long months‚ 14 countries from Western Europe and the United States attended the Berlin Conference. This important conference is also known as Congo Conference or Berlin West Africa Conference. The countries that attended include Austria-Hungary‚ Belgium‚ Denmark‚ France‚ Germany‚ Great Britain‚ Italy‚ Netherlands‚ Portugal‚ Russia‚ Spain‚ Sweden-Norway‚ Turkey‚ and US. Interesting enough‚ not a single country of Africa attended even though the conference was entirely about the division of land on
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was forcefully conquered and colonized by Europe. The accounts of this horrific colonization are revealed in Adam Hochschild ’s "King Leopold ’s Ghost: A Story of Greed‚ Terror‚ and Heroism in Colonial Africa‚" which unveils the brutal nature of Belgium ’s conquest and colonization of the central African country Congo. This conquest began with Belgian King Leopold II‚ who grew up with minimal expressions of love and affection from his family. His emotional void was filled with an obsession for colonies
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Congo Genocide‚ the silent mass murder‚ is one of the most atrocious‚ violent acts of history and the majority of the American population is ignorant of the terrors inflicted upon the indigenous peoples by King Leopold II.‚ who was rewarded for his crimes against humanity. Ten Million people were killed by the brutal exploitation
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the European nation of Belgium. King Leopold II was the main influence and dictator of the CFS. Leopold’s intentions at the beginning of his enquiries to colonise the CFS seemed favourable of the Congolese however this did not play out as Leopold began break promises of decrees‚ exploit the Congolese and monopolize resources. (Schimmer‚ 2010) During 1884 King Leopold attended the conference of berlin‚ here he was granted almost complete control of the entire CFS. Here Leopold established his goals
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brutal dehumanization of the African people of the Congo all to fulfill the desire of wealth and power. Henry Morton Stanley‚ one of King Leopold of Belgium’s partners in crime‚ was distraught when England could not seem to care less about his discovery of the Congo in Africa. Leopold’s love for geography and the economy led him to dream of a bigger and better Belgium. Hochschild describes him as cunning like a fox and manipulative. (pg. 35) He was obsessed with the potential profits available through
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their independence. In 1876 European powers especially King Leopold II of Belgium‚ agreed in the Berlin Conference to split up the land in Africa‚ no longer invading to colonize but to gain political‚ military and economic power. The methods to imperialism of the African land were done differently‚ by each European power. The British who imperialized the cape of Africa used laws and indirect methods to gain power‚ however King Leopold II used extreme force to gain control of the Congo. The Congo
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power‚ other nations would need to establish colonies in Africa in order to stay important. Out of those reason there were some European nations that believed would gain a political advantage by taking territories in Africa. Prince Leopold‚ future king of Belgium‚ during a conversation
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exploitation of the weak and underdeveloped countries. Belgian King Leopold II was one of the ambitious monarchs interested in acquiring a “slice of African Cake”. Ultimately‚ his reign over his Congo Free State was a regime of terror and monumental atrocities. The Belgium King‚ under a humanitarian pretense‚ was the person behind massive exploitation of African Congo. In his effort to maximize the profits from ivory and wild rubber‚ Leopold II imposed a system of torture‚ slavery and slaughter.
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King Leopold II developed his dream for colonization at an early age. Before he even took the throne he was on the lookout for unconquered land that could later be in his possession. The king wanted to become rich as a result of his new land through the process of trading. Once King Leopold II set his sights on the Congo‚ he would not give up until the land was his. He connived‚ manipulated and conned his way into the land. He did not care who got hurt; he just wanted his dream to be fulfilled
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Adam Hochschild’s riveting novel‚ King Leopold’s Ghost‚ delves the exploitation of the Congo Free State by King Leopold II of Belgium‚ as well as‚ the ample atrocities committed during the time period between 1885 and 1908. European interest I the African continent can be traced back to as early as the late 1400s‚ when an European explorer sailed the west coast and discovered the Congo River. The industrial Revolution sparked Europeans’ keen interest to explore Africa. Diamonds‚ gold‚ ivory‚ and
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