Imperialists divide Africa

Setting the stage

Industrialization stirred ambitions in many European nations.They wanted more
resources to fuel their industrial production. They competed for new markets for
their goods. They looked to Africa and Asia as sources of the raw materials and
as markets for cloth, plows, guns, and other industrial products.

Africa before imperialism:

In the mid-1S00s, African peoples were divided into hundreds of ethnic and
linguistic groups, with many following traditional beliefs or converting to Islam or
Christianity. They ruled from large empires to independent villages, with the
largest empire in West Africa having a population of 10 million. Europeans had
established contacts with Africans as early as the 1450s, but controlled very little
land. Powerful African armies kept Europeans out of most of Africa for 400 years,
and Europeans could not travel into the interior on a large scale due to the
rapids and changing flows of African rivers. Trade networks, such as the Choke
and Yao, prevented Europeans from controlling the sources of gold and ivory.

Nations compete for overseas empires:

Those Europeans who did penetrate the interior of Africa tended to be explorers,
mis-sionaries, or humanitarians who opposed the slave trade. Europeans and
Americans learned about Africa through travel books and newspapers. These
publications competed for readers by hiring reporters to search the globe for
stories of adventure, mystery, or excitement.
-​ the cargo sparks interest: In the late 1860s, Scottish minister David
Livingstone traveled to central Africa to search for the source of the Nile.
After years of silence, American reporter Henry Stanley found Livingstone
in 1871 on Lake Tanganyika. Stanley returned to Africa in 1879 and signed
treaties with local chiefs in 1882, giving King Leopold II of Belgium personal
control of the Congo River valley. Leopold claimed to abolish the slave
trade but licensed companies that exploited Africans, forcing them to
collect sap from rubber plants. This led to humanitarian demands for
changes. In 1908, the Belgian government took over the colony, which was
larger than Belgium. France was alarmed by Leopold's seizure of the Congo,
and Britain, Germany, Italy, Portugal, and Spain later claimed parts of
Africa.
-​ Motives driving imperialism: Imperialism, the takeover of a country or
territory by a stronger nation to dominate political, economic, and
social life, was accelerated by economic, political, and social forces.
The Industrial Revolution led European countries to seek new
markets and raw materials to improve their economies. The race for
colonies grew out of national pride and economic competition, with
Europeans viewing empires as a measure of national greatness. As
competition intensified, each country was determined to plant its
 flag on as much of the world as possible. This belief in racism, based
on advanced technology, was a reflection of Social Darwinism, a
social theory that applied Charles Darwin's ideas about evolution
and "survival of the fittest" to social change. Europeans believed they
had the right and duty to bring the results of their progress to other
countries, as stated by Cecil Rhodes, a successful businessman and
major supporter of British expansion.the push for expansion also
came from missionaries who worked to Christianize the people of
Asia, Africa, and the pacific islands.
-​ Forces enabling Imperialism: Europeans' conquest of Africa was
largely due to their technological superiority, including the Maxim
gun, the world's first automatic machine gun, and the steam engine,
which allowed them to establish bases of control deep in the
continent. However, Europeans also faced challenges such as
malaria, which could have been prevented by the discovery of
quinine, a drug that protected them from mosquitoes. The diverse
languages and cultures of Africans also discouraged unity among
them, and conflicts over land, water, and trade rights further
hindered unity. Africans, however, fought at a disadvantage due to
their lack of weapons and technology.
African Lands Become European Colonies
The scramble for African territory began in earnest about 1SS0. At that
time, the French began to expand from the West African coast toward
western Sudan. The discoveries of diamonds in 1867 and gold in 1SS6 in
South Africa increased European interest in colonizing the land. No
European power wanted to be left out of the race.
-​ Berlin Conference Divides Africa: The Berlin Conference in 1884-85
aimed to prevent war among European countries by establishing
rules for Africa's division. 14 European nations agreed that any
European country could claim land by notifying other nations and
showing control. However, no African ruler attended these meetings,
and by 1914, only Liberia and Ethiopia remained free from European
control.
-​ Demand for Product Shapes Colonies :European colonization led to
the belief that Africans would buy European goods in large
quantities. However, European businesses still needed raw materials
from Africa, leading to cash-crop plantations for peanuts, palm oil,
cocoa, and rubber. Africa's rich mineral resources, such as copper
and tin in the Belgian Congo, surpassed gold and diamonds in South
Africa.
Three Groups Clash Over South Africa
The history of South Africa is a history of Africans, Dutch, and British
clashing over land and resources. Although the African lands seemed
empty to the Europeans, there were huge areas claimed by various ethnic
groups. The local control of these lands, especially in the east, had been in
dispute for about 100 years.
-​ Zulu Expansion: From the late 1700s to the late 1800s, a series of local
wars shook southern Africa. Around 1816, a Zulu chief, Shaka, used
highly disciplined warriors and good military organization to create
a large centralized state. Shaka's successors, however, were unable to
keep the kingdom intact against the superior arms of the British
invaders. The Zulu land became a part of British-controlled land in
1887.
-​ Bores and British Settle in the Cape: The Dutch first came to the
Cape of Good Hope in 1652 to establish a way station for their ships
sailing between the Dutch East Indies and home. Dutch settlers
known as Boers (Dutch for "farmers") gradually took over native
Africans' land and established large farms. When the British took
over the Cape Colony in the 1800s, the two groups of settlers clashed
over British policy regarding land and slaves .In the 1S30s, to escape
the British, several thousand Boers began to move north. This
movement has become known as the Great Trek. The Boers soon
found themselves fighting fiercely with Zulu and other African groups
whose land they were taking.
-​ The Boer War: The Boers blamed the British.In 1899, the Boers took up
arms against the British.In many ways the Boer War between the
British and the Boers was the first modern "total" war.Britain won the
war.In 1902, the Boer republics were joined into a self-governing Union
of South Africa, controlled by the British.