As the 20th century approached, many European powers became hungry for more land and resources, which caused a massive foray into Africa. Zambia, formerly known as Northern Rhodesia, is a landlocked country located in South Africa, and was colonized by the British South African Company in the 1890s. According to James Pletcher in World Book Advanced, Zambia’s name is taken from the Zambezi River, which forms most of the country's southern border. It is located in south-central Africa and is one of the world's largest producers of copper, which is one of its major exports. In 1964, Zambia became an independent nation (Pletcher). When the British swept in and colonized Zambia, the people of Zambia were subjugated to the English rule and were
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According to an article in ABC-CLIO World History: The Modern Era, Zambia was occupied by diverse African communities, and set up small chiefdoms. Because there was no powerful organized kingdom, they could not organize a resistance when the Europeans arrived in the late 1800s (“Zambia”). They also held the belief that an alliance with the British would protect them from other invaders and tribes, and would bring prosperity. “The Lozi king believed that alliance with the company would protect his empire against both the Portuguese and the Ndebele. It is also likely that disease and famine undermined the will to resist: there were smallpox epidemics in the early 1890s, widespread rinderpest in 1892–95, and locust plagues throughout the decade” (Williams). While the Zambians thought they would benefit from the alliances and would have a say, they soon found out that they were mistaken. “The British South Africa Company sent an agent to work with Lewanika in 1897, but within a few years, the British ruled the area directly and called it Northern Rhodesia. The British government took direct control of the protectorate in 1924, which was just in time for the discovery of extensive copper resources in the north a few years later” (“Zambia”). So, due to the fear of other invaders and enemies, no organized kingdom, and natural catastrophes, the British were able to overtake the country and put in under their
According to an article in ABC-CLIO World History: The Modern Era, Zambia was occupied by diverse African communities, and set up small chiefdoms. Because there was no powerful organized kingdom, they could not organize a resistance when the Europeans arrived in the late 1800s (“Zambia”). They also held the belief that an alliance with the British would protect them from other invaders and tribes, and would bring prosperity. “The Lozi king believed that alliance with the company would protect his empire against both the Portuguese and the Ndebele. It is also likely that disease and famine undermined the will to resist: there were smallpox epidemics in the early 1890s, widespread rinderpest in 1892–95, and locust plagues throughout the decade” (Williams). While the Zambians thought they would benefit from the alliances and would have a say, they soon found out that they were mistaken. “The British South Africa Company sent an agent to work with Lewanika in 1897, but within a few years, the British ruled the area directly and called it Northern Rhodesia. The British government took direct control of the protectorate in 1924, which was just in time for the discovery of extensive copper resources in the north a few years later” (“Zambia”). So, due to the fear of other invaders and enemies, no organized kingdom, and natural catastrophes, the British were able to overtake the country and put in under their