European Imperialism in Africa

Southern Africa

Dutch showed up very early (1450)- encountered resistance from Zulus, who they eventually defeated British fought Dutch for control (Boer War of 1900)

Algerian resistance

50-year resistance to French rule led by Samouri Touré in West Africa unsuccessful

About how many different languages were spoken in Africa

About 1,000 different languages

Triangular Trade

Africa to New World = slaves New World to Europe= raw materials (found by slaves) Europe to Africa= manufactured goods (made with the raw materials)

consequences of slave trade

Africans lose generations of their strongest members African families torn apart guns brought to Africa by Europeans spread of African culture all over New World

political reasons for European interest in Africa

take territories for political gain prevent other European powers from having access to African raw materials and riches

When did the Europeans first establish contact with the Africans?

the 1450s.

imperialism

the takeover of a country, territory, or area by a stronger nation in order to dominate and control the government, resources, economy, and culture of the weaker nation

Africa before colonization: trade networks

traded with the Arabs and Europeans for centuries strong trade networks controlled gold and ivory

Battle of Adowa

war declared by Menelik II when Italians tried to trick him Ethiopians successfully defeated the Italians and their nation remained independent

How were the Africans able to keep out the Europeans from most of the continent?

with their powerful armies; they were able to do this for about 400 years.

Otto Von Bismarck

Imperial chancellor of German Empire convened Berlin Conference to 1884 to peacefully divide up Africa

Northern Africa

N. Africa originally a Muslim area occupied by French convenient for French bc France is close to N. Africa competition with Germany for this area (particularly Morocco) Suez Canal- if you control it, you prevent the need to go around all of Africa to get to Asia

Name the order in which European nations claimed parts of Africa at the Berlin Conference

Portugal, England, France, Belgium, Germany, Spain, Italy

what were the earliest European contacts with Africa?

Portuguese and Dutch

Olaudah Equiano

escaped slave who wrote a memoir

What kinds of Europeans penetrated the interior of Africa?

explorers, missionaries, or humanitarians who were against the European and American slave trade.

science/exploration reasons for European interest in Africa

find rivers for expansions and control of trade learn of new materials that could be useful in manufacturing

Henry Stanley

hired by American newspaper to find Dr. David Livingstone found DL then set out to explore Congo River his explorations sparked curiosity of King Leopold II, who commissioned him to help him obtain land in the Congo

Africa before colonization: isolation

Europeans could not get inside Africa because the rivers were too hard to navigate Africa had powerful armies that prevented invasion by the Europeans

Africa's early trade states

Mali/Songhai, Swahili States, Great Zimbabwe

Menelik II

became emperor of Ethiopia in 1889 successfully played French, British, and Italians against each other (all trying to bring Ethiopia into their spheres of influence) built up large arsenal of modern weapons 1889, was signing treaty with Italians when he noticed that Italians had tried to trick him into giving them Ethiopia

Who was David Livingstone? Why did he travel to central Africa?

a Scottish missionary who traveled to central Africa in 1860s because he wanted to spread Christianity several years passed with no word from him

granary

a storehouse of grain

name the African kingdoms in order from earliest to most recent

Nok Jenne-jeno Aksum Bantu Port Cities Ghana Sosso Mali Songhai Portugal Dutch England France Belgium Germany Spain Italy

what is the importance of Social Darwinism?

claims that the wealthy are strong and therefore have the right to rule the poor who are weak emphasized competition between races rather than cooperation justified European expansion into Africa and Asia

Why would a nation practice imperialism?

1. wealth 2. power 3. racism 4. Christianity

Atlantic/European Slave Trade

1450-1800 W. Africa to New World + Europe about 15-20 million color/race based life terms violent and cruel people were things only used for manual labor

Great Trek

1830s several thousand Boers moved north to escape the British fought fiercely with Zulu and other African groups whose land they were taking (Battle of Blood River= Boers vs. Zulus)

Scramble for Africa

1880s-1914 intense European interest and colonization of Africa starts with the Berlin Conference

Berlin Conference

1884 held because European nations worried they would break out into war if they didn't decide peacefully who got control of what land in Africa 13 nations of Europe invited to participate- no African nations invited

Boer War

1900; Dutch fought British for control of Southern Africa

Maji-Maji Rebellion

German East Africa- Germans wanted to grow cash crops (people didn't like this because it meant fewer crops that they could eat) 1905, belief emerged that if the Africans sprinkled themselves with magic water (maji-maji), the Germans' bullets would turn into water Germans easily defeated Africans, killing about 75,000 a famine followed, killing even more

who was Social Darwinism developed by and when?

Herbert Spencer in the 1860s

By the 1880s, what percent of land in Africa did the Europeans control?

about 10% of the land in Africa

economic reasons for European interest in Africa

access to precious metals, raw materials, and slaves

advantages from technology for the West in the scramble for Africa

advanced technology made Europeans superior: Maxim gun, steam engine, railroad

era of "New Imperialism"

after the 17th century- nations occupied the territories, controlled the inhabitants, and utilized the natural resources for their benefit

Muslim Slave Trade

as early as 700 CE N. Africa primarily (connections to W. Africa, Europe, and Mediterranean) about 17 million people captured + sold (peoples of war, debtors, criminals) no racial, religious, or ethnic distinction slaves are specialized, not just labor Manumission: buy your freedom

causes of slave trade

colonies with labor intensive crops (sugar, tobacco)

advantages from competition for the West in the scramble for Africa

competition among the European nations for resources, wealth, and power

positive effects of colonialsm

decrease in local warfare sanitation improved some hospitals and schools provided lifespans increased, literacy rates improved African products began to be valued in the international market

Slave Trade

disputed and controversial (didn't keep good records) many deaths forced movement of Africans between 1450-1810 from W. Africa to Europe + New World

General Act

drafted in Feb. 1885 defined spheres of influence in Africa rules were put in place to claim control of African territories established regulations to ensure protection of missionaries, scientists, and explorers of Africa European powers had power over the territory and would override any challenges made by local rulers and peoples

what is the doctrine of "effective occupation?"

established to protect trade and travel on the Congo and Niger Rivers for all- this meant that rivers would not be under any one country's control

Cecil Rhodes

finds diamond deposit in southern Africa, claimed control of diamond mines, creates De Beers Consolidated Mines, the biggest diamond company of today brought railroad, telegraph

What are the 3Gs?

gold, God, and glory the motivations for imperialism (money, spreading the word of God, success)

Africa before colonization: diversity

hundreds of ethnic and linguistic groups, many different religions

What religions existed in Africa?

hundreds of linguistic groups in Africa- the majority followed their traditional beliefs, but there were also many who converted to Islam or Christianity.

How did industrialization lead to imperialism?

industrialization interested the Europeans- they saw Africa as a place to get resources for their own industrial ambitions, where nations could compete for new markets for their goods, and where they could get many raw materials. Consequently, the Europeans seized areas of Africa.

negative effects of colonialsm

lost control of land and independence lots of Africans died because of new diseases/battle imposed partition- split cultures, states, etc. famine due to Europeans wanting to grow cash crops

What time period constitutes the eve of European domination?

mid-1800s.

Gains for colonizing a nation

new markets to sell goods strategic advantage of location gold, silver, diamonds, copper, iron, rubber, etc. new territory training for European armies room for population expansion

Central Africa

occupied by Belgium (the private property of King Leopold II) lots of rubber KLII claimed to go to Africa to protect Africans, but in reality, there was violent exploitation/extremely harsh labor (for rubber- made a lot of money)

East Africa

occupied by British gained the land after defeating Napoleon in the early 1800s trade with Asia was very important (made them a lot of money) access to rivers (to get to interior of Africa)

West Africa

occupied partly by French, partly by British, and partly by Portuguese slave trade, ivory

Liberia

one of two African states that remained independent during the Scramble for Africa founded by freed slaves

"Magnificent Cake"

said by Leopold II during the Berlin Conference to describe Africa and how it would be split up among the European nations

early Dutch contact with Africa

sailed to Asia for spices and stopped along the way in Africa traded Asian fabrics with the Africans towards the end of the 18th century, began to trade in slaves

according to the General Act, what did European nations have to do to claim a part of Africa?

set up government offices there

early Portuguese contact with Africa

ships began exploring African coast in the 1450s interested in gold the first Europeans to buy slaves from the Congo

religious reasons for European interest in Africa

spread Christianity

Principle of Effectivity

states that nations must utilize their colonies or they can be taken by other European nations

Nzingha

the Queen of a kingdom that tried to stop slavery one of the only female leaders of sub-Saharan Africa

advantages from medicine for the West in the scramble for Africa

the discovery of malaria protection: quinine

What prevented the Europeans from navigating the rivers in Africa for so long? What changed in the 1880s that then allowed them in?

the rivers were extremely hard to navigate since they had rapids, cataracts, and changing flows in the 1880s the invention of the steam-powered riverboat changed this

Social Darwinism

the theory of evolution and survival of the fittest as applied to human society and politics