Question

How did geopolitics relate to Belgium imperialism in Congo?

Answer 1

Answer:

The Democratic Republic of the Congo was first imperialized by King Leopold II of Belgium, in 1885. It was later taken over by the Belgian government in 1908. The motivations for King Leopold's imperialism of the Congo was the vast amount of natural resources present in the Congo such as ivory and rubber.

Answer 2

In the 19th century, Belgian imperialist action was established in the Congo region, in the central part of the African continent. In 1885, Belgian rule in that region was confirmed at the so-called Berlin Conference, when King Leopoldo II transformed the extensive territory into his personal property. In 1908, the Congolese territory was again controlled by the government, receiving the name of Belgian Congo. Until the 1940s, the colonized territory experienced a period of relative economic prosperity.

Arriving in the 1950s, we observed that the Congolese population started to adhere to the nationalist discourse of local leaders who demanded an end to Belgian domination in the territory. In 1955, an official visit by King Balduino I reinforced the autonomous feeling by not meeting the various social, political and economic demands of the native population. At that moment, an association called Abako came into the spotlight and soon became a political party defending definitive independence.