“People, Places and Power” is quite a self-explanatory theme; people, places, and power all influence events in history and give explanations as to why certain things happened. History would not be made if were not for people, both individuals and groups. As for places, they act as a form of identity of people, depending on the culture and resources of the location. Power can be control of both places and people. The unit focuses on people, places and power and how this theme relates to one of six student-choice topics. No matter which topic a student has chosen, each student is assigned four reflections. These reflections each are in different formats; ranging from blog posts to class presentations, most assignments are individually graded. For this unit, my topic is “Imperialism: Europe and Africa.”
Key Terms:
African Elite– western-educated upper class
Berlin Conference– meeting of European powers in 1884 to prevent violence in colonization; took place in Berlin, Germany with no Africans invited
Direct rule– sending officials and soldiers from country of power to administer their colonies and turn them into provinces; practiced by French
Dr. David Livingstone– best known explorer-missionary who crisscrossed Africa for 30 years; he wrote about the natives with sympathy, was opposed to slave trade and believed the only way to end it was to share Christianity with interior of Africa; blazed the trail for journalist Henry Stanley
Explorers– in the early 1800’s, explorers like Mungo Park and Richard Burton began to push into the interior of Africa; they endured great hardships, were fascinated by African geography, but didn’t understand African natives
Imperialism– the domination by one country of the political, economic, or cultural life of another country or region
Indirect rule– using sultans, chiefs, or other local rulers to govern colonies and encouraged local children of ruling class to get education in country of power to “westernize” new generation of leaders; practiced by British
King Leopold II– Belgian King who hired Stanley to explore Congo River basin and arrange treaties with African leaders; he spoke publicly about a civilizing mission to carry light to barbarians, but privately dreamed of conquest and profit; his activities set off a scramble by other European nations
Liberia– independent republic since 1847 where some free blacks from US settles
Maxim gun– British advance used in persuading Africans and Asians to accept Western control and defeat forces; Invented by Sir Hiram Maxim
Menelik II– emperor of Ethiopia who made many advances; he used profits from ivory sales to buy modern weapons, hired European advisors to teach soldiers how to use guns, army conquered neighboring lands, planned modern roads and bridges, and set up western schools; is hailed by Africans for his victory over Imperialism
Missionaries– Catholics and Protestants sought to convert Africans to Christianity; they built schools, medical clinics and churches; they took a paternalistic view of Africans where they saw them as children in need of guidance
“New Imperialism”– European embarked on a path of aggressive expansion in the 1800’s encouraged by their new economic and military strength
Protectorate– local ruler left in place, but was expected to follow advice of European advisors on trade or missionary activity; cost less to run than a colony and didn’t require large military commitment
Rubber boom– in the early 1890’s, a worldwide need for rubber increased drastically, causing prices to raise; served as a money-maker for Leopold, who was in debt from Congo investments, because rubber vines grew abundantly in Congo
Sierra Leone– British colony made in 1787 in West Africa for former slaves
Sphere of influence– an area in which an outside power claimed exclusive investment or trading privileges
William Sheppard– black American reverend who was sent by the Southern Presbyterian Church to be a missionary in Congo
Enduring Understandings:
People oftentimes feel empowered when united culturally, but if the power is too strong, the group’s efforts for reform will be unsuccessful.
- The men of Congo had no motivation to harvest rubber and refused to do it, until the Force Publique began taking women and children hostages as an incentive for the workers to meet the quota (King Leopold’s Ghost, 160)
- If a village refused to accept the rubber regime, Belgian troops would shoot all people in sight as a tactic to force the village into their control (King Leopold’s Ghost, 165)
- Africans resisted against European powers. The Algerians battled the French for many years, The Zulus and Asante both battled with the British. Most of these efforts failed. Ethiopia was one of the few successful resistances against European Imperialism. (World History, 324)
The power structure of a given place influences the culture and beliefs of its citizens.
- West Africa in the early 1800’s was a largely Muslim empire as a result of Muslim leaders like Usman dan Fodio (World History, 319)
- The Transatlantic Slave Trade was banned in the early 1800’s by European nations, but it took many years to end it because of leaders’ continual violation of the law (World History, 320)
- King Leopold’s thirst to lead rubber trade with Congo drastically impacted the culture and living conditions; women and children were taken for hostage, kept in unsanitary living conditions, and sold back to their families for goats-only after the rubber demand was met. Because of this, men changed their labor strictly to rubber-collecting, in order to stay out of harm from the force Publique. (King Leopold’s Ghost, 161)
- Menelik II was emperor of Ethiopia and used European weapons and education systems to create a strong army. Menelik was able to use European technology to defeat other European colonies, which caused the civilians to worship him and follow his beliefs (World History, 324)
While studying history in school, Europe and the Americas are most often the topic of study. But what about Africa? The topic “Imperialism: Europe and Africa” focuses on African countries before European colonization in the late 1800s and how Imperialism impacted the culture, living conditions, and economic situation of countries in Africa. Pertaining to the theme “People, Places and Power”, the European Imperialism in Africa is a prime example of a repressing power, which affected both the people and geography. King Leopold II of Belgium was the epitome of a dictator (World History, 321). The place Leopold ruled over was Congo; a country that journalist Henry Stanley was ordered to explore and make treaties with African leaders (World History, 321). Congo’s geography was an unexpected perk for King Leopold. Wild rubber was native to Congo, and served as a huge profit for an indebted Leopold (King Leopold’s Ghost, 159). On the other hand, the natives of Congo did not profit from the rubber boom; according to Gondola in 2002, “The Force Publique arrived in a village and began looting it in retaliation for the villagers’ refusal to carry out orders. The soldiers then attacked the villagers and seized their women, whom they declared as hostages until the chief could bring in the required quantity of rubber…” (The Wealth of Africa, 4). The events in Congo exhibit how much of an impact a country power can have on the native people and how drastically a place can change under certain rulers.
Emma Loves History! 