European imperialism and cultural superiority Many factors contributed to the colonization of Africa by European powers between 1895 and 1905. Among these factors were the effects of history Europe, the growing capitalist economy, and the growing competition between the European powers. Most important was the belief that European culture was superior to African culture. During the height of imperialism, the vast majority of the African continent was controlled by Europe (“Extension” 19). It is important to understand what gave impetus to European dominance at that time. Imperialism is present in European history, starting with the Roman Empire (Lenin). Lugard believes that Europeans inherited the “instinct of colonial expansion” from their ancestors (Lugard). The Romans practiced what was essentially an early form of imperialist economics (Lenin). Joseph A. Schumpeter writes that most wars in history were fought without any real justifiable purpose, and instead were fought for aggression's sake (Schumpeter). He seems to believe that imperialism is more of the same (Schumpeter). He relates this to the history of Europe by noting that nobles, who had a strong history of warfare for its own sake, were influential in pushing for imperialism (Schumpeter). He believes that the bourgeois class would never have achieved imperialism on its own (Schumpeter). If it were necessary to give the most concise definition of imperialism possible we should say that imperialism is the monopolistic phase of capitalism (Lenin). There were definite economic factors contributing to the movement towards imperialism in Europe (Hobson). This is probably the most basic explanation of Eur...... middle of paper ......02hobson.html>.Kipling, Rudyard. "The White Man's Burden." August 1997. Lenin, Vladimir Illyich. “Imperialism, the supreme state of capitalism.” July 1998. Lugard, F. D. "The Rise of Our East African Empire." November 1998 Orwell, George. 'Shooting an Elephant.' June 2, 1997 Paton, John G. July 1998. Schumpeter, Joseph A. "The Sociology of Imperialism." July 1998. Townsend, Mary Evelyn. European Colonial Expansion since 1871. Chicago: J.P. Lippincott Company, 1941.