Effects Of Imperialism In Uganda

Imperialism, or the dominance of one country in a foreign region, had a great effect on the former British colony that is now called Uganda. Formerly called Buganda, the change started to unfurl when both Britain and Germany signed a treaty in which Britain got complete rights to Buganda in 1890. Uganda then became a British protectorate in 1894, in which the local government in kept intact, but they must follow the rules and laws of the British. Once this took place, the British ways and culture became very dominant in Uganda, mainly because Protestant missionaries went throughout the country trying to eliminate Catholicism or other religions. In 1962, Uganda finally declared its independence from Britain with Milton Obote as its prime minister.
One cause of European imperialism in Africa was that due to the devastating effects of the slave trade, African kingdoms were weak and easy to take advantage of. Another main cause of colonization and imperialism in Africa was the Berlin Conference. Held by Otto von Bismarck in 1884, he encouraged Europeans to colonize land in Africa. Great Britain took over large amounts of land, including what is now Uganda, making it a British protectorate. Imperialism also affected Uganda greatly, and changed its entire infrastructure. One major effect British control had on Uganda was the growth of its profitable cotton industry, which lead to an economic boom due to the high cotton prices during World War II. Another major effect of European imperialism was religious influence. Nowadays, an estimated 84% of Uganda’s population are Christians, which was influenced by the Christian missionaries who came to Uganda from