Thu, October 26, 2017 at 12:11 pm GMT
Hi Karen.i am so fine. i want to convey this lesson which i just learn today.
AFRICAN REACTION TO THE COLONIAL RULE
The Meaning of African Reactions to Colonial Rule
Introduction
Reaction means response to something (whether in a negative or positive manner). Africans' reaction to colonialists highly depended on the nature of Africans in the area and the colonial governments’ style (it depended on the ways/methods used by the colonial rulers on imposition of colonial rules).
The Various Form of African Reactions
The forms of African resistance included.
a) Small scale resistance.
Small scale resistance was the resistance were by the fighting comprised of one ethnic group and it covered a small area such as Abushiri resistance, Hehe resistance, Bwana Heri resistance and Chagga resistance
b) Large scale resistance.
Large scale resistance is determined by the size and the types of people resisted. It is the type of resistance which comprised of more than one tribe and covered a large area.
This response of Africans to colonial rulers can be divided into two types being active and passive.
Active resistance.
This was the type of resistance were by Africans took up arms against their enemies in this case Africans wage war to oppose colonial rule by destructing colonial properties like farms, killing Europeans, and so on. These were Nyamwezi, Hehe and Yao just to mention few
Passive
Africans did not take up arms in opposing colonial rule. It is the non violent method against colonial control by refusing to pay taxes, production of cash, denied to work, uprooting seedlings and burning seeds e.g. Pogoro refuse to pick cotton in Southern Tanganyika.
Nature of African response to colonial imposition
The nature of Africans’ response to colonial rule imposition can be divided into four forms:
• Violence
• Non Violence
• Mercenary
• Adaptation
The nature of African reaction against colonial rule was determined by;
1. The military structure and the strength of the society
2. The nature of leadership i.e. strong or weak
3. The nature of colonialists i.e. aggressive or friendly
4. The nature of exploitation and oppression made Africans to use collaboration or resistance
5. The level of interference in social, political and economical interest made Africans to react or not.
6. The nature of population (African societies) for example the size of population, unity among the people etc.
The Causes of and Reasons for the Different African Reactions
Account for the causes of and reasons for the different African reactions
Violence/armed resistance
The first phase of African resistance to colonial rule from about 1880 to 1910 was broadly characterized by several forms of militant anticolonialism in which military resistance was the norm. Most African states took up arms to safeguard their independence during this period. The idea that it was only centralized states that took up arms against the European aggressors, as some researchers have argued, is no longer tenable. Even kin-based, noncentralized societies, such as the Tiv of Nigeria and the Tallensi of Ghana, resorted to militant forms of resistance. In southern Africa, the Chikunda, Chokwe, and Nguni, all noncentralized societies, also resorted to military
This involves Africans who tended to use weapons against colonial rules. This method was highly used by the strongest African societies such as:
• Abushiri and Coastal people against Germans
• Hehe against Germans
• Ndebele against British
• Jaja of Opobo against British
Why the use of violence
The reasons are:
• Some Africans were politically and economically strong and were able to resist the Europeans.
• Harsh treatment from colonial rulers forced Africans to use violence.
• Africans were exploited for natural and human resources and started to fight back.
Non violence
Some Africans decided to flee their homes due to fear of European colonialists and some of them decided to boil seeds before planting them, striking against the colonial rule. Example, non-violence was used by the Maasai and Haya (in East Africa). Realizing the futility of armed resistance in the face of the European possession of superior military technology, Africans adopted new strategies, one of which was mass migration. This involved communities, groups, and individuals migrating from theaters of objectionable colonial politics to areas where their independence could be safeguarded. It has been suggested that this strategy of anti-colonialism was common in the French, Belgian, German, and Portuguese colonies because of arbitrary exploitation based on forced labor, taxation, forced cultivation of certain crops, and military recruitment, among other things.
Why the use of non violence
The reasons are:
• Africans who used this system were politically and economically week.
• Nature of economic activities, It was not easy for nomadic pastoralist to use violence.
• Some Africans were affected by diseases e.g. Jiggers for the Haya.
Mercenary
This was a response where some African societies started to hire soldiers from other societies e.g. Nyamwezi tribe used to hire soldiers from the Ngoni tribe (soldiers known as Rugaruga) to fight against the colonial rulers.
Why the use of mercenaries
Some of the societies were weak hence they needed assistance from other soldiers.
Adaptation
Some African societies tended to copy the methods of fighting from the European colonial masters during their friendship. These African societies started to use the methods to fight against colonial rule e.g. Menelik of Ethiopia who fought against Italians using this method.
Why the use of adaptations
It was due to the weakness of some African societies who tended to copy the methods of fighting.
African resistance to the imposition of colonial rule
Whereas some African societies collaborated with the colonialists, some others resisted. Resistance was either by a particular personality or by united community. These societies include Bunyoro, Nandi, and Hehe in East Africa. In West Africa there was Mandika empire and Asante while in the Central Africa was the Ndebele under chief Lobengula.
The personalities which resisted include Kabaka Mwanga of Buganda, Jaja of Opobo in the Niger Delta states, Menelik II of Ethiopia, Urabi Pasha of Egypt (Urabist rebellion). Mohammad Ahmed of Sudan (Mahdist revolt), chief Lobengula of Ndebele, Koitaleh of Nandi, Mkwawa of Hehe and Kabalega of Bunyoro. It should be noted that some of the resistance wars had very few followers and nearly all of them were defeated by colonialists except in Ethiopia Menelik against Italians in 1896.
REASONS FOR THE RESISTANCE
1. Need for preservation of self independence:-
The major reasons for resistance against colonial rule was a desire to maintain political independence and such societies which resisted thought that the colonialists had come to erode their independence.
It should be noted that they also wanted to preserve their integrity e.g. in 1870s Kabalega had just become a king and had formed a formidable army called "Abarusura' which he wanted to put on test by challenging the interests of the British in his kingdom.
Kabalega had just grabbed power after crushing his brother Kabigumire in a fierce succession war. This instilled confidence in him and hoped to defeat colonialists as well.
Samoure Toure had just formed his empire through wars of conquests He had proved his military might by staging a long resistance (7 years) against the French which gained him a lot of prestige worldwide. This, therefore, makes it difficult to distinguish between resistors and collaborators since they both acted to a specific response or due to circumstances prevailing in their territories.
2. Desire to preserve social and traditional values:-
Africans resisted in order preserving their social and traditional cultures. It should be recalled that this was the time when missionaries were engaged in the spread of Christianity and western civilization and therefore they had a lot to do with the destruction of African cultures and yet Africans were not prepared to see their culture being eroded.
This resistance became more difficult especially in areas where Islam was already adopted as the main kind of belief and culture. In West Africa, northern Nigeria regarded European Christian as infidels. This is why Britain had to militarily occupy West African states e.g. Hausa state, Sokoto caliphate, etc. Some African societies resisted because the whites advocated for monogamous marriages against polygamy and even discouraged the drinking of alcohol.
3. Need to preserve their economies.
At the time of colonization, most African countries had been participating in the long distance trade and had accumulated a lot of wealth from the lucrative trade. Some chiefs had formed huge empires out of such trade. Such chiefs were not ready to lose their wealth to colonialists moreover the colonialists intended to abolish slave trade which was a blood stream of African.
Africans were unwilling to lose such kind of trade e.g. Jaja of Opobo of West Africa told the Whiteman who first contacted rum that,
"My word is that the country belongs to me, slave trade must be carried out because our ancestors lived by it and I don't want dominance of any foreigners".
Therefore some societies resisted because they wanted to preserve their economy.
4. Traditional interstate rivals:-
Apart from the desire to protect African social, political and economic independence some societies resisted simply because of their existing poor relationships with each other. Long standing conflicts would compel one state to resist or collaborate In case the rival state had done the reverse e.g. the Banyoro resisted partly because the Baganda had collaborated, the Fante collaborated because the Asame had resisted.
5. The pre-colonial interstate friendship
This would force some African societies to react in a similar way. In case of resistance by one of its friends the other would join hands to mount formidable resistance against colonial rule e.g. Jaja of Opobo allied with hrs old friends namely Alobo and Onaba to resist the British colonialists in the Niger Delta states. Indeed these good neighbours assisted him very much although he lost the struggle In the process.
The friendly Shona and Ndebele (target friends) did put up the dramatic resistance against the imposition of colonial rule in centre Africa in the famous Shona-Ndebele (Chimurenga) rebellion of 1896-97.
6. Adventurism in war against whites
Some societies resisted because they were adventurous warmongers and often-hostile societies which had just formed formidable armies and wanted to put them to test e.g. Bunyoro of East Africa that had formed its "Abarusura" army and Samoure Toure of West A Africa. Such societies felt so proud of the status they bad acquired and they were ready to defend it at any cost.
7. Others resisted because they were ignorant about the European military might. Actually leaders like Kabalega did not recognise that there existed stronger forces than his Abarusura. Chief Machembe of the Yao in central Africa also believed that his forces could defeat ’host of the Germans in Southern Tanganyika e.g. Governor Wissman asked him to surrender his power and he replied that;
"I have listened to all your words but I see no reason why I should obey you. You are the Sultan there in your land and I'm the Sultan here in my land. If you feel you are strong enough, come and fetch me".
This represents a strong example of gross underestimation of European power as Wissman fetched him without any resistance.
8. Many African chiefs who resisted didn't have any opportunity to collaborate. They found themselves in hostilities with Europeans because of pre-conceived poor reports by imperialists that created a sharp bias against specific African society’s e.g. Kabarega of Bunvoro had no problem with the British except that the defeat of Samuel Baker by king Kabarega created a bad impression about Bunyoro by the British government. Samoure Toure also attempted to ally with the British against the French but he was let down by the British.
9. Closely connected to the above is that Africans were scared into submission of therr leaders by fear that their traditional gods would kill them if they didn't resist the white man. Natural calamities like drought, famine etc were blamed on the coming of Europeans. Africans were promised victory and an end to the natural calamities if they resisted. This is why with the promises of their traditional gods many African societies chose to resist against the colonial rule e.g. religion played a very big role in both the Shona-Ndebele and Maji-Maji uprisings.
10. Some wars of resistance were inspired by other wars e.g. the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-71 which led to the defeat of France in Europe inspired the rising up of Algerian revolution in1872 led by Ali Ibn Ghadahim, similarly the failure of Jameson raid of 1895 inspired the rising up of the Shona-Ndebele rebellion of 1896 basically because the Ndebele people felt they would defeat the British the same way the Boers had done to the Bntish in the Jameson raid.
