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Signing of the General Act
- When
- 26 February 1885
- Where
- Berlin
The Berlin Conference concluded on 26 February 1885 with the signing of the General Act, regulating European colonization and trade in Africa.
The General Act formalized colonial ambitions by recognizing territorial claims in resource-rich areas. It established regulations to reduce conflict among competing powers, including protections for free trade in parts of the Congo Basin. The interpretation of the Principle of Effective Occupation was a major point of contention between Germany, Britain, and France.
Sources
- Berlin Conference Wikipedia, revision of 2026-10-08
- Otto von Bismarck Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-21
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.