''The Scramble for Africa: The White Man's Conquest of the Dark Continent from 1876 to 1912'' is a comprehensive history of the colonisation of African territory by European powers between 1876 to 1912 known as the

Scramble for Africa The Scramble for Africa, also called the Partition of Africa, or Conquest of Africa, was the invasion, annexation, division, and colonization of most of Africa by seven Western European powers during a short period known as New Imperialism ...

. The book was written by historian and arborist Thomas Pakenham and published by

Random House Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...

in 1991. The book

juxtapose Juxtaposition is an act or instance of placing two elements close together or side by side. This is often done in order to compare/contrast the two, to show similarities or differences, etc. Speech Juxtaposition in literary terms is the showin ...

s the motives of missionary

David Livingstone David Livingstone (; 19 March 1813 – 1 May 1873) was a Scottish physician, Congregationalist, and pioneer Christian missionary with the London Missionary Society, an explorer in Africa, and one of the most popular British heroes of t ...

, King Leopold II, and other leading figures in the southern African land-grab of the late 19th and early 20th century. Pakenham details the famous battles and short wars, such as the battles of

Rorke's Drift The Battle of Rorke's Drift (1879), also known as the Defence of Rorke's Drift, was an engagement in the Anglo-Zulu War. The successful British defence of the mission station of Rorke's Drift, under the command of Lieutenants John Chard of the ...

and

Isandlwana Isandlwana () (older spelling ''Isandhlwana'', also sometimes seen as ''Isandula'') is an isolated hill in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. It is located north by northwest of Durban. The name is said to mean abomasum, the second st ...

of the

Anglo-Zulu war The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Following the passing of the British North America Act of 1867 forming a federation in Canada, Lord Carnarvon thought that a similar political effort, cou ...

. The author explores how the different powerful figures dealt with the conflict and its ultimate consequences on the region. In a book review for ''

The Journal of African History ''The Journal of African History'' (JAH) is a triannual peer-reviewed academic journal. It was established in 1960 and is published by Cambridge University Press. It was among the first specialist journals to be devoted to African history and ar ...

'', historian Tony Hopkins wrote, "Pakenham has written a book that contributes nothing of significance to our understanding of the scramble. More damagingly, the work perpetuates and popularizes an outdated view of both African and imperial history." According to Hopkins, Pakenham's work is largely based on primary source documents written by the "blunderers and plunderers" themselves without critical analysis of the accuracy, biases, or self-serving motives of his sources. Hopkins also criticised Pakenham's use of artistic license to make inferences and embellish events without supporting evidence. In 1992, the book won the

WH Smith Literary Award The WH Smith Literary Award was an award founded in 1959 by British high street retailer W H Smith. Its founding aim was stated to be to "encourage and bring international esteem to authors of the British Commonwealth"; originally open to all re ...

and the

Alan Paton Award The ''Sunday Times'' CNA Literary Awards are awarded annually to South African writers by the South African weekly newspaper the ''Sunday Times''. They comprise the ''Sunday Times'' CNA Literary Award for Non-fiction and the ''Sunday Times'' ...

References

History books about the Belgian Congo Books about Leopold II of Belgium Works about New Imperialism Works about the European colonisation in Africa 1991 non-fiction books Random House books {{Africa-hist-book-stub