What Was The Reason For European Imperialism In Nigeria
“‘I shall of course go on walloping them until they surrender. It’s a rather piteous sight watching a village being knocked to pieces and I wish there was some other way, but unfortunately there isn’t”’ (886) remarked a British officer. The British were on the verge of controlling Northern Nigeria, wanting the resources and land it had to offer. They destroyed any villages that didn’t cooperate, suggesting that Europe’s imperialism was fueled by the population growth of the Industrial Revolution, which lead to a desire for more land, justified by nationalism, civic mission, and scientific racism.
Nationalism fueled imperialism, as it caused people to want their countries to be the best, and surpass other countries. They did that by expediting …show more content…
However, they felt the need to justify their colonizations through the belief that they were the superior race, and needed to help the inferior races. Because of the Industrial Revolution and the growing populations, Europeans needed to expand on to more land. “‘Superior races have a right, because they have a duty… They have the duty to civilize the inferior races’ That ‘civilizing mission’ included bringing Christianity to the heathen, good government to the disordered lands,... a measure of education to the ignorant and illiterate… In European thinking, this was “progress” and “civilization” (884). Europeans felt that it was their duty to help natives, this included teaching them about religion, helping with their government, and educating them to a certain degree. The colonized nations could then help the Europeans in economy and supply people to work in the factories. Colonizing other countries significantly helped the Europeans as it allowed them access to resources and a steady supply of natives that could work the jobs no Europeans wanted to work. The Europeans felt as though they were obliged to help people who were far less advanced catch up to the rest of the world. This led to the Europeans thinking that they were better than these “inferior” people, and they tried to prove their
Nationalism fueled imperialism, as it caused people to want their countries to be the best, and surpass other countries. They did that by expediting …show more content…
However, they felt the need to justify their colonizations through the belief that they were the superior race, and needed to help the inferior races. Because of the Industrial Revolution and the growing populations, Europeans needed to expand on to more land. “‘Superior races have a right, because they have a duty… They have the duty to civilize the inferior races’ That ‘civilizing mission’ included bringing Christianity to the heathen, good government to the disordered lands,... a measure of education to the ignorant and illiterate… In European thinking, this was “progress” and “civilization” (884). Europeans felt that it was their duty to help natives, this included teaching them about religion, helping with their government, and educating them to a certain degree. The colonized nations could then help the Europeans in economy and supply people to work in the factories. Colonizing other countries significantly helped the Europeans as it allowed them access to resources and a steady supply of natives that could work the jobs no Europeans wanted to work. The Europeans felt as though they were obliged to help people who were far less advanced catch up to the rest of the world. This led to the Europeans thinking that they were better than these “inferior” people, and they tried to prove their