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Imperialism in Africa
Africa in the Early 1800s

In the early 1800s, Africa was three times the size of Europe; its many people
spoke hundreds of languages and had developed varied governments.

In the early 1800s, North Africa and the Sahara were part of Muslim world:
they were under the rule of the Ottoman Empire. During the same time
period, an Islamic revival spread across West Africa. The revival began among
the Fulani people of Northern Nigeria.

The Scholar & preacher Usman dan Fodio denounced the local Hausa ruler’s
corruption. He called for social & religious reforms based on the Islamic law,
the sharia. Usman inspired Fulani herders and Hausa townspeople to rebel
against their European oppressors.

Usman & his successors set up a powerful Islamic state in northern Nigeria.
Under their rule, literacy increased, local wars quieted, & trade improved.
Imperialism in Africa
Africa in the Early 1800s
 In West Africa, their success inspired other Muslim reform movements;
between 1780 and 1880, more than 12 Islamic leaders rose to power. They
replaced older rulers, and set up new states in western Sudan.
 Europeans and Muslims controlled several smaller states. However, these
tributary states were ready to turn to Europeans or others who might help
them defeat their Asante Rulers.
 Islam, for a long time, had influenced the east coast of Africa, where port
cities like Mombasa and Kilwa carried on gainful trade.
 Slaves were the cargo for many, and captives were brought from the inside
of Africa to the coast where they were shipped to the Middle East. Also,
Ivory and copper from Central Africa were exchanged for cloth and
firearms from India.
Imperialism in Africa
Africa in the Early 1800s

During this time, the Zulus emerged as a major force in southern Africa under Shaka, a
ruthless and brilliant leader.

Between 1818 and 1828, Shaka waged conquered many nearby peoples; he drafted their
young men and women into Zulu regiments. He also encouraged rival groups to forget
their differences, which cemented a growing pride in the Zulu Kingdom.

Shaka’s conquests set off mass migrations and war. This created chaos across much of
southern Africa. Those driven from their homelands migrated north & conquered other
peoples, creating their own powerful states.

By the 1830s, the Zulus faced a new threat, the arrival of the well-armed, mounted Boers,
descendants of Dutch famers who were migrating north from the Cape Colony.

In 1814, the Cape Colony passed from the Dutch to the British. Many Boers disliked
British laws that abolished slavery & interfered with their way of life.
Imperialism in Africa
Africa in the Early 1800s

In 1814, the Cape Colony passed from the Dutch to the British. Many Boers disliked
British laws that abolished slavery & interfered with their way of life.

To escape British rule, they loaded their goods into wagons and started north. Several
thousand Boer families joined in on this “Great trek.”

When the migrating Boers encountered the Zulus, fighting quickly broke out. Although
in the beginning the Zulus had the upper hand, the Boer guns were able to defeat the
Zulu spears. The struggle for control of the land would rage until the 1990s.

In the early 1800s, European nations began to outlaw the transatlantic slave trade.
Meanwhile, the East Africa slave trade continued in Asia. Many people helped freed
slaves resettle in Africa. In 1787, the British organized Sierra Leone in West Africa as a
colony for former slaves. Later, free blacks from the United States settled in Liberia; by
1847, Liberia had become an independent republic.
 Analyze maps showing how Africa was colonized in the
19th century
 Summarize what happened at the Berlin Conference of
1884
 Identify key people and groups involved in the
colonization of Africa
Imperialism in Africa
European Contact Increases
 From the 1500s to the 1700s, Europeans traded along
the African coast; Africans traded with Europeans but
kept them at a distance.
 Resistance by Africans, difficult geography, and
diseases all kept Europeans from moving into the
interior of Africa. In the 1800s, medical advances and
river steamships changed all that
 In the early 1800s, European explorers began pushing
into the African interior. Explorers set out to map the
course and sources of the great African rivers: the
Niger, the Nile, and the Congo.
Going Deeper into Africa
 Explorers were fascinated by African geography, but
they did not understand the people they met. All
endured great hardships while exploring Africa.
 Dr. David Livingstone, a doctor and missionary
blazed a trail that others soon followed.
 In 1869, the journalist Henry Stanley trekked into
Central Africa to find Livingston, who had been lost
for many years. He finally tracked him down in 1871
in Tanzania, greeting him with the now-legendary
phrase “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?
Evangelism in Africa:
Spreading Christianity
 Catholic & Protestant missionaries followed the
explorers. All across Africa, missionaries converted
many people to Christianity.
 The missionaries were sincere in when helping the
Africans; they built schools, medical clinics, and
churches. They also denounced the slave trade.
 Still, missionaries viewed the Africans as children in
need of guidance; they urged Africans to reject their
traditions in favor of Western ways. To them, African
cultures and religions were “degraded.”
Dr. David Livingstone: Not
such a bad guy
 The best-known explorer and missionary was
Dr. David Livingstone. For 30 years, he
crisscrossed Africa & wrote about the many
peoples he met with sympathy and less bias than
did most Europeans.
 He greatly opposed the slave trade, which
remained a profitable business for some African
rulers and foreign traders. He believed the only
way to end slavery was to open up the interior of
Africa to Christianity and trade.
Imperialism in Africa
A Scramble for Colonies
 Later on, the Belgian King Leopold II hired Henry Stanley to
explore the Congo River basin & arrange trade treaties with
African leaders. Publicly, Leopold spoke of a civilizing mission
to carry the light “that for millions of men still plunged in
barbarism will be the dawn of a better era.”
 Inside, Leopold dreamed of conquest and profit. Leopold’s
activities in the Congo set off a scramble by other nations.
Shortly afterwards, Britain, France, and Germany were
pressing claims to the region.
Berlin Conference 1884
Berlin Conference 1884
 European powers met at an international
conference in Berlin in 1884; no Africans were
invited.
 The Conference recognized Leopold’s private
claims to the Congo Free State but called for free
trade on the Congo and Niger rivers.
 They agreed that a European power couldn’t
claim parts of Africa until it set up a government
office there. This led Europeans to send officials
who would exert their power over local peoples.
Imperialism in Africa
A Scramble for Colonies
 The rush to colonize Africa was on. 20 years
after the Berlin Conference, the European
powers partitioned almost all of Africa. As
Europeans carved out claims, they established
new borders. They redrew the map of Africa
with little regard for traditional patterns of
settlement or ethnic boundaries.
What happened?
Belgian Congo and King
Leopold II
 Leopold and other wealthy Belgians exploited
riches in the Congo, including copper, rubber,
and ivory.
 Soon, horrifying reports of Belgian overseers
brutalizing villagers surfaced. Forced to work for
barely anything, laborers were beaten or
mutilated. The overall population declined
drastically.
Belgian Congo
 Eventually, international outrage forced Leopold to gives
his personal colony to the Belgian government. It
became the Belgian Congo in 1908. Under Belgian rule,
the worst abuses were ended.
 The Belgians still regarded the Congo as an exploitable
possession. Africans were given little to no role in the
government, and all the wealth of their mines left Africa
for Europe.
France in Africa
 France took a giant share of Africa. In the 1830s,
France invaded and conquered Algeria in North
Africa. The victory cost tens of thousands of French
lives, but killed many times more Algerians.
 Later on, France extended its influence along the
Mediterranean into Tunisia; it also won colonies in
West and Central Africa. At its height, the French
Empire in Africa was as large as the U.S.
Britain in Africa
 Britain’s share of Africa was very scattered.
However, it included heavily populated regions
with many rich resources. Britain took chunks of
West and East Africa. It gained control of Egypt
and pushed south into the Sudan.
 In southern Africa, Britain clashed with the
Boers, who were descendants of Dutch settlers.
Britain acquired the Cape Colony from the
Dutch in 1814. At that time, many Boers fled
British rule, migrating north and establishing
their own republics.
Britain in Africa continued
 In the late 1800s, the discovery of gold and
diamonds in the Boer lands started conflict with
Britain. The Boer War, which lasted from 1899
to 1902, involved bitter guerrilla fighting. The
British won in the end, but at great cost.
Cecil Rhodes: British
Imperialist
Cecil Rhodes on Spreading
British Influence
 I contend that we are the first race in the world and that
the more of the world we inhabit the better it is for the
human race. I contend that every acre added to our
territory provides for the birth of more of the English
race, who otherwise would not be brought into
existence…I believe it to be my duty to God, my Queen
and my country to paint the whole map of Africa red,
red from the Cape to Cairo. That is my creeed, my
dream and my mission.”
Cecil Rhodes
 Went to South Africa when he was 17
 Unsuccessful venture into cotton farming
 Gold and diamond mining --- SUCCESS!
 By age 40, Rhodes had become one of the richest men in
the world.
 Rhodes helped Britain gain 1,000,000 square miles and
had an entire colony named after him --- Rhodesia
(modern-day Zimbabwe).
 How? He tricked native kings into giving allegiance to
the British and intimidated with military force.
Chief Kabongo of the Kikuyu
in Kenya
 A Pink-Cheek man came one day to our Council…and
he told us of the King of the Pink Cheek who…lived in a
land over the seas. ‘This great king is now your king,’ he
said. This was strange news. For this land was ours…We
had no king, we elected our Councils and they made our
laws. With patience our leading Elders tried to tell this to
the Pink Cheek…But at the end he said, ‘This we know,
but in spit of this what I have told you is a fact. You now
have a king…and his laws are your laws.”
Three Types of Statuses for
Places Taken Over
 Colony – area under immediate political control of
another state. The French also made African territories
and Indochina (Vietnam) into colonies.
 Protectorate – local leaders were left in place but were
expected to follow the advice of European advisors on
issues such as trade or missionary activity. The British
often used this policy.
 Sphere of Influence – an area in which an outside power
claimed exclusive investment or trading privileges.
Europeans and Japan had spheres of influence in China.
Weaknesses of Non-Western
States
 Major empires in Asia and Middle East were in decline –
Ottoman Empire in Middle East, Mughals in India, and
Qing (Ching) Dynasty in China
 Wars between tribes and the slave trade had weakened
many of the West African kingdoms
 Their technology was not advanced (They did not
experience the Industrial Revolution).
European Technology
 The Maxim Gun
Western Advantages
 Strong economies and well-organized
governments
 Powerful armies and navies
 Medical advancements – Discovery of quinine –
anti-malarial medicine
 Superior technology – steam riverboats,
telegraph, Maxim machine guns, repeating
rifles, and steam driven warships.
 These tools and weapons persuaded Africans
and Asians to accept Western control.
Resisting Imperialism
 Africans and Asians strongly resisted Western
expansioni into their lands
 Fought back in wars even though they did not
have weapons like the Maxim machine gun or
steam warships
 Ruling groups tried to strengthen their societies
to bring greater unity (tougher laws, avoiding
Western products and influence)
 Western-educated Africans and Asians returned
home to form nationalist movements
Imperialism Faced Some
Criticism at Home
 A small group of anti-imperialists emerged
 Some argued that colonialism was a tool of the
rich
 Others said it was immoral. Westerners were
moving toward greater democracy at home but
were imposing undemocratic rule on other
peoples.
 What was the Berlin Conference of 1884?
 Who was Cecil Rhodes? What were his feelings
about the British and other peoples?
 What were three statuses that subjugated (taken
over) areas could take under imperialism?
Imperialism in Africa
A Scramble for Colonies

In 1910, the British united the Cape Colony and the former Boer republics into
the Union of South Africa. The new constitution set up a white-run government
and laid the foundation for a system of complete racial segregation that would
remain in force until 1993.

Other European powers joined the colonization scramble, many in part to
bolster their national image, while also furthering their economic growth and
influence. The Portuguese carved out large colonies in Angola and
Mozambique. Italy occupied Libya and then pushed into the “horn” of Africa,
at the southern end of the Red Sea.

The newly united German empire took lands in eastern and southwestern
Africa, including Cameroons and Togo. A German politician, trying to ease the
worries of European rivals, explained, “We do not want to put anyone in the
shade, but we also demand our place in the sun.”
Imperialism in Africa
Africans resist Imperialism

Europeans met armed resistance across Africa. The Algerians battled the French for
many years. In West Africa, where he was building his empire, Samori Touré fought
French forces.

The British battled the Zulus in southern Africa. They also fought the Asante in West
Africa. When their king was exiled, the queen of the Asante, Yaa Asantewaa, was put in
command of their country. She led the fight against the British in the last Asante war.

Another woman who became a military leader was the clever tactician Nehanda, of the
Shona in Zimbabwe. Sadly, Nehanda was captured and executed. However, the memory
of her achievements inspired later generations to fight for freedom.

In East Africa, the Germans fought the Yao and the Herero. Fighting was especially
fierce in the Maji-Maji Rebellion of 1905. The Germans triumphed only after burning
acres and acres of farmland, leaving thousands of civilians to starve.

One ancient Christian kingdom in East Africa, Ethiopia, managed to resist European
colonization & maintain its independence.
Famous Female Leaders
Imperialism in Africa
Africans resist Imperialism

Like feudal Europe, Ethiopia was divided up among a number of rival princes who ruled
their own domains. In the late 1800s, Menelik II, a reforming ruler, began to modernize
Ethiopia.

Menelik II hired European experts to plan modern roads & bridges and set up a Western
school system. He imported the latest weapons and European officers to help train his
army. So when Italy invaded Ethiopia in 1896, Menelik was prepared.

At the battle of Adowa, the Ethiopians decimated the Italian invaders. Ethiopia was the
only African nation, aside from Liberia, to preserve its independence.

During the Age of Imperialism, a Western-educated African elite, or upper class,
emerged. Some middleclass Africans admired Western ways, rejecting their own culture,
while others valued African traditions, condemning Western societies that upheld liberty
and equality for whites singularly.

By the early 1900s, African leaders forged nationalist movements to pursue selfdetermination and independence.
Bibliography
 “Imperialism in Africa.” IB History. 2008 Silvapages. 14 June 2009
<http://www.cusd.chico.k12.ca.us/~bsilva/projects/imperialism/bald
win.htm>
 Krieger, Larry S. "World History Perspectives on the Past." World History
Perspectives on the Past. Fifth Edition. Evanston Illinois: DC Health and
Company, 1997. Print.
 “Scramble for Africa.” Imperialism. 1999 - 2003. Regentsprep. 13
January 2010
<http://regentsprep.org/Regents/global/themes/imperialism/africa.cf
m>
 World History. Boston, Massachusetts: Pearson Education, 2007. 392398. Print.