Imperialism and Its History

597 Words2 Pages

Do you know where the country of Castile and Aragon are located on a map? You won’t be finding them on any maps made the past few centuries. In the sixteenth century the rulers of Castile and Aragon formed a union that would eventually become the country of Spain.
Imperialism is the act of expanding the borders of a country. This can be done through colonies, conquering (aggressive expansion), and diplomacy such as royal marriages. It has been a greatly debated topic if one country has the morale and legal right to conquer another. At a glance, especially in today’s age, imperialism is a negative and cruel act. While some aspects are cruel, both parties can benefit.
When a country is more technologically advanced, they will have stronger armies. The winner of a war is therefore the stronger nation so they are bringing their power to the conquered nation. This allows them to research and discover more complex and helpful things in this world. Even in today’s humanitarian age imperialism still occurs even in the U.S.A. The territory of Puerto Rico and Hawaii were examples of both aggressive (soldiers) and diplomatic imperialism.
Hawaii was, in a way, conquered by the U.S. military. Hawaii used to be a monarch meaning they had a king and queen. In the late 1800’s Hawaii was experiencing a depression, and farmers began to revolt. They received support from the U.S. and the Queen of Hawaii, Liliuokalani, surrendered peacefully. No bullets were fired by the American soldiers.
Sugar was the main economic force for Hawaii, and the U.S. was its main trading power. In 1890 Congress enacted a tariff on imports including sugar which seriously injured the Hawaiian economy and drove them into a depression. The farmers realized...

... middle of paper ...

...probably be absorbed. Diplomatic imperialism will continue throughout the future, but aggressive imperialism is going extinct. Imperialism will only bring good to the future as they bring technology and a larger access to resources to the disadvantaged countries.

Works Cited

"Heart of Darkness By Joseph Conrad Book Summary." Book Summary. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Dec. 2013.

Baldwin, Scott. "Silvapages." Imperialism in Africa:. IBATPV, n.d. Web. 13 Dec. 2013.

"1750-1914 - Imperialism in Africa." 1750-1914 - Imperialism in Africa. New Cannon School, n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2013.

"Effects of The European Imperialism In Africa « Humanities II – World History." Humanities II World History Effects of The European Imperialism In Africa Comments. Northfield Mount Hermon, n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2013

"Imperialism & Colonialism." Imperialism & Colonialism. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2013.

More about Imperialism and Its History

Open Document