History Form Five Topic 4 From Colonialism To The First World War (1880’s-1914)

From Colonialism to the First World War (1880s–1914)

During the late 19th century, European powers intensified their competition for territorial control in Africa in a period known as the *Scramble for Africa*. This culminated in the Berlin Conference of 1884–85, where European nations partitioned the continent without considering existing African societies. For Tanganyika (present-day mainland Tanzania), this led to the imposition of German colonial rule starting in the 1880s. The Germans established administrative control, exploited resources, and used force to suppress resistance, such as the Hehe under Chief Mkwawa and the famous Maji Maji Rebellion of 1905–1907. These resistances, although ultimately defeated, reflected African opposition to colonial domination and the disruption of traditional social, political, and economic systems.

The period leading to the First World War saw increased consolidation of colonial control in East Africa. The Germans intensified infrastructure development such as railways and plantations, largely for the benefit of the colonial economy and European settlers. African labor was exploited through forced labor and taxation, causing widespread social and economic hardship. Meanwhile, rivalries among European powers, including Britain, Germany, and France, contributed to growing tensions that eventually exploded into the First World War in 1914. Tanganyika became a battleground during the war, particularly through the campaigns led by German commander Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck. The war disrupted colonial administration and economies, and its aftermath led to the transfer of Tanganyika from German to British control under a League of Nations mandate, marking a shift in colonial rule but not in the fundamental exploitation of African resources and labor.