By Satya@GT
Published: June 12, 2007
Updated: August 3, 2008
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Almost every one of us is familiar with the phrase "White man’s burden", a phrase coined by Rudyard Kipling to justify America’s colonization of Philippines and other Spanish colonies. This phrase was later used to justify the unjust, exploitative and brutal colonization of Africa, Asia, South America and Pacific by European powers in the previous centuries.

When one looks at the European conquest of the world, it makes one wonder how was it possible that a few small countries were able to colonize almost the entire world. What was that they possessed that gave them such an advantage over the natives. Their technology was one thing that gave them that advantage, but technology or guns were not the only factor. According to Jared Diamond, in his Pulitzer Prize winning book "Guns, Germs & Steel", there were three important factors

Guns – Guns which were unknown to or not in abundance with the natives.

Germs – Europeans carried within them certain deadly viruses like Small Pox to which they were inherently resistant due to millennia of exposure. This was a major factor in the Spanish conquest of the Americas although not a major factor in conquest of Asia because Asia was already resistant to this.

Steel – Better swords, again not a major factor in conquest of Asia but a major factor in conquest of Americas and Africa.

Geography but not any personal qualities gave the Europeans the head start in developing all the above factors. The roots of European advantage were sowed 13,000 years in the Fertile Crescent. Fertile Crescent is the area corresponding to the present day Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Syria, and Iraq where the first human settlement in organized societies based on farming were found. These concepts of agriculture migrated in the east-west direction from Fertile Crescent to present day Europe and Indian subcontinent.

The migration takes place only in the east-west direction but not in the north-south direction because regions lying in the same latitude range tend to have similar weather and vegetation conditions. So based on these conditions the first staple corps grown in the Fertile Crescent migrated on the east-west latitude. The supply of staple and productive crops gave the earlier people a surplus of food supply, thus their lifestyle changed slowly from primarily growing and collecting to food to pursuit of other things. The pursuits included the essentials of a civilized world like building permanent settlements, metal work, religion and scientific enquiry. It is this free time that lead to development of great societies based on taxation, policing and central governance. Thus, the first great civilizations were founded in Egypt, Iran, India, China and Greece.

Many centuries after the rise & fall of some great civilizations; Europe came onto the scene. From the constant war, turmoil, and despair of the dark ages Europe became the strongest power in the world, they were helped in this by the knowledge of reason from the Greeks, governance from Islamic empires of Middle East, scientific knowledge carried from the Indian subcontinent to Europe by Islamic traders of Middle East.

Armed with the best knowledge, Europe took its first steps towards power, these first steps further improved by constant rivalry among European nations which forced them to improve, innovate, and invent even greater technology.

This technology combined with the absence of technologically strong empires elsewhere in the world lead the Europeans to colonize the world.

Take for example, Spain’s conquest of Americas in the 16^{th century. The only strong empires in the Americas then were the Aztecs in Mexico and the Incas in South America. While native armies were huge in numbers, they fought with bronze, wooden, and stone weapons and these weapons were no match to the Spaniards’ high quality steel rapiers and flintlock rifles. The native populations of the Americas also suffered from epidemics of Small Pox which they contracted from the Spaniards during their initial friendly contacts. The virus spread among the native population rapidly as they had no naturally immunity to it like the Europeans and Asians. This epidemic made the conquest of Americas even easier as the native populations were being decimated, and thus falling easily in battle to the Spaniards. Europeans had the clear advantage of Guns, Germs and Steel in their conquest, and these advantages were conferred upon them not by virtue of their supposed superior intellect, civilization, religion and physical strength but by the chance coincidence of good geography.}

Geography, not any personal or racial qualities, gave the immunity from small pox as they were constantly in touch with farm animals over the past 13,000 years. Farm animals then went to Europe from the Fertile Crescent.

Geography was again the factor in them gaining the knowledge of forging high quality steel which they gained from the Islamic empires of Middle East.

Geography was again the factor in developing guns, as they learnt the secrets of gun powder from the Muslim kingdoms; that in turn got their knowledge from India and China.

For a more thorough, detailed and complete explanation of various points, I suggest the above book or DVD by Jared Diamond.

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