European Imperialism in Africa

1st European Contact

• North Africa existed for centuries along the Mediterranean Sea

• Sub-Saharan African contact began in the 1400’s with Portuguese sailors

WHY GO TO AFRICA?

• Europe wanted easier access to West Africa gold• Needed to find a shorter route to India• Convert people to Christianity• After the Portuguese…the Dutch, French and British

followed.

SLAVE TRADE

• The slave trade was as old as civilization

• Common in ancient China, Greece, Rome and elsewhere BEFORE the Europeans come to Africa

• Arabs and Egyptians held slaves• Slave caravans were common in W. Africa and Sahara

NUMBERS OF SLAVES

• 10-20 MILLION slaves left Africa during the Trans-Atlantic slave trade in the 15th-19th century.

HOW THE SLAVE TRADE WORKED…

• Obtaining slaves: – Traders organized their own slave raids– Bought slaves from African kings and chiefs

(captured during war or tribal raids without concern for family ties)FACT: Europeans mainly stayed near the coasts until the late 1800’s with little knowledge of interior African kingdoms.

PARTITIONING OF AFRICA

• 1884 Berlin Conference held to set rules to divide Africa between European nations to create colonies.

• FACT: European conquest for African lands was not smooth, battles and struggles continued until the early 20th century.

Outcome of the Conference

COLONIAL RULE…WHY?

• Acquire power• Exploit resources (GOLD)• Convert people to Christianity and

“civilize” them• Have a market for European products

4 METHODS OF COLONIAL RULE

1. Private Companies: Given large areas and allowed to set up administrative system and local populations were used as labor force.

2. Direct Rule:

Divided into districts governed by Europeans

GOAL: to civilize them and to discourage “backward” customs.

PROBLEM: Not enough Europeans, hard to control remote areas, lack of understanding for customs and language British East Africa Company and

British South Africa Company

• Assimilation:Idea for people to

have same rights as the Europeans

(ex. France and Portugal)

• Indirect Rule:Use of local chiefs

who reported back to colonial government (ex. Britain and Spain)

FACT: No matter what type of rule that was used, the political and economic development of the colony was NOT a priority!

PHASES OF COLONIAL DEVELOPMENT

PHASE ONE (start to 1920’s)

• Improve transportation and communication to gain resources and improve the life for EUROPEANS there. Health, housing and education only came from missionaries and companies to help the businesses

German missionaries in Africa

PHASE TWO (1920’s to WW2)

•SLOOOOOW recognition of responsibility to help the people of Africa

PHASE 3 (after WW2)

•Colonial development policies began

•Small industries•Limited number of hospitals and schools

SUMMARY

•Europeans ruled for over 70 years

•Exploited wealth to their advantage with little concerns for Africans

•Many were Christianized but few were educated.

INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENTS

The Empires crumble…

• Wars drained Europe-by 1945 Africans realized Europeans lacked the resources to hold on.

• Transition of power went smoothly.• Creation of independent self-sufficient

nations was a difficult process• Since independence-coups (gov’t

taken over by force), internal disagreements, dictatorships created.

RESULT…

Very little political stability