why did king leopold want the congo

They could also cheaply receive slaves and ivory and sell it at a very high price making a huge profit. 10 million. Of the Europeans who scrambled for control of Africa at the end of the 19th century, Belgium's King Leopold II left arguably the largest and most horrid legacy of all. 10. Things quickly got out of control. "King Leopold's Legacy of DR Congo Violence." (n.d.): n. pag. Generally, King Leopold believed that colonial expansion was key to building a powerful state, and so he sought colonies for Belgium around the world. Africa King Leopold's legacy: The lingering chaos in DR Congo. The genocide in the Congo is one of the most forgotten pieces of history, but the damage has been long-lasting. On February 5, 1885, Belgian King Leopold II established the Congo Free State by brutally seizing the African landmass as his personal possession. He turned the nation into a moneymaking machine by farming ivory and rubber and building a fortune on the labor of the people who lived there. 25 Votes) In 1885, the Force Publique was set up, a colonial army with white officers and black soldiers. They were a newly independent country . Eventually, the strain forced him to relinquish his control of the territory, and in 1908 it became the Belgian Congo. They were the very first royal family of Belgium, because the country was just 5 years old. "@Shenshenpshen @andersostlund I really think you need to read up on slavery & Spain & Portugal's role as well as Belgium, King Leopold in the Congo, France North Africa & Germany in Africa as well, I think you'll find the Europeans behaved horribly. Leopold II, the King of Belgium, reduced the population of the Congo from 20 million estimated to 10 million and still managed to retain his reputation as a great monarch. To answer your question of going somewhere . Leopold II was born in 1835 to King Leopold I and Louise-Marie of Orleans. The troops would force the people to get the rubber. Belgium. Hereof, why did King Leopold want rubber? King Leopold II of Belgium originally wanted to take over the Philippines. Leopold originally portrayed his interest in the area as being motivated by a humanitarian desire to improve the lives of the Congolese. Gondola, The History of Congo, 54. how much money did belgium make from the congograntchester sidney and violet Posted by on May 21st, 2021. . In the centuries following the discovery of the New World, the countries of Europe became very wealthy and powerful. The Belgians thought that all of the resources in the Congo could be used for production of items for the Belgian society and it would mean a lot more money for . Martin Ewans, European Atrocity, African Catastrophe: Leopold II, the Congo Free State and its Aftermath Instead, he was concerned with amassing his own personal fortune. Therefore, he likely believed himself and Europeans to be superior to that of Africans. King Leopold II's rule over the Congo met fierce resistance. The Belgians thought that all of the resources in the Congo could be used for production of items for the Belgian society and it would mean a lot more money for . The estimated population of the Congo B. Don't forget the Romans & their slaves or Egypt and Mosses." King Leopold II of Belgium laid claim to the Congo and declared it his territory while exerting physical threats to the indigenous people of the Congo (Kongo). Britain, Portugal, Spain, and France acquired new land and resources by colonizing parts of the Americas, Australia, Asia, and Africa. The rubber craze did not begin until years after Leopold had colonized the area, and in the late 1890s rubber profits surpassed ivory profits. (c. 1900-1905) in Belgian colonial Congo Free State (present day Democratic Republic of the Congo) King Leopold's Soliloquy: A Defense of His Congo Rule, By Mark Twain, Boston: The P. R . Leopold II ruled Belgium from 1865-1909 - activists want this statue in Brussels removed due to his brutal regime in Congo Free State. Updated on August 11, 2018. Due to large-scale mistreatment of the indigenous peoples, including frequent mutilation and murder of men, women and children to impose rubber export quotas, Leopold II's rule in the Congo became an international embarrassment. 8. After the Berlin conference of 1884-1885, various European nations set out to mount their flags all over Africa, murder the people, and then steal their resources to make Europe richer. That pressure finally forced him to relinquish his ownership of the territory, and it became the Belgian Congo in 1908. King Leopold II of Belgium attempted to persuade the Belgian government to support colonial expansion around the then-largely . Early and Personal Life. The results of this rule were very uneven. Web. The number of people King Leopold II ca. He . Answer (1 of 2): First, Leopold noticed and exploited the tension between the competing colonial expansionism of Britain and Germany in Central Africa during the late 19th century. Leopold sponsored and domiciled the Brussels Conference of 1876 and the resulting International African Association,. King Leopold II committed heinous atrocities in the name of chasing profits and raising the prestige of Belgium. From 1885 to 1908, Belgian King Leopold II took control of the Congo. 10 Horrifying Facts About The Genocide In The Congo Free State. He first asked to purchase the Philippines from Spain, but he did not have the money to do so. King Leopold II of Belgium attempted to persuade the Belgian government to support colonial expansion around the then-largely unexplored Congo Basin. 4.1/5 (100 Views . Leopold first saw ivory as the main jewel of the Congo since it was in demand and cheap to acquire. To this end, he even established an organization called the . Best Answer. BBC, 24 Feb. 2004. Answer: Since the consequences of the scheme in the Congo could too easily be blamed on one man who could comfortably be targeted because he did not serve a great power, a Leopold-focused foreign uproar. Indeed, the young King Leopold really only ever put pressure on the senate in his (constant) attempts to get Belgium . King Leopold's Ghost Summary. In the early 1890s, Leopold's private African army, the Force Publique (Public Force), drove the powerful Muslim slave traders out of the Congo. In the far south, for example, a chief named Mulume Niama led warriors of the Sanga people in a rebellion that killed one of the king's officers. The Congo was a producer of many useful items like rubber, palm oil, food, etc. Leopold II took the throne in 1865 and he ruled with the kind of soft touch Belgians expected from their king in the wake of the multiple revolutions and reforms that had democratized the country over the preceding few decades. Why did they cut off hands in the Congo? :/. Stanley's book describing the journey, Through The Dark Continent, was a great success. Source: Clancy-Smith, Julia. The king's stated goal was to bring civilization to the people of the Congo, an enormous region in Central Africa. While the Great Powers competed for territory elsewhere, the king of one of Europe's smallest countries carved his own private colony out of 100km2 of Central African rainforest. However, after the market became saturated with . If they didn't they would cut off their hands, take women and children as hostages, kill villages, and even cut off innocent peoples hands. The points presented in this article show the things that King Leopold II did in the Congo during his rule. From 1885-1908, the Congo Free State under the personal rule of King Leopold II was living hell. Why did Leopold want the Congo? 15 million. They colonized Congo because the needed its resources like rubber to manufacture goods. He would name the area Congo Free State. Failure to meet the rubber collection quotas was punishable by death. After an uprising by the Congolese people, Belgium surrendered and this led to the independence of the Congo in 1960. King Leopold II. King Leopold the II's colonisation of the Congo resulted in labour forced upon the natives, blackmail, abuse and eradication of tradition. One of those who read it was King Leopold II of Belgium, who had ambitions of establishing African colonies for his country. Rather than control the Congo as a colony, as other European powers did throughout Africa, Leopold privately owned the region. The Congo was a producer of many useful items like rubber, palm oil, food, etc. 20 million. King Leopold colonized the Congo to gain a monetary profit. 60 years after independence, traces of the system of exploitation and violence that Leopold II and colonial-era Belgium created still . Belgium, as a small, relatively new European country, lagged . martin luther king beyond vietnam speech pdf (6) uncle tony's johnston (6) newcastle united 2021/22 kit (1) snake mountain vermont (1) yosemite weather february 2021 (2) Leopold II established a colony in the Congo to gain natural resources for Belgium and wealth for himself. Eventually, the strain forced him to relinquish his control of the territory, and in 1908 it became the Belgian Congo. The country ruled over by King Leopold. The Belgians were mainly after one thing when they went into Congo, and that would be there resources. As time has passed the Belgians have been quick to forget what king Leopold had done to the congo, and how some of their most treasured public monuments had been financed. King Leopold II of the Belgians attempted to persuade the Belgian government to support colonial expansion around the then-largely unexploited Congo Basin. (Colonizing other peoples, regardless of the justification, is wrong. 6. In the 23 years (1885-1908) Leopold II ruled the Congo he massacred 10 million Africans by cutting off their hands and genitals, flogging them to death, starving them into forced . Under his reign, the Congolese people were terrorized with forced labor and harsh treatment. King Leopold II of Belgium attempted to persuade the Belgian government to support colonial expansion around the then-largely unexplored Congo Basin. Based on how Leopold treated the people in the Congo, he obviously did not value their lives. Nobody talks about one of the most notorious mass murderers in human history. Copy. Belgium. This article shows some bad things that he did and shows him for what he really was. Dummett, Mark. Most people that visited the Congo realized how horrible Leopold was, and what he was doing to the people. In 1886, Leopold made Camille Jansen the first Belgian governor-general of Congo. He then tried to make the . Click to see full answer In the Berlin Conference of 1884 through 1885, King LeopoldII of Belgium succeeded in convincing the major powers that his interests in Congo were purely philanthropic and all he wantedwas to bring civilization to Congo. The Belgians were mainly after one thing when they went into Congo, and that would be there resources. Inside the palatial walls of Belgium's Africa Museum stand . Their ambivalence resulted in Leopold's establishing a colony himself. 7. How do you think the legacy of Leopold II and his control over the Congo Free Hochschild, King Leopold's Ghost, 64, 65, and 81. The average reader will spend 7 hours and 17 minutes reading King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa at 250 WPM (words per minute). 10 Nov. 2014. The estimated population of the Congo A. Their ambivalence resulted in Leopold's establishing a colony himself. At Berlin conference in 1884-85 European nations and the United States, believing Leopold II dedicated life to improving living conditions in Congo, approved his claim on the territory. He wrongly justified his actions by saying that the people of the Congo were inferior, and deserved the treatment they received. He felt that he was not truly ruling Belgium because of parliament and felt the need for some recognition. What did Belgium gain from Congo? I will focus on this one picture: This boy, only 7 or 8 years old was hanged, supposedly because his father did not get the rubber quota, imposed by the ruling power back. Rubberwas one among many precious natural resources available in Congo. BBC News. King Leopold had several reasons for this invasion; Foremost, he believed that a Belgium colony in the Congo would demand respect from the other European powers and make a name for the quieter Belgium's. This idea was peddled by the efficient propaganda machine of the Belgian Congo. That said, Leopold set up Belgium's only . When the Belgian King Leopold II acquired the Congo Free State during the Scramble for Africa in 1885, he claimed he was establishing the colony for humanitarian and scientific purposes, but in reality, its sole aim was profit, as much as possible, as fast as possible. Leopold II used explorer Henry Morton Stanley to lay claim on the area of the modern-day Democratic Republic of Congo. He extracted a fortune from the territory, initially by the collection of ivory and, after a rise in the price of natural rubber in the 1890s, by forced labour from the native population to harvest and process rubber. The untamed land Stanley described sounded, to him, like an ideal candidate. Indeed, the young King Leopold really only ever put pressure on the senate in his (constant) attempts to get Belgium . Furthermore, why did King Leopold want the Congo? Leopold II was born in Brussels on 9 April 1835 to King Leopold I and his second wife, Louise. Colonial rule in the Congo began in the late 19th century. So initially the main focus was on securing ivory which was highly prized in Europe, but the rubber demand in Europe ended up being a welcome bonus for Leopold. Answer (1 of 3): Describing all the atrocities enforced bij Leopold II will lead me too far, since the list appears endless. In 1877, the European country Belgium and King Leopold colonized the Democratic Republic of Congo. State troops pursued them, trapping Mulume Niama and his soldiers in a large cave. Leopold's rule lead to the genocide of the Congolese, and restriction of the Congo's development. Leopold II took the throne in 1865 and he ruled with the kind of soft touch Belgians expected from their king in the wake of the multiple revolutions and reforms that had democratized the country over the preceding few decades. While Leopold portrayed this as a great humanitarian act, his real purpose was to gain control of the upper Congo River and to acquire more workers. The atrocities in the congo are not known more widely because much of what happened in Africa was choked up to its historical context and the times of the world rather than a . Leopold ran the Congo by using the mercenary Force Publique for his personal gain. To be fair, it is possible that Leopold II, a fairly observant Belgian Catholic, really did want to introduce his new chattel to Jesus. The French said that these young girls when they graduate from school would no longer want to stay at home in seclusion. So Belgium only colonized Congo to serve their own . But he did this in the most literal, and ruthless, way possible: by killing a huge number of them and making life generally unbearable for the rest as they labored to dig up gold, hunted to kill elephants for . Because the system's effects in the Congo could so easily be blamed on one man, who could safely be attacked because he did not represent a great power, an international outcry focused on Leopold. In the 23 years (1885-1908) Leopold II ruled the Congo he massacred 10 million Africans by cutting off their hands and genitals, flogging them to death, starving them into forced labour, holding children ransom and burning villages. . The Congo Free State was a corporate state in Central Africa privately owned by King Leopold II of Belgium founded and recognized by the Berlin Conference of 1885. Colonial rule in the Congo began in the late 19th century. For thousands of years, that territory had been conquered by nearby Netherlands, France, Germany, and Luxembourg.