(Remember at least 100 words and this is not mandatory, only an option for something that is mandatory)
The 1960s saw the beginning of the end of the Colonial Period that had begun in the 15th Century. How is Europe losing its grip on Africa and what are the implications? What is the Soviet Union's opinion/goals on the matter? What about your character?
(Hint: A good place to start is the Belgian Congo or South Africa)
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Danielle Sumner
ReplyDeleteAssignment #3
By the time the mid-20th century had rolled around, the imperialism in Africa was coming to an end as Britain, France, and Belgium started liberating their colonies. When Europe extracted its support from the African tribes, the result was largely negative. While the colonists had taken many of Africa’s natural resources for trade, they had done little to advance African society or technology. Because so many natives had been taken into slavery, there was a dearth of people to actually cultivate and develop the land once the Europeans were gone. It is said that King Leopold II reduced the Belgian Congo’s population by 50%. On top of that, when the European colonists had originally settled into Africa, they had divided cultures and societies. When they left, the effect was that there was little unity among the indigenous residents, and certainly not enough nationalism to unite a country. While the Soviet Union had no colonies of its own in Africa, it was a relief to them to see their enemies relinquish territory. It didn’t solve much, however, since the new governments in Africa were standing on democratic foundatioins.
Samantha Waldman
ReplyDeleteDuring the 1960’s colonization for a number of Europeans countries in Africa was ending. The Belgian Congo became the independent Republic of the Congo in 1960 after Belgium had liberated it. The rise of leaders like Nelson Mandela had also created problems for the British apartheid in South Africa. After much internal struggle, South Africa gained its independence from England and declared itself as the Republic of South Africa. This loss of colonies on the part of Europe was deemed as positive in the eyes of the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union was emerging as a powerhouse of the west and the end of Europe’s imperialism seemed to show a weakening on their part. However, the Soviet Union had little to do with the newly independent countries due to their democratic governments.
Katherine Wang
ReplyDeleteThe 1960’s were known as the decolonisation of Africa as 32 countries gained independence from Europe. New leaders such as Nelson Mandela also posed a problem for England, France, and Belgium, the main European colonizers, as this gave South Africa, in this case, a leader and something to fight for. However, even though all these countries became independent, many of the high hopes held for the countries was soon lost as many ended up under military rule or with dictators. The Soviet Union was happy to see that its European enemies were losing territory as it gave them less power and also fewer resources. However, this African decolonization did not mean much for the Soviet Union or give them any power as at the beginning, most of the countries attempted democracies, which the Soviet Union opposed with their communism.