GS 10: SSA (Org. 3-4 + Projects)

“Scramble for Africa”

Imperialist race and competition in Africa. It was a race to create nation-states in Africa. The Industrial Revolution pushed people to colonize Africa. Various industrial goods were being invented and produced during this time period. Europe needed raw materials for the industrial revolution, which could be extracted from Africa. The “White Man’s Burden” was a cause of this.

Missionaries

When slavery began to expand on the East Coast of Africa, these evangelists began to flow to the East to try and convince the Arabs to stop the spread of slavery and convert as many people to Christianity as possible. They also played a major role in convincing colonial powers to pursue the possession of certain regions to facilitate the spread of Christianity.

Trading Companies

Established by Europe to facilitate the conquest of Africa. These were created because of financial risk. They distributed risk among shareholders.

Direct Rule

Use of leaders from the colonizing country as rulers of a colony. Not used as often in Africa.

Indirect Rule

Use of local leaders from the country being colonized as the rulers of the colony. Used frequently in Africa.

Assimilation

Forced cultural adoption. This was practiced in many French colonies in Africa, most notably Algeria.

White Man’s Burden

Ideology that states the need for Europeans to educate and uplift the people of the world, like Africans, Asians, and other international groups. It casted Europeans as saviors and culturally superior, and other groups as inferior.

Social Darwinism

Ideology that states that certain groups of people are more fit to survive in society than others. This excused the “White Man’s Burden,” as it excused the inequality of different groups of people.

Berlin Conference, 1884

Set guidelines for the colonization of Africa. It was a critical moment in the colonization of Africa. No African delegates were present.

Dutch East India Company, 1652

First Europeans that arrived in South Africa. They were interested in South Africa as a stopping point for trade with Southeast Asia. They encountered a Mediterranean climate in South Africa. They were not interested in establishing a colony, but were interested in the climate.

Afrikaners

Dutch people living in South Africa who speak Afrikaans. They lived all throughout South Africa prior to the arrival of the British. After the Boer War, these people led South Africa with the British. They also helped enforce Apartheid. They instituted various policies that discriminated against the black people in South Africa. After WWII, they resented the British and took full political control of the region on the platform of the National Party.

Khoikhoi

Group that the Dutch found in South Africa. Spoke Khoisan.

Boers

Afrikaners who participated in the Great Trek after the British arrival in South Africa. They were farmers and pastoralists. When they were pushed North by the British, they lost the good land they had used for centuries. They launched a battle against the Zulu during the Great Trek and won. They eventually launched a war after a long period of persecution by the government. They lost. While all of the regions they had settled in after the Great Trek were under British rule, they were still populated by this group.

Afrikaans

Mix of Dutch and Bantu. The massacre in Soweto occurred over the teaching of this in schools in the late 1970s.

Cape Colony

Colony created in South Africa. Started by the Dutch. Initially limited to the Southwest. Had a good climate and plenty of land for farmers and pastoralists. It was taken over by the British in the early 1800s. It didn’t become an official colony of the British until after the Boer War.

Xhosa

Cultural group. Nine wars occurred between the Dutch settlers and this group over about a century. They fought over grazing land as Cape Colony began expanding inward.

Great Trek (1835-1846)

Great movement of the Boers in South Africa to Northern South Africa as a result of the British takeover. It united the Boers. They first moved into the region known as Orange Free State. Eventually, they moved up into Transvaal and Natal. The Battle of Blood River occurred during this.

Voortrekkers

Group of Boers who participated in the Great Trek.

Battle of Blood River (1838)

Violent battle between the Boers and the Zulu during the Great Trek. The Zulu lost. While the Boers were at a major disadvantage, they still won. However, the British began moving inland, so the Boers were pushed back soon after their victory at this battle. It occurred in Natal, in which there is a large concentration of Zulu.

Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902)

The pursuit of the Boer eventually culminated in this major conflict. In the late 19th century, mineral resources such as gold and diamonds were found in the North, attracting Europeans even more. Eventually, the British decided that they wanted all of South Africa. The Boer were fiercely independent. The Boers had used slavery, which created more tension, as the British had outlawed it in the 1830s. It was a very ugly war. It was a guerilla war. The Boer eventually surrendered and accepted defeat. In 1902, Transvaal, Orange Free State, and Natal were officially under the control of Britain. However, Boers were still living in these places.

Lord Kitchener

British director of the war effort during the Anglo-Boer War. Used brutal tactics to fight the war. He created concentration camps, which led to mass death.

Transvaal, Orange Free State, Natal

Group of states into which the Boers fled during the Great Trek. Britain gained control of these states in 1902 after the Anglo-Boer War. However, they were granted independence in 1910.

Mines and Work Act (1911)

Limited black workers to only menial work. They were limited to digging minerals for white people.

Native Land Act (1913)

This first set aside reservations where black people could purchase land. Black people could not purchase land anywhere else. These lands were typically not the nicest pieces of land. This policy in tandem with the Mines and Work Act created a system of forced migrant labor. Black people were often taken out of their homes for months at a time to work in mines. Overtime, black people were deprived of all political power.

African National Congress (ANC)

Formed in 1912. Initially, it was just a symbolic resistance movement that had no political power. However, it marks the beginning of resistance. It split in 1959, creating the Pan-African Congress. There were now two black political groups that had different ideas about what to do with Africa and how to achieve independence. The split of this group led to the Sharpeville Massacre. The organization was banned after this massacre. It went underground in response. The underground movement helped to create the black consciousness movement. It was relegalized in the 1980s.

National Party

Political party that vied for hardcore Apartheid, and it was dominated by Afrikaners. They won the 1948 elections, and immediately began passing numerous discriminatory policies. They had two goals: deepening Apartheid and eradicating British influence in South Africa. In contrast to many other African nations, WWII strengthened the oppression in South Africa. However, it was no longer under colonial rule.

Nelson Mandela/Oliver Tambo

Began resistance as harsher laws were being passed by the National Party. Initially they sparked strikes, boycotts, and other non-violent protests. They began the defiance campaign in 1952 that encouraged Africans to disregard Apartheid laws. As a result, 8000 Africans were arrested. The latter was jailed and released after the end of Apartheid, becoming the first Prime Minister of South Africa after his release.

Sharpeville Massacre (1960)

Result of the splitting of the **ANC**. The PAC had launched a peaceful campaign against the pass system, a system that required black people in South Africa to carry ID’s, which facilitated segregation. The PAC encouraged black people to appear at police stations without passes. A large crowd gathered at the Sharpeville police department, and the police opened fire, killing 69 people. This led to nationwide protests, and 1500 people were arrested. It caused the banning of the ANC and PAC.

Black Consciousness Movement

Sparked as a result of the banning of the ANC and PAC. It attempted to contribute to a growing sense of black identity. It attempted to develop a positive self-image for Africans. It wanted to develop and determine its own future. Steven Biko began the movement. It started the incident in Soweto.

Soweto (1976)

Youth uprising against the teaching of Afrikaans. It was an offshoot of the Black Consciousness Movement. Police killed four, which led to over a year of protests, in which over 700 people died. It brought world attention to Apartheid. It was a critical turning point.

Pieter Botha

Warned white South Africans that they needed to adapt to the wishes of black South Africans or die. He supported reforms, but not full political rights.

Frederick deKlerk

Warned white South Africans that they needed to adapt to the wishes of black South Africans or die. Dismantle the Apartheid system, legalized the ANC, and released Mandela.

Bantustans

Reservations created by Europeans in the Apartheid system for “Bantus” (black people.)

Economic Sanctions

The world reacted to Apartheid through these. They limited and restricted business relations with other nations. They produced things like diamonds, gold, and uranium. Over time, many businesses had invested in South Africa. A bunch of money was invested in South Africa. Private individuals and institutions, mostly colleges and universities, invested in the South African economy. As Apartheid was revealed, divestiture, or the pulling out of investors, occurred. Institutions and private investors were pressured to do this. Apartheid died out because of international pressure.

Main resistance methods

• Assembling of societies, political parties, and unions with urban workers

• Dispersing newspapers, pamphlets, petitions, strikes, and boycotts calling for better working conditions, the expansion of public services, an end to discrimination, and political representation

Mandate

Territory administered by foreign countries on behalf of the League of Nations. Many of Germany’s former colonies after WWI became these.

Pan African Congress (PAC)

Meeting of African countries to discuss how to stop the plight of Africans through ending racism, discrimination, and oppression. Helped to bring international attention to colonialism in Africa. Led a protest that led to the Sharpeville Massacre in South Africa. Went underground in South Africa after the massacre.

Universal Negro Imrpovement Association

Organization that advocated for the end of colonialism and self-determination for African nations.

Opposition methods to colonialism after WWI

• Strikes and boycotts against the colonial government

• Newspapers, books, pamphlets, and petitions

• Cultural revival groups that promoted African culture, art, dance, theater, and music, while criticizing the colonial government

Challenges with nationalist unity

African groups were diverse, making it difficult to unite a large amount of people. Movements were localized, and the aims of nationalist leaders were diverse.

Italian Invasion of Ethiopia

Event which the League of Nations did not respond to strongly. Proved to nationalists that Europe would rather support fascist Italy than Africans. Nationalists began to view colonialism as something that had to be overthrown, not reformed.

Reactions to the founding goal of the UN (equal righta and self-determination for all)

• African Perspective: Goal supported the end of colonialism

• European Perspective: Goal did not apply to European colonial possessions.

Post-WWII economic control of colonial possessions in Africa

Britain and France began tightening control of their colonies because of the devastation WWII brought upon their government.

Impact of political parties after WWII

Mass political parties allowed for better organization and unified independence movements. Demanded independence rather than reform.

Lingering European influence after independence

Britain and France supported the election of moderates who would allow Europeans to continue influencing Africa right before leaving. Some colonies let Britain and France keep their military bases in their nations. Others joined alliances with their former colonizers.

Cold War impact on independence

US and USSR strongly supported independence, as they believed it would be easier to expand their spheres of influence in Africa if each nation was independent. This led to prolonged and more violent conflict.

Political challenges in post-indendence Africa

• African people had little unity

  • Differing opinions of economic priorities, the nation’s relationship with its former colonizer, and who would have influence

• Ethnic divisions created by borders that weren’t along ethnic lines

Economic challenges in post-indepenence Africa

• Former dependence on mercantilism meant African nations couldn’t produce final goods

• Infrastructure was mainly directed to international trade, leaving domestic trade undersupported

  • Cities didn’t have services

• European powers often offered loans to African countries, tying them to Europe and damaging them economically.

Contemporary effects of colonialism

• Economic systems established by colonial powers still exist today.

• Racial oppression had a massive psychological effect

• Encouraged the establishment of African alliances and support systems

Ghanian Independence

Britain’s control over Ghana expanded the economy, agriculture, and infrastructure of the region. The Ghanaians were protected by the British. However, British rule caused disunity and poor government. Europeans viewed their colonization as helping the Ghanaians, while the Ghanaians believed that the government was cruel and oppressive. Ghanaians resisted colonial authority through newspapers, petitions, appeals to the British government, boycotts, and political parties. They also attempted to gain some degree of unity through religion. After WWII, many Ghanaians put pressure on the government for more representation. Various political parties disagreed on the method by which independence would be achieved in Ghana. British indirect rule aimed to educate African leaders and protect merchants, according to Europeans. However, the Ghanaians believed that were just trying to control Ghana and make economic profit. They wanted to control trade in the region. They gained independence in 1957. This was achieved peacefully through purely diplomatic action.

Congolese Independence

Congo was originally a territory of Belgian King Leopold, meant to make money through plantation agriculture. Leopold eventually gave up the territory to the Belgian government. The culture of Africans was repressed. Congolese were racially segregated, and they faced poor living conditions. Natural resources were taken from Congo and given to Belgium. There were incredibly poor working conditions for the Congolese. The one positive effect of colonialism was the expansion of infrastructure. Congo began to strive for independence in the 50s. They started protests and boycotts. The Congolese were against the violence occurring in the country, but Europeans thought it was necessary for economic development. They gained independence after their first year of protests. One unique thing about Congo is that Belgium let them loose and didn’t help them after they gained independence.

Algerian Independence

The French colonized Algeria for trade and agriculture. They also colonized because of the “White Man’s Burden.” The French viewed their culture as superior and Algeria as primitive. They forced assimilation with French culture. There was also a lot of racial prejudice. Resistance was often violent. Algerians were forced to assimilate and abandon Arabic and Islam. The French saw Algeria as a second France. The Algerian War of Independence was extremely violent.

Kenyan Independence

The British colonized Kenya to build a railroad connecting Uganda to the Indian Ocean, facilitating trade. It was a “settler colony,” in which many Europeans settled. The land the Europeans took was often the nicest parts of the country. Kenyans were evicted from their land through various policies, which deeply angered many pastoralists and agriculturalists. Both groups believed they had the rights to the land. This controversy led to a massive revolt known as the Mau Mau Revolt, one of the bloodiest conflicts in African history. Africans killed other Africans in hopes of dominance post-independence. The Kikuyu group was well known for this, and dominated politics after independence in 1963.