Scramble for Africa

The Scramble for Africa was the name given to the division of the African continent into European colonies from about 1880 to the start of World War I (1914–1918). Prior to the 1880s, European settlements in Africa were mainly confined to coastal regions and the southern part of the continent. The scramble was triggered by the king of Belgium's desire for riches and fueled by technological advances, economic factors, and international rivalries. In 1884, the European powers met in Berlin, Germany, to discuss rules for colonizing Africa. Within three decades, almost the entire content was under European control. The European powers maintained their hold on Africa until after World War II (1939–1945), when growing independence movements ended colonization and paved the way for self-ruling nations.

Background

The Greeks and Romans explored the northern regions of Africa in ancient times. They mapped the area around the Mediterranean Sea and the Nile River, but they did not venture further south into the continent. In the fifteenth century, Portugal's Prince Henry began a European push into Africa when he financed several sailing voyages to the continent's western coast. Henry was hoping to discover a sea route to Asia and find evidence of a mythical Christian ruler whose kingdom was said to be in the region.

In 1441, the Portuguese began trading with the indigenous inhabitants of the region. About four decades later, they established the first European trading post in West Africa at Elmina in modern-day Ghana. Portuguese explorer Bartolomeu Dias discovered a route around the southern tip of Africa in 1488, and in 1497, Vasco da Gama was the first European to reach the continent's eastern coast by sea. Driven by a combination of scientific curiosity and the desire to profit from the trade in gold, ivory, and slaves, other European powers soon dispatched their own expeditions to Africa.

European settlements and trading posts were common in nineteenth-century Africa, but they were mostly relegated to the coastal regions and inland routes along major rivers such as the Congo and Niger. The British had several settlements in West Africa and vied with the Dutch for control of southern Africa. The French had a presence near Senegal, Cote d'Ivoire, and Algeria; Portugal controlled parts of Angola and Mozambique; and Spain held a small area in northwest Africa.

Overview

Attempts were made to explore the continent's interior, but many fell victim to geographical obstacles, tropical disease, and warring indigenous peoples. By the late nineteenth century, however, advancements in medicine and boat-building technology allowed explorers safer access to previously dangerous regions. The end of the slave trade also prompted European nations to look for other sources of revenue from Africa. In Europe, the German states had consolidated in 1871, setting up a unified Germany as a rival to Britain and France. These factors all contributed to a renewed interest in Africa among the great powers of Europe, but it would be a minor player on the European stage that would set off the Scramble for Africa.

In 1876, Belgium's King Leopold II, one of the least influential monarchs in Europe, sought to expand his holdings by staking a claim to the Congo River basin in central Africa. Leopold hired renowned African explorer Henry Morton Stanley to chart the region, forge treaties with the inhabitants, and acquire as much land as possible. In 1880, the French became aware of Leopold's plans and sent in expeditions to claim their own territory. Portugal responded by negotiating with the ruler of the Kingdom of Kongo to acquire more land on Africa's western coast. Initially, both Great Britain and Germany had little interest in acquiring African colonies, but when they saw their rivals begin the push for territory, they were compelled to stake their own claims.

By 1884, the British had dubbed the sudden rush for land the Scramble for Africa. The French moved into modern-day Tunisia and the area north of the Congo River; the British occupied Egypt and split Somalia with the French; the Portuguese held land on both the east and west coasts; and the Germans moved into regions near Tanzania, Namibia, and Cameroon. As conflict over African land began to escalate, Germany called for a conference of the competing European powers to discuss a solution.

The Berlin Conference lasted for several months from late 1884 into 1885. Britain, France, Germany, and Portugal negotiated their claims for land already held. The claims were then finalized and mapped. King Leopold was granted direct rule over Belgian territory, which became known as the Congo Free State. The conference members also agreed to free trade among the colonies and free access to all major rivers and trade routes. Future land claims were to be based on the ability of a nation to prove occupancy of a region under its "sphere of influence."

In the years after the conference, European powers continued to expand their African territories. Some indigenous peoples resisted the takeover, but their armies were no match for the superior weaponry of the Europeans. Most African leaders gave up without a fight and agreed to alliances with the newcomers. Many Europeans saw Africa as technologically backward and felt it was their right to act as caretakers of the continent and its people. While many Africans were exploited for their labor and faced oppression in their own countries, Europeans also introduced schools, hospitals, and modern forms of government to the region.

By 1914, almost all of Africa was under European control. Only Liberia—a nation founded by freed slaves from the United States in 1847—and the Ethiopian empire of Abyssinia retained their independence. Great Britain held the most colonies with fourteen; France had seven; Germany held four; and Portugal, Italy, and Spain had three apiece. The Congo Free State was administered in brutal fashion by Leopold until 1908. When reports of mass murders and atrocities committed under his rule surfaced, the colony was removed from his control and placed under jurisdiction of the Belgian government.

After the German defeat in World War I, Germany was stripped of its African colonies, which were divided up among the continent's other colonial powers. Administering the African colonies became too difficult for Europe's nations after the costly six years of World War II. When an independence movement in British-controlled India inspired similar movements in Africa, most European nations simply granted their former colonies self-rule. The last European-controlled colonies in Africa gained their independence in the 1970s.

Bibliography

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