Superpowers through Superpowers through

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Superpower societiesSuperpower societies

Imperialist system: British Empire

– Culture, economy and politics of Britain dominating its colonies.

– Democracy in Britain, not in its colonies.

Capitalist system: USA

– Division between people who own businesses and make profits, and those who

work for them.

Communist system: USSR

– Private ownership not allowed – production should be owned in common to create

an equal society.

Changing patterns of powerChanging patterns of power

Superpowers shift over time; the Uni-polar world of the British Empire gave way to the Bi-polar cold war world

In 1990, as the USSR collapsed, a new USA dominated Uni-polar world was ushered in; the EU has grown to be increasingly powerful also

Many people think the future will be a more complex, fragmented and regional multi-polar world

It is important to recognise that power can decline as well as grow

Changing SuperpowersChanging Superpowers

Timescale Superpower(s) What happened?

1800-1918 British Empire UK is dominant global power; at one point controlling 25% of land area.

1918-1945

1945-90

1990-now

Future?

The British Empire was founded on exploration and sea power. The Royal Navydominated the seas from around 1700 – 1930. The Navy provided a link between the home country and overseas colonies. The Navy was also a symbol of MILITARY POWER

Britain was the world superpower of the nineteenth century- at its height in 1921- it held sway over 485 million people (1/4 of world popn). It covered 36.7 million km squared (1/4 of Earth's total land area)

GUINEA (West Africa)CANADAINDIAMYANMAR (Burma)PAPUA NEW GUINEAAUSTRALIANEW ZEALANDEGYPTSUDANKENYASOUTH AFRICA

GUYANAMALAYSIAYEMENOMANFALKLAND ISLANDSNIGERIA

What does this image represent?

Colonial India

What were the benefits of the UK having a colony in India?

Exploit resources

Exploit workforce

World market

Power and influence

The current presidential palace in Delhiwas built by the British as a symbol of political power. The navy surrounded the

ports of India as a symbol of militarypower.In order to maximise exploitation the British ‘modernised’ India building an extensive rail network.The British also introduced:

What power was being exerted by introducing these British traditions?

IMPERIALISM

CULTURAL

IMPERIALISM

After the second world war the UK was bankrupt and could not support countries in its empire.

Anti – colonial movements began and many countries pushed for independence.

Most countries became independent by 1970.

India became independent from Britain on 15 th August

1947.

It wasn’t just India that Britain Colonised Colonialism- system by which an external nation takes

control of a territory in another part of the world, often by force. It then reinforces this control by settling the new colony with its own people.

Britain colonised to gain power and access to and exploitation rights of resources

During colonisation the indigenous people and their cultures were looked down on, racist language was common place and as the Brits believed God was on their side Christian missionaries aided the colonisation spreading the word of God

Lets look at colonisation in Africa

Colonialism in AfricaColonialism in Africa Many people believe Africa has always been a poor

area- WRONG- Before colonialism it was home to many wealthy

tribal kingdoms which traded across the Sahara with the North African Arabic states- spice and metal was traded- along with salt

One famous city Timbuktu was the centre for learning- with a large uni, books were printed there long before they were in Britain

It is now a world heritage site, because of its fine buildings which pre date French colonisation

In a nutshell- colonialism basically –European countries wanted land overseas to expand political control- exploring, invading, and taking control of large areas of the world

What went on….What went on….

Started with increased trade of salt, spices and gold- soon slave trade began.

Some slave trading done with tribal leaders consent, but most done by force

As many empires lost adults, former wealthily empires of Africa began to become weakened and impoverished

Between 1550 and 1850 8million slaves taken to Brazil alone British manufacturing businesses saw colonialism as way to obtain

cheap material and markets for their products In the Caribbean many locals were killed by European diseases like

syphilis- the locals were replaced by African slaves

The 3 phases of empireThe 3 phases of empire1600- 1850- Mercantilist phase

Small colonies set on coast fringes and islands- New England, Accra, Bombay, Jamaica- defended by forts.Focus on trade inc, slaves and raw materials like sugarPrivate trading companies such as the East India company and the Royal African company

1850 – 1945The Imperial phase-

Coastal colonies extend inland. Religion, culture and language introducedGovt set up to rule coloniesTrade networks made more complexTelegrams and railways begin to connect parts of empire

1945- todayThe decolonisation phase

After war UK almost bankrupt, can no longer support empire as beforeAnti colonial movements grow in India, and some countries move to independence. Most independent by 1970

The empire today?The empire today? Britain still controls 14 overseas territories There is the commonwealth (former colonies) of

53 nations Commonwealth has no written constitution BUT

has series of agreements setting out beliefs and objectives

Could you describe the commonwealth as a superpower?

The map shows ICC cricket members, associate members and affiliate members

Orange= full members

British Overseas territoriesBritish Overseas territories

Commonwealth states todayCommonwealth states today

QuestionsQuestions

1) With reference to the British Empire, explain the concept of colonial rule

2) What remnants are left of empire today?

3) Early colonialists were racist not just looking for economic opportunities. Discuss

Changing SuperpowersChanging Superpowers

Timescale Superpower(s) Comment

1800-1918 British Empire UK is dominant global power; at one point controlling 25% of land area.

1918-1945 Transition period Increasing power in USA & Russia, rise of Nazi Germany and maintenance of B.Empire; a multi-polar period.

1945-90 USA & USSR Cold War

1990-2009

2009-

1945 – 1990 ‘The Cold War’1945 – 1990 ‘The Cold War’

After the second world war, two global superpowers emerged. The USA followed apolicy to globalise its sphere of influence and become a stronger player in the worldsystem. However the beliefs and politics of the USSR did not agree with the USA.In order to become more powerful the USSR took advantage of collapsed countriesin Europe and enforced a communist regime.

Bi-polar World

What criteria would have supported these countries rise to superpower?

Opposing Ideals of PowerOpposing Ideals of Power

CAPITALISM COMMUNISM

Draw something like this in your notes-

On the next slide are the info points, put them into the correct column

WORKERS ARE

EMPLOYED BY THE STATE

BUSINESSES BELONG TO THE

STATE

SOCIAL OBJECTIVE

IS FREEDOM

SOCIAL OBJECTIVE

IS EQUALITY

WORKERS ARE

EMPLOYED BY PROFIT

MAKING INDIVIDUALS

BUSINESSES ARE

PRIVATELY OWNED

DEMOCRACY WITH

ELECTED LEADERS

FREE MARKET

ECONOMY

THE UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLICS

DICTATORSHIP NO FREE

ELECTIONS

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

GOVERNMENT PLANNED ECONOMY

SOCIAL OBJECTIVE IS FREEDOM

SOCIAL OBJECTIVE IS

EQUALITY

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

THE UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLICS

DICTATORSHIP NO FREE

ELECTIONS

DEMOCRACY WITH

ELECTED LEADERS

WORKERS ARE EMPLOYED BY

THE STATE

WORKERS ARE EMPLOYED BY

PROFIT MAKING INDIVIDUALS

BUSINESSES BELONG TO THE

STATE

BUSINESSES ARE

PRIVATELY OWNED

GOVERNMENT PLANNED ECONOMY

FREE MARKET

ECONOMY

The ‘cold’ war 1945-90The ‘cold’ war 1945-90 Cold war- such called because it involved no physical conflict USA and allies V USSR and allies relations worsened late 40s Closest 2 sides came to ‘hot’ war was 1962 during Cuban

missile crisis Cause was 2 opposed ideologies so sides could not agree on

basic issues:- COMMUNIST V CAPITALIST Soviet policy towards eastern Europe- USSR used Eastern

‘bloc’ countries as buffer to its lands to prevent direct attacks- they put in place a communist government to each The western borders were heavily defended by USSR by an ‘Iron curtain’.

Nuclear weapon use by USA on Japan, followed by nuclear tests in USSR in 1949. 40 years of nuclear expansion followed- now the 2 have 27,000 nuclear weapons between them and control most of the world’s nuclear weapons

Green Areas represent Eastern EUROPEAN COMMUNIST BLOC

The growth of the USSRThe growth of the USSR

USSR formed in 1922 Russia had been damaged greatly by

WW1 , civil war- it had a devastated economy and farm production had been decimated

Millions of Russians had been killed during these times- people were starving

The USSR in its economic prime- Stalin’s ruleThe USSR in its economic prime- Stalin’s rule

In 1941 when Germany invaded, USSR had industrial and military strength to take on and defeat Hitler

Also had overtaken the UK as 2nd biggest world economy Stalin was aware of anti communist hostility across world

and realised only hope for USSR was to be strong industrially and militarily

From 1922 to 1953 Stalin led a harsh authoritarian regime A series of 5 year plans dramatically increased economic

production all under state ownershipStalin:- Increased industrial output 7 times, built all the steel and

iron located away from borders so attack difficult State controlled farm production to ensure everyone was

fed Weapons were built up dramatically

Post 1945Post 1945 USSR competes with USA matching its research

and technology in producing nuclear arms In 1961, they beat the USA and became the first

nation to put a man into space- Yuri Gagarin- The space race between the 2 is still existence to

this day By 60s second largest superpower, but GDP still

only ½ that of the USA

70s70s USSR tried to spread communism across globe Considerable investment made in Africa, along with other

communist nations like China and Cuba- basically to rival USA capitalist approach

The main influences in Africa were- Military assistance- aid and equipment given to left wing

governments, such as MPLA in Angola Attempts made to destabilise countries- such as South Africa

and Zimbabwe where white minority govt survived- Communism saw these as unfair and wanted rid

Financial aid- several countries including Guinea used soviet money to develop raw material

Between 1974-6 USSR assisted 17 sub Saharan African nations, mainly with military equipment and advisors- there were 2000 there. Military equipment worth $340 million

China and Cuba provided more including- 1000 Chinese advisors, Chinese delivered $28 million equipment

Cuba7900 advisors and troops mainly in ANGOLA

ANGOLA= USSR supported Marxist MPLA with weapons, arms and equipment in civil war

UGANDA and TANZANIA

Military assistance in civil wars in both

CONGO REP

Provided military ass, in return for access to raw material and establishing a military base

GUINEA

Bauxite reserves opened up by USSR largest program in region. In return USSR granted military privileges

SOMALIA

Received largest soviet support in East Africa, military equipment worth 165$ 1000 military advisors, in return for naval aircraft base so Moscow could control Indian Ocean

Collapse of the Soviet Union

1985 – Newly elected President Gorbachev

introduced: GLASNOST “freedom of Speech”

PERESTROIKA “private ownership of small businesses”

Late 1980’s – Economic failure and food shortages

1989 – 1991

With their new found freedom states within the USSR rebelled and claimed sovereignty (independence)

Collapse of Communism in buffer Zone (Eastern Collapse of Communism in buffer Zone (Eastern Bloc Countries)Bloc Countries)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7972232.stm

Following USSR collapse the bloc countries fell over the next few years- Germany unified, Czechoslovakia split and Yugoslavia went to war- many of these nations are today EU members

Communism todayCommunism today Cuba, Laos, Vietnam and North Korea only

countries that retain COMMUNISM CHINA has a COMMUNIST government Venezuela retains certain aspects and the Indian

state of Kerala runs a communist state government but its not totally communist

Changing SuperpowersChanging Superpowers

Timescale Superpower(s) Comment

1800-1918 British Empire UK is dominant global power; at one point controlling 25% of land area.

1918-1945 Transition period Increasing power in USA & Russia, rise of Nazi Germany and maintenance of B.Empire; a multi-polar period.

1945-90 USA & USSR Cold War- bi-polar world- most nations took a side

1990-2009 USA USA only true superpower (hegemony) following collapse of communism

2009- USA maintain status? EU China

Many think future is multi-polar, with many superpowers, possibly including India and Russia.

Rise of more regional and 1 dimensional powers- e.g. Russia and gulf states as energy powers

Take-off model – Rostow, 1960

Asian model – World Bank, 1991

Dependency theory – Frank, 1967

World systems theory – Wallerstein, 1974

Liberal

Marxist

emphasises the creation of wealth and power

through capitalism.

emphasises how some

maintain their wealth and

power at expense of others.

Theoretical Theoretical

frameworksframeworks

theories are used to explain the existence of rich,

powerful countries and the weaker, poorer countries

they dominate

1960- W. W. Rostow theory to explain dominance of British Empire and the USA

As they were 1st to industrialise gave advantage over other unindustrialised nations. Believed all countries went through 5 stages- as seen in previous slide

Rostow believed in free trade and democracy and capitalism

He believed communist countries could not develop unless they adopted capitalist ideals

When looking at Rostow’s model countries tried to follow it some succeeded some did not

Modernisation TheoryModernisation Theory

It was so influential that developing countries

wanting to create the preconditions for take off by investing in key

infrastructure and industries

The Asian Tigers are examples of where this succeeded. How were they able to implement the preconditions for take off?

ModernismModernism Philosophy from late nineteenth century about modern

society Belief that world could be improved by human

intervention and achievement Believed Europe most naturally able to lead world

through their conquest and knowledge of foreign peoples

Belief that Britain's naturally intelligent. Geographers believed that Britain had natural capacity to rule over others

Lionel Lyde, Professor of Geography at UCL wrote “negroes are strong and healthy; are excellent farmers

being…more intelligent than Chinese. The Chinaman if not so useful as the Negro but more so than the Malay”

Modernists did not only think Britain could rule, it believed it SHOULD.

AG Frank’s Dependency AG Frank’s Dependency TheoryTheory

argues that this is because the developed countries (superpowers and emerging powers) maintain the developing world in a ‘state of underdevelopment’, draining it of:

Human capital (‘brain drain’)Resources (minerals, ores, food) This helps maintain the developed world’s

lifestyle, cheaply

North-South DivideNorth-South Divide

Brandt Line

Dependency TheoryDependency Theory A. G Frank – based on Marxist view ‘rich vs

poor’. Reliant on capitalist core and underdeveloped

periphery. Capitalist core keeps the periphery in a

state of underdevelopment by exploiting its cheap resources, taking its most skilled workers and selling it its manufactured goods.

The developing world helps to keep the developed world to become wealthier.

‘development of underdevelopment’ Aid is then needed to prevent the periphery

from becoming restless.

Who are the exception?Who are the exception?

Which countries have adopted Rostow’s model and broken the dependency theory?

The Asian Tigers Why? USA funding! Both economic support and

aid. Why did they do this? – think back to how

superpowers can exert and extend their influence.

Strong capitalist economies in Asia would contain Communist China.

Dependency Theory - CriticismDependency Theory - Criticism

NICs have broken out of North-South divide mould since 1960s.

Theory does not allow for developing countries to have say in

their own development.

Asian ModelAsian Model

World Bank, 1993

Countries like China, S.Korea and Taiwan had developed rapidly

since 1970

As they opened up to free trade and foreign investment

State invested in education and skills development

Asian Model - CriticismsAsian Model - Criticisms

Model fails to take full account of support and aid provided by

the USA

Many NICs had protectionist, not free-trade policies

World Systems TheoryWorld Systems Theory

Immanuel Wallerstein, 1974 World is divided into core, semi-periphery

and periphery Semi-periphery nations are broadly

equivalent to NICs that developed in 1970s.

Wallerstein recognised that some countries could develop and gain power, showing that wealth and power were fluid, not static.

Countries can move between peripheral, semi-periphery and core

ideas are partly related to the economic theory of Supercycles (Kondratiev waves – see table)

These suggest economic growth passes through phases based on key new technologies

These new technologies bring growth to particular geographical regions

Date and Cycle Technology Location 1770-1850 Industrial Revolution

Cotton, steam engines

UK

1850-1920 Industrialization

Rail, steam ships, iron and

steel,

Increased involvement

of Europe and USA

1920-1945 Motorization

Petrochemicals, cars,

electricity

Increasing dominance of

the USA1945– 1990 Cold

war eraWhite goods,

consumer goods

Rise of Japan and Asian

Tigers 1990 onwards Internet,

wireless, biotechnology

Shifts in production

toward India and China

2020 onwards? ???? Asia?

World Systems Theory - CriticismWorld Systems Theory - Criticism

More a description of the world than an explanation of it.

Does not account for the rise of China and was written during the

Cold War (bi-polar era)

Mackinder’s heartland theoryMackinder’s heartland theory 1904 British Geographer Believed whoever controlled Europe and Asia- the biggest land mass-

would control the world Belief in a heartland extending from Eastern Europe into Russia, at the

centre of which was a pivot

Said 3 things determined powerb) Pivot ruler would command heartlandc) Ruler of heartland would command world island (i.e. Europe,

Russia and into Asiad) Whoever controlled the world island would rule the world Theory suggested further away place was from heartland less

influence Mackinder thought Russia ought to be worlds global power as its

location gave it natural advantages Thought Britain should lie outside the heartland Russia had 3 disadvantages to prevent too much power-i) Numerous borders = numerous attack threatsj) Too few all year ports- most closed in Winter as frozenk) Weak government Mackinder believed Britain disturbed theoretical balance, and its

industrialisation and efficient government had shifted heartland westwards- 2 major causes of western shift

13) Industrial revolution gave economic power14) Naval strength gave sea power which Mackinder had overlooked

in the original theory

Evangelical ChristianityEvangelical Christianity Part of thinking of colonialism was to

spread Christian words, called evangelism Missionaries were sent abroad to colonial

territories, especially in Africa. To work in schools and teach children Christianity

In 1500 less than 5% of Africans were Christian, today about 50% of Africans are Christians of some description

Social DarwinismSocial Darwinism

Put forward by Herbert Spencer He was an elitist believed that natural superiority

ruled ‘white makes right’ Gained support from Darwin's theory about strong

survival over weak Even liberals believed colonialism bought benefits

o the colonised

TasksTasks

Outline the main theories of colonisation- which do you most agree with?

With reference to different theories put forward, explain why there are shifts in the global centre of economic gravity.

The end of some The end of some

superpowers…superpowers…

……and the creation of and the creation of

new ones.new ones.