Intro
This portion of the book touches on the “age of man”, or Anthropocene, in which humanity begins to shape its ecosystem, rather than simply being a component within it. One could argue that this had occurred centuries before during the beginning of large scale agricultural works projects implemented by early empires. In addition, the author views the following chapters from a Eurocentric lens, to highlight Europe's dominance within this period of time, and to temper that with its brief occurrence within the entirety of history.
Ch 16 (Atlantic Revolutions)
This chapter sets the tone for the numerous revolutions within the Atlantic, and places them within the greater context of the Afro-Eurasia revolutions which preceded them.
During the seven year war, Britain and France battled in North America, the Caribbean, West African and South Asia. It was this war which financially crippled both nations, and led to heavy taxation of their colonies. This heavy taxation, paired with the enlightenment spread throughout the colonies, were the catalysts for both the American and French revolutions.
The North American Revolution (1775-1787) began as a struggle for independence from the authoritative British rule. All this was done to preserve the freedoms which were established during early colonization, and which the British seemed intent on tightening its control. Freedom from religion, no titled nobility, and the wide availability of land were all worth fighting to preserve; although this only applied to free-men (not slaves). With the exception of early colonial thoughts on slavery, their approach to applying the Enlightenment towards a political infrastructure (democratic-republic) created the first and future model for a new government system which resonated with the French, as well as future oppressed populations.
The French Revolution (1789-1815) continued where the American Revolution left off, with thousands of French soldiers returning home from the colonies with enthusiasm for change. With King Louis XVI initiating the Estates General, he gave a platform to the poor and disenfranchised (Third Estate) to organize under the banner of the National Assembly. This assembly created the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, which challenged the monarchies authority, essentially triggering the French Revolution. While the American revolution fought a far away enemy, the French revolution was fought in the heart of France, pitting brother against brother in many cases. While attempts were made to create a more constitutional monarchy, more radical measures prevailed as lords were attacked, records burned, all culminating with the execution of King Louis XVI and Queen Antoinette. These freedom fighters, created a destabilizing, and ultimately corrupt, presence within France leading to the its leader Robespierre’s execution for abuse through Dictatorship. The French Revolution at this point was starting from scratch, and as it attempted to create a new Republic, it created a platform for key Enlightenment ideas, such as women’s equality, that were ultimately unsuccessful but shed light onto their contributions to the Revolution. Ultimately this revolution changed shapes and spread through conquest as Napoleon Bonaparte took power and established a military dictatorship with all the social equality for men, but none of the liberty.
The Haitian Revolution (1791-1804) was born out of the social inequalities between the slave majority, the stratified white dominated hierarchy, and the mixed-race minority. The spark of the French Revolution created a violent result for over a decade; although none could agree on the true principles of the islands revolution. The rich looked for greater autonomy for the colony, but balked at the demands of poor whites for equality. Both white groups opposed the “rights of man” being applied to slaves, ultimate leading to a slave revolt which left the island bloody and resulted in the first successful slave revolt in history. With the renaming of their nation from Saint Dominque, the Haitian nation created its declaration of Independence which outlined all citizens (black) were legally equal, and citizenship was denied for many whites. While they were independent, the French forced this a financial form of oppression on them which created a national poverty that persisted through years.
Spanish American Revolution (1810-1825) begun with the native-born elites (creoles) created the beginnings of a movement to protest heavier taxis and tariffs, but it wasn’t until Napoleon's deposing of the Spanish king Ferdinand VII and forcing the Portuguese royal family into Brazilian exile was action forced upon the Latin American colonies. With authority decentralized, the culturally divided peoples of Latin American began the long process of freedom. In Mexico a social radicalism led by two priests spurned the poor and hungry to take arms, and it wasn't’ until the wealth Creole and Church united and quashed the insurrection that a less violent social independence was formed. Ultimately through a division of all peoples against the Spanish and Portuguese conquerors, created a nationalist movement with liberal ideas influenced by the French Revolution. Ultimately these regional identities prevented the formation of a unified Latin America, and created a new underdeveloped, impoverished, unstable government system throughout the freed colonies; this is in stark contrast to the North American uprising which started from nothing and was growing into an empire all its own.
Europe continued to change, with the British involving itself in India and China, and the French opening opportunities in Africa and the middle-east.
The Abolition of Slavery (1780-1890) began with early Enlightenment thinkers and religious Quakers and Protestants in Britain and the US condemning the practice as an affront to god and to a social conscious nation. These thoughts paired with events like the Haitian slave uprising created a public view change toward Slavery being morally wrong, costly, and potentially disastrous. Citizen and political pressures on governments allowing slavery ultimately led many nations to pass laws which made the act illegal. Primarily in the southern states of the United States was this fought fervently, until the conclusion of the Civil War; although even this created a form of segregation which lasted through the twentieth century. In Russia, peasants were granted noble land with which they worked to pay for, more or less creating the same monetary inequity within a new stratified hierarchy. Ironically, the abolishment of slavery was championed by the British who imposed colonial rule within Africa to reduce the slave trade.
Nationalism took hold as the collapse of previous monarchies and governments gave way. A sense of local community became less important to the larger National identity which was bridged by common heritage and language. This national concept gave individual groups a way of rallying behind an identity regardless of which empire they belonged to.
Feminism became a key subject as Enlightenment took hold of western thinking. Beginning with the French Revolution, women and few men begged the question that if reason shared by both men and women, than liberty and equality must too. With the industrialization sweeping Europe and North America, education and employment opportunities gave women a sense of freedom from the household, and began a transatlantic Women’s Suffrage movement in which women thinkers unified and continued to seek equality. While this often provoked negativity from some men, and even family oriented women, the concepts galvanized and spread throughout Latin America and Asia.
Ch 17 (Revolutions of Industrialization)
The Industrial revolution sprung from Great Britain, and while unlike the Agricultural revolution which independently started seemingly simultaneously, it had a similar dramatic impact on the world. It began as the result of an increased population, and a dependence on fossil-fuel energy (coal, wood, etc.) which local ecologies could no longer sustain. Humans began to impact the air, land, and sea with pollutant byproducts of the great industrial machine, while simultaneously creating mass quantities of goods, and enormous technological leaps of innovation. Ultimately it was the continual improvements in production and massive economic growth which perpetuated the Industrial Revolution, and likewise significantly impacted the face of our planet.
The question of why Europe, and more specifically Great Britain, did the Industrial Revolution begin. While no clear cut explanation exists, there are signs of the beginnings of the same technological growth periods in Asia, Islam, India, and other early Modern civilization; all of which stagnated during the time of Europe's rise. One explanation is that Europe’s relative infancy forced it’s royalty into alliances with the merchant class as a way to extract loans and funds for preferential rights. This capitalist economic structure paired with surrounding nation rivalries created the perfect situation to bread rapid creativity. Additionally, Europe's colonization efforts help extract precious resources which created a significant financial boost with little to no loss of capital. Probably the most unique, was the religious dispersal around the world created new trade networks with which to create demand for goods and trade.
The question of why Britain, is equality perplexing. It is thought that their existing agricultural innovations helped to feed an emerging population boom, and that a lack of government regulation on such enterprises allowed businessmen to run facilities with impudence. From a scientific lense, Western Europe's approach to technological improvement was seen as logical, deductive, and mathematical; while Britain's approach was more based on experimentation, observation, and a practical commercial application. It is also worth noticing that Britain had large non-renewable fuel reserves in close proximity, and the favors given to entrepreneurs helped exploit that rapidly.
As the first industrial society, the societal norms had been demolished and replaced with new opportunities for those few who could navigate the tumultuous time.
The middle class (doctors, factory owners, etc.) exploded during this time, giving rise to the notion that the “respectability” attributed with upper-middle class is what one should strive for. This new dominant class also led to new social reforms which granted the right to vote among other things. While this didn’t necessarily trickle down to women, women began taking on a new role as housekeeper and moral compass.
The largest population majority was that of the Labor Class which increased due to rapid urbanization, and led many to work in less than healthy or safe conditions, competing for work in industrial factories, or other modern businesses. In this group, gender was a much less divide as women and girls took factory jobs to supplement the family income.
It was these deplorable working conditions of laboring in the industrial workforce which sparked many socialist movements, most notably was that of Karl Marx. His analysis of industrial capitalism led him to believe that it’s unstable nature would ultimately lead to collapse through upheaval. Overtime his teachings formed the a type of social democracy which was championed by trade unions and new party leaders; however it ultimately led to little success until it met with more violent communist movements. Improved conditions, and the opportunity to move out of the laborer class eased tension, and as World War I broke out, a sense of Nationalism was developed which created a galvanizing unity.
Industrialism spread across the world; most notably in the US and Russia. In the United States, industrialization began in the form of textile factories, but quickly expanded into all forms through investment from western Europe. Tax breaks, available public land, and the easy formation of companies without regulation created the perfect place for industrial expansion. Rags to riches stories gave the perception that anyone could achieve wealth, but a working class divide began with no initial socialist reforms to curb the working class abuse. Eventually coalitions of farmers and workers raised visibility on the issues to force political reforms.
In Russia, the monarchy still dominated the nation; a stark contrast to the US democracy. Later than many nations, Russia’s industrial revolution was governmental imposed, and created a state run middle-class, and a no legal recourse for the working class minority. Terrible working and living conditions had people gravitating towards Marxist socialism, forming labor parties which sparked strikes and civil protests. After an unsuccessful revolution, the Tsar created a basic constitution which granted election of a national assembly, universal education, among others benefits; though rarely were they implemented in practice. This lack of enforcement It wasn’t until post World War I did the combination of social factors and hardships of war create a lasting Revolution which evolved into the Russian socialist political system.
Ch 18 (Colonial Encounters)
Britain's 19th century expansion can be attributed to two key factors; a growing need for foreign goods, and a need to export the excesses produced by its own factories. Imperialism allowed Britain to avoid the catastrophe of revolution; addressing both social needs and appealing to the general population as Nationalism grew. This form of Nationalism created a cultural divide centered around the Nationalist idea of their own superiority over others, particularly the Chinese and Africans. This superiority created a national thought pattern of colonization being the natural progression of a superior society.
Europeans of the age preferred territorial control through trade and minor military intervention, but showed they were more than willing to apply a heavy handed military approach when challenged. Technological military superiority allowed the Europeans to create colonies of much of Afro-Asia, as few outside of other Europeans could contend with them. European penetration into India was considered undeliberate, by comparison to rushed and deliberate race for Africa between competing European nations. The conquering of Africa was unique in that there were no centralized governments with which to defeat, forcing continual village-by-village conflict. Australia and New Zealand were colonized in a similar fashion to North America, with settlements carrying diseases which wiped out the majority of indigenous peoples.
North America created its own expansion west, which further decimated the Native Americans in an attempt to destroy tribal life and incorporate them into society. Japan, Russia , and others all had various forms of the same colonization formulas in which apply to the surrounding Asian and African regions.
Through cooperation with Indian princes, Muslim emirs, and African elite were able to maintain a sense of status and wealth as local authorities and intermediaries to the greater European nations. This triggered the ire of many, and sparked large and small scale revolts throughout the colonies.
This new form of colonization brought with it some terrible changes, as racial segregation and superiority became far more pronounced. With it, also came some positive features, such as the cultural benefits which came with colonization; centralized tax-collecting, public health and sanitization, etc.
Colonial economies changed dramatically during this period as new ways of life opened as old ones disappeared.
- One such method was that of forced labor applied to public works projects such as building railroads. An inability to produce could result in appalling acts of violence and death.
- Cash-Crop farming was another form of new economy which promoted the overproduction of goods to be sold overseas. This came with its own disastrous side effects as the local terrain was decimated to make room for more farms, ultimately reducing available wildlife as a secondary local food supply.
- Another impacted economy was that of women in Africa. Female roles were primarily as farmers, but as cash-crops became a center for wealth, male dominance over farm exports increased, and a woman's role often was relegated to farming food solely for local families.
Ignoring the means by which it was achieved, colonization did bring positive change through: increased integration of Asia and Africa into the global trade network, and modern industrialization was brought into the colonies in an effort to improve the regions they governed.
Part of the colonization “improvements” included the promotion of Education and Religion throughout the colonies. This created new cultural identities; some which was an amalgamation of old and new values, while others an entirely new identity mirroring their oppressor.
