Colonial era of Katanga

The colonial era of Katanga is regarded as the beginning of Katanga's modern history. It encompasses the era between the late 19th century and 1959, between the first contact with Europeans and the decolonization of Central Africa. Some parts of this article talk about the Belgian Congo as a whole, for reference.

Congo Free State (1891-1908)

The first contact with Europeans in the modern Katanga region didn't take place until 1885, when King Leopold II of Belgium established his private-owned Congo Free State, drawn especially to the Katanga regions for it's heavily rich mineral deposits. The British, however were also vying to take over the area, beginning the "Scramble for Katanga", one of the prime examples of the scramble for Africa. It was eventually won by Leopold's Stairs Expedition, led by the Canadian mercenary William Stairs. The Expedition resulted in the Yeke Kingdom (the last surviving african kingdom in the area) leader Msiri's death, and Katanga's integration into the Congo Free State in 1891.

^{The Congo Free State. It was privately owned by Leopold II, the constitutional monarch of Belgium. It was not part of, nor did it belong to Belgium.}   

Leopold maintained the guise that his work was done to civilize the local population and economically develop the area. In reality, Leopold II's administration, in the expense of almost half of the entire Congo's population, ruthlessly exploited ivory and rubber from the state. There are no sources to fully determine the amount of deaths during this period, but it is estimated that forced labour and torture cut the Congo's population in half. It became one of the biggest international scandals of the 19th and 20th centuries, and caused an international outcry, putting pressure on Belgium to incorporate the state as a full colony, which it reluctantly did so in 1908, transforming it into the Belgian Congo.

^{A picture illustrating the atrocities committed in the State.}

Belgian Congo (1908-1960)

The economic development and exploitation of the Congo was one of Belgium's top priorities. It began with the construction of several railroads to open up the mineral and agricultural areas of the Congo. Katanga, in particular, was the site of major economic and industrial developments, as Belgian miners, as well as native miners coerced by the Belgians, would flock to the area to capitalize off the vast rich mineral deposits. These miners would subsequently establish the mining town of Elizabethville, which is now Lubumbashi, the capital and largest city of Katanga. Because of this, Katanga received noticeably more economic development than other provinces.

World War 1

During WW1, Katanga and Kivu were the sites of a joint British-Belgian seizure of Tanganyika, then a colony of the German Empire, orchestrated by the Force Publique. Around 25,000 Belgian troops occupied around a third of the colony. After WW1, in the Versailles treaty, Belgium was given Ruanda-Urundi as a mandate.

WW1 significantly increased demand for metals, most prominently copper. This was alleviated by the Union Minerie de Haut-Katanga (UMHK), which dominated the mining industry in Katanga. At first, these metals were sold to the Germans, but the British bought out all the wartime output, while the revenue went to the Belgian government in exile.

Interwar period

The 1920s is the first period of distinct economic development in the Congo, the other being in the 1950s. A large loan was given from Belgium to the Belgian Congo, to fund companies involved in economic and industrial activities. Many companies were privatized by the government during this period. The Katanga mining industry, led by the UMHK, attracted the majority of private investments into the Congo. Many natives left their impoverished villages to migrate into the cities. The population of Kinshasa doubled from 1920 to 1940, and that of Lubumbashi rose from 16,000 in 1923 to 33,000 in 1929. Furthermore, due to labor shortages in rural areas, many left the densely populated areas to work in the mines of the then sparsely populated Katanga. During this period, an economic empire was essentially set up in the Belgian Congo.

^{A diagram of railways and navigable rivers in the Belgian Congo.}

Great Depression

The Great Depression heavily impacted the export-based economy of the Congo, as world demand for minerals were now dropping drastically. Katanga was the worst-hit out of all the provinces, where employment rates were dropping by up to 70%. To combat this, the "Indigenous peasantry program" was created, aimed at creating a stronger internal market less dependent on external demand, but also to combat the disastrous effects of soil erosion and exhaustion. It involved giving plots of land to indigenous families and providing them with government support in the form of seeds, equipment, etc. The program would be heavily implemented in the Belgian Congo throughout the Cold War period leading up to independence.

World War 2

While Belgium was invaded and capitulated by the !@#$ forces in 1940, the Belgian Congo served as a crucial source of income for the government-in-exile, with the Congo declaring it's loyalty to the government-in-exile in May. From here the Belgians would participate with allied forces in the Battle of Britain in 1940, help in liberating Ethiopia in 1941, and a Congolese division would help British troops in the Far-Eastern theater in Burma. The majority of the uranium used in the Manhattan Project came from the Shinkolobwe mine near Likasi.

^{Congolese people enlisting for the Belgian army upon the beginning of the war.}

Post-War

After WW2, The belgian government was increasingly involved in the economic and social development of the Congo, embarking on a 10-year plan, beginning in 1949, to make the country a "model colony." It emphasized indigenous housing, health-care development, energy supply and development of rural areas. It reestablished the economic empire of the Congo, from which, for the first time, the indigenous population had actually started to benefit from. A "Europeanized" Congolese middle class known as "evolues", began to take shape in the major cities. In 1953, the Congolese were granted the right to buy and sell their own land.

^{An "evolue" family.}

Independence

The last year of the 1950's saw rapid political development in the favor of African aspirations, culminating in the 1960 election. The 1960 election was held on 22 May, to elect a president for the Republic of the Congo, which was scheduled to recieve independence on 30 June.

The independence of the Congo went as planned, and Patrice Lumumba, the winner of the election, was appointed as president. However, ethnic violence erupted in the first week of July, and Katanga seceded on July 11, beginning the contemporary era of Katanga.