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17.1 What were the reasons for the colonisation of North America and what effects did this
have?->Colonisation and contact history
section
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2015 edition
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Apply 17.1
1 Write definitions for the words invasion, occupation, colonisation and settlement in your
own words. Compare your definitions with those of a partner and discuss any differences.
2 With reference to Source 17.6, list the continents where Britain, France and Spain had
colonies.
European imperialism had its origins in the Industrial Revolution, which began in Britain
around 1750. This was a time when new ways of manufacturing, using factories and
machinery, were being developed. Europes colonies provided a source of raw materials
such as cotton, wool and timber that were needed to supply the new industries. The
colonies themselves provided new markets for goods that were now being produced in great
quantities. This created great wealth for Europes merchants and industrialists.
The race to seize and settle new territories was also about competing for global power and
influence. Europeans felt justified in imposing their culture and values on Indigenous
peoples, as they believed their customs were more evolved and civilised than those of
Indigenous peoples. They had a right to civilise native peoples and make them behave and
think like Europeans, and have Christian beliefs.
Apply 17.2
1 Source 17.7 is an early map of Australia, then called New Holland. It dates from before
Cooks first voyage to the Pacific, from 1768 to 1771. Find a map of Australia that was
created after this voyage, and compare the maps. Suggest how Cooks map helped Britain
to colonise Australia.
oxforddigital.com.au
2015 edition
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Colonisation patterns of
supplanting societies
The Australian historian David Day has described the European colonies of this period as
supplanting societies. This means that Europeans took over the lands of other societies
and supplanted, or replaced, the groups that had previously lived there. Day says that
Europeans created a new version of the history of the lands they colonised by telling their
own stories and legends about explorers and pioneers. For example, in North America, the
Wild West and the figure of the cowboy are now key aspects of US history and folklore.
Similarly, Australia has stories about the outback, drovers and the explorers.
There were also common ways in which Europeans established their claims to new lands:
using maps drawn by European explorers to claim the land on the basis
that they were the first to discover it
naming places with links to their own country, often using the word new.
For example, New South Wales was named by James Cook because the
coastline reminded him of Wales in Britain. The city of New York was first
called New Amsterdam by the Dutch until the British took control and
named it after York in England.
oxforddigital.com.au
2015 edition
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Source 17.7 A French map of Australia, then known as New Holland (Nouvelle
Hollande in French), from before 1770
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2015 edition
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Source 17.8 An artists impression of the moment when Governor Arthur Phillip
raised the British flag to claim all of the east coast of Australia
Review 17.2
1 Explain why European powers competed to establish colonies around the world.
2 What was one European justification for taking control of land already occupied by
Indigenous peoples?
oxforddigital.com.au
2015 edition
Page | 5