Japanese and Briton imperism compared

Essay by SteamboatHigh School, 10th grade June 2005

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Imperialism

What exactly is Imperialism? Imperialism is the policy or action by which one country owns another country or territory. Most such control is achieved by military means to gain economic and political advantages. Such an action is also called "expansionism". An expansionist state that obtains overseas territories follows a policy known as colonialism. Imperialism was based off of colonialism. An imperialist government wishes to obtain new markets, and new sources for new materials. Britan and Japan are two such states that once practiced imperialism.

Britans case resides in India. In the 19th century, Great Britan had started its occupation of India. Using strict military rule, it exploited India's resources and it's people to use as labor. It was able to justify this for a few reasons.

Many theories attempt to explain the motives for Imperialism. One of the theories focuses on profit as the main reason for a nation to expand.

Industrialized nations can produce more manufactured goods that their citizens need and can afford to buy. Colonies may provide serve as a market for the unused goods. They provide cheap land and valuable resources. However, this theory does not really explain imperialism because not all colonies were not profitable. Another important motive was Military strategy. Long before this, nations have conquered territory near their border to protect themselves from attacks. In the late 1800's, many European countries (such as England) had colonies throughout the world where their ships could take on supplies. Also, Imperialism can be encouraged by patriotism, religion, and a sense of cultural or racial superiority (The White Man's Burden). During the 1800's, a strong feeling of nationalism swept most European countries. Many people believed that their nation's greatness depended on the size of its territory. They encouraged expansion. In addition, many Europeans considered the people...