The scramble for Africa, 1876-1912
The Scramble for Africa is one of the most extraordinary phenomena in history. In 1880 most of the continent was still ruled by its inhabitants and was barely explored. Yet by 1902, five European powers--Britain, France, Germany, Belgium and Italy--had grabbed almost all of its ten million square miles, awarding themselves thirty new colonies and protectorates, and 110 million bewildered new subjects.The sudden race for African territory swept the political masters of Europe off their feet. The British colonial secretary protested this "absurd scramble." The German Chancellor, Prince Bismarck, complained that he was being led into a "colonial whirl." The French Prime Minister call it a "steeple chase into the unknown." Ironically, the provocation for this massive display of greed on the part of the European powers came from the heroic death in 1873 of the missionary-explorer David Livingstone, who had exposed the horrors of the African slave trade then in progress. His call for Africa to be redeemed by the "three C's"--Commerce, Christianity and Civilization--was aimed at the conscience of the civilized world. However, the initial response cam from rival colonial enthusiasts in Europe. There were journalists like Henry Stanley, mariners like Pierre de Brazza, soldiers like Edward Lugard, pedagogues like Karl Peters, and gold-and-diamond tycoons like Cecil Rhodes. from the front flap