Age of European Imperialism

Heritage of Africa

Age of European Imperialism

- by Reyna Arroyo

Europeans Explore Africa

European Motives

Europeans Explore Africa

• in 1914 Europeans claimed all of Africa except Liberia and Ethiopia
• economic competition (looked on African societies as markets for goods produced by European factories)
• in 1800s nationalism was sweeping through Europe
• many Europeans claimed Africa to prevent other empire expansions
• some people went to Africa to spread benefits of western civilization
• some believed their religion and civilization were superior so they believed Africans were obligated to learn the European's ways
• some supported colonial governments, others campaigned against slave trade and others worked on improving health care and building schools

• before 1800s Europeans didn't know much about Africa
• relied on Africa to bring slaves and trade goods
• during the Age of Imperialism European interest in Africa increased
• views of Africa reflected European attitudes
• some Europeans claimed to discovering things in Africa when Africans had already known about them(such as David Livingstone and the waterfalls on the Zambezi River)

African Resistance

Struggle for Southern Africa

The Scramble for Colonies

• two innovations helped Europeans advance into Africa
• new medical knowledge improved treatment for diseases which allowed Europeans to survive in Africa
• development of the Maxim Gun gave them power over Africans
• Europeans pushed their claims in all parts of Africa
• scramble for colonies in Central and West Africa began when Leopold II gained control of the Congo basin
• some Europeans supported his claims to prevent other empire expansions
• Europeans wanted to negotiate treaties w. African leaders, causing tensions to mount quickly
• Europeans made decisions about dividing Africa in the Berlin Conference w. out considering what Africans wanted
• after the conference European nations began solidifying their claims
• appointed officials to govern their colonies
• Leopold began to exploit human and mineral resources when his claim was recognized
• to those who resisted the forced labor, he cut off their ears and hands
• pressure from the Europeans caused Leopold to turn over his private domain

• in South Africa bitter power struggle developed among local African groups and Dutch settlers
• for hundreds of years Africans migrated to South Africa
• their cultures differed, and new comers were farmers
• some new comers also defeated people into less desirable lands because they were better armed
• in 1800s the Zulus built a strong empire
• those defeated by the Zulus fled to safety, forcing those on their ways to move on
• in 1652 Dutch settled in what now is Cape Town
• forced local people to work as slaves on their farms
• in the 1800s British won control over the Cape Colony and tried to end slavery
• Boers set 2 independent republics in the 1850s, one in land that Zulus had rescentley conquered
• battles continiued for decades between the Boers and Zulus, which the British ended up winning
• in 1867 Europeans went to Boer republics because of gold and diamonds
• British fought to control the rich area to expand
• in 1902 British defeated the Dutch settlers in the Boer
• in 1910 the British created the Union of South Africa of various colonies in the region
• granted self-government to the new nation
• under the constitution only white men could vote, so the Boers controlled the South African gov. because majority of the Boers were white

African Resistance

• many Africans resisted European imperialism
• some even fought against the Europeans
• millions of Africans died during the wars of resistance
• during 20 yrs. of fighting the African population decreased from 20 million to 8 million
• the Herero people were almost wiped out by the Germans for resisting the takeover of their land
• even though they had stiff resistance, they couldn't withstand European's weapons or advanced technology
• Ethiopia's resistance was the only to succeed because the emperor hired Europeans to arm and train his forces
• in 1896 he defeated an Italian army and preserved independence
• diseases at times helped Europeans
• rinderpest killed many cattle causing people to die of starvation
• some were to weak to fight