# Canonical recap data for Berlin Colonial Conference (1884)
# Source: https://recap.at/1884/berlin-colonial-conference
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: berlin-colonial-conference
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1884/berlin-colonial-conference"
title: Berlin Colonial Conference
subtitle: Bismarck's Berlin Conference regulated European colonization of Africa, establishing territorial rules that would fuel imperial competition and set the stage for continental conflicts.
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1884-11-15
endDate: 1885-02-26
datePrecision: day
year: 1884
decade: 1880
country:
name: Germany
slug: germany
summaryShort: The Berlin Conference of 1884–1885 was a meeting of colonial powers that concluded with the signing of the General Act of Berlin, an agreement regulating European colonisation and trade in Africa during the New Imperialism period. The conference of fourteen countries was organised by Otto von Bismarck, the first chance
summaryLong: The Berlin Conference of 1884–1885 was a meeting of colonial powers that concluded with the signing of the General Act of Berlin, an agreement regulating European colonisation and trade in Africa during the New Imperialism period. The conference of fourteen countries was organised by Otto von Bismarck, the first chancellor of Germany, at the request of Leopold II of Belgium at a building on Berlin’s central Wilhelmstrasse. It met on 15 November 1884 and, after an adjournment, concluded on 26 February 1885 with the signing of the General Act. During the conference, attendees also discussed other related issues and agreed on a common framework for the recognition of European ''effective occupation'' of African coastal territory elsewhere on the continent. After the conference, European claims on African territory increased with international legal recognition, having a newly established legal framework for establishing colonies.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Kongokonferenz.jpg/1280px-Kongokonferenz.jpg"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Berlin Conference"
importance: 81
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts: []
timeline: []
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_Conference"
  title: Berlin Colonial Conference
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
categories:
- war
metaDescription: The Berlin Conference of 1884–1885 was a meeting of colonial powers that concluded with the signing of the General Act of Berlin, an agreement regulating Europe
wikidataQid: Q13582
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260621083740/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_conference"
  capturedAt: 2026-06-21
  label: Berlin Colonial Conference
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_Conference"
