Fraud Blocker Skip to main content

Home > Animals > Reptiles > Snakes > Congo Snake

Congo / Cartoon / Punch / 1906

Congo  /  Cartoon  /  Punch  /  1906


Canvas Prints
Fine Art Prints
Mounted Prints
Metal Prints
Cards
Home Decor


We accept all major credit cards

Mary Evans Prints Online

Wall Art and Photo Gifts from Mary Evans Picture Library

Congo / Cartoon / Punch / 1906

King Leopold II, King of the Belgians, crushes the Belgian Congo. In the rubber coils

Mary Evans Picture Library makes available wonderful images created for people to enjoy over the centuries

Media ID 619915

© Mary Evans Picture Library 2015 - https://copyrighthub.org/s0/hub1/creation/maryevans/MaryEvansPictureID/10071576

Belgian Belgians Colonialism Congo Crushes Leopold Punch Rubber Snake Victim


FEATURES IN THESE COLLECTIONS

> Africa > Related Images

> Animals > Reptiles > Snakes > Congo Snake


EDITORS COMMENTS
This powerful and provocative political cartoon, published in Punch magazine in 1906, offers a scathing critique of King Leopold II of Belgium's brutal rule over the Congo Free State in Central Africa. The image depicts King Leopold II, dressed in the regal attire of a European monarch, standing triumphantly atop a giant rubber snake, which represents the Congo. The snake's coils are wrapped around a helpless, nude African man, symbolizing the Congolese people, who are being crushed beneath the weight of exploitation and colonial oppression. The cartoon is a poignant reminder of the brutal realities of the Belgian Congo during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. King Leopold II had seized control of the Congo in 1885, and during his rule, the region was subjected to forced labor, widespread violence, and the brutal harvesting of rubber, which was in high demand in Europe at the time. The resulting human suffering and loss of life were immense, with estimates suggesting that millions of Congolese people died as a result of the forced labor and violence. The use of a snake as a symbol of the Congo is significant, as it represents both the danger and the allure of the unknown. The rubber industry had fueled the European fascination with the Congo, and the snake's coils can be seen as a metaphor for the grip that the Congo had on the European imagination, as well as the stranglehold that King Leopold II had on the region and its people. This cartoon is a powerful reminder of the complex and often troubling history of colonialism and its impact on the lives of millions of people in Africa and beyond. It serves as a reminder of the need to acknowledge and learn from the past, and to strive for a more just and equitable world.

MADE IN THE UK
Safe Shipping with 30 Day Money Back Guarantee

FREE PERSONALISATION*
We are proud to offer a range of customisation features including Personalised Captions, Color Filters and Picture Zoom Tools

SECURE PAYMENTS
We happily accept a wide range of payment options so you can pay for the things you need in the way that is most convenient for you

* Options may vary by product and licensing agreement. Zoomed Pictures can be adjusted in the Basket.



redeem
Beautiful Photo Prints and Gifts
image
Professionally Printed
inventory
Photo Prints are in stock
thumb_up
Professional quality finish
diamond
Made with high-grade materials
inventory_2
Carefully packed to aid safe arrival



Related Images


Kunga cake
Kunga cake
Painting from the Dreamtime, Aboriginal art, Australia, Pacific
Painting from the Dreamtime, Aboriginal art, Australia, Pacific
Sensory homunculus
Sensory homunculus
Zulu War Britannia 1879
Zulu War Britannia 1879
Man and Woman of Cacongo
Man and Woman of Cacongo
Otumfuo Osei Agyemang Prempeh II
Otumfuo Osei Agyemang Prempeh II
PRINTING PRESS, 1639. The first printing press brought to colonial America in 1639 by the English printer Stephen Daye, who set it up in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Wood engraving, American, 19th century
PRINTING PRESS, 1639. The first printing press brought to colonial America in 1639 by the English printer Stephen Daye, who set it up in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Wood engraving, American, 19th century
Picture No. 11052007
Picture No. 11052007
MIGRANT WORKERS, 1938. An African American family being moved from Arkansas to
MIGRANT WORKERS, 1938. An African American family being moved from Arkansas to
Soudan, Fashoda conflict. Magazine Punch, 1898
Soudan, Fashoda conflict. Magazine Punch, 1898
Little girl and her German Shepherd dog
Little girl and her German Shepherd dog
Don Miguel de Castro, Emissary of Congo, c. 1643-1650, by Alb
Don Miguel de Castro, Emissary of Congo, c. 1643-1650, by Alb

+

Shipping

+

Choices

+

Reviews

+

Guaranteed