Primary Sources: An Investigation Into Congo
Colonialism, 1890
By George Washington Williams, adapted by Newsela staff on 12.13.17
Word Count 1,829
Level 1050L
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
The last picture of George Washington Williams, taken in 1891. Photo: Blackpast
_Editor's Note: George Washington Williams was an American minister, historian, journalist and
Civil War soldier. After the war ended in 1865, and a backlash against Black emancipation arose in
the South, Williams looked to Africa. He began to dream of the possibility of Black American
pioneers finding work and opening businesses there. Williams met with President Benjamin
Harrison to gain support for his cause, and also with King Leopold II of Belgium who ruled the
"Independent State of Congo." Williams set off to see if the conditions in the Congo would be safe
for American workers._
_In 1890, Williams sailed around the entire continent of Africa. He saw firsthand the horrors of
colonialism in the Congo. Filled with horror and rage, he wrote "An Open Letter to His Serene
Majesty Leopold II, King of the Belgians and Sovereign of the Independent State of Congo." The
letter had a huge effect in Europe, and three months later Williams wrote another letter to
President Harrison about what he'd seen. Williams became sick at the end of his trip while in
Egypt. He took a boat to England to receive medical care, but was too sick to be saved. He died in
England when he was 41 years old._
_Williams' letter was the first account to show the horrors of
the Belgian Congo to the world. It also showed that famed
explorer Henry Morton Stanley, who had been hired by King
Leopold to develop the Congo, was involved in the abuses.
Stanley is mostly known to the world for navigating and
mapping the Congo River. He named Africa the "Dark
Continent."_
"A Careful Study And Inspection Of The Country"
Good and Great Friend,
I have the honor of submitting for your Majesty some
reflections on the Independent State of Congo. They are based
on a careful study and inspection of the country and the
government you have created upon the African continent.
It gave me great pleasure to take the opportunity given to me
Image 1. The king of Belgium, King Leopold
last year to visit your State in Africa. It is now my painful duty
II. This photo was taken around 1900.
to report to your Majesty how thoroughly I have been
[Click to enlarge]
disappointed. Every charge I am about to bring against your
government in the Congo has been carefully investigated. A list
of witnesses, documents, official records and data has been faithfully prepared and will be sent to
Britain's Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
There were instances in which Mr. Henry M. Stanley sent a
white man to make treaties with native chiefs. His argument to
them was that the white man was at peace with his black
brother. He told them that the white man desired to bring all
African tribes together for their defense and welfare. All the
tricks had been carefully rehearsed, and he was now ready for
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
his work. A number of electric batteries had been purchased in
London. When attached to the man's arm under his coat, they
communicated with a band of ribbon, which passed over the
white man's hand. When he gave the black brother a friendly
handshake, the black brother was surprised to find his white
brother so strong. When the native asked why this was so, he
was told that the white man could pull up trees and perform the
most heroic feats of strength.
Image 2. The Congo region was one of
Belgium's many colonies around the world.
At first, it belonged strictly to King Leopold
II. After 1908, it was ruled by the Belgian
government. Map: Newsela staff. [click to
enlarge]
Then came the gun trick. The white man took a cap gun, tore the end of the paper that held the
powder to the bullet, and poured the powder and paper into the gun. At the same time, he slipped
the bullet into the sleeve of his left arm. A cap was placed on the gun, and the black brother was
told to walk back 10 yards and shoot at his white brother to prove that he was a spirit and could
not be killed. After much begging, the black brother aims the gun at his white brother, pulls the
trigger, the gun fires, the white man stoops ... and takes the bullet from his shoe!
By such tricks as these, too silly and disgusting to mention, white men have fooled the natives.
Whole villages in the Congo have been tricked into surrendering to your Majesty.
"I Was Doomed To Bitter Disappointment"
When I arrived in the Congo, I hoped to find an "honest and practical effort" to help the natives.
But I was doomed to bitter disappointment. Instead of the natives of the Congo "adopting the
fostering care" of your Majesty's government, they everywhere complain that their land has been
taken from them. Your Majesty's government has burned their towns, stolen their property and
committed other crimes too numerous to mention in detail.
There has been no "honest and practical effort made to increase their knowledge and secure their
welfare." Your Majesty's government has spent nothing for educational purposes, nor created any
practical system of industrialism. The labor system is radically impractical. The soldiers and
workers of your Majesty's government are not native, but mostly imported from Zanzibar, Sierra
Leone, Liberia and other areas. These workers are treated worse than cattle in European countries.
They often thirst for water when the season is dry, they are exposed to heat and rain, and they
sleep upon damp and filthy decks. And, of course, many die.
"Your Majesty's Government Is Guilty Of Breaking Its Contracts"
From these general observations, I wish now to move to specific charges against your Majesty's
government.
FIRST - Your Majesty's government lacks the resources to govern a territory of 1.5 million square
miles. Very few state officials know the language of the natives, yet they expect the natives to
understand and obey them. Cruelties of the most astounding character are committed, such as
burying slaves alive in the grave of a dead chief. No effort is put forth by your Majesty's
government to prevent them.
SECOND - Your Majesty's government has created nearly 50 posts, each controlled by two to eight
slave-soldiers from the East African coast. These black soldiers are ignorant and cruel because
they do not understand the natives, but rather are forced upon them by the State. They are the
greatest curse the country suffers now.
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
THIRD - Your Majesty's government is guilty of breaking its contracts made with its soldiers and
workmen, many of whom are subjects of other governments. Their letters never reach home.
FOURTH - The courts of your Majesty's government are unjust and lawless. I have personally
witnessed and examined their clumsy operations. The laws printed and circulated in Europe "for
the protection of the blacks" in the Congo are a fraud. I have heard an officer of the Belgian Army
pleading the cause of a white man who was guilty of beating and stabbing a black man. This officer
claimed that because his client was white he should be declared innocent.
FIFTH - Your Majesty's government is excessively cruel to its
prisoners. It condemns them, for the slightest offenses, to be
chained together. Often the chains eat into the necks of the
prisoners and produce sores. This kind of treatment cannot be
found in any other government in the civilized or uncivilized
world.
SIXTH - Women are imported into your Majesty's government
and treated very poorly. Some are captured and condemned to
work as slaves for seven years for some imaginary crime against
the State. Whenever children are born to them, the State claims
that because the women are its property, the children belong to
it also.
SEVENTH - State soldiers patrol many villages forbidding the
natives to trade with any person but a State official. When the
natives refuse to accept the price of the State, the goods are
seized by the government. When natives have continued trading
with outside trade companies, the State has punished them by
burning their villages.
...
Image 3. An imprisoned man sometime
between 1900 and 1915. The missionaries
NINTH - Your Majesty's government is guilty of waging unjust
who took this picture may have wanted to
wars against the natives, with the hope of securing slaves. In
show the cruel treatment of workers and
such slave-hunting raids, one village is armed by the State
slaves in Leopold's Congo. Photo from
against the other. I have no words to describe the brutal acts of
public domain. [click to enlarge]
your soldiers in such raids as these. In one war, two Belgian
Army officers saw, from the deck of their ship, a native in a
canoe. He was not a soldier and was ignorant of the conflict taking place on the shore some
distance away. The officers made a bet that they could hit the native with their rifles. Three shots
were fired and the native fell dead, pierced through the head. The trade canoe was transformed
into a funeral barge and floated silently down the river.
TENTH - Your Majesty's government is engaged in the slave trade. It buys, sells and steals slaves.
Recently, 316 slaves were sent down the river, and others are to follow. These poor natives are sent
hundreds of miles away from their villages to serve among other natives whose language they do
not know.
...
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
TWELFTH - The agents of your Majesty's government have
misrepresented the Congo country. Mr. Stanley, the man who
was your chief agent in setting up your government in this
country, has grossly misrepresented the character of the
country. Instead of it being fertile and productive, it is sterile
and unproductive. Henry M. Stanley's name produces a
shudder among the simple folk when mentioned. They
remember his broken promises, his hot temper and his heavy
blows.
"I Appeal To The Belgian Government To Cleanse Itself"
Image 4. A drawing from 1885 of Stanley as
he watches slaves in the Congo being
punished. Image from public domain. [click
to enlarge]
Against the cruelty of your Majesty's government stands the
natives' record of patience and forgiveness. During 13 years, only one white man has lost his life by
the hands of the natives.
All the crimes perpetrated in the Congo have been done in your name. You must answer for the
misgovernment of a people whose lives and fortunes were entrusted to you by the Conference of
Berlin, 1884-1885. I now appeal to the great States that formed that conference. I beg them to
create an International Commission to investigate the charges herein in the name of humanity,
constitutional government and Christian civilization.
I appeal to the Belgian government to cleanse itself of its crimes in the Congo.
I appeal to our Heavenly Father, in witness of the purity of my motives.
Your Majesty's humble servant,
George W. Williams
Stanley Falls, Central Africa, July 18, 1890.
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
Quiz
1
2
3
4
Examine Image 5 in the section "Your Majesty's Government Is Guilty Of Breaking Its Contracts." How does this image
contribute to the reader's understanding of the relationship between the soldiers employed by the Belgian army and native
workers?
(A)
The image shows why the Belgian army needed to employ soldiers from other areas of Africa.
(B)
The image highlights the fact that the tension WIlliams described after his visit to the Congo was not
about race.
(C)
The image helps the reader to imagine what it was like for soldiers in the Belgian army.
(D)
The image complements the description in the article by providing a visual of the soldiers' cruelty.
Which sentence from the article is BEST supported by Image 4 in the section "Your Majesty's Government Is Guilty Of Breaking
Its Contracts"?
(A)
Very few state officials know the language of the natives, yet they expect the natives to understand and
obey them.
(B)
Your Majesty's government is excessively cruel to its prisoners.
(C)
This kind of treatment cannot be found in any other government in the civilized or uncivilized world.
(D)
Your Majesty's government is engaged in the slave trade.
Which of the following pieces of evidence from the article is MOST relevant to Williams' argument that King Leopold was
ultimately responsible for the conditions in the Congo?
(A)
It gave me great pleasure to take the opportunity given to me last year to visit your State in Africa.
(B)
Every charge I am about to bring against your government in the Congo has been carefully investigated.
(C)
All the crimes perpetrated in the Congo have been done in your name.
(D)
I appeal to the Belgian government to cleanse itself of its crimes in the Congo.
George Washington Williams claims that white explorers tricked the natives into believing that white people were powerful and
strong. Which piece of evidence from the article BEST supports his claim?
(A)
There were instances in which Mr. Henry M. Stanley sent a white man to make treaties with native
chiefs. His argument to them was that the white man was at peace with his black brother. He told them
that the white man desired to bring all African tribes together for their defense and welfare.
(B)
A cap was placed on the gun, and the black brother was told to walk back 10 yards and shoot at his
white brother to prove that he was a spirit and could not be killed. After much begging, the black brother
aims the gun at his white brother, pulls the trigger, the gun fires, the white man stoops ... and takes the
bullet from his shoe!
(C)
When I arrived in the Congo, I hoped to find an "honest and practical effort" to help the natives. But I
was doomed to bitter disappointment. Instead of the natives of the Congo "adopting the fostering care"
of your Majesty's government, they everywhere complain that their land has been taken from them.
(D)
There has been no "honest and practical effort made to increase their knowledge and secure their
welfare." Your Majesty's government has spent nothing for educational purposes, nor created any
practical system of industrialism. The labor system is radically impractical.
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
Answer Key
1
2
3
4
Examine Image 5 in the section "Your Majesty's Government Is Guilty Of Breaking Its Contracts." How does this image
contribute to the reader's understanding of the relationship between the soldiers employed by the Belgian army and native
workers?
(A)
The image shows why the Belgian army needed to employ soldiers from other areas of Africa.
(B)
The image highlights the fact that the tension WIlliams described after his visit to the Congo was not
about race.
(C)
The image helps the reader to imagine what it was like for soldiers in the Belgian army.
(D)
The image complements the description in the article by providing a visual of the soldiers'
cruelty.
Which sentence from the article is BEST supported by Image 4 in the section "Your Majesty's Government Is Guilty Of Breaking
Its Contracts"?
(A)
Very few state officials know the language of the natives, yet they expect the natives to understand and
obey them.
(B)
Your Majesty's government is excessively cruel to its prisoners.
(C)
This kind of treatment cannot be found in any other government in the civilized or uncivilized world.
(D)
Your Majesty's government is engaged in the slave trade.
Which of the following pieces of evidence from the article is MOST relevant to Williams' argument that King Leopold was
ultimately responsible for the conditions in the Congo?
(A)
It gave me great pleasure to take the opportunity given to me last year to visit your State in Africa.
(B)
Every charge I am about to bring against your government in the Congo has been carefully investigated.
(C)
All the crimes perpetrated in the Congo have been done in your name.
(D)
I appeal to the Belgian government to cleanse itself of its crimes in the Congo.
George Washington Williams claims that white explorers tricked the natives into believing that white people were powerful and
strong. Which piece of evidence from the article BEST supports his claim?
(A)
There were instances in which Mr. Henry M. Stanley sent a white man to make treaties with native
chiefs. His argument to them was that the white man was at peace with his black brother. He told them
that the white man desired to bring all African tribes together for their defense and welfare.
(B)
A cap was placed on the gun, and the black brother was told to walk back 10 yards and shoot at
his white brother to prove that he was a spirit and could not be killed. After much begging, the
black brother aims the gun at his white brother, pulls the trigger, the gun fires, the white man
stoops ... and takes the bullet from his shoe!
(C)
When I arrived in the Congo, I hoped to find an "honest and practical effort" to help the natives. But I
was doomed to bitter disappointment. Instead of the natives of the Congo "adopting the fostering care"
of your Majesty's government, they everywhere complain that their land has been taken from them.
(D)
There has been no "honest and practical effort made to increase their knowledge and secure their
welfare." Your Majesty's government has spent nothing for educational purposes, nor created any
practical system of industrialism. The labor system is radically impractical.
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.