Colonial power

A country becomes a colonial power when it rules over colonies , i.e. governs regions outside of its national borders. Colonial power can only be a territorial state . Countries in which rule over the allegiance system is exercised, however, have no colonies, but at most tribute countries (see also satellite state = vassal state).

In the history

Antiquity

The Greeks and Phoenicians founded numerous planting cities on the Mediterranean and the Black Sea ( Greek colonization ). The Roman Empire , which is also a classic example of a world empire, is considered to be the first colonial power in history .

middle Ages

The medieval city republics of Genoa and Venice also had an extensive trading empire with bases in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea ( Genoese colonies , Venetian colonies ). Norway had a colonial-like empire in the British Isles , Greenland , Iceland and the Faroe Islands ( Norwegian possessions ).

Modern times

Colonial empires at the beginning of the imperial century around 1812

Colonies of Great Britain, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Portugal and Denmark at the end of the 19th century

The colonies after the end of the Second World War

Modern times began around the year 1500 . After the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus in 1492 , an era of colonialism began that ended in the 20th century.

As imperialism is defined as a period of (especially by European large and medium powers operated) global expansion of dominions in overseas territories in the period between about 1870 and 1914 (the outbreak of the First World War ).

High imperialism was preceded by the phase of early imperialism , which began around 1815 and was mainly shaped by forms of informal imperialism.

One can distinguish three types of classical imperialism

From a trading base to a rulership with the start of its own industry (example: India ).
Domination while maintaining the appearance of sovereignty and autonomy (example: China at the time of the " Unequal Treaties ", during the Qing Dynasty )
economic domination of sovereign states without their own industry (example: Balkan states , Ottoman Empire ).

Spanish and Portuguese sailors undertook numerous voyages of discovery and later voyages of conquest on behalf of their kings. They conquered large parts of the American continent.

Main article: Colonialism of Portugal and Spain

Other countries became colonial powers:

England (→ British Empire from around 1815)

the Netherlands (settlements in North America , India, and Southeast Asia ).

Even Brandenburg-Prussia , Courland and Sweden had some overseas branches for a short time.
The confederation of Denmark and Norway was also a colonial power, to which in addition to the possessions in the north-east Atlantic also belonged the Danish colonies in the Caribbean, in West Africa and in the East Indies.
The Russian Empire tried to expand its territory by expanding in the course of so-called internal colonialism over Siberia to Alaska and California .

France's status as a colonial power was initially based on its possessions in Canada and Louisiana , later the focus shifted to the colonies in West Africa and Indochina (see French Colonies ).

Italy , Germany and Belgium , which only achieved national unity late, tried to keep up with the other European powers in the so-called " race for Africa " and also acquired colonies in Africa ( German East Africa , German South West Africa , Cameroon , Togo , Belgian Congo ) as well as in East Asia and Oceania . Only Italy's colonial ambitions were significantly dampened ( defeat at Adua in Ethiopia in 1896). Nevertheless, the Italian colonies eventually spanned large areas in North and East Africa. Germany lost its colonies as a result of World War I, Italy as a result of World War II.

The division of Africa among the colonial powers in 1913

France

Great Britain

German Empire

Italy

Portugal

Belgium

Spain

The USA , too, itself partly emerged from colonies, now wanted to acquire colonies by attempting to take over many formerly Spanish colonies ( Cuba , Puerto Rico , Philippines , Guam ) after the Spanish-American War (1898 ). The colonies were of secondary importance for the power and economic strength of the USA.

In Asia, Japan succeeded in building a colonial empire with the so-called Greater East Asian Sphere of Prosperity , which encompassed large parts of today's PR China , all of Korea, as well as Indochina and numerous Pacific islands.

As a result of the world wars that initiated the process of decolonization , the idea of colonialism slowly lost its importance. In the interwar period there were still colonial supporters. Even in Germany, which no longer had any colonies, colonialism lived on until the Nazi era . Some states only abandoned their status as colonial power after 1945 in the course of massive armed conflicts, for example

France after the Indochina War (1946–1954) and Algeria War (1954–1962),

Portugal after the Portuguese Colonial War (1961–1974) and

Belgium in the Congo crisis (1960–1965).

In 1960 18 colonies in Africa (14 French, two British, one each Belgian and Italian) gained independence from their colonial powers. 1960 is therefore called the African Year or Africa Year.

Although France ( French overseas territories , for example French Guiana , Réunion , New Caledonia ), Great Britain ( British overseas territories , for example Falkland Islands ), the Netherlands ( Netherlands Antilles , Aruba ) and the USA ( outer territories of the United States , for example Guam, Puerto Rico ) still have territories outside the mother country , one no longer speaks of colonial powers, because the possession of such territories no longer has any influence on the position in the international state system. Nevertheless, until recently there were conflicts over overseas territories, such as B. 1982 in the Falklands War .

literature

David Kenneth Fieldhouse: The Colonial Empires since the 18th Century . Fischer Weltgeschichte Volume 29, Frankfurt am Main: Fischer Bücherei, 1965.
Edward Azslack: This tub is full of blood . Rainbow, Volume 23, Verlag Oettinger, 1985.

Web links

Wiktionary: Colonial power - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations