Cameroon


 * __Cameroon __**

Cameroon was the first territory to become a German colony. It was imperialized on July 12th, 1884. It is bordered by Nigeria on the northwest, Chad to the northeast, Central African Republic to the east, the Republic of the Congo to the southeast, and Gabon and Equatorial Guinea to the south. It borders the Pacific Ocean on the west. It is called Cameroon still to this day. // Reasons for Conquering Cameroon: // Cameroon was an attractive territory for Germany to imperialize because Cameroon contained many different ethnic groups and therefore the culture was very diverse. Germany wanted to unite the region by bringing European ideas into the area and establish an advanced culture for the native people there. Cameroon also had many natural resources, which helped in industrialization. Some of these included lumber, which was needed to construct more buildings and factories as indusrialization increased. Cameroon also had petroleum and iron ore which were important fuel sources for operating machinery and inventions created during the Industrial Revolution. Agricultural products included coffee, cocoa, cotton, bananas, and grains. These food sources could be used to feed the growing population in Germany. Cameroon had livestock as well, which could also be used as a food source. All of these reasons contributed to German's desire to gain Cameroon as their own colony. // Positive and Negative Effects of German Imperialism: // The many ethnic groups living within this region were not happy with changing their separate cultures and uniting into one. Sometimes, these ethnic groups were rivals and the attempt to unify the area made the enemies fight each other. Many natives died within these battles. Germany brought European ideas into the area and introduced advanced ideas. They brought Christianity to the region as they wanted to. However, many native Africans did not accept the idea of change. Germany had to deal with Africans not accepting these new ideas without a fight.

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