In 1870, only about 10 percent of Africa was controlled by European countries; by 1914, roughly 90 percent was.

That shift happened in under fifty years — a breathtaking land grab. In 1870, most of the continent was still governed by African kingdoms and communities. By the time World War I started, European powers had drawn lines across the map and claimed nearly everything except Ethiopia and Liberia. The speed of that change is hard to overstate.