🌍 Colonial Plunder and the Dark Truth Behind the Industrial Revolution
⚙️ The 18th Century Industrial Revolution and Colonial Exploitation
Until the mid-18th century, England remained an agrarian society. However, after 1760, the invention of machines marked the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. But how did such a drastic transformation become possible so quickly? According to Palme Dutt:
“The plunder carried out by the British East India Company in India laid the foundation of modern England. After the Battle of Plassey in 1757, wealth began flowing from India to England, creating a favorable environment for inventions.”
🛠️ Key Inventions and Their Role
- 1764: James Hargreaves invented the spinning jenny.
- 1765: James Watt developed the steam engine, patented in 1769.
- 1785: Cartwright introduced steam-powered looms.
- 1788: Engines and furnaces began running on steam.
Although many inventions had emerged earlier, they were not effectively utilized due to the lack of capital and markets. After the Battle of Plassey, conditions changed dramatically, enabling the application of these innovations.
💰 The Role of Capital and Markets
According to Dr. Cunningham:
“Inventions were not merely a product of intelligence. The presence of capital and vast markets made them possible. Institutions like the Bank of England and other financial establishments mobilized resources that fueled this development.”
🔪 Colonial Plunder and Massacres
📍 Genocide in the Americas
- Dr. Sikandar Mehdi states:
Within 21 years of Columbus reaching America, 8 million Native Americans were killed. - Michael Mann, in Dark Side of Democracy, records:
Nearly 90 million Native Americans were exterminated. - Encyclopaedia of Violence, Peace and Conflict notes:
By the end of the 19th century, approximately 100 million people had been killed by European colonizers.
The African slave trade resulted in the death of 17 million individuals.
⛪ The Church’s Role in Atrocities
It is astonishing that the Church, which claimed to represent humanity, supported colonial brutality. Native Americans were deemed “pagans” and “savages,” making their genocide justifiable in the eyes of the colonizers.
- John Winthrop referred to the smallpox epidemic of 1617 as a blessing from God, since it reduced the Native population.
💼 The Brutality of Capitalism
Following the Industrial Revolution, the capitalist system expanded, but it exploited laborers, forcing them to live in poverty, hunger, and oppressive environments.
⚔️ Western Bloodshed: A Timeline of Wars
Erich Fromm, in The Anatomy of Human Destructiveness, records:
- 1480–1499: 9 wars
- 1500–1599: 87 wars
- 1600–1699: 239 wars
- 1700–1799: 781 wars
- 1800–1899: 651 wars
- 1900–1940: 892 wars
During just two World Wars, 120 million people were killed. In other 20th-century conflicts, the death toll reached billions.
📢 Western Philosophy and Violence
Western thought and philosophy promoted greed and violence. Under capitalism, material progress and so-called human rights were achieved at the cost of millions of lives.
🕵️ The Case of the Indian Thuggee Cult
India also witnessed an unusual phenomenon: the Thuggee system, which followed a structured code for killings based on religious doctrines.
- Exempted from murder: Women, sadhus, beggars, and other select groups.
- Moral decay: Thugs who began killing women out of greed faced eventual decline.
📌 Conclusion
There exists a deep connection between colonial plunder and the Industrial Revolution. The barbarity of European colonizers and their pursuit of material progress led to mass killings—a scale of destruction unmatched in human history.
