Quote:
Originally Posted by Cal-Reflector
Does anyone have any thoughts on the economics of the Britannian Empire? I find this a much more interesting topic. I think that if we assume that expansion was not always at the forefront of the Empire's agenda, a significant part of their efforts must've been devoted to developing the economies and standards of living of their territories, so that:
1)People will not rebel as much
2)More revenue for the state
3)So that they can fund more wars for the future
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I think Britannia's entire system is based off of the original 19th century version of imperialism. Imperialism was originally intended to do several things for the colonizing nation:
1. Market for trade goods (money for the motherland)
2. More resources for imperialists (Sakuradite)
3. Extend sphere of influence (getting areas close to Chinese Federation)
4. Spread culture (Area 11's culture is based largely off of the original Britannian culture, with only facets of Japan's old culture remaining)
Under this system, Britannia maximizes its power at the expense of its colonies with one exception. Rather than suck the economy of its colonies dry, settlers from the homeland are brought in to build new cities on top of the old ones. Even in the first season, the settlements are intended for the use of the Britannians and Honorary Britannians, with fully functioning malls, offices, and factories. Like Lelouch said in Season 1, the economy stabilized after the takeover of Britannia.
In history, most colonial powers made a concentrated effort to export their culture, but never developed the true economic infrastructure to build stable economies in their colonies. It is because of this the majority of independent colonies have been unable to build a truly stable economy. However, in Code Geass, Britannia built Japan everything, from solar power plants to transit systems. Thanks to this, Japan now has a stable economy with a good income for all, except in the ghettos. According to my theory, it is because of this system of improving a nation after its takeover that other colonies never rebelled.
Britannia, however, must have an exceptional economy. No oil means that Britannia must be almost self-sufficient. Electric cars and power from solar panels, made possible through the use of sakuradite, must give them an impossible advantage. The sophistication of Knightmare Frames show that Britannia must be very far along in robotics research, to the point that they probably have many factories which are totally automated with no need for human labor. Millions must work in the service sector and earn a good income. The way Britannia is structured, quality healthcare and a secure retirement are for the rich, with the poor largely having to survive on their own. Absolute Monarchy means that the average citizen must have no say in policy, ie no welfare, social security, or universal healthcare.
Britannia's government is not ladened down with welfare or similar trifles (like the emperor hinted at, those who need something like welfare are weak), allowing maximum money for its military research. Trillions can be spent on war and building new settlements in conquered areas. Every conquest brings millions more people, millions more consumers, and billions of pounds into Britannia's coffers.
To put it simply:
Britannia is America with no:
1. Opposition to its policy
2. Welfare, government funded healthcare, union labor, social security, etc.
3. Dependency on foreign oil
4. Dependency on foreign labor
5. Fossil fuels ruining the environment
Arguably the Black Rebellion should have severely disrupted the economy of Area 11, raising a number of questions:
1. How did Britannia manage to rebuild its 30 million person settlement in Tokyo in one year?
2. Why did they go to all of the trouble the second time? Wasn't Area 11 just a "Remedial Area" by that point?
3. Wouldn't millions have left Area 11 due to the instability?