Late Nineteenth Century Imperialism: The Scramble for Africa

The Berlin Conference, 1885 By the mid-nineteenth century, Europeans considered Africa to be disputed territory ripe for exploration, trade, and settlement by their colonists. With the exception of trading posts along the coasts, the continent had been essentially ignored. 1869: France opens the Suez Canal in Egypt 1875: The Suez Canal comes under British control. Defeated in Northeast Africa, the French move into Tunisia & Morocco in the Northwest of Africa. 1871: The New York Herald sends Henry Stanley into central Africa to find a “lost” British missionary. He finds Dr. David Livingstone in the Belgian Congo. Stanley’s reports on the economic possibilities of the region arouse international interest in the area. 1878: King Leopold II of Belgium invites Stanley to join him in researching and civilizing the continent. Stanley ultimately helps Leopold establish the Congo Free State for Belgium. The French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italians, Germans, and British all rush in to stake their own claims in Africa. Concerned about conflict, Otto von Bismarck calls an international conference to deal with the partition & development of Africa.

The following countries attended the Berlin Conference: England France Portugal Spain Belgium Italy Germany USA, Austria, Denmark, The Netherlands, Sweden-Norway, The Ottoman Empire, Russia The Conference set out to answer the following questions: 1. What will be done about the African Slave Trade? 2. The Congo region of Central Africa (over 2 million square km) had been open to all European investment. But Belgium had moved in in the late 1870s. What should be done with this massive tract of land? 3. Who would get to use the lengthy Congo & Niger rivers? 4. Who can set up colonies and where? NOTE: The Germans, who were new to the continent, believed no country should have legal right to territory unless they had strong, effective political control of the area. Regions without a strong political presence by a European power should be up for grabs. Britain, on the other hand, had large territorial possessions it wanted to hold onto with minimal responsibility.