''King Leopold's Soliloquy'' is a 1905

pamphlet A pamphlet is an unbound book (that is, without a Hardcover, hard cover or Bookbinding, binding). Pamphlets may consist of a single sheet of paper that is printed on both sides and folded in half, in thirds, or in fourths, called a ''leaflet'' ...

by American author

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Fau ...

. Its subject is Leopold II's rule over the

Congo Free State The Congo Free State, also known as the Independent State of the Congo (), was a large Sovereign state, state and absolute monarchy in Central Africa from 1885 to 1908. It was privately owned by Leopold II of Belgium, King Leopold II, the const ...

. A work of

political satire Political satire is a type of satire that specializes in gaining entertainment from politics. Political satire can also act as a tool for advancing political arguments in conditions where political speech and dissent are banned. Political satir ...

harshly condemnatory of his actions, it ostensibly recounts a fictional monologue of Leopold speaking in his own defense.

Content

King Leopold II raves madly about the good things that he says he has done for the people of the

, including the disbursement of millions on religion and art. He says he had come to Congo with

piety Piety is a virtue which may include religious devotion or spirituality. A common element in most conceptions of piety is a duty of respect. In a religious context, piety may be expressed through pious activities or devotions, which may vary amon ...

"oozing" from "every pore", that he had only wanted to convert the people to Christianity, that he had wanted to stop the

slave Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

trade. Leopold II says that he did not take any of the government money, that he did not use the

revenue In accounting, revenue is the total amount of income generated by the sale of product (business), goods and services related to the primary operations of a business. Commercial revenue may also be referred to as sales or as turnover. Some compan ...

s as his personal "swag", and that such claims by the "meddlesome American missionaries", "frank British consuls", and "blabbing Belgian-born traitors" are wholly false. He asserts that for a king to be criticized as he has been is

blasphemy Blasphemy refers to an insult that shows contempt, disrespect or lack of Reverence (emotion), reverence concerning a deity, an object considered sacred, or something considered Sanctity of life, inviolable. Some religions, especially Abrahamic o ...

—surely, under the rule of God, any king who was not doing God's will would not have been helped by God. The book mentions the critical report by the missionary William Henry Sheppard on an 1899 massacre of over 80 people by Zappo Zaps sent to collect taxes. Leopold claims that his critics only speak of what is unfavorable to him, such as the unfair taxes that he levied upon the people of the Congo, which caused

starvation Starvation is a severe deficiency in caloric energy intake, below the level needed to maintain an organism's life. It is the most extreme form of malnutrition. In humans, prolonged starvation can cause permanent organ damage and eventually, de ...

and the extermination of entire villages, but not of the fact that he had sent

missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Miss ...

to the villages to convert them to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

Publication

The book was published in English, French, German and Italian. Two German-language editions were published in

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

in 1961 and 1967 and an additional edition was published in 2014.Mark Twain, ''König Leopolds Selbstgespräch: Eine Verteidigung seiner Herrschaft im Kongo''. Berlin: Tribüne, 1961. Übersetzt und mit einem Vorwort von Stefan Heym. Hrsg. im Auftrag d. FDGB - Bundesvorstandes. Also: Mark Twain, ''König Leopolds Selbstgespräch: Essays, Berichte, Skizzen''. Berlin: Aufbau Verlag, 1979. Aus dem Amerkanischen übertragen von Ana Maria Brock. The American publisher P. R. Warren Company from Boston, donated all surplus to relief and aid in the Congo atrocities.

References

External links

''King Leopold's Soliloquy'' by Mark Twain
PDF download at

American Museum of Natural History The American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) is a natural history museum on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Located in Theodore Roosevelt Park, across the street from Central Park, the museum complex comprises 21 interconn ...

*
AMNH.org's (American Museum of Natural History) PDFs of ''King Leopold's Soliloquy''
* {{Authority control 1905 books Books about imperialism Books about Leopold II of Belgium Books by Mark Twain Belgian colonisation in Africa Opposition to atrocities in the Congo Free State Propaganda books and pamphlets Pamphlets Satirical publications Satirical essays American political satire Cultural depictions of kings Cultural depictions of Belgian people

Content

Publication

See also

References

External links