Decolonization and Civil War in The Democratic Republic of the Congo | Casual Historian

Lou Mumba and his Kasa Vubu band played at lbj inaugural ball

This video just got me through the most vicious hangover ever and for that I thank you sir

Divided and conquered

Belgium should have never given it up. Just not do any more Leopold stuff.

great video!

I disagree with your reasoning against the supposed marxist narrative. Whilst yes, the scramble for africa had many reasons beyond mere economic justifications, the prior colonial exploits of the british, french, dutch and portuguese in the continent had definite economic background. Usually the establishment of trade ports to secure routes to india and take advantage of the slave trade. The shift in colonizing vast swathes of land that was inhospitable to europeans for the longest time, beyond those largely coastal areas also had certain economic objectives, be it cash-crops, rubber or mining. The lack of profitability was partially the result of the large investment it took for european powers to hold these territories, composed of many different peoples with differing agendas. Over the decades, the economic interests of colonial powers easily took over any pretense of national glory, especially as the continent was mainly consolidated by the british and french, who, oftentimes held onto their economic interests on the continent, sometimes violently, well after formal independence. This and the prevailing neocolonial relationship present with those former colonies, which you have also showcased in some of your videos, kind of lends credence to said narrative. The materialist lense would also not deny such motives as national glory or containment of other competing powers on the world stage as those also service economic interests in different fashions. I.e. the german shipbuilding industry probably gad a field day with Willhelm II's massive naval expansion, to project global power and in part also to hold onto the colonies we had, for example. There were a lot of private interests that lead up to the carving up of the continent, which was also visible in how the colonial powers were sending expeditions and prospectors into those, in their eyes, virgin lands. Still, I am grateful about your high production value content and especially appreciative of the goofy historical news-clips, even if I may disagree with your takeaway here.

Way down deep in the middle of the Congo, a lion took an apricot, a guava and a mango. He stuck em all together and he danced a dainty tango. The rhino said "I know, we'll call it Um Bongo".

My friend you r an lmperialist apologist

I'll edit Congo's history so it never becomes property of the Belgian Psycho-King and his Sociopathic State. Instead, Congo becomes an ethnic-integrated proprietory colony which it remains as such but with a modestly good standard of living for the inhabitants and ethnic regional autonomy for the people in which opportunity is guaranteed although challenging and the education of the people is on par with Northern Europe. The Average Congolese adult is equal in education to a Northern European. Do know this state is not a democracy and it is not a communist state. It is exploited for its wealth, but in the interest of advancing the economic wellbeing of the people who are more invested in economic and academic advancement than they are in petty issues such fighting amongst each other or outsiders. Instead, people who are interested in becoming a soldier leave the Congo/Zaire and join the international police force or the global army/military.

Man. What a shit show.

you cannot revise history, and marxism-leninism looks at historical materialism. saying that africa wasn’t colonized in order to exploit africa is like saying the us civil war was not fought over chattel slavery, but “state’s rights.” the trope is used to give white racists permission to abuse people of color with a rationalized justification.

So the white folks leave the scene and allow the local population to get behind the wheel and the locals fck everything up. I keep hearing that story over and over

Its Africa, there will always be conflict. Rebels vs rebels.

Info bongo bongo o go —Lou Mumbo

Sounds like Katanga got f'd over. Savages

I've read compelling arguments that colonial brutality followed largely the type of resource extraction that were exploited and that the reason why the Congo's labor regime looked the way it did was because such a large proportion of it was rubber harvesting.

“I joined the Congolese Army because I am in favour of Mr Tshombe. And then to get away from the wife and the money”

😭😭😭😭

Still a mercenary thug, though. Just a funny mercenary thug.

Why havent Congo annexed Cabinda?

The Belgians did a great job instigating their everlasting mayhem...and the weak and corrupted Congolese leaders allowed themselves to be bribed with their own riches...stupid is as stupid does...r.i.p. Patrice Lumumba the only true Congolese leader....

Learning about the Congo Free State was one of the most saddening times for me. Those pictures of crowds of people with only 1 hand and the man looking at remains of his cannibalized daughter sat with me so long.

Guy joined the Congolese army to get away from his wife and mother!

Makes me wonder what the region would be like if their was no foreign interventions and the country ran it on it's own.

A good summation of a very complex situation, but there is no way every nuance can be explained in a short video (or even in a very long video). All in all very happy with the programme, it is interesting that the surrender of the Irish company at Jadotville is mentioned as they were not not well supported by the UN and were doomed to fail. I don't think the UN were at all prepared for the task.

Propaganda.

You know, based on the stats they introduced the video with, detailing the current status of the DRC, if you take out their GDP, you could just as well be dam near describing the good ol' US of A.

Undergo German, the Congo had over 70,000 miles of well-maintained road. No more than 15 years after independence. The same nation has less than 10,000 miles a row. You figure it out.

Abuse and exploitation has been the way of Africans since the beginning of time. The Europeans didn’t have to teach them how to do it, they were already well-versed in brutality.

Thank you Sir, for an enlightening episode!!!🙏👌🤔

The sad thing is Africa was at his bet under imperial powers...

Mad Mikes commando mercenaries were the most professional and well disciplined of the mercenaries in the Congo (going as far as to make them shave daily even while in the bush). The claims of rape and such come from the many other mercenaries groups fighting for Katanga led by the French (Bob Denard comes to mind) Spanish Portuguese and German mercenaries.

If Katanga got independence and retained some Belgian connection, without massacring the white it would be the richest country in Africa today. It had great potential.

Well, what a fine mess.

What is your source that claims Colonial Powers made no Profit in Africa? This is not rhetorical - I really want the source.

Lol at that one mercenary that joined the Congo outfit to get away from his wife

Congrats to the Congo for winning the 7th circle of Hell award in Africa. Given the competition, quite an accomplishment.

Mike Hoare did not call his men thugs. He deliberately cultivated the opposite image among his men. He discusses the specific libel written about 5 commando in his book, and the accusations line up with the same disinformation that spread about Rhodesia in the bush war

I remember the flash of Rowland's Thompson gun....🇳🇴 bravest son.

Never let your enemy write your history, that's why this video tries to limit the invisible hand of US as much as possible. Patrice Lumumba was killed by the Belgian government. Mobutu was a CIA employee that received orders from the USA government!

Love your videos mate....learn more from your documentaries than I ever did at school...thank you guys

Leopold has a special place in hell next to the likes of Hitler, Stalin, and Mao.

Causes for colonization in Africa were:
1. Raw materials
2. Markets
3. Settlement
Certainly the initial drive was political, no question about that, however politics preceed everything, economics, social issues, technological, geography etc.
Take settlement, its not universal, there were settlers in Kenya, Tanganyika, Rhodesia but not in Uganda.

Do we really HAVE to see your Face while you polish your Ego?

You have no idea what is really going on do you?

the irony of it all was that Lumumba was not at all planning to have a communist state...
he just wanted the weapons to quell all the uprisings in his country, who were organised by the mining companies and other "big business".
the biggest mistake Lumumba made was appointing Mobutu as chief of staff of the army, it was Mobutu, with the help and support of the CIA, that killed the democracy that Lumumba wanted to built. Lumumba was a social-domocrat, NOT a communist.
his assasination was an enormous disaster that ruined what could have been a great nation untill the present day.
if only the world had listened to Lumumba and helped him to achieve his goal the DRC would be the Germany of the African continent today... :(

So it turns out that Lumumba is the moderate and Kasavubu is the radical nutjob. Who knew?

The CIA didn't fund the mercenaries directly but they did use anti-Castro Cuban forces as part of a secret airforce that used old WW2 aircraft to carry out secret missions the ALN. These Cubans were also a part of the Assault on Stanleyville in November 1964, and did fight alongside the mercs.