Publisher's Synopsis
This work marks the centenary of the Berlin conference of 1884-5 when Bismarck attempted to manipulate the politics of Europe by pre-empting the commercial future of Africa.;At Berlin, it seems in hindsight, the European powers with the United States contracted to internationalize Africa for free trade, while dividing it into colonial monopolies. In these essays, African and European historians interpret their mixed motives with reference to Germany's bid for world status, European imperialism and the partition of Africa at the time.;Recent research is brought into accounts of the origins of the meeting, the priorities of the leading participants in the negotiations, the economic interests, missionary aspirations and national rivalries that focused on Berlin.;The African dimension of the conference is included, with articles on west coast trade, its connections with indigenous politics and th e effects of the Berlin treaty on the course of events in the Congo and Niger regions.
