dispute the distinctiveness of the colonialism of the late 19th century, arguing that it was not qualitatively different from the colonialism of previous eras.

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