European Atrocity, African Catastrophe: Leopold II, the Congo Free State and Its AftermathThere is a broad consensus among those who are concerned with Africa that the plight of the continent is approaching the catastrophic. Partly the roots of the problem are historical, stemming from the exploitation and colonisation of the continent by European powers. An appreciation of the history of the relationship between Europe and Africa, a major episode of which this book examines, is indispensable to an understanding of the continent's present predicament. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries King Leopold II of the Belgians established a colony in Africa, which, as the Congo Free State, became a byword for unremitting exploitation and widespread atrocities. This book describes the creation, the development and the collapse both of this regime and of the Belgian colony that replaced it. Conclusions are drawn about the nature of European colonialism in Africa and the consequences for Europe itself. |
Contents
Introduction | 1 |
BELGIUM AND AFRICA | 9 |
Belgium the Coburgs and the Quest for Colonies | 11 |
Europe and Africa | 21 |
PART TWO FOUNDATIONS | 31 |
Camerons Journey Across Africa | 33 |
The Brussels Geographical Conference | 39 |
Henry Morton Stanley | 47 |
Leopolds Fashoda | 142 |
PART FIVE EXPLOITATION | 155 |
The Domainal System | 157 |
The Initial Belgian Takeover Bids | 166 |
PART SIX NEMESIS | 173 |
The Storm Gathers | 175 |
E D Morel | 185 |
The Casement Report | 193 |
The Comité dEtudes du HautCongo | 55 |
Stanley and de Brazza | 62 |
PART THREE ACQUISITION | 75 |
The AngloPortuguese Treaty | 77 |
The Campaign for Recognition | 84 |
The Berlin West Africa Conference | 95 |
The Creation of the Free State | 103 |
PART FOUR EXPANSION | 109 |
The Early Years | 111 |
The Rescue of Amin Pasha | 122 |
Katanga and the Arabs | 134 |
The Losing Battle | 202 |
The Belgian Enquiry | 211 |
The End Game | 220 |
PART SEVEN AFTERMATH | 233 |
Belgian Colonialism | 235 |
Africas Legacy | 246 |
Notes | 254 |
268 | |
275 | |
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Common terms and phrases
administration agreement annexation Arab Association atrocities Bahr-el-Ghazal Banning Beernaert Belge Belgian government Belgium Berlin Act Berlin Conference Bismarck Boma Brazza Britain British government Brussels Bunkeya Casement Casement report century chiefs civilisation coast colonial Comité commercial Commission companies concession Conference Congo estuary Congo Free Congolese continued Dhanis E. D. Morel East Eetvelde effect Emin Pasha established Europe European eventually expedition exploitation exploration force Foreign Office France Free State's free trade French frontiers further German ibid independent insisted interests ivory Katanga King Lado enclave Lake land Lansdowne later Leopold Leopold II Livingstone London Mackinnon million missionaries Morel natives organisation Paris Parliament political Portuguese possession railway recognised regime region river Royal Geographical Society rubber Salisbury slave trade Société Stanley Pool Stanley's stations Stengers Strauch territory Tippu Tib took Treaty Upper Nile Victoria villages West Africa Zanzibar
References to this book
How Can One Not be Interested in Belgian History: War, Language and ... Benno Barnard Limited preview - 2005 |