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The Dark Heart of King Leopold II of Belgium

Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at CSU East Bay. The Dark Heart of King Leopold II of Belgium. Kevin P. Dincher www.kevindincher.com. Leopold II. Africa. Leopold II (1835 – 1909). King of the Belgians: 1865 – 1909 Family Connections Mother: Louise d’Orleans , Princess of France

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The Dark Heart of King Leopold II of Belgium

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  1. Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at CSU East Bay The Dark Heart of King Leopold II of Belgium Kevin P. Dincher www.kevindincher.com

  2. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II Africa

  3. Kevin P. Dincher

  4. Leopold II (1835 – 1909) • King of the Belgians: 1865 – 1909 • Family Connections • Mother: Louise d’Orleans, Princess of France • Wife: Marie HenrietteHapsburg, Archduchess of Austria • Sister: Carlota of Mexico, Empress of Mexico • 1st cousin: Queen Victoria • 7th cousin 6 times removed: Kevin Dincher Leopold, 1844

  5. Kevin P. Dincher Belgium • October 4, 1830: Belgian Revolution • Southern provinces declared independence from the Netherlands • Catholic, officially French-speaking and neutral • Constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy • 1831: Leopold I • Elected “King of the Belgians” • House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

  6. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II 1855: Became member of senate • Immediately began urging establishing Belgian colonies • Overseas colonies were the key to a country's greatness 1865: Became king • 1866: first of three unsuccessful attempts to acquire the Philippines from Spain

  7. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II 1876: Convened the Brussels Geographic Conference • Proposed an international benevolent committee • “Propagation civilization among the peoples of Central Africa” (Congo) • Multi-national • Scientific • Humanitarian Leopold II and Marie Henriette

  8. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II 1876-1878: International African Association (AIA) • Association InternationaleAfricaine • Private holding company disguised as an international scientific and philanthropic association • Leopold served as chairman twice • Primary Achievement • Convincing Belgian people and European countries that his interests in Africa were altruistic and humanitarian

  9. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II 1878: Study Committee of the Upper Congo • Comité d'Études du Haut-Congo • Exploration • Scientifc • Humanitarian • Commercial

  10. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II • 1879: International Association of the Congo (IAC) • Association Internationale du Congo • International Congo Society • Humanitarian/philanthropic • Scientific • Commercial/economic • Official Stockholders • British/Dutch businessmen • Belgian Banker

  11. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II • 1879: International Association of the Congo (IAC) • Henry Morton Stanley • Five-year contract • Establish bases in the Congo • Secure trade route for ivory market • Rubber and minerals Dr. Livingston, I presume?

  12. Kevin P. Dincher Henry Stanley … …a fearless newspaper reporter ready to do whatever it takes to get a story, regardless of any danger to his life!

  13. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II 1881 – 1914: • Scramble for Africa • Race for Africa • Partition of Africa • 1870 • Europeans occupied about 10% of the continent • 1914: • only Ethiopia and Liberia were independent

  14. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II • 1884-1885: Berlin Conference • Portuguese initiative • British support • Bismark’s work • Austria-Hungary • Belgium • Denmark • France • United Kingdom • Italy • Netherlands • Portugal • Russia • Spain • Sweden-Norway • Ottoman Empire • United States

  15. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II • 1884-1885: Berlin Conference *Recognized the International Association of the Congo (IAC) as sovereign government

  16. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II • 1884-1885: Berlin Conference • “Spheres of Influence” • Region over which a state or organization has a level of cultural, economic, military, or political exclusivity • An international prohibition of the slave trade throughout their respected spheres • "International Society for the Suppression of Savage Customs" (Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness)

  17. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II "I do not want to miss a good chance of getting us a slice of this magnificent African cake." King Leopold II 1885 • Resolution passed in Belgian Parliament • Transferred the IAC charter to “Congo Free State” • État indépendant du Congo • Leopold: Roi-Souverain • Person property - private colony • Established Force Publique (FP)

  18. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II "I do not want to miss a good chance of getting us a slice of this magnificent African cake." King Leopold II 1885: Congo Free State • Leopold pledge to uphold Berlin Conference • Suppress East African slave trade • Promote humanitarian policies • Guarantee free trade within the colony • Impose no import duties for 20 yrs. • Encourage philanthropic and scientific enterprises

  19. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II • Exploitation of resources • Ivory, Rubber, Minerals • One of the greatest international scandals of the early 20th century • Forced/slave labor • Starvation • Disease • Torture/mutilation • Directly and indirectly eliminated 20% of the population • 10 to 13 million people A 1906 Punch cartoon depicting Leopold II as a rubber vine entangling a Congolese man

  20. Kevin P. Dincher Leopold II

  21. Kevin P. Dincher "I have just returned from a journey inland to the village of InsongoMboyo. The abject misery and utter abandon is positively indescribable. I was so moved, Your Excellency, by the people's stories that I took the liberty of promising them that in future you will only kill them for crimes they commit.“ John Harris (Missionary)

  22. Kevin P. Dincher Hochschild: Great Forgetting Royal Museum for Central Africa • Large collection of colonial artifacts Blankenberge, Belgium • Monument shows a colonialist bringing "civilization" to the black child at his feet Oostend, Belgium • Monument to Leopold II with grateful Oostend fishermen and Congolese. • The gratitude of the Congolese to Leopold II for having liberated them from slavery under the Arabs.

  23. Kevin P. Dincher I have undertaken the work in Congo in the interest of civilization and for the good of Belgium.“ Monument, Arlon, Belgium

  24. Kevin P. Dincher

  25. Kevin P. Dincher 1. Everything’s related! 2. When we learn about other people, times and places, we learn about ourselves.

  26. Kevin P. Dincher The Dark Heart of King Leopold II Adam Hochschild King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa • Lecturer, Graduate School of Journalism at UC Berkeley • Other Works: • To End All Wars: A Story of Loyalty and Rebellion, 1914-1918 • Bury the Chains: Prophets and Rebels in the Fight to Free an Empire's Slaves • The Mirror at Midnight: A South African Journey • The Unquiet Ghost: Russians Remember Stalin

  27. Kevin P. Dincher The Dark Heart of King Leopold II • Other Resources • Handout, page 2 • Course Slides Online • www.kevindincher.com • Click on COURSES • Click on THE DARK HEART OF KING LEOPOLD II OF BELGIUM • Click on COURSE MATERIALS AND RESOUCES (at bottom of page)

  28. Kevin P. Dincher Africa

  29. Kevin P. Dincher

  30. Kevin P. Dincher Africa: Caravan Routes

  31. Kevin P. Dincher Africa • Reconquista: 711 – 1492 • 1139-1179: Portugal as independent • 1249: capture of the Algarve • Henry (Enrique) the Navigator (1394-1460) • Son of King and Queen of Portugal • 1415: Battle of Ceuta (Morocco) • “Key to the Mediterranean” • Caravan routes • Major northern trade center on the

  32. Kevin P. Dincher Africa Battle of Ceuta • 45,000 Portuguese • Practical Failure • “Success” • Energized Europeans • Ripple effect • Expansion beyond continent • “Christendom” • Portugal took the lead • 1415-1505: expanded along the Pacific Coast of North Africa

  33. Kevin P. Dincher Africa Henry the Navigator • Trade routes • Prester John Legend *1552: slaves made up 10% of population of Lisbon

  34. Kevin P. Dincher Africa First Wave of European Colonization • 1415 – 1830 • Primarily involved the colonization of the Americas • Also some colonies in India and Maritime SE Asia Africa • Trading posts • Atlantic slave trade

  35. Kevin P. Dincher Atlantic Slave Trade

  36. Kevin P. Dincher Slavery • “…the right by some individuals to possess, buy, sell, discipline, transport, liberate, or otherwise dispose of the bodies and behavior of other individuals.” Seymour Drescher Abolition: A History of Slavery and Antislavery • “ … integral element is that children of a slave mother automatically become slaves

  37. Kevin P. Dincher Slavery 1760 BCE • Code of Hammurabi • Earliest record of slavery as an established institution 1800 • ¾ of all people alive in some form of slavery or serfdom. • David P. Forsythe, Encyclopedia of Human Rights 1981 • Mauritania: Last country to outlaw slavery • Did not become a crime to own slaves until 2007 • Today: 10% to 20%) of the population lives in slavery. • 340,000 to 680,000

  38. Kevin P. Dincher Slavery: Classical Era Ancient Greece • 30% of the population of some cities • Athens: majority owned at least one slave • Aristotle Ancient Rome • Roman Republic • vital to the economy • Roman Empire • 25% of the empire's population • 30 to 40% of the population of Italy

  39. Kevin P. Dincher Slavery: Middle Ages Vikings • British Isles and Eastern Europe • Sold on the Byzantine or Islamic slave markets • Ended in the 11th century - Serfdom Spain/Portugal • Muslim raids on Christian territories • Byzantine-Ottoman Wars • Both Christians and Muslims • Knights of Malta

  40. Kevin P. Dincher Charles Bridge, Prague

  41. Kevin P. Dincher Slavery: Muslim Powers Islamic Law: forbidden to enslave “People of the Book” • Muslims, Christians, Jews Sabian, Magians • Exceptions could be made if they were captured in battle • Expected to be freed if converted to Islam Slave Trading: Iberian Peninsula • Muslim and Jewish merchants • Brought slaves into al-Andalus from eastern Europe (pagan Slavs) • Re-exported them to other regions of the Islamic world • Christianization of Slavs ended practice Africa

  42. Kevin P. Dincher African Slave Routes • 650 – 1900 • 4 million via Red Sea • 4 million through the Swahili ports of the Indian Ocean • 9 million along the trans-Saharan caravan route

  43. Kevin P. Dincher Slavery Before the “Age of Discovery” Not about Race Part of Human Nature • Aristotle Consequence of Sin • Augustine • No “Slave Economies”

  44. Kevin P. Dincher Atlantic Slave Trade 12 million African slaves to the Americas between 1600 and 1800 • 70% to Brazil and Caribbean Islands • 5% (600,000) to US • Half during colonial era

  45. Kevin P. Dincher Atlantic Slave Trade

  46. Kevin P. Dincher Slave Ship

  47. Kevin P. Dincher Brazil • Slavery = Mainstay of colonial economy • Mining and sugar cane • About 38% of all African slaves sent to Americas • 1761: slavery abolished in Portugal but continued in colonies • 1888: Last South American country to ban slavery

  48. Kevin P. Dincher Brazil • Enslavement of Native Populations • Jesuit Reductions • The Mission

  49. Kevin P. Dincher Caribbean

  50. Kevin P. Dincher Caribbean • Slavery = Mainstay of colonial economy • Sugar cane • About 38% of all African slaves sent to Americas • 1778: French alone importing 13,000 annually • Death rates for Caribbean slaves were greater than birth rates • Free blacks owned one-third of the plantation property and one-quarter of the slaves in Haiti • 1794: French Republic abolished slavery • 1802: Napoleon • 1804: Haiti a free republic

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