LSC S1: SCRAMBLE, PARTITION AND COLONIZATION OF EAST AFRICA

LSC S1: SCRAMBLE, PARTITION AND COLONIZATION OF EAST AFRICA

Introduction
After studying this chapter, you will be able to understand the causes, methods and impacts of colonization of East Africa. You recall in the previous two chapters that the productive potential of the East African region was exposed to the world through missionary work and Long Distance Trade. The exploitation of the interior resources in the Long Distance Trade paved the way for the need to control these
areas for easy exploitation of the valuable resources. You will, therefore, understand that the colonisation of East Africa was not accidental but was a process that was later to follow the Long Distance Trade.You will also appreciate that the existence of abundant resources did not only tempt the colonisers to take over the areas where the traders and missionaries operated, but have continued to take keen interest even after they left. The chapter will build up on your understanding of the previous chapters and open up your independent thinking to put together facts for your analysis and interpretation.

Activity 8.1: The colonisation of East Africa
a) Using library or ICT research, identify the different groups from Europe and b
Asia who came to East Africa in the 19th Century.
b) Identify the different periods when different groups arrived in East Africa,
and the reasons for their coming.
c) Present your findings to the rest of the class members.

THE SCRAMBLE, PARTITION AND THE COLONISATION OF I EAST AFRICANS
The scramble for East Africa involved the fight for resource control of the East African region. It was the time when East Africa was put on the table and divided like a cake, invaded and occupied by European powers between 1881 and 1914. The colonisation was not only in East Africa, but was a global European process reaching all the areas of the world.

The rush for conquest of the African territories by the European powers started with King Leopold II of Belgium requesting for the recognition of European powers in Belgium. Because of various reports that had been Shared on the East African region by missionaries and traders, East Africa became a centre of rivalry among the European powers and specifically between Germany and Britain. In Anglo- German Heligoland Treaty of 1890, Britain finally took Kenya and Uganda, while Germany occupied Tanganyika.
EUROPEANS IN EAST AFRICA
The first Europeans to come to EastAfrica were explorers followed by missionaries and later the colonisers. Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama was the first to arrive in 1498, and others including Gustav Fisher, James Hannington, Burton and Speke, Henry Morton Stanley and David Hannington followed. Europeans established their presence in East Africa and started developing their colonies and opened their areas to commerce and trade. They constructed roads, railways, hospitals, schools preached the gospel.

Reasons for the Europeans and Asians coming to East Africa The need to spread Christianity in East Africa was the primary aim that made Europeans to establish themselves in East Africa. This was intended to check on the spread of Islam that had already spread at the coast. They also wanted to spread Western culture, eradicate slave trade and encourage legitimate trade. The abundant raw materials from which Europe could make money and cheap labour that could be used to exploit these resources such as ivory, copper, cotton, among others. This made East Africa attractive to the Europeans. East Africa was
a resource-rich area that had not yet been exploited. European industries were hungry for raw materials due to the emergence of the Industrial Revolution with new products/processes being developed all the time to meet the ever-increasing demand.

Due to abundant resources in the region, Europeans came to colonise East Africa and take control of the region and influence the political, economic and social direction of the region. The climate provided a favourable environment for them to do and engage in commercial agriculture.
Besides the Europeans, Asians also got interested in East Africa. These were people from India, Pakistan, Malaysia, Indonesia and Bangladesh. These mainly came as traders to do business with East Africans, but after the colonisation of Asia by Europeans they settled in East Africa under the British labour policy and
resettlement after the World War l. Most of them came as Indian coolies to help in the infrastructural development like roads and railways.

Activity 8.2: Entry of foreigners
a) Using library or ICT research, explain why the Asians came to East
by IOOOAD.
B)Discuss the reasons why Europeans were competing with Asians at the
East African coast.
C)Present your findings to the class members.

THE COLONISATION OF EAST AFRICA
Colonisation was the act by which European countries, that is, German and Britain, settled and established control over the indigenous people in East Africa in order to become new rulers. The colonisation of East Africa was paved by the work of explorers, missionaries and chartered trading companies. These were the first people to penetrate the interior of East Africa and established centres for administration and the spread of the gospel. When the activities of missionaries and chartered companies were threatened by the natives, they often called on their home governments for assistance and protection. Therefore, the missionaries and companies were fore runners in the colonisation process and had all the support they needed to pave way for later colonisation of East Africa.

Chartered companies as agents of colonialism
There were two main chartered companies that were involved in the East African region. These were the Imperial British EastAfrica Company (IBEACO), which was founded by Sir William Mackinnon in 1888, and the Germany EastAfrica Company (GEACO) founded by Carl Peters in March 1884. It worked in Tanganyika. These were business entities that were involved in the initial exploitation of East African
resources but later surrendered to their home governments. These companies signed treaties with local chiefs, which were later used as proof of occupation in those areas.

Figure 8.1: Sir Fredrick Lugard (IBEACO) Figure 8.2: carl Peters (GEACO)
Explorers as agents of clonialism
The explorers came on adventurous missions mainly to discover what the interior of East Africa looked like. They were interested in discovering the physical and natural resources of the interior including the source of the Nile, Lake Victoria and mountains. This information had been known to Europeans but there was need to prove their existence. Explorers were sponsored by the Royal Geographical Society (RGS) and the London Mission Society (CMS) to make the expeditions to the interior of East Africa. Their reports provided a good background and information on the nature of what existed in the interior of East Africa.

Missionaries as Agents of Colonialism
The missionaries came with the primary aim of preaching the gospel and to spread Christianity among the locals and convert them from their traditional beliefs. They also wanted to fight slave trade, encourage legitimate trade and explore Africa. As they did their missionary work, they prepared groundwork for the colonisers. Their missionary work reduced the African resistance to the colonisers as most people were already converted and others became collaborators. The missionary
societies were Church Missionary Society (CMS), London Mission Society (LMS), Africa Inland Mission (AIM) and Holy Ghost Fathers (HGF). The Berlin Conference of 1884-1885 was the practical implementation of what
the missionaries, explorers and chartered companies had done in East Africa, The agreements that were signed with various chiefs in East Africa by the chartered companies were used to confirm occupation. The agreements made at the conference were, therefore, to confirm what the forerunners (companies)
had done in the colonies. The conference only confirmed Britain and Germany to finally takeover the territories and to signing agreements to avoid tension and conflict.

Activity 8.3: The agents of colonisation
a) Using library or ICT research, discuss the methods used in the colonisation
of East Africa.
b)Discuss the role played by the missionaries, chartered companies and
explorers in the colonisation of East Africa.
c)Discuss the reasons why the Europeans were successful in colonising East
Africa.
d)Share our findings with the rest of class members.

Results of colonisation of East Africa
East Africa was divided among two European powers, that is, Britain and Germany. The British took up Uganda and Kenya, which was the northern part of East Africa, and Germany took Tanganyika, which was the southern part of East Africa. After the partition, new boundaries were drawn and defined in East Africa without respect to the tribes, which led to disunity among Africans. African states lost their
independence and were subjected to European rule and administration. For example; Kenya and Uganda were in the hands of the British, while Tanganyika (Tanzania) was controlled by the Germans. Many African chiefs or kings who resisted the colonialist

were either killed or exiled. Kabalega and Mwanga were exiled while chief Mkwawa of the Hehe was beheaded for resisting German colonial rule in Tanganyika. The colonisers established new systems of administration. The British used indirect rule and the Germans used direct rule. The new systems made Africans an inferior group and were forced to provide labour for European plantations and other public works.
The colonisation of East Africa accelerated the construction and development of infrastructure such as schools, hospitals, roads and bridges. It increased the presence of Europeans in East Africa and many European settlers came to East Africa. In Kenya, the Kenya highlands became a settlement area for Europeans and African (Masai) lost their land in this area and were put into reserve camps. The Europeans
promoted and developed agriculture by introducing new methods of farming and cash crops like cotton and sisal, which became the export base of East Africa.

Slave trade was wiped out and replaced with legitimate trade. The Africans got involved in trade through production of raw materials for European industries and purchasing products from those industries. Taxes were introduced to be paid in form of money for example hut t ax and gun tax, which encouraged the use of money.
The African cultures were undermined and Africans took up Western culture and goods. Western formal education was introduced, which replaced informal African education. Christianity was introduced and spread in East Africa and many people were converted from traditional religion and Islam to Christianity. Various
churches were also constructed in East Africa. This promoted Western Cultures that changed the dressing, religion, building, mannerism, eating habits, etc. The African traditional customs were despised and labelled inferior to the European culture. This has continued up to today.

Activity 8.4: Challenges of colonisation
a) What were the challenges faced by the Europeans in the colonisation
process of East Africa?
b)?If you were a colonialist, how would you overcome the challenges in (a)
above?
c)Present your findings to the rest of the classmates.

Impacts of European and Asian influence in East Africa
The Europeans practised the divide and rule principle to manage their colonies. This policy denied popular participation by Africans, but encouraged small political elite with no or little input from the African population to make political decisions. These missionary groups came with their main agenda to spread Christianity, but
with a hidden agenda to lay the foundation stones for their colonial governments. Through their activities, missionaries polarised African states where they divided people along religious lines between the W’lngeleza and W’Fransa (Protestants versus Catholics). This destabilized societies which could not stand up and resist the British rule. This system has continued to divide the East Africans and caused
disunity till today.

The Western culture opened doors for Africans to learn to read and write as shown in Figure 8.5. This made it possible for Africans to read and record their culture and their history. Western education made Africans acquire different skills for development, and they have been able to participate in the development process of their countries. The introduction of modern technology has replaced
the traditional methods of doing things.

Colonisation replaced African indigenous education with formal education. The principal aim of the African education was to prepare an individual for life. It was meant to train the youth for adulthood within the community. The Western education aimed at replacing African style of learning. It emphasised formal methods of classroom education for all and is based on communication in writing, reading and numeracy. This has continued to be the cause of unemployment in East Africa and rural urban migration.

The African extended family structure, which was the norm in most African societies, was replaced by the nuclear family system and this has become the norm in many African societies. The African extended family structure emphasised holding the family together through developing strong family bonds, providing support and companionship to family members of different generations of the same family. The nuclear family structure has killed the moral character of training children into responsible citizens. It has left the children to be looked after by their immediate relatives or servants because their parents are both busy with work. This is creating an insecure, lonely and depressed generation of citizens.

The emergence of urbanisation in East Africa saw the development of small townsinto big towns and cities. Most of the colonies were characterised by dispersed settlement. Colonisation changed the trading patterns that created noticeable impact on urban centres in Eastern Africa. Urbanisation has resulted in changes in economic activities, occupation and changes in the way people live. These changes have challenged existing values, beliefs, and social practices.
Activity 8.5: Importance of colonisation
a) Write a story about the life of a colonised African.
b) In a role-play, show the life of a White man in the process of colonising an East African state.