King Leopold II of Belgium essentially ran the Congo as his own personal colony. He took much ivory out of the region (from elephant tusks), and used forced labor to harvest rubber from vines in the Central African rainforest. You could say his "successes" influenced other European countries to want in on the action. The European powers met at the Berlin Conference, setting up the "Scramble for Africa." The various European powers determined how they would limit conflicts with one another as they each pursued imperialistic goals on the African continent. The conference of representatives of European nations met in Berlin from November 15, 1884 until February 26, 1885. The United States also took part in the conference. It is sometimes known as the Congo Conference because it was prompted by King Leopold II of Belgium establishing the so-called "Congo Free State" under his personal rule.
