Kigezi Colonial Mosaic
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Kigezi Colonial Mosaic Ian Cantwell Copyright 2019 Ian Cantwell The copyright of transcriptions, analysis and commentaries are the sole intellectual property of Ian Cantwell and is protected under national and international law. This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only, and may not be put to any commercial use or made freely available to others. If you wish to share or make a present of this book to another person or institution, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. It will be very much appreciated if purchase your own copy and thus respect the hard graft, sweat and tears of the author as well as research expenses in the Birmingham, Oxford, London and Rome List of Chapters Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter 2 The Colonial Impact on Kigezi Society, a review Chapter 3 Names have Histories Chapter 4 Bakiga ‘Anarchy’ Myth Chapter 5 Muhumuza (c. 1870-1944/5) Chapter 6 Kivu Mission, The Coote Diaries, 1909-10 Chapter 7 1920 Uganda Handbook, Kigezi Chapter 8 Nyabingi, DC Philipps’ article, 1919 Chapter 9 DC Elliot’s Memoirs, 1920s and later Chapter 10 1935 Uganda Guide, Kigezi Chapter 11 Traditional Marriage Law in the Native Courts, 1935-61, 200 synopses Chapter 12 How Jamaica learnt of Muhumuza and Nyabingi Chapter 13 1950 Saben Guide, Kigezi Chapter 14 1953 Colonial Assessment of Kigezi Chapter 15 1959 Colonial description of Kigezi Chapter 16 1960 Uganda Travelogue, Kigezi Chapter 17 1970 History Conference, Kabale Appendices 1 Kigezi Births, Marriages and Deaths, 1930s to 1960s, incomplete statistics 2 Kigezi Poll Tax Returns, 1930s to 1960s, incomplete statistics 3 Ruanda Mission Notes 4 White Father Notes 5 Additional Bibliography Chapter 1 Introduction It was never my intention to do any more detailed research about Kigezi. However, I was tempted to sample some of the archives listed in the Kigezi Mountain Mosaic (KMM) bibliography to see what they had to offer. These were the Church Missionary Society (CMS) archives, University of Birmingham; SOAS archives, London; Weston Archives, Oxford; British Library, London; and White Fathers (WF) archives, Rome. The result was that I ended up with sufficient material for a new volume. This companion is a series of transcripts, notes, synopses and scans of material, a bibliographical addendum; and a few essays. Essays written (2014) before this research have separate links; the essay below was written after (May 2015). For more detailed research on which many opinions are based see Kigezi Mountain Mosaic though some have been revised on the basis of new research. As nearly all the material is colonial I have titled the book Kigezi Colonial Mosaic. The two exceptions are the life of Muhumuza that covers the precolonial period in Rwanda as well as Uganda, and, secondly, a transcript of the 1970 historical conference held in Kabale, an important milestone in the history of Kigezi, as a continuity to the present day. A Matter for Debate Was life better under colonial rule? Many older people who remember those times and have survived post-independence dictatorship, civil war, political insecurity and lower prices, believe so; much to the horror of modern African leaders striving to improve their country, they see it as a rejection of independence, national identity, modernity and social progress. Perhaps the nostalgia of fond memories of peace and prosperity, law and order and days of sun-filled youth has been coloured by time but they are genuine none the less and rightly critique the failings and losses of modern day life. Colonisation brought a peace to Kigezi’s troubled land that lasted for near 50 years, a peace that brought new possibilities, security and prosperity to a grateful people. Unfortunately, the cost was high, the loss of a culture with a 2,000-year history, eradicated in a few generations. Political events after independence brought a second period of cultural dislocation and loss, particularly during the Idi Amin dictatorship. The nascent scholarship of the first generation of Kigezi scholars that flowered in the 1970s was almost wiped out, leaving many 21st century Banyakigezi, as with many other Ugandans, with little knowledge of their historical and cultural roots, estranged by time, geography and loss of memory. While scattered oral memories can fill in some gaps they will undoubtedly be coloured by colonialism and Christianity whereas the lack of a collection programme means that as the older generations die their knowledge will be lost forever. Kigezi’s rich past will soon be only known from museum artefacts, photos and the writings of strangers. Moral But all is not yet lost – If you, dear reader, are from Kigezi and care about your history it is your responsibility to collect what survives assisted by using what has already been written. It is far better that one with inherited knowledge, having been born and reared in Kigezi, to write its history than to depend on a stray muzungu who might take an interest for whatever reason. Keep it simple at the beginning; focus on your clan. It can be done in steps, first your family; create a family tree and to each member write what is known, a personal life history. Second a family does not exist in a vacuum so explore the family’s history within paternal and maternal clans and lastly, if and when you get that far, what was the relationship between associated clans. When interviewing elders; take copious notes for future reference, never reject information, no matter how irrelevant it may seem. You ever know when, sometime in the future, it may become useful. You can also tape interviews but need to transcribe or take notes from them soon after as tapes and other media can get easily lost or forgotten. It is important that results are published; unpublished research is wasted at death. Again keep it simple, regular three-monthly or yearly progress reports on what and where you searched, who you spoke to, what you learned, what was negative, the questions you have and a research plan. This can be done as a blog post to which people can contribute with either ideas or information. When you think you have enough publish it as a printed or electronic book; these days, the latter are easy to self-publish. Whether or not you decide to publish, extensive research notes can be lodged in an archive that specialises in such collections. Copies of interview tapes should be sent to an archive that specialises in audio material. Published research and archived unpublished research will become a source for your descendants and historians keen to learn about their past; posterity will remember you kindly for your contribution and role as a bridge between past, present and future. The 1970 History Conference in Kabale that led to the 1972 History of Kigezi ended with these inspiring words: “The Conference ended with all participants excited with their resolution and determined to exploit their efforts and work vigorously” It is my hope that this work encourages and motivates you to go and do likewise up to, and including, assisting with the organisation of a 50th anniversary conference in 2020 (and 2022) to motivate the historians of the future. Chapter 2 The Colonial Impact on Kigezi Society, a Review The impact of European conquest and colonisation on African society was profound. The cultural and technological gap was such that it caused major cultural rifts as people sought to adapt to an alien over- lordship and its re-arrangement of society’s traditional ideologies, belief systems, networks and infrastructures. This essay focuses on the impact of invasion, colonialism, religion and education and some of their consequences up to independence in the Virunga and Kigezi mountains. Historically the general Virunga mountain area can be divided into three regions, South, Central and North. An east-west chain of volcanoes divides south from central, these are active at the DRC western end, and Kayonza (Bwindi) Forest divides central from north, towards the Rwenzori Range; the fabled Mountains of the Moon (Speke confused the two). The independent chieftainships of the southern section were conquered by Rwandan monarchs with ever greater control from 200 years ago and absorbed into the Rwandan kingdom. These clans maintained their spirit of independence, which is why rebels were so popular in northern Rwanda particularly in the post- Rwabugiri succession struggle, 1896-1912. They had mixed success; Muhumuza, for instance, was less successful in the central region where many clans wanted nothing to do with Rwandans at all; mostly among the recently settled Basigi clans who had a long history of conflict with Rwandan monarchs. Rwanda, in 1910, included Bufumbira, bordered the Kayonza Forest; it had been intermittently under its control for several centuries, but was culturally Rwandan as that was the primary language. Successful conquest and control was based on an alliance with the Virunga-based Batwa who had a long military association with the Rwandan monarchy. Their rebellion under Basebya may be also seen as establishing a negotiating position to deal from a position of strength with Musinga’s family though it was also a reaction to personal loyalty to Mibwambwe IV Rutarindwa (son of Rwabugiri, died 1895) who was overthrown in 1896. The reason that Bufumbira ended up in the Uganda Protectorate rather than German- controlled Rwanda has all to do with pre-WWI European politics, and the exchange of it with Heligoland in the Baltic Sea and the Kilimanjaro massif. The central region of Rubanda, Rukiga and the northern half of Ndorwa became the core of colonial Kigezi with Kabale as district capital. Prior to conquest it had become increasingly unstable due to a combination of factors.