Latest / The History of Belgium: A Small Country with a Giant Colonial Legacy — Fexingo History
The 1897 Belgian Rubber Tax Revolt in the Equateur
In 1897, the Bangala people of the Equateur region rose up against Leopold II's rubber tax system, which forced village chiefs to deliver ever-increasing quotas of wild rubber under threat of hostage-taking and chicotte beatings. This episode focuses on the revolt led by chief Mopoyi of the Lulonga River area, his alliance with the Mongo people, and the brutal Force Publique reprisal that followed. We explore the economic logic of the rubber tax, the role of the Anglo-Belgian India Rubber Company (ABIR), and the cultural significance of rubber extraction to the Bangala. Mopoyi's…
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