Expansion and consolidation in Africa: 1890-1914 Flashcards

1
Q

What is the ‘peripheral theory’ of imperialism?

A

In ‘Africa and the Victorians: The official Mind of Imperialism - 1961’, Gallagher, Robinson and Denny presented the idea that Br was pulled into Africa by local crises or events which threatened its interests and credibility. This idea is known as the ‘peripheral theory’ of imperialism.

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2
Q

What was added to the old British colonies of Gambia, Sierra Leone and the Gold Coast?

A

Ashantiland (an extension to the original coastal strip that made up the Gold Coast) and Nigeria (the area penetrated by Goldie’s Royal Niger Company).

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3
Q

Demonstartion of the peripheral theory in Ashantiland?

A

Br actions towards the Ashanti around the Gold Coast are typical of the way the British acted to protect their territories.
Tired of the skirmishes and wars that characterised British-Ashanti relations throughout the 19th century in the early 1890s, the Br demanded that their King, Prempeh, should turn over the remainder of his empire to the British as a Protectorate; he refused.
This produced a 4th Anglo-Ashanti War in which Britain conquered the Ashanti territories and forced Prempeh from his throne in 1896.
A further and final Ashanti uprising in 1900 led to Britain’s formal annexation of the kingdom.
Ashantiland was incorporated into the Gold Coast Colony in 1902.

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4
Q

How was Nigeria brought under control?

A

The Br were able to establish their claim to Nigeria by virtue of their occupation and by an 1890 agreement with the French, who agreed to recognise Britain’s domination of the area in return for Br recognition of the Fr claim to Madagascar.
The Br government took over the RNC and established direct control in the North - 1900 and in the South - 1906.
Nigeria unified in 1914.

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5
Q

Lead up and occurence of Anglo-Zanzibar war? (E Africa)

A

In 1890 Br and Germany signed a treaty establishing spheres of influence in East Africa.
Zanzibar - ceded to Br influence.
Germany was given control over mainland Tanzania.
Br duly declared Zanzibar a Protectorate of the Br Empire in 1890 and installed its own ‘puppet’ Sultan: Hamad bin Thuwaini.
Mysterious death of Sultan Hamad at his palace in 1896 (rumours of poison).
Accession of his cousin Khalid - without Br’s blessing
LEAD To CONFRONTATION.
Br ordered Khalid to stand down and when he refused mounted a naval bombardment of the Sultan’s palace.
Anglo-Zanzibar War - shortest war in history.
After just 38 mins, Khalid was overthrown and the pro-British Sultan Hamud placed on the throne of Zanzibar, which he ruled under Br protection for the next 6 years.

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6
Q

How did Uganda become a protectorate? (E Africa)

A

In the course of the 19th century, Anglican and French Catholic missionaries as well as Zanzibari Muslims had all permeated Buganda and achieved significant success in converting the Bugandan peoples.
In 1886, King Mwanga had attempted to assert his authority - executing around 30 Catholics and Protestants and provoking a civil war, during which Mwanga fled.
He promised to hand over some of his sovereignty to the IBEAC in return for Br backing and was duly restored to power in 1889.
1890 - he signed a treaty with Lord Lugard on behalf of the IBEAC, ceding powers over revenue, trade and the administration of justice to the IBEAC.
These powers were transferred to the Crown in 1894 and Buganda became a Protectorate as part of Uganda.

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7
Q

What happened to Mwanga when he made 2 further attempts to gain his lost territories, one in 1897 and another in 1898?

A

He was captured and exiled to the Seychelles where he spent the rest of his life.

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8
Q

How did Br make best of their new colonial possession *Uganda?

A

Br constructed the Uganda Railway from Mombasa from 1896 in order to connect the coast with the fertile and temperate highlands ordering Lake Victoria.
The Uganda Railway consolidated Br’s formal takeover of East Africa Protectorate and Uganda; it linked the respective colonies with each other and crucially the Indian Ocean.

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9
Q

Facts about the Ugandan railway?

A

660 miles of rail track
Took 5 years and £5 million to build
Took the lives of some 2500 labourers owing to accidents disease and wildlife
The project and its expense to the Br taxpayer were supported by Colonial Secretary Chamberlain and the Conservative government

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10
Q

Jutification of Uganda railway?

A

They justified the railway as it:
enabled access to new markets
encourage colonial settlement
facilitated the export of both tea and coffee
stopped the need for slave porters to access the interior
protected the source of the River Nile against Britain’s (potential) enemies
promoted Br tourism, particularly safari tours

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11
Q

Why did the railway soon come to be called the lunatic line?

A

The railway soon became known as the ‘Lunatic Line’ owing not only to it’s engineering ingenuity but because of the difficulties encountered during the construction.

  • The most notorious episodes include the Kedong massacre (in which almost 500 labourers were killed by Masai tribesmen).
  • The Tsavo incident, which saw somewhere between 35 and 100 rail workers attacked and eaten by 2 lions.
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12
Q

Why was Br interested in Kenya and how did it take control?

A

The Br interest in the area to be called Kenya dated back to the Berlin Conference of 1884-1885, when this fell into Britain’s sphere of influence in EA.
- Seen as useful territory as it offered a route from the coast to Uganda.
- The Br made use of a succession dispute between the native Mazrui and the Muslim majority to try to force their control.
Sheikh Mbaruk bin Rashid took up arms against the Br, obtaining weapons from the Germans and it took the Br 9 months to crush the opposition.
However Sheikh Mbaruk fled and this territory became part of Br EA Protectorate of 1895 (although it was not officially declared a Br Colony until 1920.)

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13
Q

It what way was Salisbury concerned by the interest which other EU nations were showing in Af?
What did he do?

A

Br concerned about Fr and Ge expansion inland in E Africa, fearing they might try to gain control of the headwaters of the Nile which were vital for the welfare of Egypt.

Determined to keep Br’s rivals out, S signed a treaty with the Germans in 1890 whereby they agreed to take Tanganyika whole the Br took Kenya and Uganda.

The Fr were persuaded to concentrate on W Af, although they weren’t entirely appeased.

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14
Q

Why was Italian expansion on the Red Sea Coast at Massawa regarded as beneficial for the British?

A

It diverted the Khalifa’s attention from the Eg borders.

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15
Q

Where were the Italians defeated in 1896?

What did it give Salisbury the excuse of doing?

A

Italian forces were defeated at Adowa in 1896, whilst trying to seize Abyssinia, this diversionary help was lost.
- Nevertheless, this gave S the excuse he needed for the Br campaign in Sudan.
It could be sold to the public as a campaign to aid Italy and uphold EU civilisation against Af barbarianism.
Such a campaign was also welcomed as an opportunity to avenge the death of General Gordon.

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16
Q

Info on the SUdan campaign:

A

The initial Eg expeditionary force of 10,000 was transported up the Nile by a fleet of pleasure-steamers supplied by Thomas Cook and Son to Wadi Halfa.
A railway was constructed into the heart of the Dervish territory and the men and the supplies carried forward as stretches of line were completed.
All this took place amidst sandstorms, torrential rain, a bad outbreak of cholera and a number of Dervish attacks.
- General Sir Herbert Kitchener appointed commander in chief of the Egyptian Army in 1896 was given orders to penetrate Sudanese territory as far as Dongala.
- Kitchener was determined to go further - take Khartoum and conquer the whole region.
- Having recruited additional volunteer forces imbued with imperialist fervour - he won a resounding success at the Battle of Omdurman in 1898.

17
Q

What was the Fashoda incident?

A

Kitchener had been given sealed orders by S to open after defeating the Sudanese.
These ordered him to go to Fashoda on the headwaters of the Nile - where a Fr expedition under Major Marchand had arrived.
Kitchener and Marchand both pressed their nations’ claims to the area (accusing the other of trespassing) but the meetings was not particularly fiery.
The Br press, however, reacted strongly to the Fashoda incident suggesting that Br and Fr were on the brink of war.
Fortunately for Salisbury, the Fr government, facing internal problems and aware of the Br army in the Sudan, chose to backdown.
By an agreement of 1899, the Fr promised to stay out of the Nile Valley in return for territory further West.

18
Q

1899 also brought an agreement between Br and Eg:

NE Af

A

Anglo-Egyptian Sudan was established.
This would be administered by an arrangement known as a condominium.
This meant that the Sudan would be run by the Br (in practice) with Eg support.
Br appointed Lord Kitchener as the first GG (officially ruling in the name of the Khedive of Egypt); he was followed by General Reginald Wingate from 1902.
K set up ‘Gordon College’ to train young Sudanese to run their own country and despite EG expectations, Br frustrated ambitions for the unification of the 2 countries.

19
Q

How did Br reinforce it Somaliland protectorate?

E Af

A

STRATEGIC
Br reinforced its Somaliland protectorate - established in 1888 with both administrative and military personnel in 1898 as a means of limiting both Fr and It ambitions in that area.
The region had few resources.
But its location was important since it commanded Br’s crucial access to the Indian Ocean and its colones in the East.

20
Q

Why br expansion in S A?

A

British expansion in Rhodesia and Nyasaland in the 1890s was followed by a drive to strengthen and extend their control of Cape Colony.

21
Q

Rhodesia? SA

A

Rhodes had established a Br presence in ‘South Zambesia’, after the Zambezi River.
This became known as ‘Southern Rhodesia’ from 1895 after Rhodes had used force to establish Br settlers in the area.
In wars with the native Ndebele (1893-1894 and 1896-1897), nearly half of those settlers died, but the territory was eventually taken and that north of Zambezi River followed as result of separate treaties with AF chiefs.

22
Q

Nyasaland? SA

A

A small territory on the shores of Lake Nyasa that had been opened up by Livingstone and settled by Scottish missionaries.
However, they faced Portuguese-backed Arab attacks and it was not until 1891 that they were able to establish control there.
Guerrilla warfare continued on and off until 1897, however, with the area operating under the control of Rhodes’ BSAC until 1907, when it became a protectorate.

23
Q

The quest for a Br confederation of SA as advocated by the Cape PM, Cecil Rhodes and Joseph Chamberlain (Colonial Secretary 1895-1903) was taken up with vigour in the 1890s: why?

A

Largely to counter German territorial gains and Boer confidence derived from the Transvaal’s gold wealth.

24
Q

What were the Uitlander veing denied in 1895?

What did this provide an excuse for?

A

In 1895, the gold seeking Uitlanders of the Transvaal were being denied citizenship and voting rights by the Boer government under Paul Kruger
They sought the help of Cecil Rhodes, who was one of the leading financial magnates of the Rand goldfield.
This also provided an excuse for Br intervention.

25
Q

Effects of the Jameson Raid?

A

A raid was launched on the Transvaal from neighbouring Br Rhodesia by Dr Jameson - Rhodes’ agent there.
The whole affair was a fiasco and even though no official support had been given to this, it brought discredit on the Br government and stiffened the Boers’ determination to resist Br intrusions.
Kruger became a people’s hero and the Boers still living in Cape Colony formed an anti-British ‘Afrikaner Bond’ to show their solidarity with their fellow-Boers in the Transvaal.

26
Q

What was the Jameson Raid? 1895-6

A

Although the Uitlanders pulled back from a planned uprising against the Boer government, Rhodes still instructed Dr Jameson (his agent in Rhodesia) to invade the Transvaal - with just under 500 mounted police.

  • Easily defeated and he was forced to surrender after 4 days.
  • Jameson and 12 companions were sentenced to imprisonment by a Br court.
  • Rhodes was forced to resign from the Cape premiership but was not put on trial.
27
Q

Lead up to 2nd Boer War?

A

Negotiations with the Boers broke down in 1899 when the Boers, anxious to strike a blow before the Br Army of SA could be reinforced, invaded Br territory and besieged Ladysmith in Natal.
Initially the Boers had some striking successes in the ‘Second Boer War’ (1899-1902); but the Br poured in nearly 400,000 imperial troops at a cost of £250 million and under the Generals: Kitchener and Roberts took the ascendant from 1900.
Even then it took until 1902 before the Boers were defeated.

28
Q

Peace of Vereeniging - May 1902?

A

Ended the war
The Boers acknowledged themselves as Br subjects and the Boer republics became Br colonies with a promise of responsible self-government (as in the other white settler colonies).
This was finally granted in 1905 and in 1908 the PMs of the Transvaal, Orange Free State, Cape Colony and Natal drew up a constitution for the ‘Union of SA.’
An Act of Union established a single Br Dominion territory in 1910.