When the Age of Imperialism began in 1875, it effected Africa in many ways. Nowhere was the competition for colonies more intense than in Africa. Europeans went after North and South Africa splitting up the continent. Egypt and Sudan were taken over by Britain to obtain the Suez Canal. Imperialism helped to develop Africas economy and turned it into a continent of colonies.Until well into the 1800s Africa was relatively unknown to Europeans. They controlled less than ten percent of the continent. By 1882 Britain, Germany, Italy, Portugal, and Spain were all claiming parts of Africa. In 1900, they had divided ninety percent of Africa into colonies. Although European ships had for centuries traded at ports along the coast, they brought back little knowledge of Africas interior. Later Europeans started exploring the continent. The best known of these explorers was David Livingstone. This Scottish missionary spent thirty years in central Africa, and gave Europeans their first detailed information about Africa and its people.In the mid-1800s Africa south of the Sahara contained more than seven hundred different ethnic groups. Most were organized into communities based on ties of tradition and family. Occasionally, a powerful group formed a state that was strong enough to conquer neighboring groups and form an empire. Europeans had already moved into North Africa. The once-powerful Ottoman Empire had become too weak to prevent local rulers from taking control in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Egypt. These countries were no match for the Europeans bent on conquest.Egypt has the Suez Canal, which is the fastest route to India and Australia, within it. The Suez was very important to Britain. Guarding the canal became a critical part of Britains foreign policy. Therefore, when fighting broke out in 1882, Britain took over the area and turned Egypt into a protectorate. Next the British turned their attention to Sudan. Water fr...
