colonialism never dies

I was just wondering what would have happened if FDR and other Americans was not as determined as they were to end colonial empires world wide?
Would things like the British empire still be alive or would they have still fallen apart under financial strain?
 
They would probably fall apart from financial strain. As they did for the most part OTL. I think, although I'm probably wrong, that the economic strain of a world war had to do more with the collapse of colonialism than FDR did.
 
Without the US the European colonial empires may last a little bit longer. But they will collapse in the 70's or so. Going through two world wars has that effect.
 
Britain was right out of cash, it's true, and would have had to start dismantling the Empire anyway; and besides that, even before WW2 when we weren't massively in debt, India was still visibly on the way to independence, and India is the keystone.
 
Colonialism was on its way out, yes, due to European nations being out of cash, but I think it's certainly possible for them to survive better without FDR's rather irrational dislike of them (I say this in context with his enthusiasm for the far worse regime in Soviet Russia). That, and avoiding the debacle of Suez means there's at least a chance for orderly transition from colony to something like a Dominion, to full independence, probably taking place in the 1950s for India, and the 1970s/80s for Africa.
 
To see what would happen with colonial empires without US involvement, see Portugal and it's colonies. OTL, USSR was a lot more active anti-colonialist power and sought to expand it's influence in the (former) colonies, supplying many independence movements with weapons, intelligence and convenient propagandistic underpinning. Without USA anti-colonialist activities we would see even bloodier decolonialisation process.
 

Susano

Banned
I would say the colonial Empires could have gone on, financial problems or not. However - have fun with decades of bush wars. Hell, that was the main reason for the anti-Salazar coup 1974 in Portugal, the army was sick and tired of that.
 
De-colonization/independence will happen for many places, their's no getting around that, the difference would be that the amount would be less.


What would likely happen is the 'Premier Colonies', like French Algeria would be kept when possible (the Dutch are'nt keeping Indonesia nor
the British India) along with some smaller places like Portuguese Guinea.

Their would be alot more Dominionesque entities, but these would end up independent, not simply autonomous territories.
 
Top