African

Revolution
Presented by: Claire Donovan and Christianna Fakhouri
 What caused the revolution
● Transatlantic slave trade

○ Started around the 1600s

○ People upset because they lost many valuable people

■ Made agriculture and economic development very hard to almost impossible

■ Created a dangerous and hostile atmosphere

● Led to depopulation
 What caused the revolution
● Fiscal military state system

○ Europeans needed money for military

■ All money that the europeans took went toward the army

● Very unfair to the africans

○ Very bad for the economy

○ Overtime the Africans were losing strength to the Europeans

 What caused the revolution
● Jihad

○ Very few important enlightenment ideas were spread between the Africans

■ Fed off the the Islam for ideas

● Very appealing laws

○ They cannot become slaves

○ They promoted education for everyone

○ Alcohol was banned

■ important for the Europeans so this was enticing

 Who were the aggressors involved?
● Western European countries that invaded and destroyed Africa’s ancient civilizations
included Britain, France, Portugal, Belgium, Germany, and Spain. These dominant
countries conquered almost all of Africa by the end of the 19th Century. Their succession
is attributed to force of superior arms and trickery.

● The West African rulers created the “fiscal military” state which looked similar to other
European states, France, and Britain. They all increased their taxes to wage war on each
other.
 What was the desired outcome and the real
outcome?
● The revolution occurred because the fiscal-military state system’s trade and taxation was bad for
the economies of West African countries which the West African rulers created. The West African
countries were losing people to the Atlantic slave trade. Another reocurring cause was the increase
of taxes due to the war.

● West African commoners were attempting to search for ideas and a unifying force to help them
combat the economic depression from the wealthy West African rulers and aristocrats that imported
luxuried that weren’t good for the growing economy.

● The revolution because common people used the form of Islam they gradually adapted as a shared
set of ideas to overturn the rule of wealthy groups, they launched military campaigns to overthrow
their rulers, and these were revolutions.
Why is this revolution important to learn about?
● Learn for the future and important lessons
○ When you do things to anger people
■ It can lead to violent situations
● Cold war
●
○ Be careful who you provoke
■ It could be life threatening
● Pearl Harbor

○
 Timeline

Ethiopian advancements
Anglo - Zulu war in weapons South African War
1879 1893 1899 - 1902

Gun war Battle of Adwa Italo - ethiopian war

1880 - 1881 1896 1935 - 1936
 Significant Events
Gun War - Also known as Basutoland rebellion was a conflict between the British Cape colony and
Basuto. The war started on September 13, 1880 and ended in a victory for Basuto on April 29th,
1881.

Anglo-Zulu War - this was a war between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom in 1879. This
lasted six months which resulted on a British victory over the Zulus.

Ethiopian advancements in weapons - Ethiopian armies had 82,000 rifles and twenty-eight canons

Battle of Adwa - This was a battle that began in 1896 under Emperor Menelik the second and
surprised the world when the ethiopian army defeated the Italian army. This is a story of the African
people defending their own freedom and avoiding European colonization

South African War - The South African War was also known as the Boer War was fought between
the British Empire and the two Boer republics from 1899 - 1902. The war was fought over the
Empire's power in South America and to determine which white authority has the most power in
South Africa.
 Significant Events
Italo-Ethiopian War - Also called the second Italo-Abyssinian War was fought between Italy and
Ethiopia from October 1935 until February 1937. This war was in retaliation for the loss that Italy
suffered in the Battle of Adwa in 1896. This occurred prior to World War Two. The Italians won
this war.
 Connections
● Many of these wars were fought for European colonization over the African countries to
acquire land and power

● The significance of the battle of adwa showed the european colonists that the africans could
effectively defend their freedom and challenge the colonists power

● Each of the wars lasted at least six months to two years

● Following the Italo - Ethiopian war the Ethiopians were able to gain indipendence from Italy
when the British Empire helped to resotre Ethopias and abolish slavery under the Italian
government
 Works Cited
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica , N/A. “Anglo-Zulu War.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., n.d.,
https://www.britannica.com/event/Anglo-Zulu-War.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, N/A. “5 Fascinating Battles of the African Colonial Era.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.,
n.d., https://www.britannica.com/list/5-fascinating-battles-of-the-african-colonial-era.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, N/A. “Gun War.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., n.d.,
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 Works Cited
Getz, Trevor. “Read: West Africa in an Age of Revolution (Article).” Khan Academy, Khan Academy, n.d.,
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/whp-origins/era-6-the-long-nineteenth-century-1750-ce-to-1914-ce/61-liberal-and-national-revolutions-betaa
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N/A, N/A. “." Encyclopedia of Western Colonialism since 1450. . Encyclopedia.com. 28 Mar. 2022 .” Encyclopedia.com, Encyclopedia.com, 11 Apr. 2022,
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N/A, N/A. “The O'Malley Archives.” 2 The African Revolution - The O'Malley Archives, n.d.,
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