King Leopold II and Belgian Imperialism Essay -- European History Essa

fag Leopold II and Belgian Imperialism In 1865, King Leopold II succeeded his father to the thrown of Belgium and thus began one of the most brutal and insensible periods of imperialism ever to exist. From manipulative treaties to straight forward intimidation, Leopold dominated his empire manage no other. He was cruel, deceptive, and downright evil, yet it took the world over cardinal years to recognize this. The record of King Leopolds atrocity is an interest account of how a jealous man could inflict some of the most disgusting forms of oppression upon his fellow members of the human race. When Leopold came to power in 1865, he was incredibly disappointed at Belgiums lack of power in the imperial world. Every other western European nation by had this time had taken on colonies as part of their empire and consequently had been acquiring incredible wealth due to their new markets and exploitation of the native Australian peoples they encountered. Bel gium, itself, was a small country, and unlike their neighboring nations, they had not yet entered into the colonial scene. This all changed when the famous explorer Henry M. Stanley accepted Leopolds end to return to the Congo acting as an agent of the crown whose guardianship was to obtain the signatures of all the native chieftains living in the Congo. Using slimed and manipulative tactics, Stanley was able to acquire over 450 treaties which paved the way for the declaration of nearly one million square miles of the Congo River Basin as the property of King Leopold II. The land Leopold had obtained was about eighty times bigger than that of Belgium itself. Plus, Leopold was proclaimed the sovereign ruler of all the Congo Free Sta... ...BibliographyAfrica Imperialism taradiddle of Imperialism. 1998-2002. 5 Oct. 2002.Constitutional Rights Foundation. 2000. 5 Oct. 2002 http//www.crf-usa.org/bria/bria16_2.html. Leopold II- King of the Belgians World Hist ory King Leopolds heart of Darkness. 2000. 5 Oct. 2002 Other Sourceshttp//members.aol.com/TeacherNet/World.htmlAfricaThis link brings the leader to a website consisting of many links regarding African Imperialism.http//www.crf-usa.org/bria/bria16_2.htmlThis link brings the reader to a website think on King Leopold II of Belgium.http//ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Tielemans/hp50marc.htmThis link provides the reader with a petty biography of King Leopold II.