Key Issue 3. Why was Britain involved in obtaining possessions in Africa from 1868 – 1902?

Key Issue 3.  Why was Britain involved in obtaining possessions in Africa from 1868 – 1902?

•Strategic reasons: •protect trade routes, to protect key points essential for empire and the great power rivalry.

•Economic reasons: •trade, natural resources, new markets to sell to.

•Individuals: •The influence of Rhodes and Chamberlain. Prime ministers actions: Disraeli, Salisbury and Gladstone.

•Social and Cultural: •Popularity of imperialism and Humanitarian and missionary motives

African territories taken by Britain and the reasons why.

Introduction to an essay: " Partition of Africa" "Scramble for Africa" When? c1880-1902 What was it? Division of African between Britain and other superpowers, Africa has been divided up into different colonies Key feature? It was a rapid process 1884-85, Berlin Conference, divided up certain parts of African to European superpowers so they could colonise. Only white Europeans, no Africans. Include other motives to the one in the question E.G Protection, abolition of the slave trade, balance of power, individuals etc...

Egypt 1882:Investment - Khedive (Egyptian King) declared bankrupt and public debt commission created.Protection of the Suez Canal from the rebellious Egyptian people. Disraeli purchased shares in it in 1875 which became a crucial British investment. Allowed Britain to give Egypt huge loans which raised there debts from £3million to £100million in 1879.Breakdown in communications with the French so the British went in and protected it alone, after successfully protecting it they ended the dual control of the canal with the French.

The Sudan 1889:Mad Mahdi led a Muslim fundamentalist uprising between 1883-1885 and as Britain had been forced into Egypt they were forced to intervene in The Sudan to protect their interests in Egypt. Britain sent General Gordon to retrieve the British people from Khartoum which he disobeyed and went to war with Mad Mahdi which he originally lost. Gordon thought he was racially superior. Kitchener sent out to deal with the Muslims. Battle of Omdurman finally confirmed British control when 10,000 fuzzier-wuzzies were machine gunned to death, complete destruction and technology was the real winner. Added 1million square miles to the empire with nothing in it, no economic benefits.

West Africa:The only reason Britain were interested in West Africa once the slave trade was outlawed in 1807 was due to the palm oil which could be used to make soap so there was a lot of money in palm oil plantations. At the Berlin Conference Britain gained a monopoly over the palm oil trade on the Niger River and created Nigeria to protect British cocoa trade. In 1885 Gladstone negotiated freedom navigation of the River Congo to protect trade.

East Africa: The major British interest in the region was trade with the island of Zanzibar, which the acquired from Germany in return for Helgoland (1890). In 1884 Britain purchased Somaliland, to prevent the French blocking the Red Sea.Britain also acquired territory in East Africa to protect The Sudan via the Nile. East Africa also had a lot of Ivory which Britain used to trade with. However Germany did create Tanganyika which blocked Britain's ambitious 'Cape to Cairo' plan. Finally the work of missionaries was important in East Africa, David Livingston was the most famous as he was the one who stopped the slave trade.

South Africa:The Partition of South Africa was really a tale of Anglo-Boer rivalry and the ambitions of Cecil Rhodes a British multimillionaire who arrived in South Africa aged 17 (1870) and quickly made a fortune from diamond mining. By 1890 Cecil Rhodes was prime minister of Cape Colony. In 1877 Britain took control of the Transvaal which the Boers believed was a temporary agreement, and offered the Zulus an ultimatum. The Zulu's chose war and were eventually defeated in 1879 after a valiant struggle. Shortly after this the Transvaal asked to be reinstated as an independent state, the British refused and the Boers responded by attacking and defeating British forces at Majuba Hill in 1881 during the First Boer War (1880-81). The British granted the Boers with self government in 1881 but this did not mean they were fully independent as Britain still controlled some Boer states (the controversial suzerainty idea that Britain could intervene in Boer territories which they later used). In 1886 Gold was discovered in Transvaal and Britain again became interested,many uitlanders flocked to the area. The Jameson raid in 1895 was a deep humiliation for Rhodes and the British government, the Boers had no difficulty in rounding up a mere 500 army. The Kruger Telegram indicated that the Boers had support from Germany and supplied weapons.Eventually in 1899 the Second Boer War started in an attempt to seize the assets of the Witwatersrand gold mines which made the Transvaal one of the richest area's in the world. They used to excuse that the Boers refused Uitlanders citizenship in the Transvaal to invade. Britain came close to another defeat as they could not handle the sneaky Boers guerrilla tactics but after a change in tactics in 1900 to a scorched earth policy and concentration camps they saw a rapid change in the results. By 1902 Britain had successfully gained control of The Transvaal and Orange Free State.

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