Footnotes Of History

In this episode, your indefatigable young hosts delve deep into what is really the pinnacle of European Imperialism – the so-called Scramble for Africa, its effects, timeline and the apparent game that European powers seemed to be playing as it advanced. Traditionally, Africa’s dangerous interior – including disease, dense and almost unnavigable river mouths and hostile populations made it almost impossible for Europeans to even consider “empiring” Africa in the ways that people usually anticipate. This is reflective a wider trend really. The risks are simply too great for a non-industrialised power to attempt any kind of subjugation. It’s only really since Britain and Europe started to pull sharply away in terms of technology, living standards and general economic resource that their armies were able to conquer anything like the territory we see in this episode. It’s a fascinating but also slightly unnerving period of colonisation and destruction that is important to properly understand if we are to avoid an