How did European countries justify their imperialism?

According
to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, imperialism is "the policy, practice, or advocacy of
extending the power or dominion of a nation especially by direct territorial acquisitions or by
gaining indirect control over the political or economic life of other areas." European
imperialism began in the sixteenth, century when explorers from Europe looked for new trade
routes to the Far East, explored the Americas, and colonized North America, South America, and
Asia. This time period is referred to as the era of Old Imperialism.

The era
of New Imperialism began in the nineteenth century, when European powers established extensive
empires in Africa, the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, and China. These
empires were set up in the wake of technological, scientific, and industrial advances brought
about by the Industrial Revolution. The European powers that participated in both the old and
new eras had several justifications for their...