Key Terms

balance of power

a situation in which competing nations have approximately equal military power

black legend

the myth, mostly promoted by English writers, that the Spanish treated Native Americans far more harshly than other European colonizers

bourgeoisie

the social class whose members owned the means of production and whose main goal was the preservation of capital

British Raj

the period from 1858 to 1947 when the British government directly ruled India through the Viceroy of India

Canton system

a system that allowed Europeans to trade with China only if they worked through the Chinese guilds that enjoyed monopoly rights to the tea and silk trades

capitalism

an economic system in which private individuals and companies own the means of production, and free (unregulated) markets set the value of most goods and services based on supply and demand

charter

an official authorization to conduct a major economic activity such as the creation of a colony

cultural accommodation

the practice of integrating a culture into the dominant society without forcing it to fully integrate and adopt all the dominant culture’s components

economic imperialism

the practice of dominating a foreign country economically

indirect rule

a system in which colonial powers cooperated with Indigenous elites and allowed local leaders to exercise some authority

Industrial Revolution

the period during which societies transitioned away from a focus on agriculture and handicraft production to manufacturing, primarily with machines

laissez-faire economics

the theory that market forces alone should drive the economy and that governments should refrain from direct intervention in or moderation of the economic system

Luddites

British workers in the early nineteenth century who resisted industrialization

Marxism

the idea, espoused by Karl Marx, that recognizing class struggle is central to understanding societies

mechanization

the use of machines to replace the labor of animals and humans

proletariat

the landless working class

sepoys

Indian soldiers who served the British in India

socialism

an economic system in which the public owns the means of production