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The Scramble's Aftermath
Arbitrary borders and the debts they left behind.
18 lectures9 hrs1884 — 1914
Unlock with a subscriptionEvent cascade
How one event spilled into the next
1884
Berlin draws straight lines
The Berlin Conference sets the rules for claiming Africa; the partition itself follows over the next two decades.
1914
Colonies feed the war
Imperial possessions turn a European war into a world war.
1960
Independence inherits the lines
New nations are born inside borders drawn for someone else.
Today
The map still argues
Resource conflicts and secession movements trace the same ink.
Sources · further reading
Where this comes from
- Thomas Pakenham, The Scramble for Africa (1991)
- Adam Hochschild, King Leopold's Ghost (1998)
- Basil Davidson, The Black Man's Burden (1992)
Dates marked by tradition or legend are given as approximate.
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