Chapter 2 Section 3

European Conquest of Africa

Europeans on the Coast

• Before 1500 Europe and Africa traded as equals

• After 1500 it turned into the enslavement and forced migration of millions of Africans

• By 1900 Africa was divided among European countries

African Slave Trade

Portuguese Exploration

• Wanted to trade directly with West Africa

• Wanted to trade with Asia

Trade with Asia

Dias and De Gama

Improved Navigation

• Lateen sail (triangle-shaped sail) allowed ships to sail against the wind.

• Astrolabe helped navigate at sea.

Lateen

Astrolabe

What was Traded?

Africans Traded:

Gold

Cotton

Ivory

Skins

Metal objects

Pepper

African Animal Skins

What was Traded?

• Europeans Traded

• Copper

• Brass

• Clothing

What was Introduced from Africa?

OkraWatermelon

Rice

What was Introduced from Europe?

Corn

Yams

Cassava

Change in Trade Relations

• Portuguese found an all-water route to the far-east

• Discovered the riches of the East African coast and seized these riches

European Trade Spreads

• The Dutch, French and English set up trading posts along Africa’s coasts

• The Dutch built a trading post on the Cape of Good Hope

Cape of Good Hope!

The Atlantic Slave Trade

• Slave trade existed in Africa before America was colonized

• African Americans were treated like property by the Europeans settling in America

The Middle Passage

The Trip from Africa to the Americas was called the Middle Passage

Indians or Africans – That is the Question!

• European settlers needed laborers for their mines and plantations

• Cheaper to use enslaved Indians or Africans than to pay workers

Advantages of Using African Workers

• Disease resistant

• Unfamiliar territory

• They were skilled farmers, miners and metal workers

The Slave Trade Begins

• Some African nations refused to take part• By 1780 about 80,000 African slaves were being

shipped to America each year!

The Horrors of Slavery

• 20% of slaves died on the Middle Passage• Many died young• Separated from family • Susceptible to disease in slave huts

Slave Beatings!

Effects of Slavery on Africa

• Some Africans grew wealthy from slave trade

• West Africa lost much of its population

• Not enough skilled workers left

• Families were torn apart• African societies broke down African Blacksmith

Europeans Colonize Africa

• Mid 1800’s African slave trade ended

• Europeans then raided Africa’s interior for natural resources

• Europeans claimed empires in Africa

The Industrial Revolution in England

required natural resources

The Scramble for Africa

• By 1900 European nations had colonized many parts of Africa

• To colonize means to settle an area and take control of its government

European Rule

Effects of European Control on Africa

• African people had little power in their governments

• Europeans encouraged rivalries among African ethnic groups.

• Europeans took the best land for farming

• Europeans drew new political boundaries

Rivalries among African Ethnic Groups