Imperialism in Africa Essay Example For Students

Imperialism in Africa Essay When the Age of Imperialism began in 1875, it effected Africa in many ways. Nowhere was the competition for colonies more intense than in Africa. Europeans went after North and South Africa splitting up the continent. Egypt and Sudan were taken over by Britain to obtain the Suez Canal. Imperialism helped to develop Africas economy and turned it into a continent of colonies. Until well into the 1800s Africa was relatively unknown to Europeans. They controlled less than ten percent of the continent. By 1882 Britain, Germany, Italy, Portugal, and Spain were all claiming parts of Africa. In 1900, they had divided ninety percent of Africa into colonies. Although European ships had for centuries traded at ports along the coast, they brought back little knowledge of Africas interior. Later Europeans started exploring the continent. The best known of these explorers was David Livingstone. This Scottish missionary spent thirty years in central Africa, and gave Europeans their first detailed information about Africa and its people. In the mid-1800s Africa south of the Sahara contained more than seven hundred different ethnic groups. Most were organized into communities based on ties of tradition and family. Occasionally, a powerful group formed a state that was strong enough to conquer neighboring groups and form an empire. Europeans had already moved into North Africa. The White Man killed my father, My father was proud. The White Man seduced my mother, My mother was beautiful. The White Man burnt my brother Beneath the noonday sun, My brother was strong. His hands red with black blood The White Man turned to me; And in the Conquerors voice said, Boy! A chair, a napkin, a drink. In Southern Africa, there were mineral discoveries in the 1860, 70, and 80s. These discoveries had an enormous impact on Southern Africa. These discoveries lead to a rush of many fortune hunters and the establishment of the town of Kimberly, which grew quickly and soon became the largest urban society in the interior of Southern Africa. Soon the diamond industry was controlled by one monopolistic company. This was one negative effect of imperialism in Africa. While the foreigners were diamond hunting, the African people continued to mine for gold. Soon, though, the diamond industry lost its popularity which an enormous amount of gold was found near present day Johannesburg. Many of the businessmen that had made fortunes in the diamond industry left and established a series of gold-mining companies. Once again the native African people were being taken over by the foreigners. Europeans viewed Africa as a place where there were more jobs as well as investment opportunities doe the middle class, and a place where the lower class was offered higher status, better job opportunities, and a chance to leave life behind and start again fresh. They also believed that the African people were people who needed to be helped so the Europeans went over on various church missions. Rudyard Kiplings poem, White Mans Burden, captures the mentality of the Europeans: Take up the White Mans burden Send out the best ye breed Go bind your sons to exile, To serve your captives need; To wait in heavy harness, On fluttered folk and wild Your new-caught sullen peoples, Half devil and half child. Not all Europeans felt the need to save the Africans. Cecil Rhodes was a British born imperialist who had established the diamond company that controlled 90 percent of the worlds diamond production. He abided heavily by laissez faire capitalism and British superiority. Although not thinking of the African nation as needing to be changed, he looked at everything a different way. A quote from him explains that he, although not like the others, still believed that African nations were there to be taken over and used for their resources by higher and more superior countries. Africa is still lying ready for us. It is our duty to take it. It is our duty to seize every opportunity of acquiring more territory and we should keep this one idea steadily before our eyes that more territory simply means more of the Anglo-Saxon race more of the best the most human, most honorable race the world possesses .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979 , .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979 .postImageUrl , .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979 , .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979:hover , .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979:visited , .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979:active { border:0!important; } .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979:active , .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979 .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u5fbcc512e1404b6e8473644d186ab979:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: The International Accounting Standards Boards Accounting EssayNot only negative came out of the Europeans coming into African and colonizing. It could be argued that it was .