King Leopold’s GhostKing Leopold’s Ghost

Presentation by Ben Fiorillo

King Leopold IIKing Leopold II

King of Belgium

Acquiring the CongoAcquiring the Congo

Leopold was interested in acquiring land in Africa.

Henry Morton Stanley explored a large amount of the African continent.– Leopold hired him to create paths near the

Congo River so that steamboats could come in.

Acquiring the Congo Acquiring the Congo (Continued)(Continued)

Bought land from village chiefsObtained international recognition for his

colony (Not Belgium’s)– Through conferences and other diplomatic

efforts

Wealth of the CongoWealth of the Congo

The African continent has ivory from the tusks of elephants and has a large amount of rubber.

Atrocities of the CongoAtrocities of the Congo

Leopold established a system of forced labor.– Slavery

An army was created (Force Publique).Punishments included severe whippings and

severing of the handsPopulation decreased from 20 million to 10

million in 40 years

Atrocities of the Congo Atrocities of the Congo (Continued)(Continued)

The Outside WorldThe Outside World

The world outside the Congo was not aware of what was happening.– Leopold kept it quiet.

George Washington Williams was the first to report the atrocities

William Henry Sheppard, E.D. Morel, and Sir Roger Casement also made the world aware of everything occurring in the Congo.

The Outside World The Outside World (Continued)(Continued)

King Leopold and the CongoKing Leopold and the Congo

Sold the Congo to Belgium for a hefty sum– Died in 1909– Owned the Congo from the late 1800s until the

turn of the 20th century

Later rulers took advantage of the Congo even after it gained independence in 1960.

King Leopold and the Congo King Leopold and the Congo (Continued)(Continued)

Took a lot of money from the Congo (billions of dollars) and used it to finance the construction of buildings and monuments in Belgium that served little interest to the Belgians