Images of Imperialism

Motives: Economic, Religious, Political, Exploratory, Ideological

Pears’ Soap ad: 1890’s

The Partition of ChinaThe Qing Emperor tries to stop Queen Victoria from England, Wilhelm II of Germany, Nicholas II of Russia, as they squabble over cutting up China, with the French Marianne and Japanese Meiji official looking on.

“If only I had more arms!”An American cartoon depicting British imperialism…notice that John Bull has his eye on Egypt and the Suez Canal which Britain eventually seized.

The “Rhodes” Colossus Depicts British businessman, Cecil Rhodes, and his vision of making Africa “all British from Capetown to Cairo,” 1892. Rhodes created the DeBeers diamond mining business …established a claim of Northern Rhodesia (Zambia) and Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe).

King Leopold II of BelgiumWhat was unique about the colony Leopold established in the “Congo Free State”?

The Belgian Congo in Central AfricaWhat were the major natural resources found in this region? How was control of these resources connected to the Industrial Revolution?

An African rubber collector being crushed by King Leopold II as a snake. What were the conditions like for the collection of rubber?

Mutilated victims of the rubber trade in the Congo.Why were these children’s right hands cut off?

Leopold to Uncle Sam “I will give you enough rubber to make an elastic conscience…”What did Leopold have an “elastic conscience” about?

King Leopold’s Ghost

• At the time one Swedish missionary wrote down the words to a Congolese song. It went:

• We are tired of living under this tyranny.We cannot endure that our women and children are taken awayAnd dealt with by the white savagesWe shall make war…We know that we shall die, but we want to dieWe want to die