Latest / The History of Belgium: A Small Country with a Giant Colonial Legacy — Fexingo History
The 1908 Annexation: How Belgium Took Congo from Leopold II
In 1908, after years of international outrage over the Congo Free State's atrocities, the Belgian government annexed the vast territory from King Leopold II. This episode examines the political and financial deal that transferred control, the fierce parliamentary debates between reformers like Emile Vandervelde and colonial lobbyists led by Auguste Beernaert, and the Colonial Charter that promised reform but largely preserved the brutal labor system. We explore how the annexation rebranded Leopold's personal fiefdom as 'Belgian Congo' while maintaining the Force Publique…
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