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Was late Victorian Imperialism purely economic in character?
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| Submitted: Thu Dec 11 2003
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Was late Victorian Imperialism purely economic in character? In 1870 Britain held only a few settlements in Africa, which were little more than trading stations along the path to India; neither Gladstone nor Disraeli envisaged further expansion however by 1890 Africa was firmly established into the British Empire under formal control. Why did Britain sit at the head of a vast African empire over which it had claimed it had no desire? After 1870 the expansion of empire increased dramatically. Britain raced against the other European powers to acquire vast areas of land through formal annexation. Many historians including Cain and Hoppen agree with the theory of 'new imperialism' as opposed to Robinson and Gallagher's continuity theory of empire. They saw that 'suddenly and almost simultaneously between 1870 and 1900, the states of Europe began to extend their control over vast areas of the world' (Wright) this was viewed as an increasing...
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