Chapter 21: the European Scramble , Colonial Conquest and African Resistance in East

CHAPTER 21: THE EUROPEAN ‘SCRAMBLE’, COLONIAL CONQUEST AND AFRICAN RESISTANCE IN EAST, NORTH-CENTRAL AND WEST AFRICA

KEY POINTS

· The ‘Scramble for Africa

The European background

The ‘Scramble’ takes off

· Conquest and resistance

The French in west and north-central Africa

The British in west Africa

The Congo basin and Angola

British and Germans in east Africa

Somalia

‘The Scramble for Africa’

· Early 1870s: North Africa under French and (nominally) Ottoman Empire

· South Africa: partly under British, and Boer republics

· Rest of Africa: Europeans confined to small enclaves along coast [see Map 21.1]

· 1880-1900: most of Africa within European colonial empires

The European background

· Britain (1860): world leading industrial nation and naval power

· Could dominate Africa’s external trade, so promoted ‘free trade’ [the mantra of the powerful]

· Late 1860s: France, Germany and United States become industrial rivals

· Search for new markets (for cheap manufactured goods) and raw materials for industry, e.g. west African palm oil

· Principles of ‘free trade’ gave way to ‘protectionism’

· From 1870, southern Africa’s diamonds and gold – more rich resources throughout the continent?

· Prompted protectionist land grab – possession of colonies became matter of national prestige within Europe

· Rapid colonial conquest made possible:

· (1) Exploitation of long-standing rivalries between African states

· African interpretation of ‘treaties’ – for ‘protection’ from neighbouring African powers

· European intention of ‘treaties’ – to ‘protect’ one territory from being grabbed by a rival European power

· (2) Advances in European weaponry – breach-loading rifle, machine gun, long-range artillery

· African armies equipped with firearms, but never as advanced as their European opponents

The ‘Scramble’ takes off

· 1879: Joint Anglo-French control of Egypt’s finances

· French rail construction up Senegal towards middle Niger

· Leopold, King of Belgians, claimed right of ‘free trade’ over Congo Basin

· 1881: French declared ‘Protectorate’ over Tunisia

· Urabi Pasha takes nationalist control over Egypt

· 1882: British occupy Egypt while French cope with resistance in Tunisia

· French ‘Protectorate’ over Porto Novo (Dahomey) split British control over coast between Gold Coast and Lagos

· French ‘Protectorate’ over north bank of lower Congo

· 1884: German protectorates over Togo, Kamerun, South West Africa

· 1884-5: Berlin West Africa Conference, to establish rules for land grab already under way = ‘effective occupation’ and/or ‘treaties’ with African leaders

· + Recognised Leopold’s claims to Congo Basin

Conquest and resistance

French in west and north-central Africa [see Map 21.2]

· French in Dakar and St Louis, up Senegal River in 1850s and 60s

· Built disciplined Senegalese army: modern weapons, French or Afro-French officers

· These were main frontline troops in conquest of west Africa

· 1879-81, aggressive French push up river: forts and rail construction

· Main opponents: Ahmadu Seku’s Tukolor and Samori’s Mandinka

· French mixture of treaty, duplicity and conquest

· Tukolor not defeated until 1893

· Samori commanded 30 000 men (cavalry and infantry)

· Imported firearms from British in Sierra Leone + made and repaired own weapons

· After earlier clashes, French invasion 1891

· 1892-94: Samori shifted empire to the west; but then met African opposition

· Samori’s army not defeated by French until 1898

· Borno: Rabih ibn Fadl Allah, from upper Nile, established conquest state over Borno 1893

· Faced constant internal opposition

· 1900: French armies converged on Borno from Algeria and French Congo

· Rabih killed in battle, but struggle continued by son for another year

· Dahomey: French conquest of kingdom, 1892-4

· Cote d’Ivoire: proclaimed colony 1893, but non-centralised African resistance not overcome for 20 years.

The British in west Africa

· French ended with larger territory, but British had two of the wealthiest:

· Gold Coast:

· Early 1870s British bought Dutch and Danish forts

· 1874: proclaimed ‘Protectorate’ over Fante states [end of Confederation, p.300]

· Anglo-Asante Wars: 1873-4, 1895-6 – occupation and ‘Protectorate’ declared

· 1890: Asante rebellion defeated: Gold Coast colony declared

· Nigeria:

· Mid-1880s: British trading monopoly over lower Niger River (George Goldie’s Royal Niger Company)

· 1892-97: British military extend direct control north from Lagos Colony

· 1900-03: Sokoto Caliphate overcome (advanced British weaponry)

· Forested south-east Igboland (with no centralised control) not overcome until 1910

The Congo basin and Angola

· 1879: Stanley returned to lower Congo to make good Leopold’s claims to Congo basin

· 1880: Tio Chief Makoko (north bank of Malebo Pool) agreed treaty of ‘protection’ with French (de Brazza), possibly to protect from Stanley

· From mid-1880s: de Brazza extended French ‘protectorate’ up north of Congo Basin, ‘treaties’ exchanged for small gifts

· Early 1990s: French ‘Equatorial African Empire’ established (on paper) [ see Map 21.3]

· Leopold’s ‘Congo Free State’ recognised by Berlin Conference [see Map 21.3]

· Main potential opposition: Tippu Tip’s Swahili (eastern Congo), claimed allegiance to Sultan of Zanzibar

· 1887: Tippu Tip swapped allegiance to Leopold to avoid war

· Tippu Tip’s Swahili raiders clashed with CFS’s mercenary Force Publique

· 1893 Swahili finally overcome

· Msiri’s Yeke, on valuable ‘copperbelt’ – British agents (from south) seeking treaties there (1890)

· 1891: Leopold’s agents seized control of Yeke kingdom (Msiri shot)

· Portuguese in Angola: weak industrial nation, unable to compete with European rivals, needed protected market in Africa

· Lacked wealth for large military campaign, so exploited local rivalries and conducted piecemeal raids

· Rubber-boom (1890-1905) – Africans of Angolan interior purchased firearms and continued to defy Portuguese

· 1910, collapse of rubber boom

· 1912: Portugal able to enforce ban on arms sales to Africans – took control of Angola

British and Germans in east Africa

· Until 1870s: Britain had access to east African trade by supporting Sultan of Zanzibar

· British insistence on slave trade ban resented by Muslim Zanzibaris

· 1885: German ‘Protectorate’ over mainland Tanganyika

· 1886: Anglo-German treaty set boundary between coast and Victoria Nyanza

· Germans gave administration to private company:

· Violent demands for taxation provoked widespread resistance, guerrilla campaigns (Hehe, Yao, Maasai)

· Maasai resistance weakened by rinderpest

· 1890, Anglo-German treaty recognised British control of ‘Uganda’ (source of Nile)

· Imperial British East Africa Company hired Lugard to establish control

· IBEA allied with Christian aristocracy in Buganda (Muslim kabaka Mwanga recently ousted)

· British used Baganda levies against Bunyoro and other Muslim opponents

· 1894 British government took control – Bunyoro resistance and mutinous army continued until 1898

· Protectorate named ‘Uganda’, indicative of special role of Baganda

· Kenya: IBEA Company until 1895 – British government took over:

· Swahili ‘Mazrui’ rebellion – British gave up coastal rule through local Swahili and imposed Zanzibari and Omani Arabs in coastal towns

· Kenyan interior: Maasai and others weakened by rinderpest in early 1890s

· Nandi defeated 1894; Kikuyu raided for labour and food

· Widespread resistance not until building of Uganda railway and beginnings of European settlement in central highlands, early 1900s

Somalia

· Clan-based Somali: herders and traders

· Mogadishu, most important northern town of ‘Swahili’ coastal trade

· Exports to Red Sea trade routes: frankincense and myrrh (and cinnamon from India)

· Cotton major export from southern Somalia, until 19th century (trade killed by slave-grown competition from southern USA)

· Late 19th Century: weak economically, lacking centralised government: little initial resistance to foreign overrule

· ‘Scramble’: Somalia divided: Ethiopia (Ogaden), British (northern coastal region – route to India), French (Awash outlet – modern Djibouti), Italians (southern region, besides Eritrea), + southwest, incorporated into British Kenya

· Resistance: Muhammad Abdile, 1895, Islamic school in Berbera, British Somaliland

· Opposed growing Western and Christian influences

· 1899: moved into interior and declared himself the Mahdi

· Ten years of successful guerrilla warfare enhanced his reputation and following

· 1901-1919 British withdrew from interior

· 1920 British renewed campaign, aerial bombardment

· Abdile escaped but died in 1921