Why did britain build an empire in africa?
If you look at Britain’s empire you will see that many places were obtained as trading depots – or factories as they were then known. Britain as a country did not seek these places but rather they were obtained by business men who often sought royal charters to be able to get protection if the natives turned restless. They traded goods with Africans amongst others, who were at least initially happy to hand over some territory to get access to western goods. Africans had a different view of land ownership and probably could not imagine that deals made were likely to be enforced in perpetuity. Britain actually only started seeking an empire in the Victorian era and certainly towards the end of the 19th century the empire was a force for good in many cases, for example stamping out slavery in Malawi. The empire was run in a paternal fashion and Africans were viewed as big children who needed to be civilised educated and shown the light. Remember people’s attitudes were very different at t
