Congo Free State
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The Congo Free State, also known as the Independent State of the Congo, was a large state and absolute monarchy in Central Africa from 1885 to 1908. It was privately owned by King Leopold II, the cons
Leopold II, King of the Belgians and de facto owner of the Congo Free State from 1885 to 1908
Henry Morton Stanley, whose exploration of the Congo region at Leopold's invitation led to the establishment of the Congo Free State under personal sovereignty
A cartoon depicting Leopold II in the middle, German Emperor William I on the right and the Russian Empire on the left, at the 1884 Berlin Conference
A bond of the Congo Free State, issued March 1888
Belgian Congo
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The Belgian Congo was a Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960. It is today the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Congo Free State
…the end of Leopold II's absolutist rule; the Belgian Parliament annexed the Congo Free State as a colony of Belgium. It became known thereafter as the Belgian Congo. In addition, a number of major Belgian investment companies pushed the Belgian government to take over the Congo and develop the mining sector as it…
Leopold II, King of the Belgians and de facto owner of the Congo Free State from 1885 to 1908
Children mutilated during King Leopold II's rule
Former residence of the Governor-General of the Belgian Congo (1908–1923) located in Boma
On the left hand side, the former Ministry of the Colonies, adjacent to the Constitutional Court, Brussels