UNESCO General History of Africa, Vol. VI: Africa in the Nineteenth Century Until the 1880s

UNESCO General History of Africa #6

by J.F. Ade Ajayi (Editor)

The result of years of work by scholars from all over the world, "The UNESCO General History of Africa" reflects how the different peoples of Africa view their civilizations and shows the historical relationships between the various parts of the continent. Historical connections with other continents demonstrate Africa's contribution to the development of human civilization. Each volume is lavishly illustrated and contains a comprehensive bibliography. This sixth volume of the acclaimed series covers the period from the beginning of the nineteenth century to the onset of the European "scramble" for colonial territory in the 1880s. In spite of a growing European commercial, religious, and political presence during the first three quarters of the century, outside influences were felt indirectly by most African societies, and they made a number of culturally distinctive attempts to modernize, expand, and develop. These are detailed in four thematic chapters, twenty-three chapters detailing developments in specific areas, and two concluding chapters tracing the African diaspora and assessing the state of the Continent's political, economic, and cultural development on the eve of the European conquest.

Genres: Africa, History

896 pages, ebook

First published November 7, 1989

About the author

Jacob Festus Adeniyi Ajayi, commonly known as J. F. Ade Ajayi was a Nigerian historian and a member of the Ibadan school, a group of scholars interested in introducing African perspectives to African history and focusing on the internal historical forces that shaped African lives.

Reviews

[A YOGAM · Rating 4 out of 5]

Band VI: Das 19. Jahrhundert bis zu den 1880er Jahren
(Directeur du Volume: J. F. Ade Ajayi)
Dieser Band beschreibt die Phase innerer Reformen und den letzten politischen und militärischen Widerstand vor der kolonialen Aufteilung des Kontinents. Er dokumentiert die Modernisierungsversuche afrikanischer Staaten – etwa in Ägypten und Westafrika – sowie ihre diplomatischen Anstrengungen zur Wahrung der Souveränität. Das hartnäckige Bild des „dunklen Kontinents“ wird durch die Darstellung der komplexen sozialen und politischen Entwicklungen vor der Berliner Konferenz überzeugend widerlegt.
Eine ausführlichere Besprechung der methodischen Grundlagen und der Bedeutung dieses Projekts findet sich in meiner Rezension zu Band I der Reihe:
Histoire Générale de l’Afrique I – siehe meine Rezension hier:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4...