Empire Rising: Spain

However, this cannot really be blamed on the British; the geographical environment of the Sudan Region is truly terrible. Not to mention Sudan, even the northern part of Egypt is desert everywhere.

Only the small river valleys along the Nile River are truly suitable for habitation, which severely limits the British army’s advance.

Compared to the local African natives, the British army is obviously not accustomed to this kind of terrain. The local natives harbor intense resistance against the British, which also makes it impossible for the British to utilize native troops to quell the rebellion.

If they pinned their hopes on an army composed of local natives, the British colonial rule in the Sudan Region might collapse in an instant.

To reduce British casualties, the British Government had to deploy certain troops from nearby Egypt and even more distant colonies like India to quell the rebellion.

This approach cannot change the battlefield situation. After all, Indians are also not well-suited to such an environment.

Egyptians can adapt, but they are not so submissive to the British. It’s already good if Egyptian soldiers don’t seize the opportunity to rebel against the British; expecting them to attack the Sudanese natives is utterly impossible.

For a time, the British had no effective solution for the rebellion in the Sudan Region. The British Government could only continue to gather troops and weapons, secretly amassing strength to deliver a deadly blow to the local natives.

While the British were busy putting down the rebellion in the Sudan Region, the German Government was not idle.

They set their sights on the northern lands of the Portuguese Mozambique Colony, a place known as Zanzibar, which was once ruled by Oman.

Yes, the very Oman Sultanate that spanned Asia and Africa. It was previously mentioned that Oman’s decline was due to losing its African territories, namely the Sultanate of Zanzibar.

This land is quite fertile, and because it is located on the UK Cairo-Cape Town line, it is also land coveted by the British.

Upon learning that Germany was vigorously expanding its colonial activities near Zanzibar, the British Government became exceedingly anxious, yet helpless.

It must be admitted, the Germans picked a good time.

The British had gathered a significant amount of troops and weapons to quell the rebellion in the Sudan Region, making it powerless to intervene in Zanzibar.

Due to the agreements of the Berlin Conference, Zanzibar, which had not been earmarked for colonial rule by the great powers, was land that all major powers could colonize.

What the Germans did was no different, and since they did not take the initiative to breach the agreements of the Berlin Conference, the British had no means to stop the Germans’ actions.

The British could compete with the Germans in Zanzibar, but military actions in the Sudan Region would also be affected.

The Germans’ stance was clear: force the British to choose.

Interfering with Germany’s colonial activities in Zanzibar would lead to further chaos in the Sudanese colonies. If they first chose to pacify the Sudanese colonies, then the situation in Zanzibar might become uncontrollable, and the Germans very likely would establish a colony there, bringing Zanzibar under their colonial rule.

Faced with the aggressive Germans, the British Government did not choose to retreat but elected a dual solution.

On one hand, the British accelerated troop maneuvers, aiming to quell the rebellion in the Sudan Region as rapidly as possible.

On the other hand, the British dispatched a small fleet to the Sultanate of Zanzibar, negotiating with the pro-British Zanzibar Government to have them resolutely resist the German invasion.

At that time, the Sultan of Zanzibar was Hamad, a pro-British ruler supported by the British Government.

After discussions with the British ambassador, Hamad did not hesitate. He immediately organized troops to resist German colonization and engaged in a series of collaborations with the British, such as purchasing weapons and supplies.

The Germans had anticipated the British actions, and knowing the Zanzibar Government’s pro-British stance, Germany chose to support officials in Zanzibar who opposed the British, promoting them as a Pro-German Faction to engage in a prolonged tug-of-war with the British.

The colonial competition between the British and Germans in Zanzibar was good news for Spain. Without the attention of these two colonial powers, Spain’s plan to merge its colonies in Guinea Bay could proceed much more smoothly.

Although there was still France competing with Spain for colonization in Guinea Bay, Spain’s colonial merger plan did not involve France’s sphere of influence, and the French were likely not to interfere with Spain’s actions, just as Spain would not interfere with French colonial endeavors in West Africa.

In the West African Region, it seemed there was a tacit understanding between France and Spain.

Spain focused on colonizing the Guinea Bay from the Gold Coast to the Congo Territory, while France prioritized colonizing the land to the west of the Gold Coast, north of the Gambia Colony.

Of course, French colonies also included North Africa’s Algeria and Tunisia, and even Congo Colony in the Congo River Basin, as well as the Malagasy Protectorate on the East African Coast, known as Madagascar in later times.

In February 1885, Spanish troops officially set foot north of the Vida Colony in the Dahomey Kingdom.

Faced with the well-prepared Spanish Army, the Dahomey Kingdom had no resistance capabilities and was soon forcibly occupied by the Spanish Army.

The Gold Coast Colony and Vida Colony were thereby connected, and Spain took the opportunity to merge them into one colony, collectively known as the Gold Coast.

Meanwhile, the Guinea Colony began launching attacks on the native countries in Guinea Bay.

On the coasts of Guinea Bay, numerous small native countries and tribes existed. These so-called countries were not large in size, some covering even just 1,000 square kilometers.

By European standards, such a size would be considered a small country, let alone in the vast expanses of Africa.

Evidently, when these native countries faced the attack of the Spanish Army, they were like fish on a chopping board, allowing the Spanish Army to cut as they pleased.

In a span of less than a month, Spain successively signed treaties with the Calabari Kingdom, Akwa Akpa City State, Oyel Country, and other native countries in the Guinea Bay, turning them into protectorates under their sphere of influence.

After almost occupying all the coastal nations of Guinea Bay, the Spanish Government officially announced to the outside world the merger of the former Gold Coast Colony and Guinea Colony. The merged colonies were collectively called the Spanish Guinea Colony, with the colonial capital set at Saint Isabella, and the garrison size increased to one Colonial Division and 12 Colonial Defense Corps.