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101
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History
Date
Dec 6, 2023
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docx
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4
Uploaded by ProfessorCrownJackal6 on coursehero.com
Evelyn Kliebenstein
HIST 101-003
1. Unlike a film, which is designed to entertain, the goal of a documentary is to inform and
educate. What does this documentary want you to learn about King Leopold II, his impact and
the Congo, and the consequences of Colonialism? As a historian, how can you evaluate its
Accuracy?
This documentary intended to inform the viewer on how Colonialism affected the Congo
and to describe how and why King Leopold gained control. Africa was one of the few places that
had not yet been taken over, and Leopold saw it as an opportunity for monopoly. His profit was
largely garnered from the mistreatment of the Congolese. He had a strict military rule that would
target people who didn’t cooperate with his agenda, and would go as far as forcing indigenous
peoples to sign over their land rights (often unknowingly). Upon turning nearly everything in the
Congo into property of the King, he disguised his motives as charitable which is part of the
reason he could do what he did for so long. The documentary highlights the questionable ethics
of Leopold and the suffering he brought upon the Congo and its people. The accuracy of the
documentary can be supported by the multitude of primary sources it uses. Documents published
by Leopold himself, diary excerpts, and interviews with experts all contribute to the historical
reliability of this film. Rather than choosing a side, the film abandons bias in favor of providing
an explanation of King Leopold II's rise to power, methods of maintaining it, and subsequent
downfall in an informative and accurate way.
2. According to the narrator, how does Leopold II hide his true intentions in the Congo behind a
“charade of philanthropy?” What role does Henry Morton Stanley play in Leopold’s attempt to
present his actions as “scientific exploration?”
Evelyn Kliebenstein
HIST 101-003
King Leopold II misinformed the public about what was going on in the Congo in order
to disguise his intentions. He claimed to be redeeming “a savage people” through the
reinforcement of free trade in the Congo, the elimination of the African slave trade, and through
his philanthropic efforts. Deceptive titles of his associations and lies throughout his campaign are
what landed his government support. Henry Morton Stanley discovered the Congo before
Leopold and played a large part in presenting the antics as “scientific exploration”. Stanley was
in search of a philanthropist who would allow him to run a force for commerce with Central
Africa, and Leopold agreed, signing a 5-year contract that would end up devastating to the
Congo. In the name of “scientific exploration, societies were destroyed. A private army force,
Force Publique, was implemented. Leopold and Stanley worked together in order to creatively
disguise their destruction as exploration.
3. What natural resources was Leopold extracting from the Congo? How did the Industrial
Revolution contribute to demand for these resources? Describe Leopold’s approach to securing
these commodities, the various methods used to secure the necessary labor and the impact on
the people of the Congo.
Leopold was extracting mainly rubber and ivory. Especially interested in ivory, Leopold
and Stanley would order the people of the Congo to kill elephants when they didn’t trade for the
ivory or just steal it from them. As the Industrial Revolution ramped up, so did the demand for
rubber. Nearly half of Leopold’s country was draped with rubber vines, and so he jumped at this
economic opportunity. He forced the people to begin harvesting the rubber by threatening their
livelihoods. A refusal to cooperate was followed by getting arrested, chained, and put out to
collect rubber. Villages were required to collect specific amounts of rubber, and if they didn’t
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