1. HOW WAS LEOPOLD II ABLE TO ACQUIREAND CONSOLIDATE HIS RULE OVER THE CONGO UPT0 1908?

Background to the question.
After the success of the 1830 Belgium revolt in which Belgium was fighting for her autonomy over Holland, later in 1865 at the age 30 King Leopold Il become the king of Belgium, he then industrialised his country and joined the scramble for and partition of Africa Congo in particular.
Methods employed to acquire Congo
1. FormationoftheintemationalAfricanassociationinl876.
2. Use of colonial explorers like H.M Stanley.
3. Signing of treaties like the Makoko treaty with chief Makoko of the Teketribe.
4. Use of diplomacy i.e. he played one country against another e.g. France against Portugal, deceived USA that he was in Congo for humanitarian reasons.
5. Use of missionaries i.e. he helped in the construction of roads e.g. from Matadi to Leopoldville.
6. He also used concession companies e.g., union Munrere du Katanga, company- du Congo pourle commereratel Industries (CCCI).
7. Use of the Berlin conference where he convinced the delegates that his interests in Congo were humanitarian and scientific which were blessed by the conference.
8He also used force, confiscated large tracts of land from the Congolese and gave it to the concession companies e.g. in Azanda Ruba and Kasongo through the use of his fearless agent Stanley. He also used force against Tippu Tip and Msiri.
Tools of consolidation.
1. He used indirect rule i.e. African rulers supervised the Rubber collectors, this made Africans hate fellow Africans instead of the Europeans.
2. Mineral exploitation for Instance Katanga turned into a mineral producing"ocean" Africans who worked in the mines were under paid.
3. Used treaties / contracts i.e. he signed treaties with companies and gave them land as a payment for constructing him transport routes.
4. He used plantation and cash crop growing and food crops were ignored hence made the Congolese starve, weak and dependent on him.
5. Construction of transport and communication systems like the Kinshasa-Matadi lines, Ujjiji - Kisangani line etc. These acted as sucking tubes of the African resources thus enriching his administration, while weakening Africans.
6. He used the divide and rule policy especially between the Kasanya and Kasongo. Thus they could not unite against him.
7. He employed a policy of forced labour (force du publique) where Africans were forced to work on roads, administrative centers etc. this helped him to fulfill the effective occupation theory requirement of developing African territories, he also argued that forced labour was the only way civilise and keep the idle Africans busy with thinking of rebellion.
8. Land alienation policy i.e. all un used land belonged to Leopold and Africans were not to collect rubber from them. This made Africans poor and submissive.
9.Taxation policy; he massively taxed them taxes like death, poll, gun and rubber taxes and the defaulters were flogged, some had their fore limbs cut off and beaten publically, this helped to sustain the Belgium government and to keep AfricaJ1S in abject poverty.
10. He instituted an education policy which undermined the African acquisition of skills, sensible curriculum was deliberately not taught in schools.
11. He also ruthlessly suppressed resistances and instituted a strict police force and a local army called force publique to suppress revolters e.g. it suppressed Msiri’s rebellion in 1891 and the Budja rebellion of 1903-5.
12. Monopoly of export and import trade which dented Africans chance to obtain wealth e.g. they banned Africans from trading In Ivory and Rubber.
13. He encouraged the settlement of many Belgium nationals in the country; he even gave them land and allowed them to organise counter rebellions against Africans.
14. Leopold employed Europeans as administrators as he knew that the) could not cooperate with the Congolese against him, Africans were left to govern local offices so that they can act as shock absorbers to Leopald harsh policies to avoid Severe resistances.