introduction
The term imperialism is majorly applied when referring to alien management of assets and decisions as well as in certain areas where control is there as a fact but not as a law. There is a wide and extensive history of rulers that applied force to advance their fiscal and military ability through the acquisition of territory, subjects or accolade from their neighbors. The literature on “Imperialism of Free Trade” is mainly concerned with the economic expansion of Europe and the impact of this expansion. What impact did free trade imperialism have on the society in the nineteenth century?
The theory of free-trade imperialism was advanced in the time of decolonization which took place prior the Second World War with a keen look into the nineteenth century Europe. Emphasis was placed on Britain and imperialism. The British imperialism was advanced basically on the desire of acquiring trade and managing markets as opposed to managing regions. The coming into being of free trade saw the end of old colonial systems. This period experienced the middle class rising to wealthy status by revolution of the growing industrialism dogged to change their management of new productive powers to better political strength in the state and later to advance their control to other parts of the world.
According to Professor Semmel the rise of imperialism in trade was supported by economists and politicians as a basis of international division of labor which would make it possible for Great Britain to preserve its industrial domination (Semmel Feb 5, 2004). The beginning of free trade and imperialism was getting noticed in the 1830s. It was up to this time that British as well as other European states had advanced their commercial interests in China. The most profitable venture was the buying of and sale of Opium. The British Company nurtured Opium and sold to China and engaged in trade with other goods like silk or tea. The import after being banned, it later was allowed hence creating new ports for the British business people.
The coming into being of the Manchester school of free trade led to political and economic influence in Britain. Upheld by organization owners, in addition to the working class, the people who followed this method of free trade laid significance on the benefits of exports as well as the requirement of the government to put in place actions to eliminate external hindrances to goods owned by the British. Free trade was acknowledged as a way of developing the state as well as a mode of advancing universal values.
Gallagher and Robinson focused on the belief by the mid-Victorian anti-imperialism to the historical belief that statesmen and officials did not trust the expansion process and were in contrast to the empire present. Acquiring instances from the formal and informal empires, Gallagher and Robinson stated that the mid-Victorian periods were at the most critical stage of decision making in the history of British growth in other countries. The British governments, just like in the new imperialism, displayed the desire put in place and maintain British paramount using all of their ability. The main objective of being paramount was to offer security to the British trade and investment. In such a case, the government was willing to annex and create a formal management overseas.
The economics of imperialism is composed of two sections of material interest. There are first the special interests like the financiers, the munitions, the exports trade and delivery of their products by ship to the imperial markets and territorial expansion. Expansion is hence greatly acknowledged and takes up. The second one and quite important is the financial benefit of imperialism, a combination of limited consumption and excess saving. In most of the societies of the capitalist orientation, the people who are rich are quite limited while the poor ones are in excess. The poor take in what they get and do not have enough money to keep up their effective demand for the products in the prevailing industry. The rich on the other hand save a lot of their acquisition and are unable to take in what they create. In the instance where consumption is not fitting, the savings made by the rich persons has no ability to be taken in domestically (Robinson May 26, 1995). The economy hence has to engage in trade by exporting goods, and more so capital, so that the rich can be able to acquire profit from the present and coming investments. These investors require a channel path for purpose of investment in well managed regions where the investor has the ability optimum rates of return and stay in a good position to repatriate revenue. With the high desire to invest, these investors are categorized as being the financiers whom without imperialism, capitalism would definitely fail to materialize due to unequal allocation.
John Gallagher and Ronald Robinson put forward that the middle of the nineteenth century was not a time that was quite in contrast to the British Empire; rather it was amongst the biggest expansion and effective exploitation of the empire formally and informally in regions like India, Latin America and Canada (Gallagher and Robinson Vol. 6, No. 1 1953). What was clear, like in the anti-imperialism regions, was the lack of significant continuity of policies in the Victorian period. With the coming up of the British industry, new demands on the British policy were created. It required the connection of undeveloped regions with the British foreign trade. In the formal and informal centers of mid-Victorian time, there were stringent strategies to open continental interiors, grow the British impact inland from the ports and advance the hinterlands. The main aim of this advancement was to change these places into harmonized satellite economies that offered raw materials and food for Great Britain as well as create widening markets for the processors. Apart from the mid-Victorian period being a contrasting period, it also was a decisive phase in the history of British growth in the foreign countries, in that the integration of technological innovation, commercial penetration and political impact made it possible for Great Britain to have authority over the economies.
As a good example, Gallagher and Robinson used India where as opposed to being evacuated; it was undertaken through concentrated advancement using the most mercantilist lines (Harnetty 1972). The features of the Imperialist growth as the nineteenth century was coming to a close brought about economic imperialism. There was direct governmental advertising of products needed by the British industry, governmental management of tariffs to assist Britain exports, railway construction at optimum and guaranteed rates of interest to avail the continental interior.
Free trade imperialism, as put forward by Richard Cobden who acquired a very wealthy life through it in addition to advocating for it, held a rigid belief that free trade would lead to peace as well as elevate the social status of England’s poor class. As a result, Cobden led activities to encourage free trade in England. As a consequent, London more so advanced plans to acquire reciprocal policies. Cobden led a revocation of the protectionist law which led to the growth of the popularity of free trade aspects. This led to the removal of tariffs this resulted into affordable consumer prices for the clients in the lower classes. The impact led to extensive support for the free trade. This led to later governments to embrace open markets for British goods. This however laid significance to the trades that held advantages to England.
The period of imperialism in the free trade brought about the genuine commitment of the nineteenth century British politicians as well as their reluctance to give a chance to them to become involved in other parts of the world. It was this form of change that played significance in the British imperial policy and allow for new form of imperialism. The thought of free trade being imperialistic let to the view by Hobson that for one to become an imperialist he or she has to become a protectionist. The form of imperialism brought out by Bauer and Hilferding in the beginning of the century; characterized by monopoly capitalism, was ruled by huge industrial cartels which were reliant on tariff walls, that played a bigger part in these cartels. It was the protectionism form that made it possible to encourage selfish entrepreneurs to make good companion with the pre-capitalists as well as the military individuals brought about by atavistic tribal impulses in creating the new imperialism.
In the period of free trade and imperialism which was from the 80s, brought with it an integrated competition from Europe and the US. This brought about most people in the business class to reevaluate their positions concerning the empire. Consequently, there was an elevated form of assistance for a certain level of continued involvement as well as expansion of the empire. A way of minimizing losses and at the same time keeping the imperial empires was made possible through dominance and contrasting levels of self-government.
The aspect of having a free trade and imperialism, it represented an assurance of growth as well as prosperity. The trading system was seen as having a basis on the Corn Laws and commercial restrictions as a way of offering some form of respite and assisting to acquire a speedy form of industrialization. This form of industrialization could not be acquired through free trade alone. Success would similarly be made with the involvement of colonization. This was viewed as being able to bring about social calm. Though with some rejection from some scholars, the colonies would offer better sites for investment of the excess capital that England had as well as act as, act as markets for Britain’s surplus processed products.
As time went by, there was a more complicated form of free trade imperialism known as Neo-imperialism. The techniques and approaches put in place by the postcolonial powers reflected the methods applied by the British in the nineteenth century. The British was able to acquire one billion pounds as investment from the Latin Americans considering that they still had they had little form of presence in the regions (Rowe Jul 6, 2000). This showed a sense of good investment brought about by imperialism. The British similarly political and military intercession to uphold client regimes as it was so in Guatemala and Colombia. The British was also able to acquire commercial concessions through connections of recognition of colonies using trade treaties. Consequently, the British acquisition of new colonies in varied places of the world like Africa brought about commercial clauses which created markets to the British merchants for instance in the Anglo-Congo Arrangement or Anglo-German treaties.
Conclusion
Free trade imperialism in the nineteenth century laid its consideration on commercial dominance as opposed to colonization and regional growth. As time went by, there came the application of force to make the undeveloped or weak states to allow access to the British markets and other stronger markets. This led to the coming into being of an economic control that ended colonization though hindered the freedom of the weak states. Free trade imperialism was applied by several states but more so the British and so Latin America and Asia.
Bibliography
Gallagher, John, and Ronald Robinson. “The Imperialism of Free Trade.” The Economic History Review, Vol. 6, No. 1 (1953): 1-15.
Harnetty, Peter. Imperialism and free trade: Lancashire and India in the mid-nineteenth century. Manchester, England: Manchester University Press ND, 1972.
Robinson, Forrest Glen. The Cambridge Companion to Mark Twain. New York: Cambridge University Press, May 26, 1995.
Rowe, John Carlos. Literary culture and U.S. imperialism: from the Revolution to World War II. New York: Oxford University Press, Jul 6, 2000.
Semmel, Bernard. The Rise of Free Trade Imperialism: Classical Political Economy the Empire of Free Trade and Imperialism 1750-1850. New York: Cambridge University Press, Feb 5, 2004.
