The Belgians first imperialized the Congo Free State‚ situated in the middle of Africa‚ in 1877. Prior to the colonization there was the Luba‚ Lunda and the Kongo Empire who were all ruled by a king. The Luba Empire was the largest of the kingdoms. Before the colonization by the Belgians‚ the territory’s land was largely untouched and was rich in natural resources [1] [2] [3]. The Luba army was very small due to the lack of threats from other empires; the kingdoms additionally developed in size through
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colonized the Congo‚ it was known for its independence. It was the ideal place to be for the Europeans. It was geographically diverse‚ it had mineral enriched soils‚ deposits of gold‚ diamonds copper and manganese‚ and it had a large animal population‚ lots of plants. King Leopold saw potential in the Congo and made it his. He had an American man‚ Henry Stanley; secure treaties with all the local chiefs. With those he had complete power of the land. Imperialism on the Belgian Congo had a negative
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October 4‚ 2013 The Democratic Republic of Congo France originally colonized the Democratic Republic of Congo. French is still one of the main spoken languages there. The Democratic Republic of Congo is located in central Africa. This location allows grief from neighboring countries on the other hand it is in an ideal location by way of trade routes to other countries and access to the Atlantic Ocean and the Congo River. The Democratic Republic of Congo is also dense with valuable minerals making
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Leopold’s Congo During the nineteenth century many of the European empires raced for an exclusive access to new territories in search of natural resources or new markets for produced goods. The process of colonization was always a form of exploitation of the weak and underdeveloped countries. Belgian King Leopold II was one of the ambitious monarchs interested in acquiring a “slice of African Cake”. Ultimately‚ his reign over his Congo Free State was a regime of terror and monumental atrocities
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because of its ability to hold high electric charges. The electronics industry is by far the biggest consumer of Coltan. The cost and technology involved in sourcing Coltan are low‚ particularly when it is mined in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in Africa. There are other places on the world where tantalum can be found. Russia for instance is rich in the resource but has not exploited their deposits. Australia produces about 60% of the world’s tantalum‚ but the world’s largest reserves
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Belgian Congo was a Belgian colony set in central Africa‚ which started in 1908. In 1960 it got independent to what is now called the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Before Congo got colonized the only language that was spoken was the Kongo language‚ but when the Belgians came‚ the French language was introduced and taught to Congo. The same thing happened with religion. When Belgian came‚ Congolese were first introduced to Christianity which is now the most practiced religion in Congo.
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The Congo River encloses the Congo to represent a barrier between light‚ the outside‚ and dark‚ the inside of Africa. In Joseph Conrad’s novel‚ Heart of Darkness‚ the Congo River symbolizes movement and a journey into one’s inner spirit. The main character Marlow is on a journey to Africa to meet Kurtz‚ a man of great abilities. Marlow joins The Company‚ a trading company in the Congo‚ in order to be able to travel. Marlow’s journey takes course on the Congo River whose current is flowing strong
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Coltan war of the Democratic republic of Congo The interest fueled human rights violations crimes being committed in The Democratic republic of Congo can be greatly suppressed to an eventual cease if the UN were to intervene more decisively. Considering the UN’s ability to pose sanctions and other methods of coercion‚ that can greatly impact a countries ability to perform its main functions‚ why wouldn’t they? The answer requires that we look into the dire situation that exists today in The Democratic
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Democratic Republic of the Congo has been exhausting its natural resources in the past decade‚ but with a few economic and priority changes‚ it is possible for the country to promote sustainability‚ increase their wealth and help the Congolese citizens simultaneously. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (or DRC for short) currently is at war‚ in short‚ rebel groups are fighting to take the natural wealth hidden in the DRC like gold‚ diamonds‚ colbolt‚ and other precious elements. The war is distorting the
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The Congo was taken over in 1885 by King of Belgium‚ Leopold II . Leopold wanted to conquer the Congo due to him believing overseas colonies were the key to a country’s greatness. Leopold gained control of the Congo by sending explorer Henry Stanley to claim land in the Congo. At the Berlin conference of 1884-1885 they recognized Leopold as the sovereign ruler of the Congo. The country was treated as a brutal business investment by Leopold who was viewed by the world as a noble king. But in reality
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