Historedia
Episode 2 of 3

Berlin Conference Recognition

When
15 November 1884 – 26 February 1885
Where
Berlin (not in allowed places)
Part of
Leopold II establishes the Congo Free State

Representatives of 14 European countries and the United States recognised Leopold as sovereign of most of the area he and Stanley had claimed.

The Berlin Conference of 1884–1885 met on 15 November 1884 and, after an adjournment, concluded on 26 February 1885 with the signing of the General Act. At the conference, the colonial nations of Europe authorised Leopold II's claim and committed the Congo Free State to him. Representatives of 14 European countries and the United States recognised Leopold as sovereign of most of the area to which he and Stanley had laid claim. The name "Congo Free State" was not in use at the time of the conference and does not appear in the General Act.

Sources

  1. Berlin Conference Wikipedia, revision of 2026-10-08
  2. Leopold II of Belgium Wikipedia, revision of 2026-10-08

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.