3. Africa’s Size
4600 MILES
5
0
0
0
M
I
L
E
S
# Second largest continent 11,700,000 sq. mi.
# 10% of the world’s population.
# 2 ½ times the size of the U. S.
4. From Hunters and Gatherers TO
The Neolithic Revolution (10,000 BC)
5. What makes a Civilization?
~Cities ~Central Governmentt ~Traditional economy
~Organized Religion ~Social Classes ~Art/Architecture
~Roads, Bridges ~System of writing ~Specialized Jobs
22. Source for European
Raw Nationalism
Materials
Industrial Missionary
Revolution Activity
European
Markets for
Motives Military
Finished
Goods
& Naval
For Colonization Bases
Social
Darwinism
Places to
European Dump
Racism Unwanted/
Excess Popul.
Humanitarian Soc. & Eco.
“White Reasons Opportunities
Man’s
Burden”
30. R e lts o Wo War I I
su f rld
• Defeat of dictatorships.
• Unparalleled destruction.
• The decline of colonial powers.
• The rise of the superpowers
and the Cold War.
•Much of Europe, North Africa
and East Asia lay in ruins.
35. 5-8 Million Victims! (50% of Popul.)
It is blood-curdling to see them (the
soldiers) returning with the hands of
the slain, and to find the hands of
young children amongst the bigger
ones evidencing their bravery...The
rubber from this district has cost
hundreds of lives, and the scenes I
have witnessed, while unable to help
the oppressed, have been almost
enough to make me wish I were
dead... This rubber traffic is steeped
in blood, and if the natives were to
rise and sweep every white person on
the Upper Congo into eternity, there
would still be left a fearful balance to
their credit. -- Belgian Official
Africa is the second largest continent in the world (Asia is the largest) 1/5 of the land surface on Earth
At first Hunters and Gatherers (nomads) Around 10,000 BC made two imp discoveries They learned to plant seeds (grow food) and they learned to domesticate animals (People no longer had to travel for food and could live in settlements) Neolithic Revolution: Permanent settlements New Social Classes: When resources scarce, people had to fight local groups (led to the emergence of Chiefs and headmen/good warriors) New Technology: dev tools and skills for basic needs (calendars and plows; wheel, metal weapons, and tools)
First civilizations were forming 5,000 years ago along river valleys ~Cities ~Central Govt ~Traditional econ ~Organized Religion ~Social Classes ~Art/Architecture ~Roads, Bridges ~System of writing ~Specialized Jobs
Most of Egypt is desert, easy to live near river (Water to drink and crops) Floods would nourish the land near it and river would serve as travel tool
Egyptians were polytheistic Sun god was Amon-re and Osiris was the god of the Nile/ Believed in Life after death and because of this, did mummification (what kind of things would they leave with the corpse?) Ruled under a pharaoh (who was both king and a god) and when a pharaoh died, a pyramid was built to keep him (power passed to another family member – called a dynasty ) Divided into classes (Pharaoh at highest; priests (serving gods); nobles (warriors); craftsmen/merchants; peasant farmers (largest group); and then slaves -> Women had a higher status than in any other civilization (could own property, enter business…) Mummification- learned about the body (could diagnose people and perform surgery) Developed a calendar (similar to today) System of picture writing – hieroglyphics Pyramids and statues still present today
Varied climates/terrains allowed for diverse civilizations to grow From about 800 AD to 1600 AD many civilizations rose and fell Made of savannah (largest) – grassy plains (has good soil and rains, inc ppl) Desert – (dry barren land), Sahara at the north is the largest desert (172F) Rainforests: fertile farmland Still, people traveled to trade
GOVT: Power shared amongst members of the community and decisions were made based upon a consensus of the people living there (open discussions); elders and respected people would present their argument FAMILY: varied; some nuclear families (mother, father and kids love and work together); Others would consist of several generations living in one community (or with each other); focus on the group over the individual (people of certain families formed clans) RELIGION: varied; some worshiped many gods/goddesses; spirits of ancestors on Earth; some believed that one supreme being was creator/ruler of universe
Gold and salt were the most imp trades Salt needed to prevent dehydration (lots of salt in the Sahara, but little in savannah). African rulers built strong empires bc of this trade Ghana, Mali, Songhai 800 AD rulers of farming villages created Ghana kingdom; income from gold trade allowed him to have a large army (helped in expansion) Muslim merchants brought their religion to this area and was also influenced by Muslim military tech, ideas of govt, and arabic writing/architecture Most people kept their traditional beliefs though
MALI: Also ruled by powerful kings called mansas Ruled under Mansa Musa (most powerful ruler); extended borders and dominated West Africa Warriors were an elite class, but mostly farmers and herders Had governors rule certain areas Musa converted to Islam and based his system of ruling on the Quran Made the city of timbuktu a center for Muslim learning Decline in the 1400’s
Depended on a strong army to control trade routes Emperor Sonni Ali built songhai into the largest state that ever existed in west Africa (brought wealthy city of Timbuktu under his rule) Its people expanded trade to Europe and Asia Prospered until the late 1500s, until civil war broke out (invaders from the North defeated the disunited forces of songhai and led to the downfall
Trade helped it become a powerful region Located on the red sea and helped create a thriving trade network (linked AFrica, India, and the Mediterranean) Mostly farmers and some people who migrated from the Arab region Merging of cultures led to the intro of Judaism and Christianity Weakened by civil war and began to decline
States in both E and W parts play a big role in global trade Use the Mediterranean and Red Sea to do so (also Indian Ocean linking to India and other Asian lands). Traded overland and then to coast HAUSA: 1300s they built city states in the area that is now Nigeria; had cotton weavers & leather workers that traveled in caravans across the Sahara/Europe BENIN: in the rain forests of the Guinea coast (traded ivory, pepper, and later slaves); traded with Portuguese around 1500s (learned how to cast bronze/brass into sculptures of warriors etc) At first, E Africa trading with Arab/Persian merchants (600) Later, trading with India, including slaves (1000) Led to a mixing of cultures and led to the creation of a new language, called Swahili (which is Arabic words mixed with Bantu – African language)
Art was used for decoration purposes, but also religious (statues and masks) Also strengthens bonds with community (link ppl with who uses it and creates it) Literary Traditions: used both oral and written to preserve their culture, many in Arabic and shows their culture Education: elders were supposed to teach girls/boys their place and duty in life, and would pass down clan info; Timbuktu University was a learning center and people from all Muslim regions would come to study Commerce: trade routes very important, exposed to diff crops and animals (cultural diffusion), but led to rise of slave trading
Imperialism: the domination by one country of the political/economic life of another country 1415, Prince Henry of Portugal wanted to improve his navy (Henry the Navigator) and gathered experts to explore the coast of west africa. 1488, Batholomeu Dias rounded the Cape of Good Hope 1400 Portuguese exploring coasts of Africa and est string of forts; unable to push into the interior; 1600 Dutch come to the SW tip and est Cape Town settlement (where Dutch sailors could fix ships) Dutch farmers who settled in Cape Town/around were called Boers (they ousted/enslaved many africans)
1500’s, europeans see slaves as the most valuable African good (bought large numbers because of the labor shortage in American plantations and turned into a large business) Triangular Trade refers to trade between Europe, AFrica, and Americas
Industrial Revolution made countries prosperous – nationalism (went to areas where there were declining empires etc) Nationalism and Social Darwinism – felt that they had the right because they are better than others; Survival of the fittest and natural for the strong country to dominate weaker ones Military motives – linked to nationalism, colonies were imp bases for resupply Economic – needed raw materials for their factories; needed foreign markets that needed their goods White Man’s Burden – Poem by Rudyard Kipling, justification for imperialism; had a moral duty to educate nations less dev (missionaries spread word)
Middle Passage: voyage from Africa to the Americas on the slave ships, where conditions were terrible Hundreds of people were crammed in and millions died from disease, brutal mistreatment, or suicide Those who survived were forced to work on plantations in the Americas 1800, about when the slave trade ended, about 11 million Africans sent to the Americas Caused local wars to develop in Africa (traditional African political structures were undermined) Through slavery, societies were deprived of their good and strong/intelligent West Africa lost many young men and women (some societies disappeared, and others formed dependent on the slave trade)
1870s, King Leopold of Belgium sent a mission to establish trade agreements with leaders in Congo River Basins; Belgian presence in the Congo made other countries want to stake their claim Leopold set about establishing a rule of terror that would culminate in the deaths of 4 to 8 million indigenous people, "a death toll," Hochschild writes, "of Holocaust dimensions." Those who survived went to work mining ore or harvesting rubber, yielding a fortune for the Belgian king, who salted away billions of dollars in hidden bank accounts throughout the world. Euro eye witnesses even said he was horrific 1884, wanted to avoid conflict so Euro leaders meet in Berlin, Germany to set up rules for colonizing AFrica; Divided africa with little regard for the people 1850 most of AFrica free, after 70 yrs most under Euro rule
Battle for Southern Africa: Zulu Empire – in the early 1800s in southern AFrica, African leader named Shaka organized Zulu warriors into a fighting force against European slave traders and ivory hunters (through conquest of other African groups, he united the Zulu nation)
Arrival of Europeans – Dutch farmers (boers) settled in southern Africa in the mid 1600s and used Cape Town as a supply station; 1700s Dutch herders and ivory hunters were moving north and fought African groups (such as Zulus) and then in 1800 BR took Cape from Dutch Large numbers of Boers were resisting BR rule and kept moving north (continued conflict with Zulus and then the Zulus began fighting with BR too) Zulu victory in 1879 (but later BR weapons killed off) Boer War – Cecil Rhodes became PM of Cape Colony in 1890 and under his leadership, BR expanded its control of Southern AFrica Late 1800s, BR wanted to annex Boer republics and Boers resisted, leading to the Boer War from 1899 to 1902 BR won (heavy losses) 1910 BR combined Boer republics with Cape colony to from Union of South AFrica (left distrust and hate) Anti-slave legislation – Most European powers had abolished slavery before the scramble for Africa began (BR 1807, FR 1818) but illegal trading still occurred throughout 1800s
Many african nations gained independence after 1945, and some 1959 End of colonialism a problem for dev of African nations Now, they have worked on building industry and working on agriculture Still dependent on imports (money borrowed has created debt) Food prod dec and rural poverty inc Reliance on cash crops (still need to import) – selling oil (corruption) dependent on national market so will fall when others do The Cold War- Congo: (Belgian colony) gets independence in 1960; new leader asked the SU for help against the rebels; five years later, an anti-comm leader named Mobuto Sese-Seko took control and renaimed it Zaire; received support from West and stayed in power until the late 1990s (still dependent) Angola: Portuguese colony; gained independence in 1975; two opposing groups were fighting; one was supported by Comm and est a comm dictatorship in Angola; US and South Africa support opposing group (conflicts) NONALIGNMENT
Pan Africanism emphasized the unity of Africans and people of African descent all over the world. Most countries gaining independence after WWII and many had fought during this war (resented returning home as second class citizens). Exposed to nationalistic ideas (war & work in Westernized city) also due to the Atlantic Charter (agreement bw US and BR about after war) GHANA- Gold Coast was BR colony; US educated Kwame Nkrumah (inspired by Pan and Gandhi) organ pol party; used strikes and boycotts to fight BR. 1957 BR gave Gold Coast independence and Nkrumah PM (named It Ghana) and in 1963 made Organization of African Unity (1963) – Pan/no colonialism KENYA- BR colony; independence led by Jomo Kenyatta and spokesman for Africans that were driven off their land by EU; 1963 first PM of Kenya ALGERIA- FR colony (had abt 1 million EU settlers); strong Muslim nationalist movement emerged; fighting bw FR and Algerian nationalists occurred, with the death of thousands of people bw 1954 and 1962. Eventually pubic opinion in FR turned against the war and in 1962 free Colonial and relied heavily on imperialism; now dependent on imports/manufactured goods; when global econ is affected, Africa deeply impacted; some FR colonies adapted FR currency (dependent) Current national boundaries est by colonialism but w/o consideration of ethnicity; some div some united; led to civil war (especially in Nigeria); more than 200 ethnic grps live w/I borders of Nigeria; Muslim Hausa and Fulani of North, Christian Ibo and Yoruba people in south;1966 20,000 massacre of Ibo (wanted free state called Biafra); 1 mill ppl killed with blockade of Biafra; 1999 Nigeria has first civilian govt (difficult changes)
South Africa ruled by EU for 350 yrs and although it won its independence in 1910, the white living there held the power (politics, government, econ) Created the system of Apartheid (separation of races): ~Blacks and nonwhites forced to live in certain area ~Separate trains, beaches, schools etc for each ~Interracial marriages banned 1912, African National Congress organ and was strong opponent of Apartheid; nonviolence (boycotts); NELSON MANDELA was a key leader; 1964 jailed by the govt for 27 yrs and during that time became a powerful symbol for freedom Success of anti-apartheid movement- Desmond Tutu was a black Anglican bishop and civil rights leader; he and other activists convinced foreign nations and businesses to limit trade and investment in segregated South Africa (had a strong effect – nonviolent); F W de Klerk became Pres of South Africa in 1989; time for reform was long past so he legalized ANC and repealed segregation laws and released Mandela in 1990 (was white); 1994, S Africa held an election in which people of all races could vote and Mandela was elected president (succeeded in 1999 by Thabo Mbeki)
Ethnic conflict led to genocide in Rwanda; before 1994, Rwanda was 85% Hutu and 14% Tutsi; 1994, Hutu extremists (supported by govt officials) launched a massacre against Tutsis; more than 500,000 people were killed in just a few months; genocide was stopped when a Tutsi led reel army seized control of the govt
Obstacles in Africa: Population and Poverty – Pop explosion, widespread hunger Econ Policies – Failed socialist & mixed econ prob; cash crops instead of food crops; lack of funding for rural dev Land & Climate – too much/little rain; poor soil; tropical diseases; desert climat Econ Dependence – need for foreign aid/imported goods/high debts Political problems – power hungry/greedy leaders; military take over; harsh dictators; ethnic & regional conflicts Desertification: Changeover from arable land (land that can be farmed) into desert; caused mostly by human activity, including- Over grazing: livestock eliminates the grasses that hold the soil together to prevent erosion Cutting down forests: robs the land of another barrier to soil erosion Soil loses its nutrients; wind erosion; can’t sustain plant life The Sahara is expanding at the rate of about 50 miles per year (one cause of famine)