Force Publique
Videos
The Force Publique was the military of the Congo Free State and the Belgian Congo from 1885 to 1960. It was established after Belgian Army officers travelled to the Free State to found an armed force
Force Publique soldiers on parade with their Belgian officer in the late 1940s
A Congolese man, Nsala, looking at the severed hand and foot of his five-year-old daughter who was killed, cooked, and cannibalized by members of the Force Publique in 1904.
Force Publique soldiers some time after 1910
The Force Publique, 1928
From 1885 to 1908, many atrocities were committed in the Congo Free State under the absolute rule of King Leopold II of Belgium. These atrocities were particularly associated with the labour policies,
Force Publique
…officers travelled to the Free State to found an armed force in the colony on Leopold II of Belgium's orders. The Force Publique was heavily involved in atrocities in the Congo Free State, and also saw action in the Congo Arab war, World War I and World War II. It was renamed to the Congolese National Army in July 1960 after Congo gained…
Mutilated children in the Congo Free State
King Leopold II, whose rule of the Congo Free State was marked by severe atrocities, violence and major population decline.
Congolese labourers tapping rubber near Lusambo in Kasai
Posed photo of a man being flogged with a sjambok (chicotte) by a Congo State soldier ca.1905