West African Empires

In the Mid-1800s the Europeans Imperialised Africa for three main reasons. Those reasons being Cultural, Political, and Economic. The Europeans were encouraged by all the resources, and a way to find a peaceful way to divide Africa up. What motive did the Europeans have about taking over Africa? The best motive for the Europeans was economic because they needed the natural resources for the benefits.

Mali became wealthier and more powerful with the expansion of land and control over gold and salt trade. According to Source K by Catherine Roth and the Ancient world history textbook by Mcdougal Littell, “Askia Muhammad proved to be an excellent administrator.” “He appointed officials to serve as ministers of the treasury, army, navy, and agriculture. Under his rule the well governed empire thrived.” Askia Muhammad expanded the Songhai empire 1.4 million kilometers and also influenced trade with Europe.

Neolithic people that had lived in Egypt began to travel toward the northern corner of the continent of Africa. Records and writing show the ruins of the early civilizations, and the setting of Sub- Saharan Africa had a great impact on human growth. Kingdoms thrived through this time because of the natural resources that the geography of Africa provided. The ancient Kingdoms of Africa were Ghana, Mali, and Songhai. They are located in the western region of Africa. The kingdoms became very prosperous and their achievements impacted the following world that grew in the later years.

Imperialism is when a strong country seizes a weaker country and takes control of their economy, politics, and culture. Countries Imperialize each other because they desire more power, control over one another, and want to be superior. Europe Imperialized Africa because of three main reasons: social, political, and economic. Due to Europe going through Industrialization they went to Africa which was not very developed, so the Europeans took whatever they want because they weren’t stopped. They also began spreading christianity in Africa because of how big it was in Europe.

In the empire Ghana, they worked with iron, and traded it for gold and salt. Because of trading iron for salt and gold, the empire prospered. The empire of Mali prospered from trade and that was one of their key accomplishments. In Songhai, a key accomplishment was that it was the largest empire of West Africa. You can infer that because Songhai was the largest empire, trade was very important to Songhai.

Prior to the movement of European Imperialism in Africa, a major law was passed. In 1807, the British government banned the Transatlantic slave trade. As a result, in 1833, slavery as a whole was completely demolished. Slavery was a very profitable trade for not only Britain, but many other European powers. Without the slave trade, many European nations were looking for a new way to expand their power of others. Therefore, many European nations switched their focus and claimed their share of the African continent, in order to continue their economic and social dominance (Document A).

Imperialism in Africa by European nations was warranted beginning in the 19th century because imperialism was inevitable as it came on the “coattails of the Industrial Revolution” (Document D). Imperializing African nations also helped European nations gain more money from trade and helped develop African nations (Documents A & D). Imperialism was warranted in Africa; it was unavoidable with the end of slave trade and the industrial revolution bringing many new life changing inventions that required many resources that could be found in Africa (Document C & D). Imperialism was also beneficial to Africa in that the European nations that took over the land felt the need to colonize it by the rule of occupation; stating that land owned by a

During the European Scramble for Africa, in the early 20th century, Africans had a peaceful reaction with anti-imperialistic sentiments (docs. 2, 3, 4, and 7), peaceful actions through the approach of diplomacy (docs.1, 2, and 3) and also a rebellious anti-imperialistic reaction (docs. 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9) towards the Scramble for Africa.

European powers shamelessly exploited the people and resources of Africa in the 19th century. They often tried to justify their actions by using ideology, religion and moralism. After the end of the African slave trade, the development of steam power, and medical discovery, European nations started exploring not only the coast but also the unmapped interior of the continent. In this essay, I will explain the main driving forces behind African Imperialism. The Western europeans countries all competed for land and resources because of their self interest. They sought natural resources, and technology gave them the ability to exploit them. The philosophy of national pride however, was the primary reason. (Main document) (Doc C, D & B)

The Europeans colonized colonized many parts of the world but the most colonized was the continent Africa. The European explorers started imperializing Africa after exploring into the interior of Africa and finding the resources that African countries had. What is imperialism? Imperialism is the policy of taking control of another country. There were three main reasons for European imperialism in Africa: Political reasons, technology, and economic reasons.

People of the early African kingdoms were able to create successful trade routes with Europe and Asia, become very wealthy from conquering and gaining land, and were able to have a strong central government. All of this was done before the Europeans had reached Africa. Trade flourished on the East African coast, especially when trading was established with India and Arabia. African kingdoms were prosperous, because of their success with not only trading but also with their ability to conquer land. A governmental structure is key to allowing any kingdom to thrive, and the African people were able to achieve this.

Changes in political and cultural traditions during the post-classical period occurred in Africa because of intensive Islamic contact. When Arab conquerors introduced the Islamic faith into northern Africa, they expanded the region of commerce. Muslim merchants established trading centers for copper, iron, salts, and cotton textiles. The newly established trade affected traditional social and religious beliefs. After 1000 C.E., the kin-based social structure experienced difficult challenges. Increased conflict between peoples led to the creation of military forces for both offensive and defensive use. This led to the formation of chiefdoms exhibiting more formal structures of governing such as in the kingdoms of Kongo, Ghana, and Mali. Because most traders were Muslim, many African societies converted to Islam to improve their relations with the

Islam contributed the Arabic script and language to the Sudanic empires, which became known as centers of learning and culture. The invasion of Ghana by the Muslems along with a disastrous series of droughts that dried up the vital Bagana and Wagadu Rivers helped to plunge the empire into economic decline; and it became easy prey for hordes of conquerors who completed its destruction by the thirteenth century.

Under Mansa Musa, Mali became the the largest and one of the most renown kingdoms in Africa. Gold was abundant and the empire was prosperous; what more could one ask for? Though as it turns out fame and prosperity can be fleeting. The empire

Throughout history, many can see differences in the empires of America and the empires of Africa, but some fundamental similarities exist among these empires that make them successful. While each of these empires is deeply rooted in promoting economic growth and spiritual connectivity, they go about these tasks in different ways due to their individual and unique circumstances.