Congo Free State

Why did Leopold need his desires to be cloaked in a humanitarian veneer?

"as a king of a small country with no public interest in colonies" he had to disguise his lust for money and power in moral uplift otherwise Belgium wouldn't condone

What meetings and organizations did Leopold create to fulfill a humanitarian veneer?

-Anti-Slavery Conference in Brussels -Geographical Conference of 1876 -International African Association

How did the Berlin Conference & Scramble for Africa influence Leopold's ventures in the Congo?

-Regulated European colonization & trade in Africa -Leopold convinced France & Germany that common trade was in the best interest of all three countries

What was the Berlin Conference in 1884-85?

-Splitting up territories between countries -No Africans were present

What was Stanley's background?

-bastard child who lived in many foster households & workhouse -constantly made up stories about his past -voyaged & landed in New Orleans -enlisted in the civil war -fought on the confederate side, was caught, & then switched to Union Army. -newspaper writer before becoming an explorer of Africa

Who was George Washington Williams?

-born in Pennsylvania in 1849 -had scanty schooling -fought battles in 41st US Colored Troops of the Union Army -founded a national black newspaper, the Commoner. -wrote to one of Leopold's aids, to recruit black Americans to work in the Congo -sailed around the entire African continent -Wrote the Open Letter

What does hiding the story of the Congo/uncovering the testimonies tell us about the power of history?

-denies the events existed -cleanses the historical record -absolves Belgium of guilt or blame -denies victims of a sense of justice

What was life like for the Congolese under Leopold?

-forced the Congolese people to harvest and process rubber -people were being chained for petty crimes, kidnapped and used as concubines, and being sold into the slave-trade. -constantly flogged and Leopold ran his colony based on forced labor.

Describe Illanga's story and what it reveals about the Congolese view of Leopold.

-her tribe gave the "whites" gifts and food but they were kidnapped and forced/dragged out of their homes and taken into slavery -forced to carry heavy objects for miles and many people died or were killed for rebelling -Babies were thrown into the grass to die.

Describe the political cartoon The Guilt of Delay discussed in class

-shows the European holding a whip over a working Congolese person -shows that the soldiers were harsh to the Congolese because of the whip

Describe the political cartoon Caught in the Rubber Coils discussed in class

-shows the king as wrapped around the Congolese in rubber form -showing the harsh quota the Congolese had to go by to get rubber or face punishment

When was the age of imperialism?

1870 to 1914

When were the testimonies uncovered?

1970/80s

Why did Europeans view Africa as a Dark Continent?

African culture was not similar to European which meant uncivilized; continent was still a mystery and people didn't know what was in Africa

What countries were involved in the Age of imperialism?

Britain, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Belgium

Who was Mary Kingsley?

British women who visited Africa

What colony did Leopold found in 1885?

Congo Free State

Who was Henry Morton Stanley?

Explorer who worked for Leopold

Why was Stanley so interested in Africa?

Journalism, Desire for fame, a way to get away from his troubled childhood, wanted to write stories about famous explorers

How was Sheppard received by the Congolese?

King's (Kot aMweeky) deceased son reincarnated because he was dressed in all white and resembled the Europeans but wasn't white

Why did the story of Leopold's Congo get forgotten?

Leopold attempted to hide the atrocities by burning records, and dispersing the profits he made from the Congo.

How does it relate to Leopold's Congo?

Leopold may have been responsible for the rape of the Congo, but so are the soldiers and the visitors of the Congo who sat by and watched the atrocities happen and didn't speak up

How did Leopold run his colony?

Leopold treated the Congo as if it were just a piece of uninhabited real estate to be disposed of by its owner & talked of Africa as if it were without Africans

How did the media portray Leopold's rule in the Congo?

Leopold was a harsh ruler and depended on slave labor to get rubber.

What was the Open letter?

Letter to the king accusing him of atrocities in the Congo

How was the story of the Congo uncovered?

Marchal had to fight to get access to the files because Belgium would not release them to him because they didn't want anyone to be able to read the testimony

why did Morel and Casement oppose Leopold?

Morel: -saw that Leopold was not being honest & there were discrepancies about the profits & amount of raw materials being shipped from the Congo Casement: -worked for British government & began an investigation of the Congo

Were Morel & Casement successful in achieving their goals?

Not at first bc Leopold burned records, but after testimonies were uncovered, yes

What happened during the Age of Imperialism?

Outgrowth of the industrial revolution; began travel to other places for resources by water; attempt to civilize/growing inequality; traveled through center of Africa

What does this quote mean: "Monsters exist but they are too few in number to be truly dangerous. More dangerous are...the functionaries ready to believe and to act without asking questions."?

Talking about the people who are following authority, danger is coming from the people who aren't questioning the bad behavior because they carry out their wishes

What new technologies and technological advances contributed to Leopold's exploitation of the Congo?

The invention of the car, the rubber wheel, and the caravel

How did Morel and Casement oppose Leopold?

They wrote out against him and created a newspaper & organization

Why did Sheppard go to the Congo in 1890?

To see if the Congo was a suitable place for blacks from the US to work.

Where & when did Kingsley go in Africa?

West Africa in 1893/5

What impact have these tools had on the advancement of colonial or subject peoples?

allowed explorers to travel through the Congo easier and more quickly & enabled them to travel in the center of Africa instead of just along the rivers and coasts.

What did Sheppard find out about Leopold's rule while he was there?

atrocities in the Congo by Leopold and his dependence on rubber for profit

Why is Mary Kingsley's story significant?

challenges the normal Victorian idea of genders because she traveled to Africa when not many other women were able to do so. But, she wrote about how would crash her canoe into conservatories and hospitals and hinted that she had issues taking care of herself

What organization Morel & Casement create?

created The Congo Reform Association (The CRA) which was supposed to reform the Congo & expose Leopold & the brutality in the Congo

What discoveries did Stanley make?

crossed the Congo & discovered possible wealth

What did Stanley do for Leopold?

crosses the Congo which shows Leopold that its possible to get into the center of Africa and it will bring them wealth.

How did the view of Europeans about Africa shape the relationship between Europeans and Africans?

gave Europeans idea that Africans are inferior to Europeans (whites) because they did not have a civilized culture like European's

What was the purpose of the meetings and organizations Leopold created to fulfill a humanitarian veneer?

help Leopold get money to pay for all the buildings and ships in the name of anti-slavery & He was able to convince everyone that his interest was purely altruistic which allowed him to seize Africa.

How did Kingsley view the natives she encountered?

hindrance to improvement. In my opinion, the greatest hindrance of all

Describe the Age of Imperialism

industrializing nations that colonized, influenced, and annexed other parts of the world in order to gain political power.

What was the Scramble for Africa?

invasion, occupation, colonization and annexation of African territory by European powers during the period of New Imperialism, between 1881 and 1914

Who was William Sheppard?

missionary sent from the south with a white man from the US. Spent 20 years in/around Congo Free State, best known to publicize the efforts against the Congolese by Leopold

What was the message of the political cartoons? Why were they significant?

shows how the rubber was influencing and controlling the lives of the Congolese as well as the Europeans

Why were functionaries "in the Congo to so blithely watch the chicotte in action and, as we shall see, to deal out pain and death in other ways as well?"

the functionaries must see the victims as less than human and Victorian ideas about race provided such a foundation

Why were Williams' complaints ignored?

viewed him as just an unreliable, confused negro because of his history of lying about his past

Who were the functionaries?

white men in charge of districts and river stations throughout the vast territory. Some of them were not visited by steamboats for months at a time