The resolutions of the Berlin conference

INTRODUCTION.

According to Mgina (2014) define partition as to break something into pieces, also refers to the process whereby African continent was divided into pieces among imperialist countries in the last quarter of 19th Century.

Partition of Africa refers to the division of Africa continent by the European power, which resulted from the scramble /Straggling of European countries against African continent.(Courtney faal, 2009)

The Partition of Africa began in earnest with the Berlin conference of 1884-1885, and was the cause of most of African border of today.

This conference was called by German chancellor Otto Von Bismarck to settle how European countries would claim colonial land in Africa and to avoid a war among European nations over Africa territory.  

In the conference European countries such as German, France, Great Britain, Belgium, Portugal,  Netherlands and Spain were invited to the conference.  Also USA was invited because of its Interest in Liberia but did not attend because it had no desire to colonize Africa.

The nations such as Austria-Hungary, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Italy, Turkey and Russia were invited because they were considered minor players in the quest for colonizing Africa .

The task of this conference was to ensure that each European country that claimed possession over a part of Africa must bring civilisation in the form of Christianity and trade to each region that would occupy.

The resolutions of the Berlin conference were the following;

.The Congo free state was confirmed as the private ownership of Congo society. Thus, the territory of the Democratic Republic of Congo today,  nearby two million square kilometres, passed into the hands of the terrors regime established later because a Belgian colony.

.The 14 Signitory powers have free trade across the Congo river and lake Malawi and east of this an area south of 5 N.

.Niger and Congo river were free transit of ships

.The states signed an international ban against the slave trade.

.Any new act of swearing or establishing protectorate of any portion of the African coast should be notified to the others signatories of the treaty.

BACK GROUND OF THE PARTITION OF AFRICA.

The partition of Africa was motivated due to the scramble of the Imperialist nations against African continent. The scramble for Africa was the struggle among the European nations to divide African continent among themselves .Also was the invansion accupation, colonisation and annexation of African territory by European power during the period of imperialism between 18881-1914.

Before the scramble and partition of Africa happened, most European countries had trading contact with African societies mainly at coast areas and few hinterlands. The country such as French in west Africa had managed in controlling trade in Senegal colony at Lagos and Sierra leone for commerce,  most of Africans continent at that time was still under local rulers by 1870s.

The scramble and partition of Africa it was started at the second half of 19th century were African countries divided into pieces by the European nations with the aims of exploitation also influenced much with the industrial revolution when European nations competing in demanding areas for getting raw materials, market for their industrial manufactured goods, cheap labour and areas for investments, so they seen the alternative solution is to go to Africa and find the strategic areas inorder to feed their mother industries in Europe.

AREAS IN AFRICA THAT EXPERIENCED INTENSIVE SCRAMLE.

European power scrambled for strategic areas such as the Nile, Niger and Congo basins as well as Egypt, East Africa and South Africa. The reasons behind the intensive scramble for these areas were due to economic potential such as fertile agricultural land, Minerals, Rivers and Animal products such as ivory and skins, they possessed in comparison with other areas in Africa by the 19th century. Therefore all major European powers were interested in them and wished to take control of these areas. Those areas are following;

Niger crisis

This crisis involved two major imperialist powers, namely the British and Franch. Each nation contolled part of the Niger river and wanted to control trade activities that prevailed on the delta of the river and its banks. The rivalry between the two imperialist nations created suspicion that if one of the two nations would control the potential areas in the interior, and control the trading activities, it would limit the other access of controlling these potential economic areas. Thus, the two powers found themselves in the crisis of the scrambling for the Niger river and its delta.

Egypt and Nile crisis.

This crisis was associated with the controlling of the Suez canal in Egypt between the French and the British.  French was the first European country to have contact and relations with Egypt since 1798, during the rule of Napoleon Bonaparte. Napoleon Bonaparte invaded Egypt claiming that he was saving her from the mumluk Beys from Turkey.

However, French wanted to take control of Egypt's wealth and defeated the British influence in Egypt. French intention of controlling Egypt stimulated the British desire to control the Suez canal. The Suez canal in Egypt was a strategic area to the British,  because it was the shortest route to India and the far East,  which were potential British investment area. The British and the French used the sultan of Turkey to overthrow khedive Ismail, the Egyptian ruler in 1879, so as to have full control of Egypt. However the task of taking control of Egypt was achieved by the British alone, France had political problems at home and had a task of supresing rebellions in Tunisia at the same time.

By1882, the British managed to take full control of Egypt. This situation angered the French. They moved south of Egypt in order to change the course of the Nile river and turn Egypt into a desert, Since Egypt depended on the Nile river for its survival.

Congo Crisis.

The Congo area was earlier claimed to be under the British and the Portuguese influence. However, the French after losing Egypt to the British in 1882 diverted their attention and interest to West Africa and Congo. The French occupied portonovo followed by other European powers like Germany, that claimed Togo, Cameroon, Tanganyika and South-West Africa (Namibia) to be their areas of influence.

King Leonard II was the ruler of Belgium from 1865 to 1909. He wished to establish a personal empire. This was seeing powerful European nations like and prestige from the colonies they had occupied. In 1876 king leopard II formed the international Africa Association(IAA). It was claimed that the major purpose of this association was to abolish slave trade and introduce free trade and Open up research centre in Africa.

Furthermore, king leopard II send several expeditions into the interior of Africa. Among them was Henry Morton Stanley,  who in 1879 managed to explore river Congo. Stanley reported that river Congo had potentials for commerce in central. Moreover, Stanley falls later on,  created an empire of Congo in 1884. Thus, king Leopard II was able to acquire rubber from Congo.

East Africa Crisis.

The scramble and partition of East Africa was motivated by commercial competition among Europeans, missionary activities in Buganda and the role of Carl Peters. There was a commercial competition between the British and the German consul to win the Sultan of Zanzibar so as to develop trade and communication with the mainland so as to prevent Uganda and Kenya from being under the control of other European powers,  and also wanted to safeguard her Indian colony which was a source of her industrial raw materials. On the Other  hand, Germany was interested in making the mainland her colony so as to protect the French missionaries in Uganda. King Leopard II wanted to develop trade routes from the East Coast to the interior up to Congo. The French and the British wanted to offer protection and support to their missionaries in Buganda who were threatened by Kabaka Mutesa and the Muslim. On the other hand,  Carl Peters,  a German colonial agent,  managed to sign bogus treaties with some present day Tanzania mainland Chief on behalf of Germany without consulting the Sultan of Zanzibar.  A good example of such bogus treaties was the agreement made between Carl Peters and Sultan Mangungo of Msowero near Kilosa which was written in German language.

South Africa Crisis.

South Africa experienced a scramble for the Dutch and British. Though the Dutch were the first to settle at the Cape from 1652 and later moved to the interior and settled in Orange free state and Fransual, the British come later and colonised the Cape and Natural provinces.

The British and the Boers competed for Diamond in Kimberley and Gold in Witwatersrand. The competition led into the Anglo-Boer war of 1880-188, and both parties war came to an end.

A map below show the territories which were experienced intensive scramble.

FACTORS FOR THE PARTITION OF AFRICA.

According to Larry king and others introduced the following factors influenced the partition of African continent;

i)  The creation of boundaries. Africa was divided without consideration of local populations or pre-existing cultural groups. The result was that most African borders were the products of European geopolitical rivalries rather than West African histry. This explains why most West African borders were created in European chancelleries and followed astronomical, mathematical or geographical lines.

It was not the first time that the Europeans created boundaries outside of Europe. In Latin America or South-East Asia, the Europeans had already created boundaries between their colonies. When African boundaries were negotiated in Europe, they were considered as part of a large-scale bargain for territories. The British and the French, for example, traded territories in West Africa (Los Islands in Guinea and upper Gambia), South-East Asia (rights to colonise territories surrounding Thailand), the Pacific (Vanuatu), and fishing rights in the Atlantic to seal their alliance called the Entente Cordiale in 1904

Most boundaries were created to satisfy the geopolitical ambitions of European diplomats who wanted to protect or affirm their respective spheres of influence. Rivers were considered especially worthy economic resources during this period, which explains how the borders of a colony such as Gambia were carved along the Gambia River.

The Portuguese who had been present on the coasts of Africa since the fifteenth century played a particular role in the creation of borders. They collected and published numerous documents on the history of their possessions in order to justify their presence in Africa. Historical precedents were particularly sought after in a period where written documents were used as legal evidence.

The border treaties signed between Europeans were often very vague and needed to be adapted on the ground. The lack of geographical knowledge of Africa on the part of the Europeans meant that precise borders needed to be delimitated with the help of African populations. So, at the scale of West Africa, most borders were traced in Europe but, at a local level, African populations could influence the creation of the colonial borders. This can be seen in the case of the Bundu kingdom which was used to separate the two colonies of Senegal and French Sudan (Mali). The northern boundary of the Sokoto Caliphate and Borno were also used by the British and the French in their negotiations to separate Nigeria and Niger

After the defeat of Germany during the First World War, its West African colonies of Togo and Cameroun were divided between the British and the French under the aegis of the League of Nations. It was an opportunity for the Ewe populations of Togoland to be reunited with other Ewe speakers in the British colony of Gold Coast. The First World War was thus the last opportunity to redraw borders in West Africa.

ii )  Influence of Berlin conference.  This was the second stage in the colonisation of Africa, the stage begun from 1880s to 1890s,  it was characterised with the intervention of late comers in the process of scramble and partition of Africa. Forexample Italy and Germs after their unification they become powerful and industrialised search for raw materials in Africa.

iii)  Franco Prussian war. This was the war between Germany and France which led the taken of the France provinces Alsace and Lorraine by the German. So through that situation led France decided to compensate their loosen provinces which were rich in iron and coal,  and this situation unhence them to come to Africa to find good place of getting raw materials for their industries, so through that situation it led them scramble and partition of Africa.

iv) The issue of over population in certain parts of Europe contributed to the partition of Africa,  European wanted place to settle surplus citizens, the evident when the British occupied South Africa and some parts of Kenya where the climate and weather ware favourable for European settlement in those areas compared to gold coast where the economy was less conductive.

v) Innovation of New weapons which enabled the Europeans to conquer vast swathes of lands in a very short period of time whilst African societies did not have the tools to fight efficiently. The British army’s Martini-Henry breech-loading rifle could hit a target nearly a mile away, and could be fired 12 times a minute. The Maxim gun could fire 600 rounds a minute. In comparison, many Africans were fighting with single-shot muskets. Superior weaponry did not mean that many Africans were not able to defend themselves in a series of localised conflicts. Indeed many resisted European troops. For example, in modern-day Guinea, Sierra Leone, Mali and Ivory Coast, Samori Ture fought against the French until his capture in 1898. The Asante in modern-day Ghana also chose to fight against the British to defend the Golden Stool. The Bijagó of Guinea-Bissau resisted formal colonisation and hut taxes until th

Other tools also facilitated the European invasion at the end of the nineteenth century. The steamboat and the telegraph accelerated the pace of the colonial conquest as faster travel and communication meant that European armies could easily distribute troops in different corners of Africa for short periods. Tropical diseases were brought under control by scientific discoveries. Before 1860, Europeans in West Africa were 75% likely to die within 2 years, but the tre

vi) Social crime. Due to the over population in Europe,  a lot of people become unemployed due to the uses of machines which replace human labours. During the period many people become jobless,  they engaged in social crime like riots, theft, prostution, rural and urban migration, bendity and raping. This situation led European countries to look for the solution elsewhere to settle the paupers and unemployed population. Forexample,  Canada, Australia, Newzealand, were already exhausted and Africa were seen as the only alternative to be used,  so this situation led the sparked off the scramble for and partition of Africa.

vii) Economic slump/depression of 1873-1895. This occur when the world passed through severe economic depression,  during the period trade was decline and profit decreased and at the end some get bankrupt and closing their business.  This situation led European traders changed their way of prohibit colonisation and encouraged the idea of decolonisation to their home government by introducing the legitimate trade and this situation led the scramble and partition of Africa. Also inorder to brush aside the depression conditions,  European power commenced to re-establish their position in areas in which they already had set up their administration, especially along the African coast and later in the interior.

viii) Some African ethics groups were hostile to the early European explorers, merchants and traders, the European nations therefore saw the need to ennex those territories where they have their agents so as to protect their citizens. motivating the partition of Africa,  during the industrial revolution machines replaced human energetic labour, the situation led to unemployment as the labour force required in the industries were reduced which resulted the displaced a lot of people in cities and there was high rate of unemployment in Europe.  The European powers therefore started to look for territories where they can establish industries and to employ their people to curb the issue of high rate of unemployment. Forexample in gold coast and other parts of African countries all Europeans industries employed mostly whites while the local employees were few.

ix) Need areas for investment surplus capital. As the economy of various European countries particularly Britain expanded and as more capital was accumulated as the results from the trade with Africans, there was the need for investment surplus capital, Africa served as the suitable place to invest in exploitation of natural resources of the continent. For instance in the gold coast European mining companies and timber firms were established by whites to exploit the natural resources of the area so as to serve European interest.

x) European wanted place to serve as the market for their Industrial manufactured goods.  It was the time when the industrial revolution reached its peak in the continental Europe particularly in Britain. Market places were needed to sale their products, this would help to boost the continental economy and surplus goods also would have ready market in Africa. Forexample in gold coast the European surplised manufactured goods such as hardware, guns, gun powder, silk products,  European blankets and cotton blanket as well as glass. These goods founded ready market Since they were new and comfortable for the large African population,  not only that but also British with gold coast as their occupied territory benefited from this trade as they also obtained products such as gold,  ivory,  animal skins and so on. Therefore, this boosted the economy of British and they were ready to do anything is possible because of profits obtained from that exploitative trade which in the gold coast (Ghana of today).

xi)  Needs for raw materials to feed their industries. The European territories in Africa served as a place where raw materials could be easily obtained at relative raw prices to feed European manufacturing industries,raw materials that were abundance and obtained by Europeans especially in gold coast Forexample, gold,  ivory,  timber,  cotton e.t.c. These products which were in greatest demand in Europe were changed into finished goods and were sold to both Europe and Africa, this help in the accumulation of more capital to establish other industries in Europe. Therefore, to the Europeans Africa was very valuable at that time and no European nation would allow other European nation to establish trade in the occupied territories for trade.

xii) Need for national prestige : Possession of colonies become a test and proof of national superiority before others,  European countries struggled to obtain colonies whether they were rich or not as the way of proving her superiority and powerful than other. Eg, it was prestigious for Berligium as small country to colonise Congo as a big country.

xiii) Strategic reason : This also was among the factor for partition of Africa, Forexample the contest for Egypt between Britain and France were straggle to in contral over the Suez canal which opened as easy and short rout to India, the middle and far East. Other strategically located areas were Cape of South Africa.

xiv)  Evangelical Christianity and humanitarian reasons.They wanted to spread  Christianity into Africa inorder to check the spread of Islam in the continent particularly North Africa and some part of west Africa , also Europeans wanted to stop slave trade, provide education and civilize the World. Apart from that European wanted to spread western civilisation, culture and western education to Africans,  the Europeans they consider African as the backward and illiterate and they saw it as their responsibility to educate and civilize backward people after the annexation of Africa territories the European established schools inorder to educate those barbaric people.

xv) European balance of power : European nations wanted to colonize Africa so as to set their power at equilibrium,  which was destroyed by unification of German and Italy which created new great power at the expense of the old balance of power determinant. Forexample,  France when defeat in the franco-prussian war in 1870-1871, the France turned attention to Africa for colonies aiming at revival of their power and compensation for the lost of provinces of Alsace and Lorraine,  also British looked the colonies to murchy the growing power of German and Italy

xvi)  Soil fertility. This is also among the factor which led Europeans to scramble and partition of Africa, those fertility soil favored the productions of cash crops forexample the areas in Zimbabwe,  Botswana,  Kenya in Kikuyu high land and so on were more scrambled and missionaries as agents of colonialism are the one who invited their home government to take over the colonies. The areas like Matebele and Shone region of Zimbabwe and mineral potentiality were more scrambled by British and Portuguese,  they form a joint company known as British South Africa company (BSACO).

xvii) Technological factors that enabled European colonial expansion, Forexample innovation of steamboat . The number of technological development took place thus shifted the balance of power in favour of the European. The discover of steamboat led the transport of goods by sea. Trade of manufacturing goods tropical foodstuff such as groundnuts, cacao and palm oil. These steamboat carrying goods between Africa and Europe also transpoted a ruw generation of explorers.

IMPACTS OF THE PARTITION OF AFRICA.

According to Mensah explained the impacts of  partition of continent into two parts, positive and negative impacts as a following;

1. Positive Impacts.

i)   The partition of Africa led to industrialisation in Africa that gave the African employment opportunities,  also industrial development brought a new technological advancement also mechanisation grew exponentially during the colonial period Africa,  in many places endowed with natural climates that supported human life without as much support as would be needed in. Eg,  Europe developed slower in terms of technology. The advent of colonisation brough such technology to Africa.

ii)   It led to infrastructure development. The partition of Africa influence many and different infrastructures to be brought by the European people which is very advantageous to indigenous Africans. Also this development ensuring effective transport and communication during that as well as nowadays, Forexample Railway, roads, sewage system mail delivery system.

iii)   In issue of civilisation also Europeans brought new things to Africans, though Christianity and Western Education changes the mind and attitudes of African from their traditional lives. Forexample before the coming of western civilisation people of Africa prayed under the trees and caves, also Africans used their traditional Education which was mostly backward means of Education.

iv)  Brought a new system of Government. Colonisation enriched African local forms of government bringing an alternative to absolute monarchy in some states. African nation that practiced democracy, it brought about methods by which one could institutionalise those system so that they become repeatable and less at risk from loss in times of instability.

v)  Brought a competition. Competition for resources is a proponent of the robustness of a species, the partition that led to colonisation brought more competition as population started to grow due to settlement and the growth of formal cities and economies. Competition led to better ways of doing things and destroy the notion that one could just sit on land and expect to still own it forever.

vi)  Increase literary skills. The African cultures that had no written script, quickly learnt how to get them as a result of European educators,  in many parts of Africa where a written language existed,  it was previously for a small elite as it has been in Europe in the middle ages. Besides the profiteering colonialists came there was also a mixture of religious leaders bent on doing. some of them did much too education in Africa.

vii)  Cultural diversification. The gene pool that came with new settlers added to the genetic vigour of the continent from long lost relations who had evolved in a different way.

2. Negative impacts.

i)   The partition of Africa laid the foundation for the European to colonize the African continent. After the partition of the continent among the various European countries trading in Africa, any territory where a European country had sphere of influence, legally become a colony for that European country. Also they started to send their people as governor and Officers to govern their new colonies in Africa. Therefore any other European country could not trade in that colony without the permission of the governor of that colony.

ii)   The partition of Africa led to the poor demarcation of the territories in Africa by the European is a contributing factor to the various boarder discussion between African states which can sometimes degenerate into wars. For instance, the Agecher strip,  where the Bobo resides illustrates the problems caused by the poor fixing of the boarders. Another is the conflict between Nigeria and Cameroon over the Bukassi Peninsular. Also Tanzania and Uganda fought over the Kagera land. All these are proofs of conflicts as a result of the poor demarcation of boarders among the African countries by the European.

iii)  Partition of continent destroy the indigenous political institutions of the people. After the partition the European nations trading in Africa used subtle means and Sometime force to establish their political control over the newly acquired territory. In some cases African resisted. Even those states who were persuaded by the European were deceived to accept European protection and support against their neighboring aggressive state. For instance, Asantes had to fight and resist the British for about 50 years until their final defeat in the famous "yaaAsantewaa" war in 11990-1901.

iV)  African land was taken with food scarcity. This is because European take land, Cattle and food produced by Africans. All this land have been used by whites to introduce new farming system which was cash crops production. Forexample Kikuyu high land in Kenya.

V)  The partition of Africa led to war. Forexample British Matebele war,  Rhodes gained control of the minerals mines in Matebele land and with the help of South Africa Company exploited the mineral wealth in the area sparking the rebellion of the Matebeles against the British. The British-Matebeles war ended with Britain easily slaughtering thousand of Africans with the help of the machine guns.

vi)  Led the Killing of African leaders. Those leaders who could have made African strong because of their influence,  were killed by colonisers or they arrested, this situation left the society divided and unorganised.

vii)  Africans were subjected to the colonial experience including force labour, land alienation, taxation, poor wages, discrimination, corporal punishment, rape and murder. All of these were done so as to strengthen their exploitation in order to make African inferior.

viii)  Colonialists used the divide and rule theory, this theory brought about division in the African traditional society and setup.  Divided as we were acted to the advantage of our oppressors and opportunists we who penetrated in the veins of our trade and agriculture and stole pieces of land.

ix)  Partition of Africa led to the spread of diseases. Europeans came with diseases such as measles, chicken pox,  small pox, polics that were unheard before.

x)  Most Africans were forced to fight in First World War and Second World War by colonialists, which were their imperialist war but not our war. The African fighters were not rewarded or their families except for badges that they participated in helping wherever.

xi)  Destruction of indigenous Africans culture, Forexample Africans were forced to drop their dressing codes, cut their hair and traumatised in their own land. Also African religious ideologies rendered useless and backward, thus, forced to drop them.

xii)  Destruction of African system of agriculture which in most parts of Africa depend much on food crops for their survival, for instance Africans were engaged in production of millets, maize and other root foods, and were introduced cash crops production including cotton, sisal, coffee that feeds for the imperialistic industries as a raw materials.

xiii) The partition of Africa led the Europeans to come with mass murder weapons such a bombs and guns which were used in defeating Africans resistance. For example, guns and bombs were used in maji maji resistance whereby Africans were killed with their poor and inefficient weapons.

xiv) Moreover, the bringing together of different ethnic groups to form countries with no sense of national unity is another effect of the partition of Africa. This has led to inter-ethnic wars in many African countries over the years.Cases of inter-ethnic wars among Africans of the same nation such as the war between the Hutus and the Tutsis in Rwanda where thousands of people died and the conflict between the Kokomba’s and the Nanumba’s of the northern part of Ghana serves as evidence. There also another conflict in Ghana between the Alavanyo and the Nkonya of the Volta region of Ghana over lands. All these inter-ethnic wars could have been avoided if Africans were allowed to develop their social and political structures of their own and form nation-states on their own without any external influence from Europ

CONCLUTION.

The above points cleary demonstrate the background as well as causes and impacts of the partition of African continent. Due to that it prove that, even if there were an exploitation between foreigners against Africans but some African development would not reached naturally in that high level of development but influenced by the coming of foreign from western world during the period of industrial revolu

 A map of Africa showing Areas which experienced intensive scramble.

 Key