-
David Livingstone's First Expedition
He was sent by the London Missionary Society to convert Africans to Christianity and to end the business of selling captured Africans as slaves. He made several different journeys into the interior, mapping the land and searching for navigable rivers that British missionaries and traders could use. -
The Suez Canal Opens
The canal was built by Egyptian laborers to be a human-made waterway that connected the Red Sea to the Mediterranean. Its opening rendered a huge international celebration. -
Henry Morton Stanley Meets Livingstone
After a two-year search through Africa, Henry Morton Stanley discovered David Livingstone in the town of Ujiji, on Lake Tanganyika. He then spoke the now-famous words, "Dr. Livingstone, I presume?" -
Berlin Conference of 1884-1885
14 European nations met at the Berlin Conference to lay down rules for the division of Africa. They agreed that any European country could claim land in Africa by notifying other nations of its claims and showing it could control the area. -
Indian National Congress Forms
The Indian National Congress was formed to gain more rights for Indians against the imperialist British rulers. It promoted more nationalism among native Indians. -
The Boer War Begins
Dutch settlers known as Boers were tired of trying to keep outsiders out of their settlements in Africa, and blamed the British for the onslaught of unwanted Europeans. They took up arms and used commando raids and guerrilla tactics against the British. -
The Boer War Ends
After a drawn-out war in which the British burned the Boers' farms, took women and children, and spread disease and the Boers and their fellow South Africans took up arms against them, the war was over. The British claimed the victory, and over 14,000 people died, while the rest of the Boers and South Africans formed the self-governing Union of South Africa, which was controlled by the British.
