New Imperialism In Africa Essay

The Europeans colonized colonized many parts of the world but the most colonized was the continent Africa. The European explorers started imperializing Africa after exploring into the interior of Africa and finding the resources that African countries had. What is imperialism? Imperialism is the policy of taking control of another country. There were three main reasons for European imperialism in Africa: Political reasons, technology, and economic reasons.

During the European Scramble for Africa, in the early 20th century, Africans had a peaceful reaction with anti-imperialistic sentiments (docs. 2, 3, 4, and 7), peaceful actions through the approach of diplomacy (docs.1, 2, and 3) and also a rebellious anti-imperialistic reaction (docs. 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9) towards the Scramble for Africa.

Imperialism was a time period in which more developed nations colonized less developed nations. The developed nations took advantage of the less developed nations resources, people, lands, and much more. Many countries lost their freedom and independence due to imperialism, however, they also received new technologies and innovations.

“African Perspectives on Colonialism” is a book written by A. Adu Boahen. This book classifies the African responses to European colonialism in the 19th century. Boahen begins with the status of Africa in the last quarter of the 19th century and follows through the first years of African independence. This book deals with a twenty year time period between 1880 and 1900. Boahen talks about when Africa was seized and occupied by the Imperial Powers of Europe. Eurocentric points of view dominated the study of this era but Boahen gives us the African perspective. There are always two sides of the story and Boehen tells us the side less talked about informing us of what he knows.

The Scramble for Africa took place during the period of time around 1880 until 1914. During this time Africa found itself being split up and divided amongst several European countries. In essence Africa was like a fresh baked pie and everyone wanted a slice.

     Throughout American History the U.S. has sought to expand its boundaries. This need increased greatly during the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century with the start of the industrial revolution. This Expansion was a big departure from earlier attempts to expand the boundaries of the U.S. The needed for Natural resources forced the U.S to look for places that could supply them with the natural resources they needed and markets where they could sell their goods in. The need to imperialize caused the U.S. to look to foreign places to gain resources to better the nations industries.

In many other African colonies, the African nationalist had movements that had formed in each of these other countries through 1940s and in 1950s. A lot of these political parties had sought out peace, through the constitutional change. That is when the primary aim of all the many nationalist parties it was to have changed the constitutions of the earlier settler colonies and to officially recognize all the rights of the majority of the African population. World War II really had a very important on the effect on Africa. Some of the very important battles were then fought in North Africa. But many of the Africans from the French and the British colonies were also recruited to fight for all of the Allies in Europe, Asia, and North Africa. In

Africa is home to countless cultures that all have their own unique ideas and customs. During the past couple of centuries, these cultures were threatened to the point where they almost ceased to exist. The Berlin Conference was a very important occurrence in Africa and Europe's history. It legitimized what the European powers, mainly France and Britain, had been doing for the past hundred years, without the approval of any African country. During the late nineteenth century, France and Britain began imperialistic ventures into Africa, which eventually led Leopold II to conquer the Congo. It was Leopold's II presence in Africa that to led the Berlin Conference.

Prior to the colonization of Africa, the continent was commonly referred to as “dark”. Contrary to that claim Africa was a place with complex societies, cultural diversity, vast languages, and abundant with resources and knowledge. Eurocentric historians and anthropologists commonly overlook this gold mine of historical events and anthropological data. With respect to history there is a lack in written documentation and written entities due to the fact that African societies commonly used the oral method in order to pass along their history. Whereas for anthropologists there is no shortage of aspects to be studied in Africa.

Colonization, exploitation, and imperialism were rampant throughout 18th and 19th but even extending as far as the 20th century with its effects still resonating today with the culture and literature of these systematically oppressed people. The story of Africa throughout Western literature is overflowing with stories of flat cultures and uncivilized “beasts” of the jungles. By way of contract these “beasts” see themselves as dipped in the rich and vibrant culture preserved and protected by ancestors and polytheistic gods demanding tribute for appeasement, echoing for generations as a complex agricultural based society. It is for this rich but isolated cultural that creates violent conflicts that devastate tribes and societies for centuries

When we bethink the European Empire, we reminisce of an illustrious, paramount empire that had once dominated most of the world. But, were they all as stupendous as they seemed? The Age of Discovery was a dark, hellish era - Europeans were unsurpassable, conquering and enslaving a large miscellany of civilisations - leaving them with barren fields and waterless lakes. These civilisations ranged from small tribes to extensive continents; one of which was modern-day Africa. Unquestionably, European colonisation was the prominent factor towards underdevelopment in Africa. The European colonisers demonstrated exploitation of local Africans and their resources, the destruction of Africa’s political system, and the subdivision of traditional ethnic

Despite its small size, Senegal is an important player in West African politics. It has had a long history, from its days as a collection of tribal kingdoms, to its existence under French rule and eventual decolonization, to its place today as a model of peaceful democracy (“it is one of the few African states that has managed to avoid military or political coups since its independence in 1960” (Anderson, 2013)). Senegal has retained much of its traditional African values as well as adapted to traditional European ideals (Gellar, 1995). France and other European countries have had a profound effect on the social, political and economic structures Senegal has in place today. By analyzing the previous structures developed by the Africans and then comparing them to the placed upon them by the French, one can truly begin to understand the extent of the transformation that has occurred.

In this view of the circumstances that existed during history in regards to colonial Africa. I venture to examine how colonialism is viewed, introducing you to a variety of texts which expose you to different views and debates about what Africa may well have been like today, had the colonization never taken place. The African resistance to colonialism put another perspective on the colonization of Africa by the Europeans and the Western influence Africa faced. Each work shows a different facet of the complex experience of colonized peoples and how European domination served to radically alter their lives, both during the era of colonialism and for generations to come.

    Diseases were prevalent in Africa during the time of European Imperialism. Disease affected both natives and European peoples in Africa. African diseases affected both natives and European explorers and soldiers as well as diseases brought by the Europeans that affected the Africans.

Outlined by this quote, that although in terms of times colonialism is a small section of African history, it has left an imprint throughout the continent. This essay will look at how influential colonisation is in contemporary Africa, there are two main groups of scholars who argue how influential colonialism was in Africa the first is outlined by Gann and Duigan and they hold the view that the colonial era was ‘the most decisive for the future of Africa’. The alternative school of thought is held by British scholar A.G. Hopkins, who believed that colonial rule was less influential than first thought and was more an event which speeded up a process which was already underway. To assess how much of an impact colonialism had on