Colonies+and+Factors+of+Colonization

Colonies and Factors of Colonization
__Egypt__- Egypt was a key part in the old spice and trade routes between Europe and Asia. They have used the Ottoman waters for loading and unloading for generations. Also was the quickest way of communication between Britain and India, controlling Egypt would give Britain yet another advantage over the rest of the European nations scrambling for new markets.

__East Africa__- East Africa was very desirable due to the vast amounts of oils that it had and still has today, it was also popular for its various precious metals such as gold, silver and copper. Britain needed new markets, that would provide enough money so they could stay ahead in the "game".

__Union of South Africa__- South Africa was most desired for its various gold and diamond deposites. Gold and diamond markets were worth a great deal of money and with control of an area such as S. Africa, Britain would continue to lead the way in the race for colonization.

__Nigera__- The Europeans mainly colonized in Nigeria for their raw materials. One major thing that also made Nigeria desirable was the fact that much of the oil and ivory trade was through Nigeria, and for Britain to be able to control another important aspect of trade, that would involve controlling all of Nigeria.

One of the main factors of colonization in Africa, was that the Europeans had technological superioritiy over Africans. Advancements in European technology include weaponry, industry, and the science field. Advancements in the weaponry field include the Maxim machine gun, in the industry field the invention of steam engines, and in the science field the discovery of quinine, a vaccine for malaria, which was highly popular in Africa gave European nations the upper hand. Another major factor contributing to the colonization of Africa was that Africa had a very large disunity due to linguistic and ethnic differences. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of different ethnic groups and languages spoken through out Africa. It soon became clear that it would be very easy for the Europeans to invade, considering most of the natives could not communicate with each other due to the linguistic differences. The driving factor for the coloniziation of Africa was the vast amount of natural resources that Africa possessed. Almost all of its resources were completely intact or barley used before the Europen nations discovered them. All of these factors combined set Africa up for its irreversable fate. [|classroomclipart.com]