by Michelle Wilkinson

Created on: July 21, 2008   Last Updated: September 21, 2008

For a start, imperialism and settling in distant lands are two different, albeit related, things. Imperialism involves a more powerful nation using its power and resources to influence events in other less powerful nations. Settling, on the other hand, involves a more direct form of control and administration from a more powerful country. The effects of imperialism are harder to measure than settling because settling in another country has a direct impact which can be traced (administration usually involves a lot of paperwork). Imperialism, however, is harder to measure since imperialism often involves making decisions behind closed doors. These decisions are not meant for public consumption since imperialism involves influencing events in a more subtle way, in a way that does not necessarily reveal who is actually behind certain events.

So now that the distinction has been made between imperialism and settling, was it right to settle in distant lands? It is hard to imagine such a situation today since there is very little of the world that has not been explored and the most powerful countries see little to gain from acquiring land which they would then have to administer. In the nineteenth century, however, it was a different matter. Take the British Empire, for instance; the nineteenth century was dominated by a need to classify, categorise and understand. Much of the world had yet to be explored, or at least not explored and recorded in any great depth. The Empire offered such an opportunity. For the British government the Empire provided jobs for its civil servants and was seen as a way of alleviate overcrowding and a population explosion. Indeed, there was a fear that Britain was being overrun by undesirables', particularly members of the working class. It was hoped that such individuals could be enticed to settle in the colonies to help rid Britain of its social ills.

The British government had not started out enthusiastic collectors of Empire, yet even though their decisions were influenced by the need to serve the mother country' that is not to say that they did not want the best for the colonies, since the colonies was a reflection on their own rule. Besides, since there were a lot of British administrators living in the colonies it made sense that they would want to live in a stable environment.

The nineteenth century was characterised by nationalism. Not only were nations established during this period, there was also a need to consolidate a sense of

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