The Origins of European Imperialism

Summary

This video script delves into the historical narrative of European imperialism, tracing its roots to the 15th century's exploration and conquest. It begins with the European desire to partake in the lucrative Asian trade, leading to the Age of Exploration. The script highlights the pivotal moment when Christopher Columbus, instead of merely trading, claimed land for Spain, setting a precedent for European land acquisition. It discusses the division of the 'New World' between Spain and Portugal, and how this marked a shift in European mindset towards viewing unclaimed territories and non-Christian peoples as ripe for conquest and exploitation.

Takeaways

• 🌍 The script discusses the historical narrative of how European men, motivated by curiosity and greed, shaped the modern world through conquest and exploitation.
• 🏰 It highlights the transformation of Europe from a continent of poor farmers to a global power that influenced the entire world's culture, language, and economy.
• 🛶 The age of exploration began with Portugal and Spain seeking alternative trade routes to the East, leading to the discovery of new lands and the concept of 'claiming' territories.
• 🚢 Christopher Columbus's voyages, initially aimed at finding a westward route to Asia, resulted in the encounter with the Americas and the idea of claiming land without resistance.
• 📜 The Treaty of Tordesillas, brokered by the Pope, divided the 'New World' between Spain and Portugal, setting a precedent for European imperialism.
• 🌈 The script emphasizes the shift in European mindset from trade to territorial conquest, viewing the 'New World' as unclaimed and ripe for the taking.
• 🗺️ The use of maps and the division of the world into 'Old World' and 'New World' represented a new way of thinking about global geography and ownership.
• 📚 The Portuguese nautical Atlas depicted the 'New World' as a land of opportunity, portraying the indigenous people as 'savage and brutal', justifying their subjugation.
• 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 The script points out the irony that while the initial goal was to participate in Asian trade, the allure of unclaimed land led to a different path of colonization.
• 📈 The European conquest led to the spread of their languages, culture, and economic systems, often at the expense of the native populations and their way of life.
• 📹 The video promises to explore in further installments how other European nations joined the imperialistic venture, expanding the reach of European influence globally.

Q & A

What was the primary motivation behind the European exploration and expansion in the 15th century?

The primary motivation was to participate in the thriving trade of the east, which was abundant in resources like silk, spices, and luxurious fabrics, which were scarce in Europe at that time.

How did the European perspective on the 'New World' differ from their view of the 'Old World'?

The 'New World' was seen as unclaimed land that could be easily conquered and claimed by Europeans due to the lack of strong armies or a Christian king, unlike the 'Old World' which was already divided and claimed by various powerful entities.

What significant event marked the beginning of the Age of Exploration for Europe?

The significant event was Portugal's successful circumnavigation of Africa to establish a sea route to the east, which allowed them to trade directly with the wealthy African empires and the east.

Why did Spain decide to explore a different route to Asia compared to Portugal?

Spain decided to explore a different route because they wanted to establish their own trade route to Asia, independent of Portugal's success around Africa. They were influenced by Christopher Columbus's proposal to sail westward to reach the east.

What was the outcome of Columbus's first voyage that changed the course of European imperialism?

Columbus discovered the Americas, which he initially thought were the Indies. His realization that the indigenous people had no armies or navies to protect their lands led to the idea of claiming these lands for Spain instead of just trading.

How did Spain and Portugal divide the world between themselves for conquest and trade?

They divided the world by drawing lines on a map, with everything to the left of the line belonging to Spain and everything to the right to Portugal. This division was brokered with the help of the Pope.

What was the impact of the European conquest on the indigenous populations of the 'New World'?

The European conquest led to the mass killing of indigenous people through warfare and the introduction of European diseases to which they had no immunity, as well as the forced assimilation of their cultures.

What role did the Portuguese nautical Atlas play in shaping the European view of the world after the division with Spain?

The Portuguese nautical Atlas served as a declaration of the new way of seeing the world, depicting unclaimed territories and sub-human people ripe for conquest and claiming by Christian explorers.

How did the European conquest and colonization change the global economic landscape?

The conquest and colonization allowed European powers to extract vast quantities of resources like silver and establish plantations for commodities like tobacco and sugar, which in turn enriched Europe and reshaped the global economy.

What was the broader implication of the European claim to the 'New World' for the subsequent history of global imperialism?

The claim to the 'New World' set a precedent for European imperialism, where the idea of unclaimed land and the right to conquer it became a driving force behind the expansion of European powers across the globe.

How did the European exploration and conquest shape the cultural and linguistic landscape of the Americas?

The European conquest led to the spread of Spanish and Portuguese languages across the Americas, as well as the imposition of European cultural and religious practices on the indigenous populations.

Outlines

00:00

🌏 The Origins of European Dominance

This paragraph sets the stage for a historical narrative on how Europe, once a continent of struggling farmers, managed to dominate the world. It discusses the initial curiosity and adventurous spirit of European men that evolved into a drive for wealth and power. The speaker outlines a 500-year project where Europe spread its influence across the globe through conquest and trade, altering the course of human history and shaping the modern world in their image. The video promises to explore this process without focusing on dates and names, but rather on the mechanisms of how Europe managed to take over the world.

05:01

🛳️ The Age of Exploration and Trade

The second paragraph delves into the beginning of the Age of Exploration, highlighting the efforts of Spain and Portugal to find trade routes to the East. It describes the initial European motivation to participate in the lucrative trade networks of the time, which were dominated by thriving empires in the Middle East, India, and China. The paragraph explains how the Ottoman Empire blocked the land route, prompting the Iberian countries to seek alternative sea routes. The successful circumnavigation of Africa by the Portuguese and the misguided but ultimately fortuitous westward voyage of Christopher Columbus are emphasized, marking the start of Europe's global expansion and the shift from trade to territorial claims.

10:03

🏴‍☠️ The Birth of European Imperialism

This paragraph focuses on the pivotal moment when Columbus realized that the lands he encountered were undefended and could be claimed by Europeans. It discusses the foundational idea that led to European imperialism, where the 'New World' was seen as land ripe for the taking due to the lack of resistance from its indigenous peoples. The division of the world between Spain and Portugal by drawing lines on a map is highlighted, illustrating the arbitrary yet profound impact of this action on global history. The paragraph also introduces the concept of the 'Old World' versus the 'New World' and how this new paradigm shifted European thinking towards conquest and colonization.

15:07

🗺️ The Expansion and Impact of European Colonization

The final paragraph examines the rapid expansion of European influence following the new paradigm of claiming uncharted territories. It describes how Spain and Portugal, and later other European powers, began to impose their languages, religions, and systems of exploitation across the newly 'claimed' lands. The paragraph also touches on the devastating effects of this colonization on indigenous populations, including violence, forced labor, and the introduction of European diseases to which they had no immunity. The narrative concludes with a teaser for the next part of the series, which will explore how other European nations joined the race for unclaimed territories.

Keywords

💡European men

This term refers to the individuals from Europe who initiated the exploration and subsequent colonization of other parts of the world. In the video's narrative, these men are characterized by their initial curiosity and adventurous spirit, which later transformed into a drive for dominance and wealth accumulation. The script mentions that these men believed their way of life was superior, leading to the colonization and exploitation of other cultures and regions.

💡Age of Exploration

The Age of Exploration refers to the period in history when European nations actively sought new trade routes and expanded their territories across the globe. The video discusses how this period was marked by the movement of people, weapons, and diseases, which significantly altered the course of human history. The script uses this term to set the stage for the series of events that led to Europe's dominance over the world.

💡Imperialism

Imperialism is the policy or practice of extending a nation's power by gaining territories for a colonial empire or by gaining political and economic control of other areas. The video's theme revolves around European imperialism, particularly how it began with the exploration and trade but quickly evolved into claiming lands and resources, as exemplified by Columbus's actions and the subsequent division of the world between Spain and Portugal.

💡Better Help

Better Help is an online platform mentioned in the script that connects individuals with therapists for mental health support. While not directly related to the main theme of European imperialism, it serves as a sponsor for the video and is highlighted as a resource for individuals seeking therapy. The script emphasizes the importance of mental health and the accessibility provided by Better Help.

💡Trade routes

Trade routes are the paths or corridors used for the exchange of goods between different regions or countries. In the context of the video, the establishment of new trade routes was a significant factor in Europe's rise to power. The script discusses how Spain and Portugal sought alternative routes to the East to participate in lucrative trade, which eventually led to the discovery of new lands and the beginning of colonization.

💡Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire was a powerful Middle Eastern state that controlled significant trade routes between Europe and Asia. In the script, the Ottoman Empire is depicted as a barrier to Spanish and Portuguese ambitions to establish land routes to the East, forcing them to seek alternative sea routes, which played a crucial role in the Age of Exploration.

💡Portuguese exploration

Portuguese exploration refers to the maritime expeditions undertaken by Portugal during the Age of Exploration. The script highlights Portugal's efforts to circumnavigate Africa to reach the East, which resulted in the establishment of trade with wealthy African empires and the discovery of new lands. This exploration was a precursor to the broader European imperialism discussed in the video.

💡Columbus

Columbus, or Christopher Columbus, was an Italian explorer who is known for his voyages across the Atlantic Ocean, which led to the widespread European awareness of the American continents. The script uses Columbus as an example of the shift from trade to claiming land, as he mistakenly believed he had reached the East Indies but instead landed in the Americas, setting the stage for European colonization.

💡New World

The term 'New World' was used by Europeans to refer to the Americas after their discovery by Columbus. In the video, the concept of the 'New World' is tied to the idea of unclaimed land ripe for European conquest and exploitation. The script discusses how this perception led to the division of newly discovered territories between Spain and Portugal.

💡Conquest

Conquest refers to the act of taking territory or power from another by force or conquest. In the video, the term is used to describe the aggressive expansion of European influence and control over newly discovered lands. The script illustrates how the initial goal of trade transformed into a quest for conquest and acquisition of territories in the 'New World'.

💡Division of the world

The division of the world refers to the historical event where Spain and Portugal, with the support of the Pope, agreed to split the newly discovered territories between them. The script describes this division as a literal drawing of lines on a map, which determined the spheres of influence for each nation and set the stage for the broader European imperialism that followed.

Highlights

The world's current state was shaped by European men driven by curiosity, adventure, and eventually greed.

A 500-year project of European influence spread across the globe through conquest and exploitation.

The video series aims to demonstrate how Europe took over the world, shaping it to their way of thinking and doing things.

Better Help is promoted as a platform to improve mental health through accessible therapy services.

Therapy is presented as an underutilized resource that can significantly change one's approach to life and relationships.

In 1450, Europe consisted of smaller kingdoms with scarce resources, in contrast to thriving empires in the Middle East, India, and China.

Spain and Portugal were the first European countries to seek wealth through exploration and trade.

The Ottoman Empire's control over land routes to the east forced Spain and Portugal to seek alternative sea routes.

Portugal's strategy to circumnavigate Africa led to successful trade with wealthy African empires.

Columbus's voyage, funded by Spain, aimed to find a westward route to Asia but instead discovered the Americas.

Columbus's realization that the indigenous people had no armies led to the decision to claim their land.

The Treaty of Tordesillas divided the world between Spain and Portugal, creating a new paradigm for European imperialism.

The concept of 'Old World' versus 'New World' was invented to justify the claim of unclaimed lands by Europeans.

A Portuguese nautical Atlas depicted the world as divided between claimed and unclaimed territories, reflecting a new European mindset.

The European expansion led to the spread of their languages, mining of resources, and the decimation of indigenous populations.

The video series will continue to explore how the story of European imperialism expanded to include other European nations.

Transcripts

(drawer opening)

(explorative music)

- The world you live in today was sketched on paper

by European men.

Men who looked like me.

Men who at first were just curious and adventurous

but soon whose motives morphed into an insatiable greed.

A confidence that their way was better than everyone elses.

This confidence led to arguably the most influential series

of events in human history.

At least the history that affects you and me,

a 500 year project of moving people

and weapons and germs and language and violence

to every corner of our earth and in the process, gathering

and taking home stuff to make them richer, metal,

rubber, tea, sugar, and human bodies.

This isn't a history lesson.

You won't hear me talk a lot about dates and names.

Instead, this is the first of three videos

where I want to show you how this happened.

How Europe, a continent full of poor, miserable farmers

took over the entire world, and in the process,

they shaped it, they shaped it to their way

of thinking and speaking and doing things.

So this is part one of how Europe stole the world.

(dramatic music)

(relaxing music)

I am out here on a bit of an excursion near the sea,

but I wanna pause this video because I need to tell you

about the sponsor of today's video,

which is Better Help,

a company that is trying to help you improve

your mental health.

I am a giant fan of therapy.

I've said it before, I will continue to say it.

I think therapy is way underutilized in our society.

We all have mental health issues,

whether we like it or not, whether they're diagnosed or not,

and Better Help is trying to make therapy

which is just working through the things

in your mind, more accessible

and I'm a giant supporter of that mission.

I've been in therapy for several years,

it has changed the way that I think,

it has changed the way that I approach my relationships.

It has changed me,

I can say that unambiguously and very genuinely.

What Better Help is, is a platform to make therapy

more accessible to people, anyone around the whole world.

It's not bound by geography.

So instead of looking for a therapist like

in your local town, you go on to Better Help, you sign up.

You take a very short quiz

and they match you with somebody in their huge network

of like tens of thousands of therapists.

Once you're matched, you can start communicating

with a therapist in as little as like 48 hours,

which if you've ever looked for a therapist before,

that is very, very quick.

That is very easy

and that's what Better Help's trying to do,

is just use technology to make therapy more accessible.

I'm a big fan of that.

You can choose how you do your therapy.

You can do it over the phone.

You can do it over video call.

You could even do it over like messaging,

if you don't want to talk.

Better Help is not like a self-help program.

It's not a crisis line,

it's legitimate therapy that is done securely

on the internet.

This is why over three million people are on

the Better Help platform,

taking control of their mental health.

So if you want to get in on this, try Better Help out.

There is a link in my description

it is BetterHelp.com/JohnnyHarris.

Clicking that link helps support this channel,

but it also gives you 10% off your first month

of Better Help, so you can try it out.

Better Help is already really affordable.

There's even financial aid for those who need it.

Thank you Better Help for supporting my channel,

for supporting this video

and for making therapy more accessible.

Okay, now back to this incredibly important story

on how Europe stole the world.

Yes, I'm gonna be looking at a lot of maps

to understand this issue

because drawing on the map is how they did things.

(dramatic music)

To understand how Europe stole the world,

we need to rewind to back when the map looked

a little different, hold on.

Back in like 1450, the world map looked like this.

I mean, Europe was just a bunch of smaller kingdoms.

The borders look so different than they do today.

They were all pretty small potatoes.

Well actually there actually were no potatoes.

Those wouldn't arrive to Europe for another 50 years

but the fact is there wasn't an abundance

of anything in Europe.

Instead, Europeans were just farmers barely scraping by,

constantly in debt to a few rich landlords.

Life in Europe was scarce and miserable.

Meanwhile, there was a bunch of other empires

around the world that were thriving.

There was this big empire over in the Middle East.

They had silk and then over here in India,

you had a big empire with spices

and luxurious cotton fabrics.

Then of course there was the big dynasty in China

that had by this time already invented gun powder, porcelain

and really sophisticated ships,

that they could use to sail around the world.

Oh, and all of these empires were trading with one another,

making all of them even richer.

They all had better everything than Europe did

and miserable Europeans eventually wanted in

on all the trade.

(funky music)

So that's kind of the context here that sets the stage

for Europe taking over the world.

The first two countries that wanted in on all this trade

and set out to explore were the countries that today

we know is Spain and Portugal.

So they start looking for a land route to get them east.

They start moving east and nope.

Oh, look, it's the Ottoman Empire,

a very powerful Middle Eastern empire

that's run by Muslims.

Meanwhile, Spain and Portugal are hella Catholic

and they're not being super nice to Muslims or Jews.

So the Ottomans are like, "No, we're not gonna let you

"pass through our land to get in on the trade in the east.

"Oh and by the way, you can't even afford our taxes.

"You're miserable Europeans without a lot of money,

"so go away."

They're gonna need another way to go east.

Portugal's work around was literally to go

around the continent of Africa.

Stopping along the coast to trade

with the wealthy African empires along the way.

This is a huge moment because it actually worked.

It's near the end of the 1400s

and the Portuguese are now going nuts.

They're sending ships around this route

that they figured out, trading with the east

and suddenly the Portuguese are dressing

in luxurious fabrics.

They're using cloves and cinnamon and black pepper

to make their food actually taste good.

Wait a minute, you're telling me

they didn't have black pepper before this?

Geez, miserable indeed.

- You must have some peppers.

- So the age of exploration has begun.

Miserable Europe is doing something about their situation.

Going out to get in on the thriving trade in the east.

But remember, this isn't about conquering land.

It's about trading, for now.

(dramatic music)

Okay, so now Spain sees Portugal hitting the jackpot

and they're kind of jelly, they want in on this too.

They need to establish their own trade route to Asia

but they wanted to do things a little bit differently.

Instead of following Portugal's lead

and going around Africa, they listen to a pitch

from this Italian sailor and this sailor wants them

to fund his new startup called what if we sailed west

to get to Asia instead of east, super promising name.

Now remember at this point, people in Europe thought

that the world looked like this, the logic was like,

oh we can just hop over to Asia by going this other way.

So Spain was like, yes, great idea, high risk, high return.

Do it Columbus.

Well, it turns out the world does not look like this

and instead over here, there are a couple of

massive continents that Columbus ran into.

But like many of us confident white dudes,

Columbus was like, yeah, I know exactly where I am.

We're like in the Indies right now.

Like over those guys over there, those are Indians.

Yep, I can feel it.

But instead he was like in Cuba,

but despite the mansplaining,

Columbus kind of found exactly what he was looking for

and more.

Great empires with rich culture and food

and precious metal that weren't available to him back home,

he was right on target.

So he's like, "All right, guys, let's trade."

But then he is like, "Wait a minute.

"These people don't have armies or navies

"protecting their stuff."

So this must be kind of a different place,

different land with different rules

and this is where the biggest light bulb moment

of the century goes off in this guy's head.

"Change of plans, boys." says Columbus,

"We're going to claim this land."

And everyone was like, "Wait, what?"

"You heard me, we are claiming this land."

and the boys are like, "Wait,

"weren't we here to like trade with great empires.

"Portugal's been doing this

"for like all these years and getting rich."

and he's like, "No, they don't have armies.

"They're just letting us show up

"and like be here without a fight.

"So obviously that means they don't mind

"if we just like claim the land."

I mean, I'm taking some creative Liberty here

on like explaining what Columbus was thinking.

But like, look at the letter that he wrote.

Here's the letter that Columbus wrote back to the king

and queen, reporting on what he saw.

He writes back saying that he discovered many islands,

inhabited by numerous peoples

and then I took possession of them

for our most fortunate king, making public proclamation

and unfurling his standard, his flag,

with no one making any resistance,

no one making any resistance.

Spain and Portugal set out to trade.

They sent out to like explore and understand and get in

on the global economy.

But Columbus's realization was instead of trading,

they could actually just claim land for themselves

and this changed everything.

After all, no one was making any resistance.

This moment is the foundation

upon which all European imperialism grows.

I'll show you.

(dramatic music)

It's the moment that would give us the first big division

in the minds of Europeans.

The thing we wrote on paper, the old world

versus the new world.

This is really familiar language to us now

but it was invented in this moment.

The new world was now seen as land that could be claimed.

It was fair game to go conquer because they didn't have

big armies or a Christian King.

"Forget trade with the east," said, Columbus,

"There's a bunch of land that we can go

"take over in the west." and the race was on.

(inspiring music)

Spain and Portugal didn't wanna fight with each

other over all this land,

this conquest that they were about to undertake.

So they got together and they drew some lines.

No, literally they just drew two straight lines.

We have Africa, we have Europe

and then we have this line.

Everything left of this line is Spains,

everything to the right is Portugal.

This is literally one of the original maps

where they actually drew these straight lines

and divided the world into two.

But let's look at this on a nicer looking map, please.

There we go, now we can see very clearly.

Oh, look now we understand why they speak Portuguese

in Brazil.

So Spain and Portugal now have their spheres

of the world that they can go conquer.

They didn't ask anyone.

They didn't negotiate with the locals.

They just drew these straight lines.

The Pope actually helped them broker the deal, classic.

But again, this is a huge thing that I want to explain

in this series, that these were not just lines.

They weren't just like lines on paper.

They were actually a shift in the paradigm, a new way

of thinking about the world, no one making any resistance.

It was a story that Europeans could now tell themselves.

Old world versus new world,

claimed versus unclaimed, a new way of thinking.

Think I'm being overly simplistic about this?

Let me show you something.

(dramatic music)

There's one, two, three, four.

These were a juicy find.

I found this amazing Portuguese nautical Atlas.

It's a bunch of maps that the Portuguese Navy drafted up

right after these two lines divided the world

between Spain and Portugal

and it is an amazing series of maps, but not only

because it's visually stunning,

but also because it lets us into the mind

of how the Portuguese saw the world

after they divided it with Spain.

(relaxing music)

This Atlas reads like a story book.

It's like the Portuguese were so giddy

about giving themselves permission to steal half the world,

that they had to write a children's story about it.

That's what it feels like, that's not what it is,

but just look at this thing, here's the title page.

You can see that at the center is the sphere

that was given to Portuguese.

Brazil, Africa, what is now the East Indies

and here on every corner,

you see these angels that are blowing wind into the sales

of the Portuguese who are out on their land grab mission.

So this is just the title page.

The subsequent pages of this Atlas are closeups

on different regions.

This is the Caribbean over here.

Look, this will become Cuba.

This will become Haiti, Dominican Republic, North America,

South America, all of this unclaimed up for grabs.

Here, our story depicts all these flags.

Some of them are Spanish flags on the islands on their side

of the line, but then you have Portuguese flags

on the Portuguese side of the line.

The status of this land,

according to the fantasy of the Portuguese,

changing from unclaimed to claimed by men on ships

with Christian crosses on their sails,

showing up and planting flags.

This was like playing a board game to them.

(dramatic music)

Here's another page.

This one's a close up on Brazil,

and look, we've got people over here.

We've got dark skinned, naked people

with primitive tools and no homes.

It looks like down here in Brazil,

they spend their days chopping wood naked and dancing,

all while being gazed upon by fantastical birds and dragons?

This was an official Naval Atlas drafted for the king

and if its message wasn't clear enough

on how these people should be depicted,

the Atlas has a little info box up here where they say

that the Brazilians are quote, "Savage and very brutal."

This is one of the first atlases ever made

and it wasn't really a navigation tool.

It was much more a declaration

of a new way of seeing the world.

Unclaimed territory, sub-human people,

all of it up for grabs by Christian boats.

So yeah, this is how it all started.

Under this new paradigm, both empires expanded very quickly

forcing the Spanish and Portuguese languages

across the ocean,

mining, vast quantities of silver, creating plantations

for tobacco and sugar

and in the process, massacring the people who were living

in this new world, both with their weapons,

but also with their European city germs

that the people being conquered didn't have immunity to.

I mean, this whole thing started with curiosity,

with a thirst to get in on the trade in Asia.

But soon as this fantasy of unclaimed land

came into the picture, the goal shifted,

the project pivoted and soon Europe was telling themselves

a new story that they, enlightened Christians,

were entitled to claim it

and while the story starts with Spain and Portugal,

soon it spread.

Other European countries poked their head up

from their farm work and said,

"Hey, we're white Christians also, we know how to sail.

"We want in on this story of unclaimed land."

And that's the next chapter of the story.

One that I will tell you in the next part of the series.