Decolonization

= **__Decolonization__** = Adil, Alex, Mitchell

**Decolonization**, "the action of changing from colonial to independent status", was a substantially important result of the global conflicts occurring from the late 19th to 20th centuries, though it did occur somewhat during the 18th century. With the exception of Latin America, decolonization took place mainly after World War II, when the European powers were still suffering the effects of war. Though most of these nations did not gain independence until the mid 1900s, many grew national identities well before then.

=**Latin America**=

Decolonization in the Americas, specifically among Spanish and Portuguese colonies, largely took place in the 18th and 19th centuries, much earlier than other colonial claims held by Europeans at the time. The decolonization was in fact triggered by the Napoleonic wars back in Europe, due to Napoleon taking over European governments, like putting his brother in charge of Spain, as well as threatening European royalties like those in Portugal to flee to Brazil in the Americas as a way for salvation. The colonized people in the new world did not sit well with the shifting of power back in European, and as a result, several civil uprisings occurred, often resulting in civil wars and revolutions for independence. The independence of such Latin American nations is, as expected, due to their own efforts, but other colonial powers at the time like Britain choose to stay idle and not help their European nations suffering from rebellion in their colonies (as they had the means to) due to them having economic and political benefits from the actions going on overseas.

Through several uprisings (and wars) over 15 years, in 1825 Spain had only Puerto Rico and Cuba as colonial claims in Latin America, while Brazil had gained independence from Portugal around the same time. Latin America however was able to keep afloat thanks to economic claims by Britain and France, creating ports that would help exporting for the British and French as well as benefit the newly formed/independent nations. As a lasting effect of the rule from the Spanish and Portuguese, several of the new nations were locked in conflict with each other, a pattern that is seen later in time during the decolonization of Africa.

=Asia=

India and Pakistan: Imperialism in India began in the early 17th century by the British East India Company, control was then handed over to the British Empire and lasted until 1947. Britain benefited from this control by gaining a source of raw materials, a market for manufactured goods, and a channel for investments overseas. Ports in India also helped Britain maintain Naval supremacy east of Africa.

 One of the earliest signs of India's future break from colonial rule was the **Indian Rebellion of 1857**, caused by a deep concern that Indian culture and society was being fundamentally changed by British rule. The mutiny of the sepoys, or Indian troops that fought for the British was the beginning of this rebellion, but the movement soon spread throughout the Indian subcontinent. Although British order was restored in 1858, the rebellion resulted in direct control by the British Crown (as opposed to the British East India Company) and, more importantly, created a shared identity for all Indians.

 The next step towards independence occurred in 1885 with the creation of the **Indian National Congress**. In the early years after its conception, the congress acted as a means for the Indian people to express their concerns to the British overlords, but it had no role in the government. **Mohandas Gandhi** became the leader of the congress in 1920 and transformed it into a political organization aiming to gain independence from British rule. Gandhi became famous for his policy of passive, or nonviolent, resistance to British rule and the movement gained steam in the 1930's and 40's.  Due to several ruinous defeats of the United Kingdom in World War 2, India found itself at an advantageous bargaining position with a vulnerable Britain. In 1942, Britain needed assistance from India in repelling the Japanese and, in exchange for their help, promised them full independence at the conclusion of the war. Some members of the Indian National Congress refused to take part in the war because they wanted immediate rights to self-government, instead starting the **Quit India Movement**. The movement was another act of passive resistance and ended in the arrests of congressional leaders, including Gandhi. This resulted in a massive uproar from the Indian public.

After the war, Britain was too weak to continue its hold on an incessantly rebelling India. The newly elected Labour Party of Great Britain decided that granting the colony independence was the best course of action. As India and Britain discussed independence, Hindus and Muslims began fighting each other. It became apparent that India would fall into chaos unless it was split into two separate nations, one for the Muslim and one for the Hindus. On June 3, 1947, **Viceroy Lord Louis** **Mountbatte****n** announced that India would be divided into two self-governed countries, and on August 15, 1947, Britain granted independence to India and Pakistan.

The Yi dynasty controlled Korea for over 500 years. However, Japan invaded in 1905, and formally annexed the peninsula in 1910. Koreans were not happy about colonial rule because they were forced to work in labor camps and adopt aspects of Japanese culture, but all opposition was defeated by the Japanese.
 * Korea: **

Japan's control over Korea came to a close in 1945 with their surrender at the conclusion of World War II. The U.S. and the Soviet Union then agreed to split Korea along the latitudinal line at 38 o North, with the United States taking control in the southern half and Russia in the north. The thinking behind this management was that Korea would be "free and independent in due course."

Unfortunately, communication over Korea faltered, and when the **Republic of Korea** was proclaimed by the United Nations as the new Korean government on August 15, 1948, the Soviet Union refused to accept it. Instead, they established another independent government, the **Democratic People's Republic of** **Korea**, in the north on September ninth of the same year. Both North Korea and South Korea still exist as independent nations.

=Africa=

Seeking economic gains, political power, and colonial claims, from the 1870s to 1900, several imperialistic European powers began to colonize countries on the African continent, known as the **Scramble for Africa.** This scramble was an often violent process, and many European nations expected nothing but war to come from it if action was not taken to avoid such an outcome. The action taken is known as the **Berlin Conference**, where a treaty, the **Berlin Act**, created the guidelines for colonizing Africa and interaction between the European nations. The treaty was conceived without the consent of African leaders. These acts planted the first seeds of rebellion in African nations that led to events that would diminish colonial rule in Africa and eventually lead to an absence of European presence in the majority of Africa by the 1970s.

By the early 1900s, all but a few African Nations like Liberia and Ethiopia, had been colonized by European nations, mainly Britain, France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, and Italy. This left these nations little less than half a century to rule these places. Over this time, there were rebellions in the colonized African nations, but nothing that could not be quelled by the Europeans. Following World War II, African leaders were able to gain political power under European rule due to the colonies help in fighting the war, such as by supplying raw materials. Despite aiding the Europeans in the war, the African colonies had no offer of Independence. However, through legislation like the **Atlantic Charter** created by the United States and Britain, African Colonies were allowed freedoms such as democratic forms of government at local levels. Actions such as the Atlantic Charter helped add fuel to the fire that would eventually lead to decolonization of African nations, as European countries had a decrease in presence in these countries due to the costly impact of WWII on their economies and military. Due to the impact of WWII, European nations used their claims in Africa as sources to get raw materials for their gain, not the Africans'. This caused rebellions that the Europeans could not handle. These events eventually lead to the first decolonization incidents in the 1950s, the majority in the 1960s, and the remaining liberations from the 1970s onwards.

Although the African nations eventually gained independence from the respective European countries, the division of land by Europe without regard to the territorial holdings of Africans living there at the time caused deep social scars that became the root of conflicts between the African nations over time. This added on to the fact that several African countries could not find capable leaders to make the correct decisions for their countries and lead them into the future. Social tensions among the African nations led to continued conflict between Africans and Europeans who remained in Africa. A prime example of this is South Africa, where the whites were largely in control of the government and enforced policies like **apartheid** up until the 1990s, when Africans there finally began to play a major role in their government and people began to see their country as free from European rule. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =Bibliography=

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