Abstract
Colonisation was a time of remarkable prosperity for European colonial powers. It allowed for new trade routes to develop, benefiting communities across the globe, but primarily, it boosted the economies of European colonial states themselves. Colonisation was not without impact on the development of local economies, too. The clash between the European and native civilisations, the introduction of new technologies, enslavement and transfer of workforce were only a few of the factors influencing the development of colonies. Therefore the statement, that colonisation was economically detrimental to the colonies is at least, doubtful.
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The first expedition across the Atlantic – Columbus’ journey in 1492, resulted in the discovery of the New World, rich with resources and undeveloped land. This finding was a breakthrough. Soon many European powers embraced that economic incentive and began to launch expeditions into the unknown. European states started to become truly global by establishing colonies around the world, reinforcing globalisation. One of the main reasons for such expansions was the hope of enriching European economies by expanding trade and acquiring land and resources. Colonisation became the base of economic development of the European powers in the centuries to follow. In order to understand how the wealth was obtained, it is important to outline key locations of colonisation, which I will do in the first part of this essay. In what follows, I will answer the question of why exactly it was economically advantageous for Europeans to colonise the world. In subsequent paragraphs, I will examine each economic factor separately in order to truly acknowledge its pecuniary value to the people at that time. Lastly, I will discuss and determine whether the colonised world was economically disadvantaged by European metropolitan powers.
Colonisation of the world progressed with new journeys across the oceans, bringing discoveries of uncharted lands. By the 17th century, the Spanish and Portuguese have seized most of the South and Central Americas, whereas the British and French at first, colonised mostly North America. Asia was also colonised, e.g. the Spanish established their presence in the Philippines, the Netherlands founded the Dutch East India Company with numerous settlements in Southeast Asia. The British dominated the Indian subcontinent and reached as far as New Zealand and Australia. Africa, although initially colonised by Europeans and Arabs, has seen an increasing number of new colonies when the slave trade expanded in the first quarter of the 16th century. In the following decades, Europeans began to extend their influence further inland and thereby entrench their presence in Africa as colonial super-powers, which subsequently led to the ‘Scramble of Africa’ (Outram, Q. 2019).
Stimulated by the flourishing trade, the eraof colonisation and imperialism was a time of great prosperity for European metropolitan powers. Expansion enabled states to acquire new land and obtain newly discovered wealth from it. The world trade resulting from that, was thriving. European colonial states were affluent with textiles, food, spices, other commodities, and slaves. As a result, the Old World became truly prosperous. The riches could be invested in other industries in Europe, such as coal mining or banking, providing long term economic benefits (International Slavery Museum, 2019). It was highly lucrative and economically advantageous for European states to have colonies.
Another economic advantage to colonisation is that it allowed European states to take possession of new land (often occupied by native populations). In North America, vast territories were bought from Indians cheaply (Outram, Q. 2018). This land served as a setting to build new cities, harbours, develop agriculture and acquire minerals, and other resources. Colonisers established cities in places where it was most economically advantageous, for example on the coast or around mining areas. In this way, urban areas allowed for trade to prosper and fostered economic growth, consequently providing more wealth for the Europeans. That is how the cities of Buenos Aires, Accra, Guayaquil and numerous others around the world developed (Outram, Q. 2019). For instance, the capital of Paraguay – Asuncion was founded by Juan de Salazar de Espinosa in 1537, as a Spanish fort on the Paraguay River, downstream of the mining region of Upper Peru (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2019). With the passing of time, colonies grew and their land increased in value. Therefore, obtaining new territories was a long-term real estate investment. As new colonies spread across the world, their European „owners” grew not only economically, but also politically. Having colonies allowed the European metropolitan powers to control more areas. As a result, their political influence expanded across the globe.
Another main economic advantage of colonisation were the resources that could be extracted from newly settled areas. Europeans colonised many territories with deposits of valuable metals in particular gold and silver, which could be found in the Americas, Africa (Gold Coast) and Australasia (Outram, Q. 2019). After stealing most of the riches from the native American civilisations, Europeans started searching for wealth (minerals, precious metals) underneath the ground. Every discovery of a new region abundant with resources, caused thousands of people to migrate both voluntarily and involuntarily. Multiple cities and regions which became large economic centres had their beginning in such circumstances. For example, the mining regions of Minas Gerais in Brazil have seen a massive population influx in the late 17th century with the discovery of gold deposits (Skidmore, T. 2010). Similarly, both the discovery of silver in Chile in the 19th century and the gold rush in Victoria, Australia, also attracted new populations (Leslie, P. 1949). Such enterprises brought enormous profits for Europeans.
The transfer of acquired goods to Europe was possible thanks to economies of scale. Large ships were capable of transferring huge amounts of these riches into the Old World. As a side effect, especially within the area of the ‘Spanish Main’ – the region with numerous Spanish colonies in Central America, soon became hunting grounds for pirates (Outram, Q. 2019).Along with the rules of economy, the influx of great amounts of valuable metals to Europe, caused inflation. It spread from Spain across western Europe in the 16th century reaching the rate of 1% to 1,5%, which by modern standards is hardly noticeable, however, in the contemporary economy it did cause significant price increases (Fisher D, 1989). In spite of that, Europeans generally profited from colonisation and their economies were still mostly growing.
As mentioned before, access to cheap labour was a very important factor in colonisation and its economic consequences. Not only did Europeans exploit native populations in their colonies, but when the demand for workforce increased, slaves were brought from Africa both to Europe and to America. At that time, profits from colonies were partially dependent on the slave workforce in agriculture, mining and production (Mannix, P.D, 1962). In order to access cheap labour, numerous new settlements were founded across the Atlantic coast of Africa. This region was the main place for Europeans to buy slaves who would then be transferred mostly to western colonies in the Americas and forced to work there. Despite negligent treatment, slaves were a valued workforce and only a few of them worked in truly dreadful conditions, like mines. Many African slaves did instead work in mints, producing coins(Restall, M. and Lane, K. 2011, p. 139-160). The number of slaves exported to the Americas in the 16th century oscillates around 2,750,000 (Mannix Pratt, D. 1962 p. 17-32).
Dueto exploiting native and slave populations, Europeans could produce cheap goods and stimulate economic growth at home. However, slaves did show resistance against serfdom and sometimes deadly conflicts emerged. Slave revolts were not uncommon, with one group of slaves particularly distinctive in this regard – Comorantine Negroes. They were known to have rebelled and committed manslaughter(Mannix Pratt D, 1962). In the late colonial period, Europeans started to acknowledge the ethical aspects of labour exploitation and moved away from slavery. The trend began in the British empire in the late 18th century, when people started campaigning for the abolition of slavery.
The answer to the question of whether colonisation was economically detrimental to the colonies can be two-fold. On one hand,when Europeans arrived at their colonies they damaged the native populations by killing and exploiting them. On the other hand, Europeans encouraged trade, founded cities, and brought new innovations, which fostered economic growth. The development of colonies was also dependent on factors, like topography, population density and nature of political and economic institutions controlling the colonies. In the following centuries, some colonies developed into economically advanced countries, e.g. USA, New Zealand or Australia, which evolved better than other colonised states in Latin America or Africa (Engerman, S. and Sokoloff, K. 2012, p. 1-16).
When the colonial powers first arrived in the Americas, they encountered numerous native populations. These were soon to be decimated by Europeans through diseases, enslavement, displacement and violence. Therefore civilisations in the Americas, like the Incas, Aztecs and countless other Indian communities, suffered greatly. Colonisers robbed local communities by taking their wealth, exploited and exterminated the locals and brought with them lethal germs(Restall, M. and Lane, K. 2011). Diseases such as smallpox, influenza or measles transferred to the Americas, made the number of native population plummet from 50 million to around 5 million, creating ostensibly one of the most disastrous epidemics humanity had ever faced (Restall, M. and Lane, K. 2011, pp. 60-62). This tells us that societies inhabiting European colonies were disadvantaged, creating little hope for the economic development of native populations.
Colonisation was a system in which any profits gathered were being transferred to the ‘mother country’. In most colonies, surplus created by local populations was thus taken to supplement the imperial, metropolitan sector. Europeans contributed to the process of underdevelopment of Africa by taking away its surplus. Since labour was very cheap, colonisers exploited native inhabitants, and employed workers for a wage that barely allowed them to live (Rodney W. 1972, pp. 162-165). This demonstrates that African populations, not only slaves, were much worse off, and as a result, it was economically damaging for their communities.
On the contrary, while the slave trade undoubtedly was a morally deplorable practice, the economic upshot for Africa was in a way propitious. Ultimately, selling serfs as workers was a way in which the African economy made a profit. According to Rodney (1972) certain African kingdoms, like Dahomey, Asante and Benin benefited politically and economically from trade with Europeans. Additionally, taking away numerous slaves from Africa contributed to lowering starvation rates on the continent. Moreover, cassava and maize imported from America became new staple foods in Africa (Rodney W. 1972, pp. 110-112). Another example of benefits to colonies is the construction of a railway system in India, by the British, that began in 1853 with the opening of Bombay to Thane scheduled railway connection (Irfca, 2010). These arguments show that colonisation could be regarded as potentially beneficial to the colonised economies.
In spite of slavery, destruction and exploitation Europeans encouraged trade in their colonies, which allowed local communities to gain profit. What is more, they introduced technology and innovations, which helped native civilisations. Had colonisation not happened, economies of the Americas, Africa, Asia or Australia could not have developed in the same way. Of the colonies, a handful have advanced into truly prosperous states, indicating that colonisation was not a limiting factor in their development. Economic growth depends on multiple factors, of which colonisation is one. One could argue that the annihilation of most native civilisations and societies was a price to pay for prospective future development. Therefore, colonisation was not an entirely detrimental factor to the development of colonised economies.
Colonisation had a momentous impact on European economies for the reasons listed above. Expanding trade, acquiring valuable resources and free land and using inexpensive workforce all added to the success. Valuable metals could be extracted from newly discovered lands, stimulating economic growth. Native and migrated populations represented a supply of cheap labour working in numerous colonial industries. Thanks to the wealth acquired from their colonies, Europeans could invest in different industries and further develop their economies, as well as gain global influence. For the colonies, the destructive actions of European powers posed a foundation for future development. For this reason, I would argue that colonisation was not economically detrimental to the colonies, however, I feel the need to separate the purely economic view from a moral or ethical one.
References:
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Leslie, P. 1949. Looking Back to Our Golden Past. The Argus Week-end Magazine (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 – 1957). p. 8
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