Between 1885 and 1908, King Leopold II of Belgium ruled the Congo Free State as his personal possession. Under his regime, millions of Congolese people were subjected to forced labor, vioIence, and terror in the pursuit of rubber and ivory profits.
Men, women, and children were forced to meet rubber quotas. Those who failed often faced brutal punishments, including beatings, imprisonment, mutiIation, and exelęcution. Soldiers of the Force Publique were notorious for cutting off the hands of victims as proof that ammunition had not been wasted.
Entire villages were burned, families were taken hostage, and widespread famine and disease followed. Historians estimate that the population of the Congo may have declined by millions of people during Leopold's rule, making it one of the most devastating colonial atrocities in history.
International outrage eventually forced Leopold to relinquish control in 1908, after which the territory became the Belgian Congo.
King Leopold II did this.