“The brown current ran swiftly out of the heart of darkness, bearing us down towards the sea with twice the speed of our upward progress; and Kurtz’s life was running swiftly, too, ebbing, ebbing out of his heart into the sea of inexorable time. . . ."
Joseph Conrad- Heart of Darkness
Introduction
The aim of this paper is to analyze the General Act of the Berlin Conference on West Africa (1884-1885) and the partition of Africa among the main European powers, considering its importance for the construction of Europe. The Conference of Berlin was the culmination of a process that began with the presence of European traders in the costal areas of West Africa. The relations between Europe and Africa developed during the age of slave trade and were transformed on the 19th century. The Conference initiated the process of formal colonization, which lasted until the 1960s and had great consequences for both continents.
The main aspects that are analyzed about the document are, on one hand, how the international relations between the European nations affected the partition of Africa, and how are they manifested on the General Act. To understand the importance of the Conference, it is necessary to consider that the European powers were concerned with taking forward the colonial enterprise without entering any armed conflict among them. This process will be analyzed in the light of the concept of "armed peace". On the other hand, the main provisions of the Conference, which regard the free commerce in the basins of the Niger and the Congo, define the "effective occupation" as the criteria for the colonization of new areas and confirm the prohibition of slave trade, are analyzed taking into account their main consequences for the p...
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Mazrui, Ali A. "The Re-Invention of Africa: Edward Said, V. Y. Mudimbe, and Beyond." Research in African Literatures 36, no. 3 (Autumn 2005): 68-82.
Europe, in the late 1800’s, was starting for a land grab in the African continent. Around 1878, most of Africa was unexplored, but by 1914, most of Africa, with the lucky exception of Liberia and Ethiopia, was carved up between European powers. There were countless motivations that spurred the European powers to carve Africa, like economical, political, and socio–cultural, and there were countless attitudes towards this expansion into Africa, some of approval and some of condemnation.
During the Brussels conference in 1876, Leopold found the International African Association. Its object was, “the exploration of the country and the founding of stations which should be rest-houses for travellers and centres of civilization” (Tusan 195). The founding of the Congo as a free state was also proposed at the Brussels conference. Afterward came the Berlin conference of 1885. The Berlin conference was the formalization of the scramble and regulated european colonization and trade. It also defined the borders of the Congo, ensured free trade, and the abolition of the slave trade. The Treaty of Berlin was made to regulate colonization in Africa. As it stated, “All the powers exercising sovereign rights or influence in the aforesaid territories bind themselves to watch over the preservation of the native tribes, and to care for the improvement of the conditions of their moral and material well-being, and to help in suppressing slavery, and especially the slave trade. They shall, without distinction of creed or nation, protect and favour all religious, scientific or charitable institutions and undertakings created and organized for the above ends, or which aim at instructing the natives and bringing home to them the blessings of civilization” (Tusan 200). King Leopold then went on to claim the Congo as his personal property. He stated, “Our refined society attaches to human life (and with reason) a value unknown
They even went so far as to declare slavery as forbidden in any way, shape, or form. This action alone shows that the European power’s decisions were trying to protect the African peoples as much as possible. They also tried to protect African citizens through other decided rules, like the rule of effective occupation. Effective occupation is defined as the rule that a European nation could establish a colony only if it had taken position effectively through signed treaties with local leaders. A European power would also have to develop the land economically and have defense systems in place before the power could have ownership of the property. All of these provisions that are set in place show that the Europeans were concerned about the well-being of the territories that they would take over, and it shows that they want to improve the citizen’s lives. This rule had to be followed strictly, and you could only be able to get territory if you followed every single aspect of the decree. Besides the elements of defense and improvement of the lands in Africa, another essential point of this conference was the discussion of commerce. According to Thomas Pakenhaim,“The aim of the conference was to promote the civilization of the African natives by opening the interior of the
Trupin, James E. West Africa - A Background Book from Ancient Kingdoms to Modern Times, Parent's Magazine Press. New York, 1991.
In the first segment of his film series, Different but Equal, Basil Davidson sets out to disprove the fictitious and degrading assumptions about African civilization made by various Western scholars and explorers. Whether it is the notion that Africans are “savage and crude in nature” or the presumed inability of Africans to advance technologically, these stereotypes are damaging to the image and history of Africa. Although European Renaissance art depicts the races of white and black in equal dignity, there was a drastic shift of European attitudes toward Africa that placed Africans in a much lower standing than people of any other culture. The continent of Africa quickly became ravished by the inhuman slave trade and any traditional civilization
The results of European colonialism shows that the aim of colonialism is to exploit the human and economic resources of an area to benefit the colonizing nation. As a result, the nation that is colonized is affected negatively. In reality, how Europe really affected Africa as a whole is much
The "DBQ Project" What Is the Driving Force Behind European Imperialism in Africa? (2012): 257. pp. 177-177. Print.
As the Europeans started to invade Africa and split up the land, they paid no attention to the already existing natural boundaries. Over time, villages with different cultures had set these boundaries. The Europeans ignored these invisible borders as they invaded. This caused soci...
... Cambridge Encyclopedia of Africa. Ed. Roland Oliver. 1. New York: Trewin Copplestone Books Limited, 1984. Print.
In the early 1880’s, the powers of Europe started to take control of regions in Africa and set up colonies there. In the beginning, colonization caused the Africans little harm, but before long, the Europeans started to take complete control of wherever they went. The Europeans used their advanced knowledge and technology to easily maneuver through the vast African landscape and used advanced weapons to take control of the African people and their land. The countries that claimed the most land and had the most significant effect on Africa were France, England, Belgium, and Germany. There were many reasons for the European countries to be competing against each other to gain colonies in Africa. One of the main reasons was that the Europeans believed that the more territory a country was able to control, the more powerful it could become and the more powerful it would be seen as by other countries. Other reasons for the desire to control African land included the many natural resources that could only be found in Africa, such as diamonds, gold, and as time progressed, rubber. It also provided new markets in surrounding places so that manufactured goods could be sold for a larger profit. The Europeans had many motives for imperialism in Africa. Yet the true motives were often shielded as they tried tom present themselves as humanitarians when in reality they were making Africa a terrible place to live with brutality and harsh treatment of the African natives. The ways of the Europeans had many physical and emotional costs for the people of Africa. The imperialism process also took a toll on the people of Europe. The European imperialistic colonization in Africa was motivated by the desire to control the abundant natural resources an...
Davidson, Basil. Modern Africa A Social and Political History. Ney York: Longman Group UK Limited, 1983.
"Africa Before Transatlantic Slavery: The Abolition of Slavery Project." Africa Before Transatlantic Slavery: The Abolition of Slavery Project. E2BN, 2009. Web. 08 Apr. 2014. .
The New Imperialism and the Scramble for Africa 1880-1914. Jeff Taylor, n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2014.
The Berlin Conference of 1884 peacefully divided Africa between world leaders. The conference, also known as the Congo Conference, looked at Africa as a great source of wealth in many areas to be shared among the participating countries. The division that took place at no time had at interest the people of Africa. By the time Africa regained its freedom in the 1950’s most areas had developed severe political and racial division. The result of this turbulence and division is the occurrence of such violent civil wars and genocides in African countries such as Rwanda.