Congo Free State

The Congo Free State, also known as the Independent State of the Congo, was a large state and absolute monarchy in Central Africa from 1885 to 1908. It was privately owned by King Leopold II, the constitutional monarch of the Kingdom of Belgium. In legal terms, the two separate countries were in a personal union. The Congo Free State was not a part of, nor did it belong to, Belgium. Leopold was able to seize the region by convincing other European states at the Berlin Conference on Africa that he was involved in humanitarian and philanthropic work and would not tax trade. Via the International Association of the Congo, he was able to lay claim to most of the Congo Basin. On 29 May 1885, after the closure of the Berlin Conference, the king announced that he planned to name his possessions "the Congo Free State", an appellation which was not yet used at the Berlin Conference and which officially replaced "International Association of the Congo" on 1 August 1885. The Free State was privately controlled by Leopold from Brussels; he never visited it.

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1885 — 1908  Wikimedia, Wikidata

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1885-07-01T00:00:00Z

1908-04-02T00:00:00Z

1885 — 1908 Congo Free State

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Frameless

Théophile Wahis

The entrenched camp at Yambuya – drawing from Jameson's diary

Bille Aubert

Chalet near Brussels Royal Palace, rue Brederode in Brussels

Indiginous Congolese people in Congo Free State

Flemish National Poster from 1885 addressed to the indigenous Congolese population that draws a parallel with Flanders and Congo and complains about the reign of King Leopold II of the Belgians.

Photo of railroad workers building the Matadi-Leopoldville railroad circa 1885 - 1889 in the independent Congo state.

The contract signed by Henry Morton Stanley with slave trader Tippu Tip on behalf of King Leopold II at the British consulate in Zanzibar in 1887.

Expeditionmembers AIA in Boudewijncity (Moba, Congo) 1892

Ngongo residence

• The Catholic Church and the Early Stages of King Leopold II's Colonial Projects in the Congo (1876-1886) - journal article from 'Social Sciences and Missions = Sciences sociales et missions' published in 2019, online
• Le Mouvement Géographique - geographical magazine published in Brussels from 1884 to 1922, French
• The Crime of the Congo - 1909 book by Arthur Conan Doyle, English

Type	Subtype	Date	Description	Notes	Source
event	armed conflict	1896	Battle of Shangi	Congo Free State, battle, Kingdom of Rwanda	Wikidata
event	armed conflict	1897	Battle of Rejaf	Congo Free State, battle, Mahdist Sudan	Wikidata
event	war	1881	Mahdist War	war, British Empire, Congo Free State, Kingdom of Italy, Ethiopian Empire, Mahdist Sudan	Wikidata
event	war	1892	Congo–Arab War	Sefu bin Hamid, Congo Free State, Tippu Tip, proxy war	Wikidata
commons	image		Théophile Wahis		Commons
commons	image		The entrenched camp at Yambuya – drawing from Jameson's diary		Commons
commons	image		Bille Aubert		Commons
commons	image		Chalet near Brussels Royal Palace, rue Brederode in Brussels		Commons
commons	image		Indiginous Congolese people in Congo Free State		Commons
commons	image		Flemish National Poster from 1885 addressed to the indigenous Congolese population that draws a parallel with Flanders and Congo and complains about the reign of King Leopold II of the Belgians.		Commons
commons	image		Photo of railroad workers building the Matadi-Leopoldville railroad circa 1885 - 1889 in the independent Congo state.		Commons
commons	image		The contract signed by Henry Morton Stanley with slave trader Tippu Tip on behalf of King Leopold II at the British consulate in Zanzibar in 1887.		Commons
commons	image		Expeditionmembers AIA in Boudewijncity (Moba, Congo) 1892		Commons
commons	image		Ngongo residence		Commons