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In the north, the British were allowing the Egyptians to run their internal affairs, retaining control only over the Suez Canal and of military and foreign affairs. Britain, however, allowed no real reforms in Egypt, fearing that this would lead to political unrest. A bone of contention emerged between Britain and Egypt concerning who ruled in the Sudan, which had been ruled by Egypt. To block French penetration of the region the British had expanded into the Sudan in the 19th century.
At the southern tip of the continent, the British were at war with the descendants of Dutch settlers, the Boers - a war that was to last until 1902. Winning the war was to bring that part of the continent under British influence until a few years after the Second World War, when the mainly Afrikaner National Party was elected.
In Kenya, during the century's first decade, military expeditions gave the British a reputation as overlords. Peace was secured as tribes recognised the superiority of British arms. Later British settlers followed. However, the British discouraged settlers from moving into neighbouring Uganda and the land there remained in the hands of Africans.
Along the Atlantic coast in West Africa, the British ruled in the Gambia, the Gold Coast (now Ghana), Nigeria and Sierra Leone. Again, the Africans recognised the superiority of British arms and reluctantly accepted British domination.
In forcing their rule onto the Africans, the British wanted to be thought of as civilizers who were bringing order, modernity and freedom. But all this was not serving Britain economically. During the first decade of the twentieth century, profits from the colonies were not covering the expense of maintaining a British presence in Africa. |
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