"the auspices of the holding company, he hired explorer Henry Stanley to explore and establish a colony in the Congo region. Much diplomatic maneuvering among European nations resulted in the Berlin Conference of 1884–1885 regarding African affairs, at which representatives of 14 European countries and the United States recognized Leopold as sovereign of most of the area to which he and Stanley had laid claim. On 5 February 1885, the Congo Free State, an area 76 times larger than Belgium, was established under Leopold II's personal rule and private army, the ""Force Publique"". In 1894, King Leopold signed a treaty"
"his African realm up to , about 75 times larger than Belgium. The Congo Free State imposed such a terror regime on the colonised people, including mass killings and forced labour, that Belgium, under pressure from the Congo Reform Association, ended Leopold II's rule and annexed it in 1908 as a colony of Belgium, known as the Belgian Congo. The brutality of King Leopold II of Belgium in his former colony of the Congo Free State, now the Democratic Republic of the Congo, was well documented; up to 8 million of the estimated 16 million native inhabitants died between 1885"
"an international Free Trade zone, open to all European traders. The area included in this territory was just under 1 million square miles, more than 80 times the size of Belgium. The first infrastructure projects took place during the Free State period, such as a railway that ran from the Léopoldville to the coast which took several years to complete. The era of the Congo Free State is most infamous for the large number of atrocities committed under it. Since it was, in effect, a business venture, run by a private company headed by Leopold himself, it aimed to gain"
"better. The Belgian Congo was notoriously profitable when it was a capitalistic rubber plantation owned and operated by King Leopold II as a private enterprise. However, scandal after scandal regarding badly mistreated labour led the international community to force the government of Belgium to take it over in 1908, and it became much less profitable. The Philippines cost the United States much more than expected. The world's colonial population at the time of the First World War totaled about 560 million people, of whom 70.0% were in British domains, 10.0% in French, 8.6% in Dutch, 3.9% in Japanese, 2.2% in"
"on his own account. With support from a number of Western countries, who viewed Leopold as a useful buffer between rival colonial powers, Leopold achieved international recognition for a personal colony, the Congo Free State, in 1885. The Luba Empire, the largest regional power in the Kasai region, was annexed into the new state in 1889. By the turn of the century, the violence of Free State officials against indigenous Congolese and the ruthless system of economic extraction had led to intense diplomatic pressure on Belgium to take official control of the country, which it did in 1908, creating the"
"buffer between rival colonial powers, Leopold achieved international recognition for a personal colony, the Congo Free State, in 1885. By the turn of the century, however, the violence of Free State officials against indigenous Congolese and the ruthless system of economic extraction had led to intense diplomatic pressure on Belgium to take official control of the country, which it did in 1908, creating the Belgian Congo. Belgian rule in the Congo was based around the ""colonial trinity"" (""trinité coloniale"") of state, missionary and private company interests. The privileging of Belgian commercial interests meant that capital sometimes flowed back into the"
"population. The magnitude of the population fall over the period is disputed, but it is thought to be between one and fifteen million people. At the Berlin Conference of 1884–85, the European powers allocated the Congo Basin region to a private charitable organisation run by Leopold II, who had long held ambitions for colonial expansion. The territory under Leopold's control exceeded and, amid financial problems, was ruled by a tiny cadre of white administrators drawn from across Europe. Initially, the colony proved unprofitable and insufficient, with the state always close to bankruptcy. The boom in demand for natural rubber, which"
"Leopold II of Belgium, frustrated by Belgium's lack of international power and prestige, attempted to persuade the Belgian government to support colonial expansion around the then-largely unexplored Congo Basin. The Belgian government's ambivalence about the idea led Leopold to eventually create the colony on his own account. With support from a number of Western countries, who viewed Leopold as a useful buffer between rival colonial powers, Leopold achieved international recognition for a personal colony, the Congo Free State, in 1885. By the turn of the century, however, the violence of Free State officials against indigenous Congolese and the ruthless system"
"in East Africa and China owed more to political motives. The British also took an interest in Africa, using the East Africa Company to take over what are now Kenya and Uganda. The British crown formally took over in 1895 and renamed the area the East Africa Protectorate. Leopold II of Belgium personally owned the Congo Free State from 1885 to 1908, When round after round of international scandal regarding the abusive treatment of native workers forced the Belgium government to take full ownership and responsibility. The Dutch Empire continued to hold the Dutch East Indies, which was one of"
"by Adam Hochschild are speculative estimates based on little evidence. Although the Congo Free State was not a Belgian colony, Belgium was its chief beneficiary in terms of trade and the employment of its citizens. Leopold II personally accumulated considerable wealth from exports of rubber and ivory acquired at gunpoint. Much of this was spent on public buildings in Brussels, Ostend and Antwerp. Leopold achieved international recognition for the Congo Free State in 1885. By the turn of the century, however, the violence used by Free State officials against indigenous Congolese and the ruthless system of economic extraction led to"
"Belgian colonial empire Belgium controlled two colonies during its history: the Belgian Congo from 1885 to 1960 and Ruanda-Urundi from 1916 to 1962. It also had a concession in China, and was a co-administrator of the Tangier International Zone in Morocco. Roughly 98% of Belgium's overseas territory was just one colony (about 76 times larger than Belgium itself) — known as the Belgian Congo. This had originated as the personal property of the country's king, Leopold II, rather than being gained through the political or military action of the Belgian state. Belgium, a constitutional monarchy, received its independence in 1830"
"during the Leopold period. In 1908, this outcry led the Belgian state to assume responsibility for the government of the colony, henceforth called the Belgian Congo. A Belgian commission in 1919 estimated that Congo's population was half what it was in 1879. Germany invaded Belgium in August 1914 as part of the Schlieffen Plan to attack France, and much of the Western Front fighting of World War I occurred in western parts of the country. The opening months of the war were known as the Rape of Belgium due to German excesses. Belgium assumed control of the German colonies of"
"be personally owned by King Leopold II. At the Berlin Conference in 1884, he was allowed to have land named the Congo Free State. The other European countries at the conference allowed this to happen on the conditions that he suppress the East African slave trade, promote humanitarian policies, guarantee free trade, and encourage missions to Christianize the people of the Congo. However, Leopold II’s primary focus was to make a large profit on the natural resources, particularly ivory and rubber. In order to make this profit, he passed several cruel decrees that can be considered to be genocide. He"
"Congo Free State The Congo Free State (, ""Independent State of the Congo""; ) was a large state in Central Africa from 1885 to 1908. It was ruled personally by Leopold II and operated entirely separate from Belgium, of which he was also king. Leopold II was able to procure the region by convincing other Eurasian states at the Berlin Conference that he was involved in humanitarian and philanthropic work and would not tax trade. Via the Association internationale africaine, he was able to lay claim to most of the Congo basin. On 29 May 1885, the king announced that"
"This recognition became official in 1898 and in 1967 the parliament accepted a Dutch version of the Constitution. The Berlin Conference of 1885 ceded control of the Congo Free State to King Leopold II as his private possession. From around 1900 there was growing international concern for the extreme and savage treatment of the Congolese population under Leopold II, for whom the Congo was primarily a source of revenue from ivory and rubber production. Many Congolese were killed by Leopold's agents for failing to meet production quotas for ivory and rubber. It is estimated that nearly 10 million were killed"
"II to annex the Congo as the Belgian Congo colony. On 15 November 1908 King Léopold II of Belgium formally relinquished personal control of the Congo Free State. The renamed Belgian Congo was put under the direct administration of the Belgian government and its Ministry of Colonies. Belgian rule in the Congo was based around the ""colonial trinity"" (""trinité coloniale"") of state, missionary and private company interests. The privileging of Belgian commercial interests meant that large amounts of capital flowed into the Congo and that individual regions became specialised. The interests of the government and private enterprise became closely tied;"
"well as the Schools' War between Liberal and Catholic political factions. Although Belgian independence was briefly threatened during the Franco-Prussian War, under Leopold II's reign the country reached an unprecedented level of industrialization and prosperity, becoming the second most industrialized state in the world after Great Britain. The period was also marked by the creation of a personal colony by Leopold II, the Congo Free State. The subsequent international outcry over human rights abuses forced the Belgian state to annex the region in 1908, forming the Belgian Congo. In 1909, after his uncle's death, Albert I began his reign, which"
"Belgium's lack of international power and prestige, attempted to persuade the Belgian government to support colonial expansion around the largely unexplored Congo Basin. The Belgian government's ambivalence about the idea led Leopold to eventually create the colony on his own account. With support from a number of Western countries, who viewed Leopold as a useful buffer between rival colonial powers, Leopold achieved international recognition for a personal colony, the Congo Free State, in 1885. By the turn of the century, however, the violence of Free State officials against indigenous Congolese and the ruthless system of economic extraction had led to"
"his personal control to strip the county of vast amounts of wealth, largely in the form of ivory and rubber. These labor-intensive industries were serviced by slave labor, and the local peoples were forced to work through various means, including torture, imprisonment, maiming and terror. Christian missionaries and a handful of human rights organizers internationally publicized these atrocities. Slowly, various nations, including Great Britain and the United States of America, began to object to Leopold's tyranny with the result that the country's administration was transferred to Belgium. Little changed inside the country, however, until the ivory and rubber were exhausted."
"the Belgians, who made a fortune out of it. Later, the appalling abuses involved in the naked colonial exploitation that went on in the Congo Free State were exposed to public view, and international criticism compelled the setting up of a committee of inquiry in 1904 . What Conrad saw in 1890 shocked him profoundly and shook his view of the moral basis of all exploring and trading in newly discovered countries and indeed of civilization in general. As a result of Belgian outrage at the violence brought to the Congo by Leopold II, Belgium reluctantly annexed the Congo Free"
"built several buildings in Brussels and Ostend to honor himself and his country. To enforce the rubber quotas, the army, the ""Force Publique"", was called in and made the practice of cutting off the limbs of the natives a matter of policy. During the period of 1885–1908, millions of Congolese died as a consequence of exploitation and disease. In some areas the population declined dramatically – it has been estimated that sleeping sickness and smallpox killed nearly half the population in the areas surrounding the lower Congo River. News of the abuses began to circulate. In 1904, the British consul"
"Leopold II was sworn in as king of the Belgians in 1865. His reign coincided with the ""Belle Époque"" and rapid economic expansion from the 1880s. It was characterized by the resurgence of the Catholic Party, political confrontation over military action, educational and franchise reform and his creation of a personal empire in Central Africa. One of Leopold's long-term preoccupations was increasing the international standing and influence of his country. Throughout much of his early reign, Leopold hoped to regain the territories which had been ceded to the Netherlands in 1839, particularly Luxembourg, which he viewed as an integral piece"
"the rebels in the Battle of Rejaf, securing the Lado Enclave as a Belgian territory until Leopold's death in 1909. Leopold amassed a huge personal fortune by exploiting the natural resources of the Congo. At first, ivory was exported, but this did not yield the expected levels of revenue. When the global demand for rubber exploded, attention shifted to the labor-intensive collection of sap from rubber plants. Abandoning the promises of the Berlin Conference in the late 1890s, the Free State government restricted foreign access and extorted forced labor from the natives. Abuses, especially in the rubber industry, included forced"
"his regime millions of Congolese people died. Modern estimates range from one million to fifteen million, with a consensus growing around 10 million. Several historians argue against this figure due to the absence of reliable censuses, the enormous mortality of diseases such as smallpox or sleeping sickness and the fact that there were only 175 administrative agents in charge of rubber exploitation. Reports of deaths and abuse led to a major international scandal in the early 20th century, and Leopold was forced by the Belgian government to relinquish control of the colony to the civil administration in 1908. Leopold fervently"
", while the Anglo-Belgian India Rubber Company (ABIR) was given a comparable territory in the south. The ""Compagnie du Katanga"" and ""Compagnie des Grands Lacs"" were given smaller concessions in the south and east respectively. Leopold kept a large proportion of territory under personal rule, known as the Crown Domain (""Domaine de la Couronne""), of which was added to the territory he already controlled under the Private Domain (""Domaine privé""). Thus most economic exploitation of the Congolese interior was undertaken by Leopold and the major concessionaires. The system was extremely profitable and ABIR made a turnover of over 100 per"
"husbands and fathers to work. Flogging, starvation and torture were routine. Murder was common—tribes resisting enslavement were wiped out; administration officials expected to receive back a severed human hand for every bullet issued. Rape and sexual slavery were rampant. Workers failing to secure assigned quotas of rubber were routinely mutilated or tortured. Administration officials so completely dehumanized local peoples that at least one decorated his flower garden with a border of severed human heads. News of these atrocities brought slow, but powerful, international condemnation of Leopold's administration leading, eventually, to his assignment of the country to Belgian administration. In 1908,"
"the sponsorship of King Leopold II of Belgium. The eastern regions of the precolonial Congo were heavily disrupted by constant slave raiding, mainly from Arab–Swahili slave traders such as the infamous Tippu Tip, who was well known to Stanley. Leopold had designs on what was to become the Congo as a colony. In a succession of negotiations, Leopold, professing humanitarian objectives in his capacity as chairman of the front organization ""Association Internationale Africaine"", actually played one European rival against another. Leopold formally acquired rights to the Congo territory at the Conference of Berlin in 1885 and made the land his"
"responsible for the abuses. The size of the population decline during the period is the subject of extensive historiographical debate, and there is an open debate as to whether the atrocities constitute genocide. Neither the Belgian monarchy nor the Belgian state have ever apologised for the atrocities. Even before his accession to the throne of Belgium in 1865, the future king Leopold II began lobbying leading Belgian politicians to create a colonial empire in the Far East or Africa, which would expand and enhance Belgian prestige. Politically, however, colonisation was unpopular in Belgium as it was perceived as a risky"
"construction of grandiose public buildings across Belgium, earning him the nickname ""Builder King"" (""roi batisseur""). Most of these projects were focused in Brussels, where he constructed two large palaces, and Ostende, where a vast colonnaded arcade was built along the seafront in an attempt to turn the town into a fashionable seaside resort. During Leopold's reign, Belgium hosted five prestigious World Exhibitions, in 1885, 1888, 1894, 1897 and 1905, as well as a major national exhibition in 1880 to mark the 50th anniversary of Belgian independence. Politically, Leopold disliked the Socialist party, preferring to negotiate with the Catholic Party, which"
"to the Congo, King Leopold II initially ruled Congo as his personal property following the Berlin Conference. On 18 October 1908, the Belgian parliament voted to annex Congo; on 15 November 1908, Leopold formally relinquished personal control over the state to Belgium, forming the Congo Free State. During the Free State period, Congo was reputed to have been brutalised by a harsh economic policy that entailed rubber production quotas to be met by forced labour. Other crops were also farmed in the Congo. After fifty years of Congo's independence, a visit by the Belgian King Albert II was met with"
"Belgian Congo The Belgian Congo (, ; ) was a Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960. The former colony adopted its present-day name, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in 1964. Colonial rule in the Congo began in the late 19th century. King Leopold II of Belgium attempted to persuade the Belgian government to support colonial expansion around the then-largely unexplored Congo Basin. Their ambivalence resulted in Leopold's establishing a colony himself. With support from a number of Western countries, Leopold achieved international recognition for a personal colony, the Congo Free State, in 1885."
"scrubland, vegetation that only changed as real estate began to develop there. At the end of the 19th century, piece by piece, King Leopold II of Belgium purchased the peninsula’s only wooded area, and then proceeded to expand his estate by buying up most of the vacant land around. Shortly before 1900, Leopold sold part of his property to a company founded by a Mr. Péretmère, the son of a coachman from the north who had some savings of his own. He reserved six and a half hectares of the land for the hotel, whose construction began in 1908 with"
"inside Africa after capture, and many more died young. Manning's estimate covers the 12 million who were originally destined for the Atlantic, as well as the 6 million destined for Asian slave markets and the 8 million destined for African markets. In the period from 1885 to 1908, a number of well-documented atrocities were perpetrated in the Congo Free State (today the Democratic Republic of the Congo) which, at the time, was a colony under the personal rule of King Leopold II of Belgium. These atrocities were sometimes collectively referred to by European contemporaries as the ""Congo Horrors"", and were"