Outline Lecture Twelve—The Excesses of Empire
Key Focus:
1) Imperialism in theory vs. imperialism in practice
2) “Superstructure” of imperialism vs. its socio-economic legacy in Africa
I) The Scramble for Africa 1875-1900
a) Averting Economic Crisis at Home
i) Targeting African continent by 1870s
(1) “Growing commercial rivalry brought home to civilized nations the vital necessity of securing the only remaining fields for industrial enterprise and expansion”
(Frederick Lugard, governor-general of British Nigeria) ii) Berlin West Africa Conference 1884-1885 iii) Swift and effective partitioning of entire African continent by European powers
b) Types of Colonial Administration
i) Frederick Lugard (1858-1945)—doctrine of “indirect rule” ii) Direct rule model—King Leopold II’s “Congo Free State”
(1) Between 1890-1908 deaths of at least 4 million Africans
(2) Roger Casement, British Consul to Congo
II) The Belgian Congo’s “Heart of Darkness”
a) The Testimony of Edmund Morel (1873-1924)
i) Ledgers of the Anglo-Belgian India Rubber Company ii) Immense profits from global demand for rubber iii) Extraction of rubber through military force
(1) “An armed soldier behind every producer”
b) “Carnival of massacre”
i) Nature of recruitment
(1) De-humanizing the recruits ii) Extortion of quotas through terror
(1) Use mutilation of hands to extort maximum level of rubber
(2) King Leopold’s explanation of this practice to the European press iii) Morel’s verdict
(1) Europeans grafting their own “savagery” onto the heart and mind of Africans
III) The Moral “Burden” of Imperialism
a) Britain’s Economic Interests in India
i) Dominant role of the British East India Company (EIC) ii) British colonial expansion in Indian subcontinent in 18th century iii) Sepoy Mutiny 1857 iv) Shift to Direct Imperial Rule 1858
(1) Transformation of Indian economy into a cash-crop economy
b)