Editing Colonialism (section)

== History ==
{{Main|History of colonialism|List of colonies|Chronology of Western colonialism}}

=== Antiquity ===
Activity that could be called colonialism has a long history, starting at least as early as the [[ancient Egypt]]ians. [[Phoenicia]]ns, [[Ancient Greece|Greeks]], and [[Ancient Rome|Romans]] founded [[colonies in antiquity]]. [[Phoenicia]] had an enterprising maritime trading-culture that spread across the Mediterranean from 1550&nbsp;BC to 300&nbsp;BC; later the [[Achaemenid Empire|Persian Empire]] and various [[Greek colonisation|Greek city-states]] continued on this line of setting up colonies. The Romans would soon follow, setting up [[Colonia (Roman)|''coloniae'']] throughout the Mediterranean, in North Africa, and in Western Asia.{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}}

=== Medieval ===
Beginning in the 7th century, [[Arabs]] colonized a substantial portion of the Middle East, North Africa, and parts of Asia and Europe.{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}} From the 9th century [[Viking Age|Vikings]] ([[Norsemen]]) such as [[Leif Erikson]] established [[Viking expansion|colonies]] in Britain, Ireland, Iceland, Greenland, North America, present-day Russia and Ukraine, France (Normandy) and Sicily.<ref name="Page Sonnenburg 2003 p. 421">{{cite book | last1=Page | first1=M.E. | last2=Sonnenburg | first2=P.M. | title=Colonialism: An International, Social, Cultural, and Political Encyclopedia | publisher=ABC-CLIO | issue=v. 1 | year=2003 | isbn=978-1-57607-335-3 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qFTHBoRvQbsC&pg=PA421 | access-date=1 April 2023 | page=421}}</ref> In the 9th century a new wave of [[Mediterranean]] colonisation began, with competitors such as the [[Stato da Màr|Venetians]], [[Genoese colonies|Genovese]] and [[Duchy of Amalfi|Amalfians]] infiltrating the wealthy previously [[Byzantine]] or [[Eastern Roman]] islands and lands. European [[Crusaders]] set up colonial regimes in [[Outremer]] (in [[the Levant]], 1097–1291) and in the [[Baltic Sea|Baltic littoral]] (12th century onwards). [[Republic of Venice|Venice]] began to dominate [[Dalmatia]] and reached its greatest nominal colonial extent at the conclusion of the [[Fourth Crusade]] in 1204, with the declaration of the [[Partitio terrarum imperii Romaniae|acquisition of three octaves]] of the Byzantine Empire.<ref>Peter N. Stearns, ed., ''An Encyclopedia of World History'' (2001) pp 21–238</ref>

=== Modern ===
[[File:Philip II's realms in 1598.png|upright=1.35|thumb|[[Iberian Union]] of Spain and Portugal between 1580 and 1640]]

Modern colonialism is generally considered to have begun with the Spanish conquest of the Canary Islands when "the relationships involved in domination became recognisably colonial."<ref name=":6" />{{Rp|page=10}} Following the fall of [[Constantinople]] to the [[Ottoman Empire]] in 1453, the sea routes discovered by Portuguese [[Prince Henry the Navigator]] (1394–1460) became central to [[trade]], and helped fuel the [[Age of Discovery]].<ref name="auto1">Charles R. Boxer, ''The Portuguese Seaborne Empire, 1415–1825'' (1969)</ref> The [[Crown of Castile]] encountered the [[Americas]] in 1492 through sea travel and built [[trading post]]s or conquered large extents of land. The [[Treaty of Tordesillas]] divided the areas of these "new" lands between the [[Spanish Empire]] and the [[Portuguese Empire]] in 1494.<ref name="auto1" />

The 17th century saw the birth of the [[Dutch Empire]] and [[French colonial empire]], as well as the [[English overseas possessions]], which later became the [[British Empire]]. It also saw the establishment of [[Danish overseas colonies]] and [[Swedish overseas colonies]].<ref>Thomas Benjamin, ed. ''Encyclopedia of Western Colonialism Since 1450'' (3 vol 2006)</ref>

A first wave of [[separatism]] started with the [[American Revolutionary War]] (1775–1783), initiating the [[British Empire#Rise of the "Second" British Empire (1783–1815)|Rise of the "Second" British Empire]] (1783–1815).<ref>[https://victorianweb.org/history/empire/Empire.html David Cody, "The British Empire" ''The Victorians Web'' (1988)]</ref> The [[Spanish Empire]] largely collapsed in the Americas with the [[Spanish American wars of independence]] (1808–1833). Empire-builders established several new colonies after this time, including in the [[German colonial empire]] and [[Belgian colonial empire]].<ref name="Melvin E. Page 2003">Melvin E. Page, ed., ''Colonialism: An International Social, Cultural, and Political Encyclopedia'' (2003)</ref> Starting with the end of the [[French Revolution]] European authors such as [[Johann Gottfried Herder]], [[August von Kotzebue]], and [[Heinrich von Kleist]] prolifically published so as to conjure up sympathy for the oppressed native peoples and the slaves of the new world, thereby starting the idealization of ''native'' humans.<ref>{{cite book | author1=Dina Gusejnova |title=European Elites and Ideas of Empire 1917–1957 |publisher= Cambridge University Press |year=2016 |page=14 |isbn=9781107120624 }}</ref>

The [[Habsburg monarchy]], the [[Russian Empire]], and the [[Ottoman Empire]] existed at the same time but did not expand over oceans. Rather, these empires expanded through the conquest of neighbouring territories. There was, though, some [[Russian colonization of North America]] across the Bering Strait. The [[Empire of Brazil]] fought for hegemony in South America. The [[United States]] gained overseas territories after the 1898 [[Spanish–American War]], hence, the coining of the term "[[American imperialism]]".<ref>Benjamin, ed. ''Encyclopedia of Western Colonialism Since 1450'' (3 vol 2006)</ref>

The [[Japanese colonial empire]] began in the mid-19th century with the settler colonization of [[Hokkaido]] and the destruction of the island's indigenous [[Ainu people]] before moving onto the [[Ryukyu Islands]] (the indigenous [[Ryukyuans|Ryukyuan people]] survived colonization more intact). After the [[Meiji Restoration]], Japan more formally developed its colonial policies with the help of European advisors. The stated purpose from the beginning was to compensate for the lack of resources on the main islands of Japan by securing control over natural resources in Asia for its own economic development and industrialization, not unlike its European counterparts. Japan defeated China in the [[First Sino-Japanese War]] to control [[Korea under Japanese rule|Korea]] and the [[Taiwan under Japanese rule|island of Formosa]], now Taiwan, and later [[Russo-Japanese War|fought off the Russian Empire]] to control Port Arthur and [[Karafuto Prefecture|South Sakhalin]].<ref name=":6" />{{Rp|pages=147-152}}

In the late 19th century, many European powers became involved in the [[Scramble for Africa]].<ref name="Melvin E. Page 2003" />

=== 20th century ===
[[File:The Harmsworth atlas and Gazetter 1908 Colonization Map.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|''The Harmsworth atlas and Gazetter'' 1908 European colonization map]]
The world's colonial population at the outbreak of the First World War{{snd}}a high point for colonialism{{snd}}totalled about 560 million people, of whom 70% lived in [[British possessions]], 10% in French possessions, 9% in Dutch possessions, 4% in Japanese possessions, 2% in German possessions, 2% in American possessions, 3% in Portuguese possessions, 1% in Belgian possessions and 0.5% in Italian possessions. The domestic domains of the colonial powers had a total population of about 370&nbsp;million people.<ref>These statistics exclude the Russian Empire, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, Spain and Denmark. U.S. Tariff Commission. ''Colonial tariff policies'' (1922), p. 5 [https://archive.org/details/colonialtariffpo00unit online]</ref> Outside Europe, few areas had remained without coming under formal colonial tutorship – and even [[Rattanakosin Kingdom (1782–1932)|Siam]], [[Qing dynasty|China]], [[Empire of Japan|Japan]], [[Kingdom of Nepal|Nepal]], [[Emirate of Afghanistan|Afghanistan]], [[Qajar Iran|Persia]], and [[Ethiopian Empire|Abyssinia]] had felt varying degrees of Western colonial-style influence{{snd}}[[Concessions and leases in international relations|concessions]], [[Unequal treaty|unequal treaties]], [[extraterritoriality]] and the like.

Asking whether colonies paid, economic historian [[Grover Clark]] (1891–1938) argues an emphatic "No!" He reports that in every case the support cost, especially the military system necessary to support and defend colonies, outran the total trade they produced. Apart from the British Empire, they did not provide favoured destinations for the immigration of surplus metropole populations.<ref>Raymond Leslie Buell, "Do Colonies Pay?" ''The Saturday Review'', 1 August 1936 p 6 ]</ref> The question of whether colonies paid is a complicated one when recognizing the multiplicity of interests involved. In some cases colonial powers paid a lot in military costs while private investors pocketed the benefits. In other cases the colonial powers managed to move the burden of administrative costs to the colonies themselves by imposing taxes.<ref>Rönnbäck & Broberg (2019) Capital and Colonialism. The Return on British Investments in Africa 1869–1969 (Palgrave Studies in Economic History)</ref>

[[File:World 1914 empires colonies territory.PNG|thumb|upright=1.35|Map of colonial and land-based empires throughout the world in 1914]]
[[File:Colonialism in 1945 updated legend.png|thumb|upright=1.35|Imperial powers in 1945]]

=== World War I ===
The [[World War I|First World War]] brought the European colonial empires into conflict with each other with the fight sustained by their colonial territories.<ref name=":6" />{{Rp|page=130}} War mobilization heightened colonial exploitation globally, sparking several anticolonial uprisings in response to forced conscription. Germany capitulated in large part due to the [[Blockade of Germany (1914–1919)|Allied sea blockade]] cutting off access to its overseas colonies, a disadvantage which German U-boats could not inflict on the [[Allies of World War I|Allies]]. The victorious Allies divided up the German colonial empire and much of the Ottoman Empire between themselves as [[League of Nations mandate]]s, grouping these territories into three classes according to how quickly it was deemed that they could prepare for independence. The empires of Russia and Austria collapsed in 1917–1918,<ref>G.M. Gathorne-Hardy, ''A Short History of International Affairs, 1920–1939'' (4th ed. 1950), [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.260425/page/n1 online]</ref> and the [[Soviet empire]] emerged.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kassymbekova |first=Botakoz |title=How Western scholars overlooked Russian imperialism |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2023/1/24/how-western-scholars-overlooked-russian-imperialism |date=24 January 2023 |access-date=13 April 2023 |website=Al Jazeera |language=en}}</ref>

=== Interwar years ===
Anti-colonial sentiment surged during the interwar years.<ref name=":6" />{{Rp|page=130-136}} The [[Easter Rising]] and [[Irish War of Independence]] led to the UK conceding independence to Ireland. Turkey became an independent country in the ruins of the Ottoman Empire and fought off interventions from Britain, France, and Italy. The first Pan-African Congress would take place in Paris in 1919.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roberts |first=Brian Russell |title=Artistic ambassadors: literary and international representation of the New Negro era |date=2013 |publisher=University of Virginia Press |isbn=978-0-8139-3368-9 |location=Charlottesville ; London |pages=121-122}}</ref> The Soviet Union positioned itself as an "an explicitly anti-imperialist power"<ref name=":6" />{{Rp|page=130}} and would play an important role in the success of anticolonial resistance movements in Asia and Africa, although its own policies in Central Asia resembled the colonial policies of the [[Russian Empire|Russian empire]] that preceded it.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Loring |first=Benjamin |date=2014 |title=“Colonizers with Party Cards”: Soviet Internal Colonialism in Central Asia, 1917–39 |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/article/538640 |journal=Kritika: Explorations in Russian and Eurasian History |volume=15 |issue=1 |pages=77–102 |doi=10.1353/kri.2014.0012 |issn=1538-5000|url-access=subscription }}</ref> At the same time, Japan expanded its colonies in Asia and the Pacific.   

=== World War II ===
Many interpret [[World War II]] as an attempt by [[Nazi Germany]] and its allies to colonize the whole European continent, especially in the east. Historian Lorenzo Veracini writes, "The global history of colonialism can be seen as bookended by two fateful moments: European armies crossed the strait of Gibraltar in the fifteenth century to establish unequal relations of domination in Africa, and a colonial army crossed it in the opposite direction in 1936, to conquer the metropole and pursue a civil war that subjected the metropolitan populations with a violence that had been until then reserved for restive colonized subjects."<ref name=":6" />{{Rp|page=5}} Economic historian Adam Tooze posits that [[Operation Barbarossa]] is "far better understood as the last great land-grab in the long and bloody history of European colonialism."<ref name=":7">{{Cite book |last=Tooze |first=J. Adam |title=The wages of destruction: the making and breaking of the Nazi economy |date=2008 |publisher=Penguin USA |isbn=978-0-14-311320-1 |location=New York |pages=}}</ref>{{Rp|page=462}} "From the moment that Germany invaded Poland in September 1939, the genocidal impulses of Nazi ideology towards both the Jews and the Slavs had taken on concrete form in an extraordinary programme of population displacement and colonial settlement."{{Rp|page=463}} [[Generalplan Ost]], the Nazi government's grand plan of settler colonialism, called for the mass murder and deportation of at least 30 million Slavs from Poland and the western Soviet Union in preparation for the importation of millions of German settlers.{{Rp|page=462-467}} The plan was lauded as a 'solution' to secure Germany's food supply for the duration of the war, unlike the previous one. Hitler repeatedly drew parallels between the colonization plan and Manifest Destiny in the United States. [[Aimé Césaire]] argues in [[Discourse on Colonialism]], "[Europeans] tolerated that Nazism before it was inflicted on them, they absolved it, shut their eyes to it, legitimized it, because, until then, it had been applied only to non-European peoples."<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Heiskanen |first=Jaakko |date=2021-12-01 |title=In the Shadow of Genocide: Ethnocide, Ethnic Cleansing, and International Order |url=https://academic.oup.com/isagsq/article/1/4/ksab030/6380106 |journal=Global Studies Quarterly |volume=1 |issue=4 |pages=ksab030 |doi=10.1093/isagsq/ksab030 |issn=2634-3797}}</ref>

=== Post-WWII decolonization ===
In the aftermath of World War II, [[decolonisation]] progressed rapidly. The tumultuous upheaval of the war significantly weakened the major colonial powers, and they quickly lost control of colonies such as Singapore, India, and Libya.<ref>{{cite book|last1=White|first1=Nicholas|chapter=Economics and the end of Empire|title=Decolonisation: The British Experience since 1945|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=InQKBAAAQBAJ|series=Seminar Studies|date=17 July 2014|edition=2|location=Abingdon|publisher=Routledge|publication-date=2014|isbn=9781317701798|access-date=12 February 2021}}</ref> In addition, the [[United Nations]] shows support for decolonisation in its 1945 [[Chapter I of the United Nations Charter|charter]]. In 1960, the UN issued the [[Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples]], which affirmed its stance (though notably, colonial empires such as France, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States abstained).<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Betts |first1=Raymond F |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1163/j.ctt1w8h2zm |title=Beyond Empire and Nation: The Decolonization of African and Asian societies, 1930s–1970s |last2=Bogaerts |first2=Els |last3=Raben |first3=Raben |publisher=Brill |year=2012 |pages=7–22|jstor=10.1163/j.ctt1w8h2zm }}</ref>

The word "[[neocolonialism]]" originated from [[Jean-Paul Sartre]] in 1956,<ref>{{Cite book|last=Sartre|first=Jean-Paul|title=Colonialism and Neocolonialism|publisher=Psychology Press|year=2001}}</ref> to refer to a variety of contexts since the decolonisation that took place after [[World War II]]. Generally it does not refer to a type of direct colonisation{{snd}}rather to colonialism or colonial-style exploitation by other means. Specifically, neocolonialism may refer to the theory that former or existing economic relationships, such as the [[General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade]] and the [[Central American Free Trade Agreement]], or the operations of companies (such as [[Royal Dutch Shell]] in [[Nigeria]] and [[Brunei]]) fostered by former colonial powers were or are used to maintain control of former colonies and dependencies after the colonial independence movements of the post–World War II period.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Halperin |first1=Sandra |title=Neocolonialism {{!}} Definition, Examples, & Facts {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/neocolonialism |website=www.britannica.com |access-date=29 November 2022 |language=en}}</ref> The term became popular in ex-colonies in the late 20th century.<ref>{{Cite journal |last= Uzoigw |first= Godfrey N. |year= 2019 |title= Neocolonialism Is Dead: Long Live Neocolonialism |journal= Journal of Global South Studies |volume= 36 |issue= 1 |pages= 59–87 |doi= 10.1353/gss.2019.0004|s2cid=166252688}}</ref>

=== Contemporary ===
While colonies of contiguous empires<ref>Forsyth, James. A history of the peoples of Siberia: Russia's North Asian colony 1581-1990. Cambridge University Press, 1994.</ref> have been historically excluded, they can be seen as colonies.<ref name="Gilmartin2009">{{Cite book |last=Gilmartin |first=Mary |title=Key Concepts in Political Geography |year=2009 |isbn=9781412946728 |editor-last=Gallaher |editor-first=Carolyn |pages=115–123 |chapter=Colonialism/Imperialism |doi=10.4135/9781446279496.n13 |editor-last2=Dahlman |editor-first2=Carl |editor-last3=Gilmartin |editor-first3=Mary |editor-last4=Mountz |editor-first4=Alison |editor-last5=Shirlow |editor-first5=Peter |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XpBJclVnVdQC&pg=PA115}}</ref>
Contemporary expansion of colonies is seen by some in case of [[Russian imperialism]]<ref>{{Cite news |date=27 September 2022 |title=So-called referenda in Russian-controlled Ukraine 'cannot be regarded as legal': UN political affairs chief |work=UN News |url=https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/09/1128161 |url-status=live |access-date=29 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928072533/https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/09/1128161 |archive-date=28 September 2022}}</ref> and [[Chinese imperialism]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last1=Alessio |first1=Dominic |last2=Renfro |first2=Wesley |date=1 August 2022 |title=Building empires litorally in the South China Sea: artificial islands and contesting definitions of imperialism |journal=International Politics |language=en |volume=59 |issue=4 |pages=687–706 |doi=10.1057/s41311-021-00328-x |issn=1740-3898 |s2cid=240567127}}</ref> There is also ongoing debate in academia about [[Zionism as settler colonialism]].