Episode 3 of 3

Establishment of the Congo Free State

When
May-August 1885
Where
Congo Free State
Part of
Leopold II establishes the Congo Free State

Leopold II established the Congo Free State as a personal possession, with the name officially adopted in August 1885.

The Congo Free State was established as a personal possession of Leopold II. The name 'Congo Free State' was announced on 29 May 1885 and officially replaced the 'International Association of the Congo' on 1 August 1885. The territory was recognized as a sovereign entity under Leopold's control.

Sources

  1. Congo Free State Wikipedia, revision of 2026-10-08
  2. Berlin Conference 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.