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A Zulu chief named Shaka used disciplined warriors and good military organization the create a centralized state. They however, were unable to keep the kingdom intact against the British invaders.
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The movenment of the Boers north to escape British. They soon found themselves fighting with Zulu and other African groups whose land they were taking.
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David Livingstone and a group of Africans traveled into central Africa to search for the source of the Nile for several years.
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The discorveries of diamonds in South Africa.
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Newspaper reporter, Henry Stanley, was hired to search for Livingstone. He found Livingstone on the shores of Lake Tanganyika.
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Stanley signed treaties with local chiefs of the Congo River Valley. The treaties gave King Leopold II of Belgium personal control of these lands.
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Earlier in 1882, the French had approved a treaty that gave France the north bank of the Congo River. Soon Britain, Germany, Italy, Portugal, and Spain were also claiming parts of Africa.
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The Berlin Conference of 1884-1885 was established to prevent fighting, 14 European nations met to lay down the rules for division of Africa. Any European country could claim land here by notifying other nations of their claim and proving they could control the area. No african ruler ever attended, yet Africa’s fate sealed by conference.
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Gold was discorvered around the year 1886. Gold and diamonds in South Africa increased European interest in colonizing the land.
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The world's first automatic machine gun was invented. European countries quickly acquired the Maxim, while the resisting Africans were forced to rely on outdated weapons.
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The Boers took arms up against the British. Using guerilla tactics against the British and the British burned farms and imprisoned women and children, The British however did win the war.