The Indigenous Responses to Western Imperialism

716 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Essay on expansionism in the late 19th century

Research Paper: Perspectives Matter Project

During the late 1800s, several powerful countries were looking into expanding their land, and imperializing. The cultures of the imperialized lands were highly impacted and caused a response. The most valid document relating to the indigenous responses to Western Imperialism in both the Hawaiian Islands and Africa is “Hawaii’s Last Queen on American Annexation” By Queen Liliuokalani. During the late 1800’s, America participated in the Spanish-American war, annexing the Philippine islands. Spain originally annexed the Philippines, but revolts and revolutions took place in the islands in order to disintegrate Spanish rule. This then gave them the motivation to conquer more “halfway stops” in order to get all the way to the war grounds in western Europe. This time period is very important to the annexation of Hawaii because large countries were looking to annex smaller, not as powerful, island countries for natural resources, geopolitics, and land.

In order to fully interpret the context of the Hawaiian annexation, one must need to understand that the document is coming from a direct source, in this case, the Queen of Hawaii. Queen Liliuokalani is stating in the document how the queen and the parliament do not want America to annex their country and have America take over completely. The document’s perspective is from the Queen of Hawaii, Liliuokalani, who was in control over the situation and dealt with the frustration of this annex. The second to last paragraph in the document is necessary to share with the reader. This document represents a larger historical point of view because it was coming from the Queen of Hawaii herself, and not a secondary source. This document is more valuab...

... middle of paper ...

...ast Queen on American Annexation”. The reason being is that the other documents are from a third person point-of-view, or they were people not as important to the government. Queen Liliuokalani was the most valid source because she was the person who was in charge of the annexation that was happening to her home country. She dealt with all the stress and anxiety that was caused to her natives and her monarchy.

These four documents on the indigenous responses to western imperialism are all connected by their topics, historical context, and event happenings. Queen Liliuokalani was a strong, independent ruler of her monarchy and she continued to give an endless amount of trust and satisfaction to her island natives. Most people would consider “Hawaii’s Last Queen on American Annexation”, due to its legitimacy and context that significantly has the best perspective.

Show More
Related

  • The Political Journey Of Robert William Kalanihiapo Wilcox: The History Of Wilcox

    3288 Words  | 7 Pages

    Often times, the history that is being told is one of Hawaiian weakness, and defeat. The Bayonet Constitution of 1887, the Overthrow of 1893, and the Annexation of 1898, are all often used as examples of moments of powerlessness in the Hawaiian Kingdom. What about all history prior to, in between, and after, these major dates? Surely, it did not just disappear. In the last few decades, Hawaiian history has changed dramatically due to the works of many Hawaiian historians. The history that was lost has been found, and new discoveries are still being made. Hawaiʻi’s history is a story of resistance, pride, and unity. Included within this history is a man named Robert William Kalanihiapo Wilcox. Wilcox was a revolutionist, and a leader, but he enjoyed being a politician the most. Wilcox was the beacon of hope that helped guide the people of Hawaiʻi through darkness. Wilcox was and still is today a symbolic figure in Hawaiʻi’s political history.

    Read More

  • Albert Beveridge's Speech: The March Of The Flag

    539 Words  | 2 Pages

    The late1890s signaled an imperial expansion of the United States. After the victory of the Spanish American War and the Annexation of Hawaii, the U.S. had successfully expanded its borders overseas. Through the Treaty of Paris 1898, the United States acquired territories in the Caribbean and the Pacific. For example, the Philippines, Guam, Puerto Rico, and Cuba were all obtained from the Treaty of Paris. That same year the U.S. also Annexed Hawaii into the Union. This massive expansion into the Caribbean and especially the Pacific created a political clash between Imperialist and Anti-Imperialist. During this time Anti-Imperialist and Hawaiian political leaders argued that the mistreatment of indigenous people was unethical. On the other hand, Imperialist like Albert Beveridge supported Imperialism. In Beveridge’s speech “The March of the Flag” (1898) he expressed imperialism was the Anglo-Saxon way, because it improved the prosperity of these islands and expanded American borders. Also, he stated that it’s America’s

    Read More

  • The Treaty Between The Abenaki Indians And The English At Casco Bay

    1284 Words  | 3 Pages

    Sauguarrum’s testimony on the negotiations reveals that the English had twisted what the Penobscot leader had said to the English. Firstly, Sauguarrum talked personally to an English man about the structure of the treaty and what will be addressed. However, the answers he gave to the English never showed up in the treaty. For example, Sauguarrum did acknowledge the English king, but did not see King George as his own king. Also, during the negotiations, the English allowed the Indian chiefs to decide on justice if any quarrels occurred between the two parties, but in the treaty, King George and the English get to decide the punishment. This account of the negotiations leading up to the treaty reveal that the English intentionally changed the language in treaty to give English complete control over the Abenaki Indians. The first-hand account of the negotiations also reveals that there were complications ...

    Read More

  • Hawaiis political economy

    1523 Words  | 4 Pages

    A small company of thirty-four New England missionaries came to Hawaii between 1820 and 1930, were the first modern immigrants. (Lind p.59) Missionaries were powerful agents of cultural destruction, coming to Hawaii to settle and teach their ways and beliefs. Bloodthirsty priests and despotic chiefs had ruled one reason for missionaries arriving and settling in Hawaii, due to the fact that they believed ancient Hawaiians. (Trask p.14) Bringing along cultural havoc by establishing a western style educational system, which included the first textbook as the Bible. The most critical change was in the use of language as a tool of colonization. Language had once been inseparable from the Hawaiians and their history by communicating their heritage between and among many generations, now came to be used as the very vehicle of alienation from their habits of life.

    Read More

  • Manifest Destiny and the Genocide of the Native American Indian

    1365 Words  | 3 Pages

    A. Plan of the Investigation I. Subject of the Investigation How did the Manifest Destiny ideal affect the Native Americans in the 1830’s? II. Methods a. Research the origins of Manifest Destiny and the history of the Native Americans from 1830 to 1839. There were two websites that were particularly helpful to me. Reliability, how recently it was updated, and how easily it could be edited by Internet users were the main criteria used when selecting a website.

    Read More

  • Annexation Of Hawaii

    590 Words  | 2 Pages

    Stevens held firm beliefs about the future of Hawaii in the hands of the United States. From the start of his stay in Hawaii, Stevens made it clear whose side he was on in the political war. He would openly criticize Hawaii’s monarchy, and at times would refer to Queen Liliuokalani and her advisors as “incompetent”(2). Stevens may have not held anything against the Queen herself or any of her cabinet members, but rather degraded them simply to achieve his goals of the annexation of Hawaii, something that he considered “the only effective remedy for Hawaii’s troubles.” (2) Queen Liliuokalani naturally spoke out against the degradation of herself and her cabinet, and on behalf of her position of defending the Hawaiian Monarchy. “The U.S. Minister John Stevens was influenced by the annexationists. As a diplomat, his role was to foster a friendly, trusting relationship with the Hawaiian government. Instead, he often criticized the monarchy in public. I complained to the U.S. government about Stevens’ attitude and conduct but no action was taken.” (1)

    Read More

  • Stripped of Personal Freedom: Native Americans in the West

    904 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout our country’s history there have been several groups who have fared less that great. Every minority group was treated unfairly, Indians were uprooted and had no control, I can’t imagine for a second being a soldier in combat, women struggled for basic rights, and many people fell victim to the changing ways of our economy, losing their jobs and fighting to survive. It seems wrong to pick one group over another, as if to say some people who were treated horribly or who faced mounting obstacles didn’t actually have it as bad as another group. But throughout all the years we’ve studied, one group that stood out to me who were dealt a horrible fate were Native Americans living in the west during the 19th century. When Americans began to expand westward, Indians unwillingly had their lives flipped upside down and changed drastically. After years of displacement, they were being forced to live in certain areas and follow certain rules, or risk their lives.

    Read More

  • British Imperial Policies and Colonial Resistance

    788 Words  | 2 Pages

    A new era was dawning on the American colonies and its mother country Britain, an era of revolution. The American colonists were subjected to many cruel acts of the British Parliament in order to benefit England itself. These British policies were forcing the Americans to rebellious feelings as their rights were constantly being violated by the British Crown. The colonies wanted to have an independent government and economy so they could create their own laws and stipulations. The British imperial policies affected the colonies economic, political, and geographic situation which intensified colonists’ resistance to British rule and intensified commitment to their republican values.

    Read More

  • The Great Mahele Research Paper

    386 Words  | 1 Pages

    The Great Mahele was a land division in 1848 which created a massive alteration towards Hawaiians’ society. The Mahele was enacted because King Kamehameha III, influenced by foreign advisors, wanted to prevent a brutal and hostile takeover from the foreigners. Another purpose of the Mahele was to grant Hawaiians an ample amount of land. The Mahele did not serve its full purpose. Violence between foreigners and Hawaiians was avoided, but the majority of the land was lost to foreigners (Cachola). The Mahele did not benefit the Hawaiians because only foreigners had sufficient money to purchase the land and because the land that was given to the Hawaiians had limited resources (Menton and Tamura 116).

    Read More

  • Environmental Injustice Endured by the Native Americans

    2091 Words  | 5 Pages

    LaDuke, Winona. All Our Relations: Native Struggles for Land and Life. Cambridge, MA: South End Press, 1999. Print.

    Read More

  • Iroquois

    1991 Words  | 4 Pages

    ·     Guide Jr., Donald A: The Iroquois and the founding of the American Nation. Copyright 1977

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Peace Came In The Form Of A Women

    1385 Words  | 3 Pages

    Native American’s place in United States history is not as simple as the story of innocent peace loving people forced off their lands by racist white Americans in a never-ending quest to quench their thirst for more land. Accordingly, attempts to simplify the indigenous experience to nothing more than victims of white aggression during the colonial period, and beyond, does an injustice to Native American history. As a result, historians hoping to shed light on the true history of native people during this period have brought new perceptive to the role Indians played in their own history. Consequently, the theme of power and whom controlled it over the course of Native American/European contact is being presented in new ways. Examining the evolving

    Read More

  • The Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson

    1716 Words  | 4 Pages

    Rowlandson, Mary. A True History of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson.In Women’s Indian Captivity Narratives. Ed. Kathryn Zabelle Derounian-Stodola. New York: Penguin Books, 1998.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Cherokee Women And Trail Of Tears

    802 Words  | 2 Pages

    Unconcerned about the legitimacy of their actions, European colonisers took lands unjustifiably from indigenous people and put original inhabitants who had lived on the land for centuries in misery. The United States also shared similarities in dealing with native people like its distant friends in Europe. Besides the cession of vast lands, the federal government of the United States showed no pity, nor repentance for the poor Cherokee people. Theda Perdue, the author of “Cherokee Women and Trail of Tears,” unfolds the scroll of history of Cherokee nation’s resistance against the United States by analyzing the character of women in the society, criticizes that American government traumatized Cherokee nation and devastated the social order of

    Read More

  • Old And New Imperialism

    442 Words  | 1 Pages

    There were two different time periods where Imperialism occurred. The first wave of imperialism, called the 'Old' Imperialism, lasted from around 1500 - 1800. The 'New' Imperialism lasted from around 1870 - 1914. The three main differences that we will discuss today are the differences in economics, politics, and the motive behind all of this.

    Read More

More about The Indigenous Responses to Western Imperialism

Open Document