Colonialism and Decolonization in Sub-Saharan Africa

Slave trade

Enslavement and forced transport of Africans to the Americas, with European involvement.

Cash crops

Crops like cotton, cocoa, and coffee grown for export, not local consumption.

European traders

Facilitated the slave trade, and later economic exploitation during colonization.

Scramble for Africa

Rush by European powers to claim African territories (1880s-1914).

Industrial Revolution

Increased European demand for raw materials, fueling colonization.

Primary goods

Raw materials (e.g., minerals, crops) extracted from colonies.

Berlin Conference (1884-85)

Meeting where European powers divided Africa with no African input.

Leopold II

King of Belgium; brutally exploited Congo for rubber and ivory.

Treaties

Often deceptive agreements signed by African leaders with European powers.

Maxim Gun

Early machine gun used by Europeans to overpower African resistance.

Settler Colonies

Europeans settled permanently (e.g., South Africa, Kenya).

Mining Colonies

Colonies focused on extracting minerals (e.g., Congo, South Africa).

Company-run colonies

Colonies administered by private companies (e.g., British South Africa Company).

Core-Periphery Theory

Core (industrialized nations) exploit periphery (resource-providing regions).

Indirect Rule

British system using local leaders under imperial control.

Direct Rule

French system imposing European officials and laws directly.

Assimilation

French policy aiming to turn Africans into French citizens and culture.

White Man's Burden

Racist idea that Europeans had to 'civilize' non-European people.

Nationalism

Desire for self-rule and pride in African identity.

Active Resistance

Armed or open opposition (e.g., Zulu resistance).

Passive Resistance

Non-violent protests or civil disobedience.

Rural leadership

Chiefs and village leaders resisting colonial interference.

Urban leadership

Educated elites and activists organizing political resistance.

World War I

African soldiers fought for colonial powers; increased demands for rights.

Pan-African Congress

Meetings of African leaders calling for self-determination.

Kwame Nkrumah

Leader of Ghana's independence movement; first president.

Nnamdi Azikiwe

Nationalist leader; helped Nigeria gain independence; later president.

Great Depression

Global economic crisis that hurt African colonies and spurred protests.

World War II

African troops fought again; inspired further demands for independence.

United Nations

Post-WWII international body that encouraged decolonization.

Negotiated Independence

Peaceful agreements to end colonial rule (e.g., Ghana).

Violent Revolution

Armed struggle for freedom (e.g., Algeria, Angola).

Cold War

U.S. and USSR competition influenced African politics post-independence.

Angola

Gained independence from Portugal after civil war; Cold War proxy conflict.

Nigeria

Gained independence in 1960; faced civil war and military coups.

Ghana

First sub-Saharan country to gain independence (1957).

Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

Independence from Belgium in 1960; plunged into chaos.

Algeria

Violent war of independence against France (1954-62).

Kenya

Mau Mau rebellion led to independence from Britain in 1963.

Khoisan

Indigenous hunter-gatherers and herders; earliest inhabitants of Southern Africa.

Xhosa

Bantu-speaking ethnic group; resisted British expansion.

Zulu

Powerful kingdom under Shaka; militarily resisted British and Boers.

Dutch East India Company

Established Cape Colony in 1652.

Afrikaners

White South Africans of Dutch descent.

Boers

Dutch farmers in South Africa.

Trekboers

Boers who moved inland to escape British rule.

British East India Company

Controlled trade in Asia; less relevant than Dutch in South Africa.

Mfecane

Period of warfare and migration in early 1800s caused by Zulu expansion.

The Great Trek

Boer migration into interior regions to form independent states.

Transvaal

Boer republic in northern South Africa.

Orange Free State

Another Boer republic.

The Mineral Revolution

Discovery of gold and diamonds transformed economy and labor.

The Boer War (1899-1902)

War between British and Boers; Britain won.

Union of South Africa

Formed in 1910; British colonies and Boer republics unified.

ANC (African National Congress)

Main anti-apartheid organization.

National Party

Political party that implemented apartheid in 1948.

Purified Nationalist Party

Hardline white supremacist group; precursor to apartheid rulers.

Election of 1948

Brought National Party to power; apartheid began.

Apartheid

System of racial segregation and white minority rule (1948-1994).

Defiance Campaign (1952)

Mass civil disobedience against apartheid laws.

Treason Trial (1956-61)

ANC leaders (including Mandela) arrested and tried.

Congress Alliance

Multiracial coalition that adopted the Freedom Charter.

PAC (Pan Africanist Congress)

More militant breakaway from ANC.

Sharpeville (1960)

Massacre of peaceful protesters; turning point in resistance.

Nelson Mandela

Anti-apartheid leader; imprisoned 27 years; became first Black president.

MK (Umkhonto we Sizwe)

ANC's armed wing.

Poqo

PAC's armed wing.

Rivonia Trial (1963-64)

Mandela and others sentenced to life in prison.

Soweto (1976)

Student protest against Afrikaans in schools; violently suppressed.

Sanctions

International pressure through economic and political isolation of apartheid South Africa.

Election of 1994

First democratic election; Mandela elected president; apartheid ends.