Why didn't Europeans colonize Africa as they did to America during the colonial times?

Question

Seriously. Why didn't they? They had a long acquaintance with Africa and parts of Africa were appropriate for European exploitation.

Answer 1

They did. The British and Dutch were involved in South Africa and even had the Boer War over it. The French were in Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Chad, Ivory Coast and I believe Libya. The Italians were in Djibouti and Ethiopia and the Belgians were in the Congo. The British Empire covered Kenya, Tanganyika, Zanzibar, Nyasaland, North and South Rhodesia, Ghana, Liberia, Gambia, Sierra Leone, and others I can't remember. Some of those countries have changed their names to become Zambia, Tanzania, Namibia, etc.

Answer 2

The race for Africa occurred in the latter half of C19 (apart from the Cape of Good Hope), well after the colonisation of North America, India. One reason for the delay that I read about long ago was that the local kingdoms were strong enough to resist any colonisation apart from small enclaves on the coast. Also, in Africa the Europeans were exposed to tropical diseases to which the locals were resistant. This is the reverse of the case in noprth America, where the locals had no resistance to imported diseases. Disease did more than anything else to decimate the populations of North America and Australia.

But the subject is very complex.

Answer 3

Europeans have colonized Africa. England, France, and Portugal are some countries that have colonized Africa.

Answer 4

Various European countries did, including Britain, France and Belgium. Climate and disease did not make Africa as suitable for colonisation as some other regions. There was a wave of decolonisation in the fifties.

Answer 5

They did, that's what all the trouble has been about. The white settlers set up governments excluding native blacks. The white settlers were a minority and feared the Native Blacks gaining control. there were many injustices committed against the Native Blacks. Mandela is the Martin King, of South Africa, in its fight against apartheid/segregration.

Answer 6

They sure did colonize. Not so much the interior, but even that, eventually. Read your history. South Africa is one glaring example.

Answer 7

They did colonise parts where the climate was favourable to them such as the highlands of Kenya .
But for the most part the climate was difficult and the endemic diseases too hazardous for widespread settlement especially for their domestic animals.
Also the indigenous population proved much harder to eliminate than in America where the ethnic cleansing was more successful.

Answer 8

Wait what? They did. That's why most of Africa is still realing from being colonialized...

Answer 9

I think they have in South Africa.

Answer 10

They did, but they where also concerned with Colonizing the east where a majority of the trade goods where coming from (i.e. spices and silk).