Leopold II
1835 – 1909 Belgian King of the Belgians, sovereign of the Congo Free State
Belgian king who ran the Congo Free State as his private colony.
- Religion
- Roman Catholic
- Affiliations
- House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, International African Association
Leopold II reigned as King of the Belgians from 1865 and held the Congo Free State as his personal property from 1885 to 1908. His regime forced Congolese people to harvest rubber under a quota system enforced by mutilation, hostage-taking, and killing. International outrage over the abuses forced Belgium to annex the territory as a state colony in 1908; historians estimate the population fell by millions during his rule, though exact figures are debated.
Connections
- associate of Tippu Tip — Served briefly as governor of Stanley Falls for the Congo Free State.
In the timeline
- 1865 Leopold II becomes King of the Belgians central figure
- 1876 Leopold II's Congo and the scramble for Africa, 1876-1880 central figure
- 1876 Leopold II founds the International African Association central figure
- 1879 Stanley's expedition opens the Congo interior for Leopold mentioned
- 1884 Berlin Conference carves up Africa mentioned
- 1885 – 1908 Congo Free State atrocities mentioned
- 1885 Congo Free State established under Leopold II central figure
- 1885 Leopold II founds the Congo Free State as personal property central figure
- 1885 Congo Free State becomes King Leopold's private property mentioned
- 1886 Compagnie du Congo founded under Leopold II central figure
- 1890 George Washington Williams and 'crimes against humanity' mentioned
- 1900 Congo Free State's Rubber Terror mentioned
- 1904 Casement Report exposes Congo atrocities mentioned
- 1904 Casement Report on Congo Atrocities mentioned
- 1904 Missionaries expose atrocities in Leopold's Congo mentioned
- 1906 Leopold II founds precursor of the Bakwanga diamond company central figure
- 1908 Belgian state annexes the Congo mentioned
- 1908 Belgium Annexes the Congo Free State mentioned
- 1908 Leopold hands the Congo to Belgium and is never tried mentioned
- 1908 Belgium annexes the Congo after the Leopold scandal mentioned
- 1909 Leopold II dies unrepentant central figure