European Imperialism In Africa Dbq

Not too long ago, Africa was a country of wealth, attracting many European countries. However, the wealth did not come without a cost. Europeans had little knowledge of Africa because of the dangers of disease such as malaria. Europeans did not explore Africa either because they only needed Africa for slaves. After slavery was outlawed, Europeans decided to explore more of Africa. Kings started to take Africa for themselves, giving the natives no regard. Later, Europe starts to divide Africa up. They made agreements about respecting each other, but did not care about the African’s land rights. Africans were not even invited to the meeting. Europeans were desperate for the African land. The driving forces behind European imperialism in Africa …show more content…
According to the Partition of Africa, 1884-85 map, the European countries almost completely occupied all of Africa. The British and French claimed more land than any other country. (Doc A) Since the British and French have the most land, they also have the most power. However, the two countries compete to get more land. This is an example of competing to expand an empire. Furthermore, a speech from John Ruskin at Oxford University states, “She must found colonies as fast and as far as she is able.” (Doc B) Here, the she is referring to England. The sentence means that England must get a lot of land and as fast possible. A speech by Freidrich Fabri titled, Does Germany Need Colonies describes, “the German nation who is fundamentally so very capable, so seaworthy…successfully pave way for this new course? Germans would learn…from…British cousins and would begin in friendly competition.” (Doc B) The sentence clearly shows that the Germans would compete with Britain to expand their empire. The Germans also thinks they’re very sea-worthy and feel they should get more land. These facts prove that a driving force behind imperialism is