Editing History of Africa (section)

==Early Modern Africa (1800-1935)==
{{Main|Colonial Africa}}
{{Further|History of West Africa#Slave trade|History of Central Africa#Slave trade|History of East Africa#Slave trade|History of Southern Africa#Slave trade|History of North Africa#European colonial period|History of West Africa#Colonial period|History of Central Africa#Colonial period|History of East Africa#Colonial period|History of Southern Africa#Colonial period}}

Between 1878 and 1898, European states partitioned and conquered most of Africa. For 400 years, European nations had mainly limited their involvement to trading stations on the African coast, with few daring to venture inland. The [[Second Industrial Revolution|Industrial Revolution]] in Europe produced several technological innovations which assisted them in overcoming this 400-year pattern. One was the development of [[repeating rifle]]s, which were easier and quicker to load than [[musket]]s. [[Artillery]] was being used increasingly. In 1885, [[Hiram S. Maxim]] developed the [[maxim gun]], the model of the modern-day [[machine gun]]. European states kept these weapons largely among themselves by refusing to sell these weapons to African leaders.<ref name="Collins 2007"/>{{rp|pages=268–269}}

African germs took numerous European lives and deterred [[Settler colonialism|permanent settlements]]. Diseases such as [[yellow fever]], [[African trypanosomiasis|sleeping sickness]], [[yaws]], and [[leprosy]] made Africa a very inhospitable place for Europeans. The deadliest disease was [[malaria]], endemic throughout [[Tropical Africa]]. In 1854, the discovery of [[quinine]] and other medical innovations helped to make conquest and colonization in Africa possible.<ref name="Collins 2007"/>{{rp|pages=269}}

There were strong motives for conquest of Africa. [[Natural resources of Africa|Raw materials]] were needed for European factories. Prestige and imperial rivalries were at play. Acquiring African colonies would show rivals that a nation was powerful and significant. These contextual factors forged the [[Scramble for Africa]].<ref name="Collins 2007"/>{{rp|pages=265}}

In the 1880s the European powers had carved up almost all of Africa (only [[Ethiopia]] and [[Liberia]] were independent). The Europeans were captivated by the philosophies of [[eugenics]] and [[Social Darwinism]], and some attempted to justify all this by branding it [[civilizing mission|civilising missions]]. Traditional leaders were incorporated into the colonial regimes as a form of indirect rule to extract human and natural resources and curb organized resistance.<ref>{{Citation|last1=Kyed|first1=Helene Maria|title=Introduction: Traditional Authority and Democratization in Africa|date=2007|work=State Recognition and Democratization in Sub-Saharan Africa: A New Dawn for Traditional Authorities?|pages=1–28|editor-last=Buur|editor-first=Lars|url=https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1057/9780230609716_1|access-date=2024-12-07|place=New York|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan US|language=en|doi=10.1057/9780230609716_1|isbn=978-0-230-60971-6|last2=Buur|first2=Lars|editor2-last=Kyed|editor2-first=Helene Maria}}</ref> Colonial borders were drawn unilaterally by the Europeans, often cutting across bonds of kinship, language, culture, and established routes, and sometimes incorporating groups who previously had little in common. The threat to trade routes was mitigated by poor policing and African entrepreneurs (viewed as smugglers) who exploited the differing tax and legal schemes.<ref name=":85">{{cite encyclopedia |title=Boundaries, colonial |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of African History |publisher=[[Fitzroy Dearborn]] |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=umyHqvAErOAC&pg=PA636 |last=Hargreaves |first=John |date=2005 |editor-last1=Shillington |editor-first1=Kevin |pages= |isbn=1-57958-245-1 |last1= |first1=}}</ref>

[[File:Map of Africa in 1939.svg|thumb|right|upright=1.25|Areas controlled by European powers in 1939. British (red) and Belgian (marroon) colonies fought with the Allies. Italian (light green) with the Axis. French colonies (dark blue) fought alongside the Allies until the Fall of France in June 1940. Vichy was in control until the Free French prevailed in late 1942. Portuguese (dark green) and Spanish (yellow) colonies remained neutral.]]