If Only The Colonists Had Played A Different Game (England, general, colonies)

[tijlover]

I often wonder if the Colonists had treated their subjects more humanely, rather than ruthlessly exploiting them to no end, how much longer they could have maintained their empires over the years? And how much richer they'd be today as a result of it, like Spain or England? In hindsight, do they now regret they didn't play a different game?

[Arkay66]

I believe you mean "Colonial powers." Colonists were the people who actually moved into a colony and settled it.

[phetaroi]

Originally Posted by tijlover

I often wonder if the Colonists had treated their subjects more humanely, rather than ruthlessly exploiting them to no end, how much longer they could have maintained their empires over the years? And how much richer they'd be today as a result of it, like Spain or England? In hindsight, do they now regret they didn't play a different game?

My guess is that they would have held on longer, but that in the end the result would be a loss of colonies. People seem to have a desire to be "free" and "self-directed".

[tijlover]

Originally Posted by phetaroi

My guess is that they would have held on longer, but that in the end the result would be a loss of colonies. People seem to have a desire to be "free" and "self-directed".

But, in the mean time, they would have amassed more money for their Treasuries!

I certainly would have played a whole different game.

[ABQConvict]

You mean like if the British hadn't set up North America as a slave colony and then look down their noses at our social and racial problems as if we invented them?

[papuolo]

Moderator cut: Expletive deleted.
Problem in Spanish and English territories were not "injuns", but white colonials and white criollos.
Had the two powers treated their colonials and criollos fairly -taxation but representation, no monopolies, no autocratic decisions from the metropole......maybe colonies would have lasted longer.
Injuns, as you call them, were generally in favour of England and Spain, since they considered that colonials and criollos were rapacious and cruel...as they were the arm of landed properties, capital, and England and Spain the source of a less immediate power - for injuns -

[SunGrins]

Colonial powers lost their colonies in some cases because they allowed their local power elites in the colonies to have too much power and authority and then decided to rein it in -- reduce their power, collect more taxes, limit access to land, or restrain their use of free labor. I wouldn't have wanted to be a colonial governor under those conditions...an agent of the mother country but dependent on the local elites to get anything accomplished.