I’ve heard it said that Leopold II exerted much more direct control over the Congo than his monarchical contemporaries did over their colonies. Is this true, and why is it so?
Hi! I think what you are referring to is that the Congo Free State was Leopold II's personal property. I think this answer from an AMA by u/Matthew_G_Stanard , the author of ''Selling the Congo'' adresses the consequences in depth quite well: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/3iaa08/ama_selling_the_congo_and_belgian_imperialism/cueznjm