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The East India Trading Company
The East India Trading company was an example of capitalist imperialism, given that the British government had no direct hand in its direction. While it was originally created as a trade of commodities such as opium, silk, and spice, it eventually grew into a powerful group of small armies under the control of wealthy British aristocrats. -
Great Trek
The Great Trek was a emigration of the Afrikaans from Cape Colony in South Africa, to the North and North-East. The Afrikaans feared they were in economic trouble; they also weren't happy with their English colonial authorities. -
Matthew C. Perry in Japan
After centuries of Japanese isolation under the Edo period, Commodore Matthew C. Perry went to Japan to force open trading with them by military force. Although America did not officially take Japanese land or wealth in any way, they effectively forced the change of centuries of Japanese culture, which lead to rapid industrialization and westernization during what became the Meiji period. -
The Kanagawa Treaty
The Kanagawa Treaty was the official treaty between the Tokugawa shogunates and the United States that agreed to the safety of American citizens in Japan. It also opened up ports in two Japanese towns, effectively ending Japanese isolation. -
The Suez Canal
Although it had previously been constructed by the Egyptian government, it was officially undertaken by the French Suez Canal Company, formed by Ferdinand de Lesseps. It connected the Mediterranean and Red Seas. -
Revolution of 1911
After the death of the empress dowager Cixi, command of China was left to a young boy named Puyi, which, due to the boy inability to lead with a firm grasp, shook the empire. Following this instability, a revolution began among stockholders in Huguang Railway, which subsequently lead to the demise of the Chinese Empire which was followed quickly by the rise of the Republic of China. -
The Panama Canal
The Panama Canal was constructed a task force assigned by President Roosevelt after the French had previously failed to create it. It's building was significant because it was the first ever passage between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans that did not involve going all the way around South America.
http://www.history.com/topics/panama-canal
