German Rule in North-East Tanzania, 1885-1914.

GERMAN RULE IN NORTH-EAST TANZANIA, 1885 - 1914

A th e s is presented by Gabriel Ogunniyi Ekemode

f o r the award o f the degree of Doctor o f Philosophy in H istory in the Faculty of A rts o f the U n iv ersity o f London

September 1973

School of O riental and A frican Studies U n iv ersity o f London

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A b s tra c t: German Rule in N o rth -E ast T an zan ia, 1885-1914

T his i s a stu d y of German c o n q u est, o ccu p atio n and a d m in is tr a tio n in th e Fangani v a lle y re g io n o f m ainland T anzania, which was th e most im p o rtan t a re a o f German s e ttle m e n t and economic e n te r p r i s e in th e form er German E ast A frica n p r o te c to r a t e . I t s em phasis i s m ainly on th e lo c a l e v o lu tio n o f German a d m in is tra tiv e and economic p o l i c i e s and m ethods. I t examines th e c lo s e connexion betw een th e p r e - c o lo n ia l s o c ia l and p o l i t i c a l s i t u a t i o n in t h i s re g io n and th e immediate r e a c tio n s o f i t s A frica n p eo p les to th e German in te r v e n tio n . I t a ls o s tu d ie s 'how th e s e r e a c tio n s have shaped German p o l i c i e s . I t has been e s ta b lis h e d , fo r exam ple, t h a t th e d e c is iv e f a c to r in th e assum ption o f d i r e c t r e s p o n s i b i l i t y by th e Im p e ria l Government fo r th e a d m in is tra tio n o f German E a st A fric a in Jan u ary 1891 was th e i n a b i l i t y of th e German E ast A frica n Company to govern on account o f th e o p p o s itio n o f th e A fric a n p eo p les to th e German in te r v e n tio n . S im ila r ly , i t was th e shock of German m i l i t a r y d e fe a t a t th e hands of Moshi w a rrio rs in June 1892 t h a t

compelled th e German a u t h o r i t i e s in B e r lin and in Dar es Salaam to abandon t h e i r experim ent in c i v i l a d m in is tra tio n in K ilim an jaro in fav ou r o f v ig o ro u s m i l i t a r y r u l e th ro u g h o u t th e n o r t h - e a s t . The a b o liti o n o f m i l i t a r y r u l e in Usambara and Southern Pare in 1895 and i t s c o n tin u a tio n in Uchagga and n o rth -P a re s e c tio n o f th e Moshi d i s t r i c t t i l l 1906, and in i t s Arusha s u b - d i s t r i c t u n t i l 1912, w ere a ls o d ic ta te d p rim a rily by lo c a l p o l i t i c a l c o n d itio n s . In lik e manner, th e v i r t u a l tra n s fo rm a tio n o f th e n o r t h - e a s t in to a re g io n o f w h ite s e ttle m e n t by 1912, even in s p i t e o f th e p ro -A fric a n p o l i c i e s

o f Dernburg and Rechenberg between 1907 and 1912, was as a r e s u l t of th e growth o f German economic e n t e r p r is e in t h i s re g io n and th e consequent in c re a s e in th e p o p u la tio n and power o f i t s European s e t t l e r com m unities.

CONTENTS

Page

P re fa c e 6

The P re -C o lo n ia l Background 9

The Scramble f o r th e Pangani V alley R egion,

1885-1890. 24

The German O ccupation o f th e Pangani V alley

Region 1885-1891. 58

The P o l i t i c s o f S u rv iv a l: The E v o lu tio n of

German A d m in is tra tiv e P o lic y , 1891-1901. 107

Economic and S o c ia l Development d u rin g th e

p e rio d of P a c i f i c a t i o n , 1891-1901. 183

White S e ttle m e n t and th e N a tiv e Q u estio n , 239 1901-1906.

Reform and R e a c tio n , 1906-1914. 277

B ib lio g ra p h y . 3 3 1

Maps. 341

P R E F A C E

This i s an atte m p t a t fo ra g in g in th e r i c h b u t la r g e ly untouched f i e l d o f German lo c a l a d m in is tra tio n in T an zan ia. F o r, w ith th e p o s s ib le e x ce p tio n o f Ralph A u ste n 's r a t h e r lim ite d

tre a tm e n t of German lo c a l a d m in is tra tio n in n o rth -w e st T anzania in h is N o rth -w estern Tanzania under German and B r i t i s h R u le , New Haven and London, 1968, no s e rio u s stu d y of th e s u b je c t has y e t been under­

tak en e i t h e r a t th e re g io n a l o r th e t e r r i t o r i a l l e v e l . Since th e p u b lic a tio n o f F .F . M tille r's p io n e e r study o f th e German a c q u is itio n o f a p r o te c to r a te in E a st A fric a in D eutschland - Z anzibar - O s t a f r ik a , B e r lin , 1959, s c h o la rs i n te r e s t e d in th e h i s t o r y o f th e German p e rio d

in T anzania have u n d e rsta n d a b ly c o n c e n tra te d on th e problem s of European s e ttle m e n t and economic e x p l o ita tio n . T his i s what John I l i f f e has done in Tanganyika under German R u le , 1907-1912, D e tle f Bald in D e u tsc h -O sta frik a 1900 - 1914, Mlinchen 1970, and R ainer T e tz la f f in K o lo n ia le Entw icklung und A usbeutung; W irts c h a fts und S o z ia lg e s c h ic h te D e u tsc h -O sta frik a s 1885 - 1914, B e r lin 1970.

A lthough q u ite a l o t i s now known ab o u t th e p r e - c o lo n ia l h is to r y o f th e p e o p les of n o r th - e a s t T anzania from th e re s e a rc h e s o f K ath leen S ta h l in h e r H is to ry o f th e Chagga P eoples of K ilim a n ja ro , London, 1964, of I s a r i a N. Kimambo in h i s P o l i t i c a l H is to ry of th e P are o f T an zan ia, N a iro b i 1969, and o f S teven Feierm an in 'The

Shambala Kingdom: a h i s t o r y ' Ph.D. t h e s i s , N orth-W estern U n iv e r s ity , 1970, v e ry l i t t l e i s y e t known about th e e a r ly c o lo n ia l p e rio d . T his stu d y i s , th e r e f o r e , aimed n o t only a t em phasizing th e lin k between

th e p re - c o lo n ia l and e a r ly c o lo n ia l p e r io d s , b u t a ls o a t b reak in g th e h it h e r t o u n h e lp fu l tendency towards th e c o m p artm e n taliza tio n o f

re s e a rc h e s in to th e two p erio d s* By c o n c e n tra tin g on th e develop­

ment o f th e German a d m in is tra tio n and th e growth of German economic e n te r p r is e in th e European s e t t l e r - c o n t r o l l e d h ig h la n d d i s t r i c t s o f n o r th - e a s t T anzania, t h i s stu d y hopes to s tim u la te s im ila r r e ­ re s e a rc h e s in o th e r re g io n s o f th e c o u n try , so t h a t a g e n e ra l p ic tu r e o f German lo c a l a d m in is tra tio n on th e t e r r i t o r i a l le v e l can be ob­

ta in e d *

I would lik e to s e iz e t h i s o p p o rtu n ity to ex p re ss my g r a tit u d e to a l l th o s e , in Europe and A fr ic a , who have a s s i s t e d me in th e d i f f e r e n t s ta g e s of my re sea rc h * I am p a r t i c u l a r l y g r a te f u l to th e a u t h o r i t i e s o f th e fo llo w in g i n s t i t u t i o n s f o r p e rm issio n to work in t h e i r a rc h iv e s : th e P u b lic Records O ff ic e , London; th e Church M issionary S o c ie ty , London; th e U nited S o ciety fo r th e P ro p ag a tio n of

th e G ospel, London; th e C ongregation du S a i n t- E s p r it, P a r i s ; th e D eutsches Z en tralarch iv ; Potsdam; and th e Tanzania N a tio n a l A rchives, Dar es Salaam* My s p e c ia l thanks go to Dr* Enders o f Potsdam and to my form er te a c h e r , P ro fe s s o r Dr* W alter Markotf o f K arl Marx U n iv e rs ity , L e ip z ig , f o r t h e i r a s s is ta n c e in p ro v id in g me w ith m icro film s of

German R eich sk o lo n ialam t documents r e le v a n t to my research *

I must thank th e U n iv e rs ity o f I f e , N ig e ria and p a r t i c u l a r l y i t s V ic e-C h a n c ello r, P ro fe s s o r H* A* Oluwasanmi, f o r th e generous re s e a rc h and t r a v e l g ra n ts made a v a ila b le to me d u rin g th e p e rio d o f my study* I am a ls o g r a t e f u l to th e U n iv e rs ity o f Dar es Salaam, T anzania, and i t s Department o f H is to ry , f o r th e o p p o rtu n ity giv en me to work in th e Tanzanian N a tio n a l A rchives as a R esearch A sso c ia te o f th e U n iv ersity *

My thanks a ls o go to Dr. John I l i f f e , fo rm erly o f Dar es Salaam, b u t now o f S t. J o h n 's C o lle g e , Cambridge f o r su g g estin g to me th e need to u n d e rta k e a g e n e ra l stu dy of German d e a lin g s w ith th e A frica n p eo p les of Tanzania d u rin g th e e a r ly c o lo n ia l p e rio d .

F in a lly , I am d eep ly g r a t e f u l to my s u p e rv iso r P ro fe ss o r Roland O liv e r, f o r th e i n t e r e s t he h as shown in my work and fo r h is guidance and h e lp f u l c r i t i c i s m s . Although I have b e n e f ite d q u ite c o n sid e ra b ly from h i s many v a lu a b le s u g g e s tio n s , I w ish to emphasize t h a t th e view s ex p ressed in t h i s t h e s i s a r e w holly mine.

C hapter I

The P re -C o lo n ia l Background

To u n d erstan d th e r a tio n a le fo r th e d iv e rs e forms o f A frica n resp o n se to th e im p o s itio n o f German r u le in th e n o r th - e a s t o f what i s now m ainland Tanzania towards th e end o f th e 19th

c e n tu ry , an in v e s tig a ti o n o f th e s o c i a l , economic and p o l i t i c a l s i t u a t i o n among i t s v a rio u s e th n ic communities on th e eve o f th e German in te r v e n tio n i s im perativ e* For th e second h a lf o f th e 19th c en tu ry was a p e rio d o f re v o lu tio n a ry s o c ia l change and o f p o l i t i c a l c o n f l i c t s in t h i s re g io n , as in most of th e i n t e r i o r o f E a st A frica*

This re v o lu tio n a ry s i t u a t i o n was th e r e s u l t o f th e in flu e n c e of th e commercial re v o lu tio n which had o ccu rred in E a s t A fric a du rin g th e two decades a f t e r 18A0, when Seyyid S aid, th e Omani A ra b ^ tra n s fe rre d h is c o u rt from Muscat to Z anzibar*^ T his commercial re v o lu tio n had a t t r a c t e d European m erchants and c o n su ls to Z a n z ib a r, which i n tu rn had s tim u la te d European i n t e r e s t in the e x p lo ita tio n o f th e commerce o f th e E ast A frica n i n te r io r * 2 I t i s undoubtedly s i g n i f i c a n t t h a t German s o ld ie r s and s e t t l e r s were to t r a v e l along th e caravan ro u te up th e Pangani v a lle y , which had been opened up by th e A rab/S w ahili s u b je c ts o f th e S u lta n o f Z a n z ib ar, who had f o r s e v e ra l decades c o n tr o lle d th e lo n g -d is ta n c e tra d e of t h i s region*3

1* A lp e rs , E ., The C oast and th e development o f Caravan Trade in Kimambo, I*N*, and Temu, A . J , , (e d ), A H isto ry of T an zan ia, N a iro b i, 1969, p*46«

2* G a lb ra ith , J . S . , Mackinnon and E a st A f r ic a , 1878-1895, Cambridge, 1972, p*20*

3* A lp e rs, E*, lo c c i t * , p . 52.

The p eo p les o f n o r th - e a s t T an zan ia, fo r whom th e Pangani formed a co n n ectin g l i n k , a r e made up o f two main c u l t u r a l ty p e s - th e Bantu c u l t i v a t o r s and th e N ilo -H am itic p a s t o r a l i s t s - each of whom had absorbed an e a r l i e r C u s h itic p o p u la tio n , th e l a r g e s t s u rv iv in g group o f which a r e th e Ira q u o r th e Wambulu.^ The Bantu p eo p les a r e s e t t l e d in two b ig c l u s t e r s - th e Zigua c l u s t e r and th e Pare-Chagga c lu s t e r ^ - in th e m ountain ran g es of Usambara/Upare and K ilim anjaro/M eru, where r e l i e f in d u ces a h ig h e r r a i n f a l l th an on th e su rrou n d in g d ry step p e in h a b ite d by th e p a s t o r a l , N ilo-H am itic

M a s a i C u l t u r a l l y and l i n g u i s t i c a l l y , th e p eo p le o f Usambara - th e Shambaa - belong to th e Zigua c l u s t e r , which a ls o in c lu d e s th e Bondei o f th e h in te r la n d o f Tanga, th e Nguu and th e Zigua o f H andeni, as w ell as th e Luvu th e r i v e r a i n Zigua p eop le of Korogwe,

According to a Zigua t r a d i t i o n , ^ th e Zigua had experienced an in c re a s e o f p o p u la tio n from ab o u t th e s ix te e n th c e n tu ry onwards, trtiich had fo rced stream s of em ig ran ts from Uzigua to seek new homes in th e n eig h b o urin g h i l l s and m o u ntain s. These em igran ts had then ta k e n th e names of th e re g io n s in which th ey f i n a l l y s e t t l e d , thus c r e a tin g th e fo u r main d iv is io n s o f th e Zigua t r i b e . Whatever th e r e l i a b i l i t y o f t h i s t r a d i t i o n , which c laim s th e Zigua as th e p a re n t

4* Kimambo, I . N . , ’The P eo p lin g o f T an zan ia’ in Kimambo, I.N . and Temu, A. J , , lo c . c i t . , p . 9.

5« Murdoch, G .P ., A fric a ; I t s P eo p les and t h e i r C u ltu re H is to ry , New York, 1959, p . 306,

6» For th e in flu e n c e of geography on s e ttle m e n t in t h i s re g io n see O’Connor, A, M ,, An Economic Geography o f E ast A f r i c a , London, 1966, p . 4 and p ,7 ,

7 . Selemani K iro , ’The h i s t o r y o f th e Zigua t r i b e ,* tr a n s l a t e d by P e tro Sh, Mntambo, Tanganyika N otes and R ecords, J a n , 1953, No, 34, p . 70; a ls o M eyer, Hans, Das D eutsche K o lo n ia lre ic h ,

Band I , L e ip z ig and Wien, 1909, p ,2 0 8 .

t r i b e o f th e Nguu, th e Bondei and th e Shambaa, th e r e i s no d ou b t^th e h ig h degree o f c u l t u r a l u n ity which e x i s t s among th s e fo u r peo p les g ro u p s. F o r, a p a r t from th e f a c t t h a t th e y speak languages t h a t a r e m u tu ally i n t e l l i g i b l e w ith one another,® th ey a ls o have th e same p a t t e r n of s e ttle m e n t, s in c e u n lik e th e p eople o f th e Pare-Chagga c l u s t e r , th ey a l l tend to l i v e in s c a tte r e d v i l l a g e s . ^ M oreover, Shambaa t r a d i t i o n s have shown th a t i t was Mbegha, t h e i r lead er^o n e o f th e se waves o f Zigua im m igrants from Nguu, who had e s ta b lis h e d a u n ita r y kingdom in Usambara sometime e a r ly in th e 18th c e n tu ry .

The Pare-Chagga c l u s t e r on th e o th e r han d , had been formed by movements o f p o p u la tio n m ainly from Ukamba and U te ita in modem Kenya, alth o u g h th e re a r e t r a d i t i o n s which claim waves o f im m igrants have come in to t h i s a re a from Nguu and Usambara some tim e in th e 18th c e n t u r y . ^ According to in fo rm atio n given to C arl P e te r s , th e p io n e er o f German c o lo n iz a tio n in E ast A fric a , by M are a lle , th e c h ie f o f th e Chagga s t a t e o f Marangu, th e p eo p le o f Marangu were d escen d an ts o f im m igrants from Ukamba, w h ile th e p e o p le of Moshi, a n o th e r Chagga s t a t e , had o r i g i n a l l y come from Usambara. 12 This l a t t e r f a c t i s supported by th e c la n h i s t o r y o f th e c h ie f s of Moshi which a ls o claim s t h a t th e founder o f th e chiefdom was one M akilo,

8. Baumann, 0 . , Usambara und s e in e N a ch b a rn g e b iete , B e r lin , 1891, p . 180.

9 . Murdock, G .P ., op. c i t . , p . 308.

10. Kimambo, I .N ., 'The i n t e r i o r b e fo re 1800' i n Kimambo, I.N , and Temu, A .J ., op. c i t . , p . 27.

11. Kimambo, I . N . , The P o l i t i c a l H is to ry o f th e P are o f T an zan ia, N a iro b i, 1969, p . 35.

12. P e te r s , C ., Das D eutsch O s ta frik a n is c h e S c h u tz g e b ie t, Mtinchen and L e ip z ig , 1895, p . 121.

who 'came from Usambara b u t was n o t a tr u e Shambaa, bein g of th e K ilin d i t r i b e . . . ' . I f a n y th in g , th e s e t r a d i t i o n s c e r t a i n l y p o in t to th e i n t e r a c t io n o f p eo p les in n o r th - e a s t T anzania between th e 16th and 19th c e n tu r ie s , which must have in c re a se d th e c u l t u r a l u n ity o f th e re g io n .

T his u n ity i s f u r t h e r r e f l e c t e d in th e development of c h ie f ta in c y i n s t i t u t i o n s among i t s v a rio u s Bantu p eo p les a s a r e s u l t o f th e tra n s fo rm a tio n o f t h e i r lo o se p o l i t i c a l system based on c la n o rg a n is a tio n s by th e n e c e s s ity to p ro v id e f o r th e in c r e a s in g ly

. . 14

complex re q u ire m e n ts o f s e t t l e d a g r i c u l t u r a l com m unities. Even b e fo re t h i s tra n s fo rm a tio n had led to th e c r e a tio n o f th e Gweno s t a t e in Upare in th e 1 6 th cen tu ry and th e Shambaa kingdom in th e 1 8 t h , ^ c la n s of b la ck sm ith s had played dominant p o l i t i c a l ro le S in th e p o l i t i c a l l i v e s of b o th Upare and U sa m b a ra .^ In K ilim a n ja ro , where th e Chagga had tended to o p e ra te on th e b a s is o f sm all

p o l i t i c a l u n its on account o f th e in flu e n c e o f t h e i r g eo g rap h ical environm ent, a c la n o f b la ck sm ith s had a ls o been prom inent in th e c r e a tio n o f th e Chagga s t a t e o f Mamba.17

The r e l a tio n s h ip which developed between th e s e Bantu

communities and t h e i r Masai neig hb o u rs i n th e 18th and 19 th c e n tu r ie s

13. O liv e r, R ,, ’D is c e rn ib le developm ents in th e I n t e r i o r , ' in O liv e r, R ., and Mathews, G ., (eda) H is to ry o f E a st A f r ic a , V ol. I , O xford, 1963, p . 204.

14. Kimambo, I . H ., 'The I n t e r i o r b e fo re 1800' in Kimambo, I . N, and Temu, A ., op. c i t , , p p .27-28.

15. I b id . 16. I b id .

17. I b id , and S ta h l, K ,, H is to ry o f th e Chagga P eople of K ilim a n ja ro , London, 1964, p .2 9 4 .

f u r th e r help ed to promote th e cause o f c u l t u r a l u n ity in t h i s r e g io n . F o r, by fo rc in g th e Wambugu, an e s s e n t i a l l y C u sh itic p e o p le , to

1 8 ^{• •}

move a c ro ss th e Pangani in th e 18th c e n tu ry , i t had i n i t i a t e d the p ro c e ss o f c u l t u r a l d if f u s io n , which was to le ad to th e c r e a tio n o f th e two s u b -c u ltu re s o f th e Kwavi on Upare 19 and th e Warush and Wameru in K ilim a n ja ro . 20 These s u b -c u ltu re s were based on th e mixed system o f a g r ic u ltu r e developed by th e c o n ju n ctio n of th e c u ltu r e s o f th e Bantu c u l t i v a t o r s and th e Masai p a s t o r a l i s t s . For w h ile th e Bantu had adopted th e c a t t l e c u ltu r e o f th e Masai along w ith i t s ag e-g rad e o r g a n is a t i o n ,21 th e l a t t e r had them selves been c o n sid e ra b ly in flu e n c e d by th e se d e n ta ry a g r ic u lt u r e o f t h e i r Bantu n e ig h b o u rs.

T h e re fo re , by th e m iddle o f th e 19th c e n tu ry , b e fo re long­

d is ta n c e caravan tra d e was to a c t as c a ta l y s t fo r re v o lu tio n a ry change, th e re had been c o n sid e ra b le i n te r a c t io n among th e peo ples o f th e Pangani v a lle y . The tempo o f t h i s i n t e r a c t i o n had sometimes been d ic ta te d by th e r a id s o f th e w a rlik e Masai b u t la r g e ly by p e a c e fu l tra d e r e l a t i o n s . For a net-w o rk of re g io n a l tr a d e connec­

t i o n s , which were l a t e r to serv e th e ends o f th e S w a h ili-o p e ra te d carav an t r a f f i c o f th e second h a l f o f th e 19th c e n tu ry , had a lre a d y come in to e x is te n c e . For exam ple, th e Shambaa had tra d e d w ith th e S w ah ili communities on th e c o a s t i n Samli (Ghee) liv e s to c k , g ra in

18. Kimambo, I . N ., The I n t e r i o r b e fo re 1800 . . . p . 29.

19. I b id , p p .29-30.

20. Cory, H. ’T r ib a l S tr u c tu r e o f th e Arusha* i n Tanganyika D i s t r i c t Books, V ol. 3 . , School o f O rie n ta l and A frica n S tu d ie s , London.

21. Oscar Baumann had n o tic e d elem ents o f re p u b lic a n ism among th e Bantu o f Usangi i n n o rth P a re . See Baumann, 0 . , op. c i t . p . 254.

and tobacco in exchange f o r sea s s h e l l s which were re q u ire d fo r c e r t a i n r i t u a l s in U s a m b a r a .^2 By 1857 when th e B r i t i s h e x p lo re r R ichard B urton v i s i t e d th e c o u n try , th e re was c o n s id e ra b le ex p o rt o f Shambaa g r a in to Z anzibar from th e p o r ts of Tanga and P an g an i.23 B urton had even noted t h a t th e tobacco ex p o rted from Usambara to Z anzib ar was c o n sid e re d s u p e r io r in fla v o u r to t h a t grown in o th e r p a r t s o f th e E a st A fric a n m a in la n d .^

The Shambaa had a ls o m ain tain ed c lo s e tr a d e r e l a t i o n s w ith t h e i r Pare n eig h b o urs from whom th e y had o b ta in e d liv e s to c k

in a d d itio n to goat and mpala s k in s , th e l a t t e r of which was a ls o a r i t u a l o b je c t of some im portance in Usambara. 25 These tra d e r e ­ l a t i o n s had le d to th e s e ttle m e n t of Shambaa and Zigua im m igrants in th e so u th ern Pare p l a i n s , s t a r t i n g a p ro c e ss which was to a c q u ire a new p o l i t i c a l s ig n ific a n c e in th e l a t t e r 19th cen tu ry fo llo w in g th e developm ent o f lo n g -d is ta n c e carav an t r a f f i c . The Pare had them selves tra d e d ir o n to th e Chagga s t a t e s of K ilim a n ja ro , b eg in n in g w ith th e Mamba chiefdom in th e 18th c e n tu ry and th e Kent chiefdom of Orombo e a r ly i n th e 1 9 th . 27 The Chagga s t a t e s had in tu rn su p p lie d iro n sp e a rs to th e Masai and th e Warush in exchange f o r c a t t l e . 28 I t i s c e r t a i n l y i r o n i c a l t h a t Orombo, who would

22. A lp e rs , E. 'The C oast and th e development o f th e Caravan t r a d e ' . . . pp. 52-53.

23. B u rto n , R .F ., Z a n z ib a r; C ity , Is la n d and C o a st, Vol 2 , London, 1872, p . 228.

2 4. I b i d , p . 233.

25. A lp e rs , E. lo c . c i t . , p .5 3 .

26. Oscar Baumann had r e p o rte d on th e e x is te n c e of Z ig u a, Shambaa and Kamba s e ttle m e n ts in Upare in 1890. See Baumann, 0 . , op . c i t . , p . 217; and Kimambo, I . N . , A P o l i t i c a l H is to ry o f th e Pare . . . p p . 171-475,

27. A lp e rs , E . , lo c . c i t . , p . 54.

28. I b id .

probably have u n ite d th e sm all Chagga chiefdoms in to a pow erful kingdom, had d ied f ig h t in g th e Masai whom he had helped to a r m ! ^

The r e g u l a r i t y , and in d e e d , th e i n t e n s i t y o f long­

d is ta n c e caravan t r a f f i c alo n g th e Pangani v a lle y and a c ro s s th e Masai step p e from Mombasa^ as from th e m iddle of th e 1 9th cen tu ry were to c r e a te re v o lu tio n a ry changes of s i g n i f i c a n t p ro p o rtio n in n o r th - e a s t T anzania. P erhaps no r u l e r i n t h i s re g io n knew more th an Simbamwene Kimweri za Nyumbai o f Usambara t h a t t h i s t r a f f i c must be r ig o r o u s ly c o n tr o lle d in th e i n t e r e s t of s t a b i l i t y and o rd e rly developm ent. 31 T his was why th e e x te r n a l tr a d e of th e Shambaa kingdom was made a ro y a l m o n o p o l y ^ , So as to p re v e n t th e Sw ahili tr a d e r s from underm ining th e c e n tr a l a u th o r ity by en­

couraging p r o v in c ia l c h ie f s to defy t h e i r k in g .

There i s even some evidence t h a t Kimweri had wanted to d isp e n se w ith th e s e r v ic e s o f th e se S w ah ili middlemen by tra d in g d i r e c t l y w ith European m erchants based a t Z a n z ib a r. This was why he had s e n t a commercial embassy under th e le a d e rs h ip o f one o f h is p r in c ip a l c h i e f s , th e Mbeleko, to accompany h is f i r s t European g u e s t,

29. Kimambo, I . N ., 'The I n t e r i o r B efore 1800' in Kimambo, I . N ., and Temu, A ., op. c i t . , p . 29.

30. For a g e n e ra l acco u n t o f th e caravan t r a f f i c along th e s e two main r o u te s see Lamphear, J . , 'The Kamba and th e N orthern Mrima' in G ray, R ., and Birmingham, D ,, P r e - c o lo n ia l A frica n T rad e, London, 1970, pp 95-96; and Kimambo, I . N .,

The P o l i t i c a l H is to ry of th e P are . . . pp . 125^-127,

31. For th e r e s t r i c t i o n s imposed on th e e n try and movements of f o r e ig n e rs i n th e kingdom by Kimweri see B urto n, R .F ., op. c i t . p . 212; and K rap f, J . L . , T ra v e ls , R ese arch e s, and M issionary Labours in E a s te rn A fr ic a , London, 1860, p . 275.

32. Coupland, R . , E a st A fric a and i t s In v a d e rs, O xford, 1938, p . 351.

th e German m issio n a ry Dr. K rapf, to Z anzibar in 1852 to make c o n ta c ts w ith th e European commercial houses o p e ra tin g from th e i s l a n d . J However, th e o p p o s itio n o f th e re d o u b ta b le Seyyid Said to any d i r e c t d e a lin g s between Europeans and what he reg ard ed as h is p re s e rv e s in th e E ast A fric a n i n t e r i o r was to end t h i s dream. For th e S u lta n was anxious to d em o n strate th a t he was in e f f e c t i v e c o n tro l o f th e E ast C oast and i t s h in te r la n d in o rd e r to d is p e l rumours then c i r c u l a t i n g among Europeans in Z a n z ib a r, p a r t i c u l a r l y th e F ren ch , t h a t h is

a u th o r ity was n o t e f f e c t i v e on th e m a in la n d .^ These rumours had gained ground as a r e s u l t o f a c o n v e rsa tio n which th e m issio n ary Krapf had w ith th e French Consul on h is r e t u r n from Usambara in 1852, in which he s a id th a t he had seen th e a g e n ts of Kimweri levy t r i b u t e s on th e c o a s t

.^

• • 3 6

on th e c o a s t and to re a ch an accord w ith Kimweri i n 1853, Seyyid Said had begun Z a n z ib a r's s tru g g le to m a in ta in h er empire a g a in s t th e i m p e r i a l i s t am bitions o f th e European pow ers.

The Z anzibar accord could n o t have come a t a more opportune tim e fo r Kimweri, whose a u th o r ity was th en bein g th re a te n e d n o t only by c o n s ta n t Zigua r a i d s b u t a ls o by a dangerous s e p a r a t i s t movement

in th e Shambaa sub-chiefdom of Mshihwi. S i g n i f ic a n tl y , i t was on ly w ith th e a s s is ta n c e o f Z an zib ar th a t th e Shambaa kin g co u ld b rin g

th e s i t u a t i o n under c o n tr o l. 37 However, Seyyid S a id 's in te r v e n tio n

33. K rap f, J . L . , op. c i t , p . 404.

34. G roves, G .P ., The P la n tin g o f C h r i s t i a n i t y i n A f r i c a , V ol. I I , London, 1954, pp. 116-117.

35. I b id .

36. Coupland, R ., op . c i t . , pp. 351-352.

37. Ib id ; and B urton, R .F ., o p . c i t . pp. 192-193.

was to beg in a p e rio d o f Z a n z ib a r's in flu e n c e in th e economic and p o l i t i c a l l i f e o f Usambara, and indeed o f th e whole o f th e Pangani v a lle y . For h is m otive f o r a s s i s t i n g Kimweri w ith th e s e c u r ity of h is kingdom by th e c o n s tr u c tio n o f a f o r t a t Mt. Tongwe in Bondei was to giv e h is S w ah ili s u b je c ts an u n d istu rb e d p assag e from Pangani

in to th e i n t e r i o r . But as th e aged Shambaa king was no lo n g er a b le to e x e r c is e an e f f e c t i v e p e rs o n a l s u p e rv isio n o f h i s p ro v in c ia l c h ie f s , th e S w ah ili tr a d e r s took advantage o f th e s i t u a t i o n to

encourage th e s e and o th e r e n te r p r is in g Shambaa to u n d e rta k e p r i v a t e , i l l e g a l , t r a d e . The r e s u l t of t h i s development was th e c o lla p s e o f c e n tr a l c o n tro l o f e x te r n a l tra d e and th e in c re a s in g independence of th e p ro v in c ia l c h ie f s from th e k in g in Vugha f a r up on th e m ountain.

I t i s c e r t a i n l y re v e a lin g t h a t i t was c h ie f Semboja, th e r u l e r o f th e im p o rtan t caravan v i l l a g e o f Masinde on th e p la in s below th e Usambara ran g e t h a t le d o th e r p r o v in c ia l c h ie f s to r e v o l t a g a in s t Kimwerifs young s u c c e s s o r, Shekuluaru in 1869.

The Shambaa c i v i l w ar, which la s t e d t i l l th e German m i lit a r y o ccu p atio n o f th e lower Pangani v a lle y in 1890, o ffe re d S w ah ili tr a d e r s and p ro v o c a teu rs e x c e lle n t o p p o rtu n itie s to f i s h in th e tro u b le d w aters o f Usambara. D uring t h i s r a t h e r p ro tr a c te d c o n f l i c t , Semboja, th e 'com m ercial p r i n c e ', e x p lo ite d to th e f u l l a l l h is conm ercial c o n n ectio n s n o t o n ly w ith pow erful A rab/S w ahili and In d ia n tr a d e r s and f i n a n c ie r s in Z a n z ib a r, Mombasa, Tanga and Pangani b u t a ls o w ith th e Z ig u a, th e M asai, th e P a re , th e T e ita and

38. Semboja had even shown te n d e n c ie s to r e b e llio n b e fo re th e d e ath o f Kimweri za Nyumbai. See Baumann, 0 . ,

op . c i t . p . 188.

th e Kamba. 39 While h is Arab and In d ia n p a tro n s su p p lie d him w ith fir e a r m s , h is A fric a n a l l i e s i n th e i n t e r i o r pro v id ed him w ith a u x i l i a r i e s and m ercen aries which enabled him to ta k e over th e c o n tr o l o f th e ro y a l c a p i t a l of V u g h a .^ However, Semboja who was more in t e r e s t e d i n economic than in r i t u a l power had stay ed as c h ie f o f h is carav an v i l l a g e o f M asinde, allo w in g h is e ld e s t son, Kimweri, to keep up th e ap pearance o f power in Vugha. But in s p i t e of t h e i r s u p e rio r economic and m ilit a r y power, th e Semboja f a c tio n was unable to impose o rd e r on th e d iv id e d c o u n try , as th e r i v a l f a c tio n under Kibanga co n tinu ed t o r a l l y th e d i s s a t i s f i e d Shambaa a g a in s t th e i l l e g i t i m a t e d y n a sty

.^

A part from th e d i s i n t e g r a t i o n o f th e Shambaa kingdom, which allow ed th e Bondei to a s s e r t t h e i r in d e p e n d e n c e ,^ one g r e a t consequence o f th e Shambaa c i v i l was was th e growth of th e s la v e tra d e in Usambara. Under th e a c tiv e encouragement o f th e S w ahili tr a d e r s who were th e p r i n c ip a l b e n e f ic ia r ie s o f t h i s inhuman tr a d e , p ris o n e rs c ap tu red by th e two f a c tio n s engaged in th e war were sold in to s la v e ry . So g re a t was th e volume of t h i s tr a d e th a t Pangani became a m ajor p o r t o f e x p o rt f o r s la v e s , s u rp a ss in g even K ilw a./ Q

39. A bdallah b in Hemedi L 'A jjem y, H abari za W a k il^ tn d i, t r a n s . ed . J.W .T. A lle n , The K i l i n d i , N a iro b i, 1963. p p . 129-130, p . 175; and E x tra c t from th e N a tio n a le Z e itu n g , B e r lin ,

1 4 .8 .1 8 9 0 , D eutsches Z e n tra la rc h x v , Potsdam, R e ic h s k o lo n ia l- am t, 404llf R eport by Oscar Baumann on th e p o l i t i c a l

s i t u a t i o n in Usambara.

40. I b id ; and Feierm an, S . , 'The Shambaa* in R o b e rts, A ., Tanzania b e fo re 1900, N a iro b i, 1968, pp . 10-11.

41. Baumann, 0 . , Usambara und s e in e N ach b ar^g eb iete . . . p . 189.

42. For an account o f t h i s Bondei r e v o l t by A bdallah b in Hemedi who had played a lead in g r o l e in i t see H abari za W ak ilin d i, pp. 198-231.

43. M llller, F .F ., D eutschland - Z an zib ar - O s t a f r ik a , B e rlin ( E a s t) , 1959, p . 94.

The r e s u l t was n o t only th e d e p o p u la tio n o f th e c o u n try b u t th e d e s tr u c ti o n o f i t s t r a d i t i o n a l s o c ia l and economic system . Thus, on th e eve o f th e German in te r v e n tio n , Usambara was a weak and b i t t e r l y d iv id e d c o u n try — a s i t u a t i o n which gave th e Germans e x c e lle n t o p p o rtu n itie s fo r man^uvre.

In U pare, th e p o l i t i c a l s i t u a t i o n was s im ila r to th a t of Usambara: th e o n ly d if f e r e n c e was t h a t th e a lre a d y confused

p o l i t i c a l s i t u a t i o n r e s u l t i n g from th e fra g m e n ta tio n of th e country*s p o l i t i c a l s t r u c t u r e , e s p e c ia lly a f t e r th e d e c lin e of th e Gweno

s t a t e in th e 18th c e n t u r y , ^ was f u r th e r confounded by th e in v o lv e­

ment o f th e Shambaa, th e T e ita and th e Chagga in Pare p o l i t i c s . T his involvem ent had been in flu e n c e d by th e f a c t th a t th e se n eig h ­ b o u rin g peo p les had v i t a l economic i n t e r e s t s in th e d iv id e d c o u n try . With th e growth o f carav an t r a f f i c along th e Pangani-M oshi ro u te in

th e second h a lf o f th e 19th c e n tu ry , th e Shambaa s e ttle m e n ts which had developed in th e P are p la in s in th e co u rse o f th e c e n tu ry began to p la y th e v i t a l r o l e o f middlemen in th e iv o ry and s la v e tr a d e o f U p a r e .^ So lu c r a tiv e was t h i s tr a d e t h a t th e am b itio u s Semboja o f Masinde n o t o n ly made e f f o r t s to ta p i t through h is ag en ts a t th e carav an c e n tr e s o f K ihu rio and G o n ja ,^ b u t a ls o sought to secu re th e p o l i t i c a l c o n tr o l o f th e whole o f so u th ern P are i t s e l f . The indigenous P are c h ie f s , in o rd e r to m ain ta in t h e i r p o s itio n in th e fa c e o f th e a g g re ssiv e economic c o m p etitio n which th e caravan

t r a f f i c had c a lle d in to e x is te n c e , were com pelled to a l l y them selves

44. For th e cau ses in t h i s d e c lin e see Kimambo, I . N . , The P o l i t i c a l H is to ry of th e Pare . . . pp . 106-108.

45. For th e developm ent o f carav an tr a d e in Upare see i b i d , pp. 126-128.

46. I b id , p p . 171-174.

w ith p a r t i c u l a r c o a s ta l tr a d e r s who r e a d ily su p p lie d them w ith fire a rm s in exchange fo r s la v e s The r e s u l t was c i v i l war in d i f f e r e n t p a r t s o f Upare - in Ugweno, in break-aw ay U sangi, and in th e sm a lle r p o l i t i c a l u n its of th e so u th .

In so u th ern P a re , th e d e c lin e in th e in flu e n c e of th e

t r a d i t i o n a l c h ie f s as a r e s u l t o f th e tro u b le d p o l i t i c a l conditions^®

had le d to th e r i s e o f a new breed of u p s ta r t c h ie f s who owed t h e i r power n o t to t r a d i t i o n b u t to t h e i r su ccess in th e a g g re ss iv e economic co m p etitio n o f th e p e rio d . Although th e se new 'c h i e f s ' , li k e

Mashombo o f Mshewa, 49 th e f r ie n d o f Semboja o f M asinde, were by no means po p u lar s in c e th ey had acq u ired t h e i r w e alth and in flu e n c e

through s la v e r a id in g , they were to le r a te d by th e P a re , who had le a rn e d to r e s p e c t th e regim e o f th e s tro n g . I t was c h ie f s such as th e s e t h a t were l a t e r to serv e as th e f la g b e a re rs o f th e e a r ly German a d m in is tr a tio n , making th e Germans a u to m a tic a lly unpopular w ith th e P a re .

In n o rth e rn P a re , c i v i l war in Ugweno, fo llo w in g th e se c e s s io n o f U sangi, had enabled Chagga c h ie f s to in te rv e n e in P are p o l i t i c s , j u s t as Semboja had done in th e so u th . For Mandara o f M oshi, who had o r i g i n a l l y been in v ite d by Ghendewa of Ugweno to h e lp him keep h is chiefdom i n f a c t had l a t e r come back to r a id h is form er a l l y fo r c a t t l e , iv o ry and slaves,'*® The Gweno c h ie f was even k i l l e d in one of th e s la v e r a i d s o rg an ised by th e Moshi

47. I b id , pp . 127-128.

48 . These had been ag g rav ated by n a tu r a l d i s a s t e r s l i k e

p e r s i s t e n t d ro u g h t, fam ine and th e o u tb reak s of r in d e r p e s t in th e second h a l f o f th e 19th c e n tu ry . See i b i d , p p .193-195.

49. I b id , pp. 158-159; and 194-195.

50. Kimambo, I . N . , The P o l i t i c a l H is to ry of th e Pare . . . p . 141.

w a rrio rs o f Mandara. The p o l i t i c a l co n fu sio n r e s u l t i n g from th e war of su c c e ssio n a f t e r Ghendewaf s d e ath l a t e r tu rn ed th e unhappy chiefdom in to a v e r i t a b l e r e s e rv e f o r huntin g s la v e s . In t h e i r r e p o r ts o f Jan u ary 1887 and October 1888 on Chagga s la v e r a i d s in Ugweno, M essrs. F itc h ”**- and T a y l o r - * ^ Qf th e E n g lish Church M issi­

onary S o c ie ty ’ s s t a t i o n a t Moshi, had accused th e S w ah ili tr a d e r s based a t Marangu and Taveta o f encouraging both Mandara and h is so n -in -la w M arealle o f Marangu to u n d e rta k e e x p e d itio n s fo r ’ro u tin g up th e m is e ra b le . . . Waheno ( s i c ) * . ^ F itc h who was g en u in ely

w o rried t h a t s la v e ra id in g would impede th e e f f o r t s o f th e C. M. S.

m is s io n a rie s j u s t e s ta b lis h in g them selves in Uchagga, s a id Mandara had p a id no a t t e n t i o n to t h e i r arguments a g a in s t th e e v i l s o f sla v e t r a d e . To th e Moshi c h i e f , ’ th e S w ah ili argument i s b e t t e r , f o r i t i s backed by gun-powder and c a l i c o . '54

I t i s c l e a r , th e r e f o r e , th a t in th e l a s t two decades of th e 19th c e n tu ry , th e s la v e tra d e had re p la c e d th e p e a c e fu l tra d e in c a t t l e , ironw are and iv o ry as th e most im p o rtan t economic a c t i v i t y of th e le ad in g Chagga s t a t e s . The growth of t h i s d e s tr u c ti v e tra d e had been in flu e n c e d b o th by th e need of th e Chagga c h ie f s f o r f i r e ­ arms to p ro s e c u te t h e i r p e t ty wars and th e req u irem en ts of th e Sw ahili tr a d e r s who needed s la v e s n o t on ly to c a r ry t h e i r iv o ry sto ck s to th e c o a s t b u t a ls o to supply lab o u r f o r th e p la n ta tio n s of t h e i r

51. F itc h to Lang, 7 .1 .7 , G3.A5/0 1887, CMS A rc h iv e s, London.

52. Taylor to P r ic e , 22.1 0 .1 8 8 8 , G3.A5/0 1889, CMS A rch iv es, London.

53. I b id .

54. F itc h to Lang, 7 .1 .8 7 , lo c . c i t .

21

w ealth y Arab p a tro n s in Z anzibar and P e m b a .^ D uring t h i s p e rio d , th e two most pow erful Chagga c h i e f s , Sina of K ib o sh o ^ and Mandara o f Moshi, had competed w ith each o th e r f o r su p p o rt n o t on ly among o th e r l e s s e r Chagga c h ie f s b u t among th e w a rlik e Masai and Warush as w e ll as th e S w ah ili t r a d e r s

.^

• 58

c h i e f , who was th e w eaker, who was a b le through c a r e f u l diplom acy, to sec u re g r e a te r su p p o rt from th e two groups; f o r i t was i n th e i n t e r e s t o f th e se tr a d e r s to keep th e Chagga s t a t e s d is u n ite d and p e r p e tu a lly a t war w ith one a n o th e r. Of th e S w ah ili tr a d e r s most f r i e n d l y to Moshi, Jumbe Kimemeta and th e S w ah ili Fundi or Shundi, b o th o f whom o p e ra ted from P an g an i, 59 were l a t e r to p la y s ig n if ic a n t

55. V olkens, G ., P er K ilim andscharo, B e r lin , 1897, p . 229.

V olkens, who served as A g r ic u ltu r a l O ffic e r in Marangu between 1892 and 1893, claim ed t h a t i t was Mandara of Moshi who f i r s t s t a r t e d s e l l i n g h is p ris o n e rs o f war

in to s la v e r y .

56. Sina was m i l i t a r i l y th e most pow erful of a l l th e Chagga c h ie f s b e fo re th e German in te r v e n tio n . See S ta h l, K .,

’O u tlin e o f Chagga H is to r y 1 in Tanganyika N otes and R eco rd s, No. 64, March 1965, p . 42.

57. I b id ; and S ta h l, K ., H is to ry of th e Chagga People o f K ilim a n ja ro ,London, 1964, p . 243.

58. I b id .

59. These two tr a d e r s belonged to two d i f f e r e n t s o c ia l c la s s e s in th e c lassi-c o n sc io u s Sw ahili s o c ie ty . The form er belonged to th e pure S w ah ili a r is to c r a c y and was i n 1885 a 1 sub­

governor o f P an g an i1. See G eneral Mathews to Archdeacon F a r l e r , 1 7 .1 0 .18 8 5 , E x tra c t from The Times of London, n . d . , en clo sed in K itch en er to F .O ., 3 0 .6 .1 8 8 6 , F0 84/1799,

PRO London. The l a t t e r was *a man from K avirondo’ , who was c e r t a i n l y th e Fundi H adschi, th e s e rv a n t o f th e iv o ry h u n te r and tr a d e r Msukuma mentioned by Von d er Decken in

1862. See Johannes to Government, 1 9 .3 .1 8 9 7 , G8/99, 104-105, Tanzania N a tio n a l A rc h iv e s; and K e rste n , 0 . , Baron C arl C laus von d e r Decken in O s t-A frik a . Vo. I I , Chp. 22, pp . 7 -8 .

r o le s in in flu e n c in g th e a t t i t u d e of th e Chagga to th e German in te r v e n tio n and e v e n tu a l occupation* For w h ile th e form er would t r y to p re p a re th e Chagga, p a r t i c u l a r l y Moshi, fo r th e r e j e c t i o n of German r u l e in fav o u r of Z a n z ib a r, th e l a t t e r was to r e c o n c ile Uchagga to th e German a d m in is tr a tio n . And as th e S w ah ili tr a d e r s had worked to keep th e Chagga d i s u n ite d , so were th e Germans to e x p lo it Chagga d is u n i ty to f u r th e r t h e i r p o l i t i c a l and economic i n t e r e s t s .

On th e eve o f th e German in te r v e n tio n , th e r e f o r e , th e p o l i t i c a l s i t u a t i o n in th e Pangani v a lle y re g io n was such t h a t i t s p eo p les were in no p o s itio n to p re v e n t t h e i r dom ination by any e x te r n a l power s tro n g enough to impose i t s w i l l by fo r c e of arm s.

S ince th e S u lta n o f Z a n z ib ar, whose s u b je c ts c o n tr o lle d i t s tr a d e , had lacked th e means to make h is claim s to o v e rlo rd s h ip in th e E a st A frica n i n t e r i o r e f f e c t i v e , t h i s re g io n li k e o th e r p a r t s of th e i n t e r i o r , was to f a l l under th e ir o n g r ip o f th e Germans.

23

C hapter 2

The Scramble f o r th e Pangani V alley R egion, 1885 - 1890

I f C arl P e te r s , th e p io n eer of German c o lo n iz a tio n in E a s t A fric a , had been g iv en a f r e e hand, German expansion in E ast A fric a would c e r t a i n l y have s t a r t e d n o t from th e obscure re g io n o f U sagara in th e h in te r la n d o f S aad an i, which no German b e fo re him had v i s i t e d b u t from th e co m p arativ ely well-known Pangani v a lle y re g io n , ex tend in g from th e Pangani c o a s t to K ilim a n ja ro , where Germans had been th e f i r s t Europeans to u n d ertak e th e work of e x p lo ra tio n .^ - In f a c t , th e German m issio n ary J . Rebmann of th e B r i t i s h Church M issio nary S o c ie ty ’s m issio n s t a t i o n a t R ab ai, who was in 1848 th e f i r s t European to d isc o v e r Mt. K ilim a n ja ro , was a ls o th e f i r s t to ex p re ss th e need f o r a European s e ttle m e n t in

2 #

Uchagga. But c o n s id e ra tio n s of s tr a t e g y demanded th a t P e te r s ' f i r s t b id f o r t e r r i t o r i a l a c q u is itio n in E a st A fric a should be k e p t s e c r e t in view o f th e p re v a ilin g B r i t i s h p o lic y of su p p o rtin g th e independence and t e r r i t o r i a l i n t e g r i t y of th e S u lta n o f Z a n z ib a r, q whose claim s to th e E a st A fric a n i n t e r i o r were e x te n s iv e b u t un­

d e fin e d . He could n o t, th e r e f o r e , have s t a r t e d from th e immediate

1. For th e t r a v e l s of J .L . Krapf and J . Rebmann and C.C, von d e r Decken, see K rap f, J . L . , T ra v e ls , R esearches and M issionary Labours i n E a s te rn A f r ic a , Lond,; 1860, and von d e r Decken, C .C ., R eisen in O st-A frik a in den Jah ren 1859 b i s 1865 b e a r b e i t e t von O tto K e rste n , 4 v o ls L eip z ig and H e id e lb e rg ,

1869.

2. K rap f, J . L . , op. c i t . , p . 246.

3. For th e developm ent o f t h i s p o lic y see B e n n e tt, N .R ., S tu d ie s in E a st A frica n H is to r y , B oston, 1963, p . 57.

Pangani h in te rla n d w ith o u t r is k in g d e te c tio n . And a t th a t c r u c i a l s ta g e , d e te c tio n would have le d to B r ita in making stro n g d ip lo m a tic r e p r e s e n ta tio n s to th e B e rlin Government of P rin c e Bism arck, who was n o t y e t committed to a p o lic y of c o lo n ia l ex pan sio n , to

f r u s t r a t e h is p la n s . I t was only a f t e r th e su ccess o f h is U sagara e x p e d itio n of November 1884 had g e n erated such p u b lic i n t e r e s t and enthusiasm fo r c o lo n ia l expansion in Germany as to fo r c e th e hands of th e r e l u c t a n t B ism arck,^ th a t he co u ld d i r e c t h is a t t e n t i o n to th e a c q u is iti o n of th e Pangani v a lle y re g io n .

In d eed , th e i n i t i a l support in Germany fo r th e e f f o r t s o f C arl P eters* C o lo n ia l S o c ie ty , which had sponsored th e U sagara e x p e d itio n had le d to ap preh en sio n in B r ita in and Z anzibar about th e e x te n t o f German c o lo n ia l am bitions in E a st A f ric a . The r e s u l t was t h a t , b e fo re th e o f f i c i a l announcement on 2nd March 1885 of th e d e c la r a tio n of a German p r o te c to r a te over U sagara, 5 B r i t i s h C onsular o f f i c i a l s in Z anzibar had been u rg in g b o th th e B r i t i s h Government and commercial i n t e r e s t s to ta k e speedy a c tio n to c o u n te r a p o s s ib le German in te r v e n tio n in to E a st A f ric a , The f i r s t to a c t was S ir John K irk , th e B r i t i s h C onsul-G eneral in Z a n z ib a r. Having opposed in September 1884, a p ro p o sa l made by th e B r i t i s h geographer and ex­

p l o r e r , H arry Jo h n sto n , t h a t B r i ta in should d e c la re a p r o te c to r a te over K ilim a n ja ro ,^ he could n o t be expected to look k in d ly on th e German c la im s. Even w h ile C arl P e te rs was busy c o lle c ti n g ’ t r e a t ie s *

4. E b e r lie , R .F ., *The German Achievement in E a st A frica* in Tanganyika Notes and R ecords, (TNR), N o.55, S e p t.1960, pp. 182 -1 8 3 .

5 . R ohlfs to K irk , 3 .3 .1 8 8 5 , in K irk to G ra n v ille , 1 3 .3 .1 8 8 5 , PRO London FO 84/1724.

6. K irk to G ra n v ille , 2 7 .9 .1 8 8 4 ; a ls o Memorandum by Mr. H i l l , e x p la in in g No, 86, c o n f id e n ti a l , to S ir John K irk , FO 84/1676.

in th e h in te rla n d o f S aadan i, K irk would only go so f a r as to su p p o rt a scheme whereby B r i t i s h s u b je c ts , e s p e c ia lly m is s io n a r ie s , would be encouraged to o p e ra te in K ilim a n ja ro , th e re b y c r e a tin g a s i t u a t i o n which th e B r i t i s h Government could l a t e r seek to d efen d .^

For i t was h is b e l i e f t h a t a p a r t from th e f a c t t h a t B r ita in had been bound by t r e a t y w ith F rance s in c e 1862 to g u a ra n tee th e in ­ t e g r i t y o f th e S u lta n a te o f Z a n z ib a r, B r it is h i n t e r e s t s could b e s t be served by h e lp in g th e S u lta n to s o n s o lid a te h is a u th o r ity in

th e i n t e r i o r . But s in c e th e Usagara e x p e d itio n had n o t o n ly ch alleng ed th e a u th o r ity o f th e S u lta n in th e i n t e r i o r b u t haji a ls o s tim u la te d a scram ble f o r th e Z anzibar em pire, K irk , a c tin g on in s tr u c tio n s from London, g had to secu re a d e c la r a tio n from S u ltan Barghash of Z anzibar

t h a t he would 'c e d e no so v e re ig n r i g h t s o r t e r r i t o r y to any a s s o c ia -

• 9

tio n or power w ith o u t co n se n t o f E n g la n d '.

As soon as t h i s d e c la r a tio n was secured,*® th e B r i t i s h C onsul-G eneral p u t b e fo re Seyyid Barghash a B r itis h Government p ro p o sa l fo r a j o i n t A nglo/Z anzibar e x p e d itio n to K ilim an jaro under th e command o f G eneral Mathews, th e S u lt a n a t e 's B r itis h m i lit a r y c h i e f s , to n e g o tia te 't r e a t i e s w ith th e c h ie f s of th e d i s t r i c t through idiich th e y should re c o g n is e th e s u z e ra in ty of th e S u lta n . . . ' . * * In r e t u r n fo r s h a rin g in th e expenses of t h i s e x p e d itio n and g u a ra n te e in g th e s e c u r ity of Z anzibar d u rin g i t s

7. K irk to G ra n v ille , 23.11 .1 8 8 4 , PRO London, FO 84/1679.

8 . G ra n v ille to K irk , 27.11 .1 8 8 4 , FO 84/1676.

9. I b id .

10. Coupland R ., E ast A fric a and i t s In v a d e rs , O xford, 1938, p . 388.

11. G ra n v ille to K irk , 5 .1 2 .1 8 8 4 , FO 84/1676.

a b sen ce, B r it a i n would expect th e S u lta n to g ra n t th e B r i t i s h Government ’ a t any fu tu r e tim e th e r i g h t of p re-em p tio n of so much land a t any o f th e c o a s ta l p o r ts as may be found n e c e ssa ry f o r th e e r e c tio n o f any works ten d in g to advance th e co n tin ued p r o s p e r ity o f th e d i s t r i c t in q u e s tio n 1. ^ The aim o f t h i s p o lic y of se c u rin g an i n d i r e c t c o n tr o l o f K ilim an jaro through th e e x te n sio n o f th e in flu e n c e of Z anzibar was to p r o te c t B r i t i s h commercial i n t e r e s t s w ith o u t n e c e s s a r ily in c re a s in g B r itis h im p e ria l r e s p o n s i b i l i t y in E ast A fric a beyond what th e y a lre a d y w ere.13

Meanwhile, K irk*s d e p u ty , Consul Holmwood, on le av e in England, was p u b lic ly u rg in g th e M anchester Chamber o f Commerce, in F ebruary 1885, to develop K ilim an jaro fo r tr a d e and s e t t l e m e n t . ^ He was a ls o p r i v a t e l y u rg in g th e B r i t i s h F o reig n O ffic e to d e c la re a p r o te c to r a te over th e re g io n to p re v e n t B r ita in ’bein g f o r e s t a l l e d by o t h e r s ’ .*** In o rd er to a ro u se th e i n t e r e s t of th e M anchester c a p i t a l i s t s i n h is p ro p o s a l, which in clu d ed th e c o n s tr u c tio n of a ra ilw a y lin k in g K ilim an jaro w ith th e p o r t of Mombasa, he p a in te d a r a t h e r ex ag g erated p ic tu r e of th e commercial p o t e n t i a l i t i e s o f th e r e g io n . From th e in fo rm a tio n he had c o lle c te d from th e B r iti s h

e x p lo re r Jo seph Thomson, and from n a tiv e so u rc e s , he b e lie v e d t h a t th e r e could be found

12. I b id .

13. Memorandum by Mr. H i l l , 2 9 .11 .1 8 8 4, e x p la in in g No. 86, c o n f id e n tia l, to S ir John K irk , FO 84/1676; f o r d e t a i l s o f t h i s p o lic y see G a lb ra ith , J . S . , Mackinnon and E a st A f r i c a , 1878-1895, Cambridge, 1972, pp . 87-88.

14. E x tra c t from th e M anchester G uardian, 13.2.1885 in Holmwood to G ra n v ille , 1 9 .2 .1 8 8 5 , FO 84/1730,

15. Holmwood to G ra n v ille , 1 9 .2 .1 8 8 5 , lo c . c i t .

1 . . . 300 to n s o f iv o ry ly in g dorm ant, th e tra d e a t p re s e n t n o t being touched in th a t d i s t r i c t . Then th e re a re 200 o r 30Q 'to n s of In d ia ru b b e r;

I th in k you would probably fin d as much co p al as th e m arket would ta k e , and I f e e l c e r t a i n t h a t you would fin d 300,000hides from th a t d i s t r i c t . There a re enormous h erd s o f c a t t l e s c a tte r e d about the cou n try fo r hundreds o f m ile s . The n a tiv e s do n o th in g w ith them, th e y m erely keep them; and I th in k you w i l l fin d th e ex p o rt of h id e s a p r o f i t a b l e b u s in e s s 1,16

In a p r iv a te correspondence w ith Lord G ra n v ille , he e x p lain ed how such a scheme could be s u c c e s s f u lly ex ecu ted . He b e lie v e d th a t a ra ilw a y between K ilim anjaro o r T a v e ta, and Mombasa, o r one o f the a d ja c e n t p o rts beyond th e lim it s of th e S u ltan of Z a n z ib a r's

monopoly d i s t r i c t between Tanga and Kwale, would be v ia b le fo r two main re a s o n s . F i r s t , i t would d iv e r t iv o ry from th e 'o ld tra d e r o u t e s ' lead in g to th e p o r ts o f Bugamoyo and S aad an i, to Mombasa, where as he arg u ed , th e iv o ry e x p o rt, re lie v e d o f a l l d u tie s , 'c o u ld w e ll a ff o r d th e a d d itio n a l f r e i g h t f o r ra ilw a y t r a n s i t ' , which would

i t s e l f be b e t t e r th an th e e s ta b lis h e d system of head p o rte ra g e . Secondly, th e e x p o rt o f iv o ry 'fro m th e indeveloped re g io n beyond K ilim a n ja ro ' even a t h a lf th e q u a n t i t i e s he m entioned to th e Man­

c h e s te r Chamber o f Commerce would add £30,000 to th e annual income' Assuming th a t th e c o s t of c o n s tr u c tin g a 140-m ile ra ilw a y and

equipment was £700,000 he claim ed th a t th e r e was 'good re a so n f o r

16. E x tra c t from th e M anchester G uard ian , 1 3 .2 .18 8 5 , lo c , c i t . 17. Holmwood to G ra n v ille , 1 9 .2 .1 8 8 5 , F084/1730.

b e lie v in g t h a t a f t e r allow ing fo r th e working ex p en ses, th e c a p i t a l in v e ste d would y ie ld a r e tu r n o f ab o u t 5 p e r cent*.^® Since th e c o a s ta l p o r t n e c e ssa ry fo r th e su ccess o f th e scheme belonged to the em pire of Z a n z ib a r, he suggested t h a t th e S u ltan should be induced to g ra n t a co n cessio n fo r th e scheme fon term s which would adm it of c o n s tru c tio n o f a ra ilw a y being d e fe rre d pending a f u r th e r survey of th e c o u n tr y * .^ A lthough t h i s scheme appeared w e ll th o u g h t-o u t, i t was n o t im m ediately taken up e ith e r by th e M anchester c a p i t a l i s t s , whose o rg a n , th e M anchester G uardian, had ex p ressed doubts about i t s

• • • 2 0 •

p r o f i t a b i l i t y , or by th e Foreign S e c re ta ry , Lord G r a n v ille , who had b e lie v e d t h a t i t was fo r th e commercial w orld to d e c id e w hether

. 21

th ey wanted i t o r n o t.

S i g n i f ic a n tl y , i t was d u rin g t h i s p e rio d of B r i t i s h in ­ d e c is io n t h a t news reached Z an zib ar th a t Germany in te n d e d to d e c la re

22 ^{• •}

a p r o te c to r a te over a p a r t of E a st A fric a o u ts id e th e c o a s t and i n t e r i o r *where th e S u ltan * s f la g and a u th o r ity a re e s ta b lis h e d * .23 By March 1885, when K irk re p o rte d on German a c t i v i t i e s in E a st A f r i c a , b o th th e o ld German tra d in g firm s o f Oswald and Co. and Hansing and C o ., long e s ta b lis h e d in Z anzibar tr a d e , and th e a g e n ts of th e new German E ast A fric a Company of C arl P e t e r s ^ , had begun to e s ta b lis h

18. I b id . 19. I b id .

20. E x tra c t from th e M anchester G uardian, 1 3 .2 .1 8 8 5 , lo c . c i t . 21. F oo tn ote comment . by Lord G ra n v ille to Holmwood to

G ra n v ille 1 9 .2 .1 8 8 5 , F084/1730.

22. This had in f a c t , been d e c la re d on F ebruary 27, 1885 in

Germany by th e K a is e r. See M H ller, F .F ., D eutschland Z anzibar O s ta f r ik a , B e rlin (E ast) 1959, p . 38.

23. K irk to G ra n v ille , 8 .3 .1 8 8 5 , F084/1730.

24. For th e background to th e fo rm atio n of t h i s company see M ttller, F .F ., op. c i t . , chp. 3.

them selves alo n g th e c o a s t, p a r t i c u l a r l y a t Bagamoyo, and in th e i n t e r i o r , in U sagara. I t was th e r e f o r e in r e a c tio n to t h i s German i n i t i a t i v e t h a t th e B r i t i s h C onsul-G eneral began to p u t in to

o p e ra tio n h is own scheme fo r th e e sta b lish m e n t of an inform al B r i t i s h p r o te c to r a te over K ilim a n ja ro . This was, however, a f t e r he had informed Seyyid Barghash th at* u n d er any new o rd e r o f th in g s , such as t h a t th re a te n e d1 by th e German i r r u p t i o n , th e prim ary con­

s id e r a tio n of B r i t i s h p o lic y , which had h it h e r t o been to su p p o rt th e independence and t e r r i t o r i a l i n t e g r i t y of Z a n z ib ar, would now be 't o see we a re n o t shut o u t from m arkets t h a t prom ise a g r e a t e x te n -

o c

s io n in th e immediate f u t u r e '. I t was to e s t a b l i s h B r i t i s h claim s to an e f f e c t i v e o ccu p atio n o f th e K ilim an jaro re g io n th a t K irk had in March 1885 re q u e ste d Bishop Hannington o f th e Church M issio n ary S o c ie ty to e s t a b l i s h a m issio n s t a t i o n e i t h e r in T aveta or Uchagga.26 H annington, who p a id a v i s i t to K ilim an jaro in th e fo llo w in g month, would s t i l l have p re fe rre d a p la c e n ear th e c o a s t, in s p i t e o f th e f r ie n d ly r e c e p tio n giv en him by Mandara, th e d ip lo m a tic c h ie f

. 2 7 .

o f Moshi. But K irk , who had hoped th a t th e proposed m issio n would h elp him e s t a b l i s h good r e l a t i o n s w ith th e c h ie f s of th e a re a had done h is b e s t to in flu e n c e th e c h o ice o f Moshi, even in s p i t e of h is

. . . 28

own adm ission o f th e u n s e ttle d p o l i t i c a l s i t u a t i o n in th e d i s t r i c t . I t may w e ll be p o in te d o u t th a t K irk was n o t ta k in g any l i b e r t y w ith h is d e c is io n , as t h i s l i n e o f a c tio n had a lre a d y been

25. K irk to G ra n v ille , 1 6 .3 .1 8 8 5 , F084/1724.

26. I b id .

27. Hannington to Wigram, 2 1 ,4 .1 8 8 5 ; Hannington to s to c k , n .d ; CMS A rc h iv e s, London, G3. A5/0, 1885; a ls o K irk to G ra n v ille , 5 .4 .1 8 8 5 , F084/1725.

28. K irk to G ra n v ille , 23,1 1 .1 8 8 4 , F084/1679.

endorsed by th e F o reig n O ffic e in December, 1884. 29 By in flu e n c in g th e CMS to e s t a b l i s h a m issio n in Uchagga, he was sim ply p la y in g one o f th e two c ard s in th e d ip lo m a tic game to f o r e s t a l l th e German a c q u is itio n o f a re g io n where B r ita in could claim t e r r i t o r i a l r ig h t s p r i o r to th a t o f any o th e r co u n try in c lu d in g Z a n z ib ar. The B r iti s h claim was based on an agreement concluded by Harry Jo h n sto n in J u ly 1884 w ith the c h ie f s o f T av eta, who had g ra n te d him a con- c e s s io n w ith governm ental r ig h t s in th e d i s t r i c t . 30 T his con­

c e s s io n had in A p ril 1885 aroused th e i n t e r e s t o f S ir W illiam Mackinnon and a group o f M anchester businessm en, whose aim was to p re v e n t E ast A fric a f a l l i n g in to German hands as a r e s u l t of B r i tis h i n a c t io n . 31 I t was, th e r e f o r e , on b e h a lf of t h i s group c a lle d the B r i t i s h E ast A fric a n A s s o c ia tio n th a t G ra n v ille asked K irk to en­

q u ire 'p r i v a t e l y and u n o f f i c i a l l y ' w hether th e c o n cessio n which Mackinnon had u n s u c c e s s fu lly n e g o tia te d in 1878 32 would now be a c c e p ta b le i f i t were m odified so as to secu re e x is tin g t r e a t y r i g h t s and to apply to th e re g io n from Saadani n o rth w ard s. 33 The F o reig n S e c re ta ry would a ls o want to know w hether th e S u lta n would claim th e s e ttle m e n t in K ilim an jaro as under h is so v e re ig n ty 3 Ab e fo re d e cid in g on what would be h is r e a c tio n to th e p ro p o sa l o f th e B r itis h E a st A fric a n A ss o c ia tio n , th a t th e S u lta n o f Z anzibar be encouraged

29. G ra n v ille to K irk , 5 .1 2 .1 8 8 4 , F084/1725.

30. For th e background to th e a c q u is itio n o f t h i s c o n cessio n see O liv e r, R ., S ir Harry Jo h n sto n and th e scram ble f o r A f r ic a , London, 1957, p p .73-75.

31. For d e t a i l s o f t h i s see G a lb ra ith , J . S . , op. c i t . , p p .9 5 -9 7 . 32. For a d is c u s s io n o f t h i s proposed Mackinnon co n cessio n see

I b i d . , p p .55-70.

33. G ra n v ille to K irk , 27.4.1884/1722.

34. I b id .

to a s s ig n to them a l l h is powers on th e m ainland and a l l is la n d s ex cep t Z anzibar and Pemba in r e tu r n fo r a fix e d annual income and p a r t i c i p a t i o n in th e company to a d m in iste r th e c o n c e s s i o n .^ I t

i s p a r t i c u l a r l y s i g n i f i c a n t th a t t h i s c a u tio u s re q u e s t was made only two days a f t e r th e German co n su l R holfs had o f f i c i a l l y n o t i f i e d Seyyid Barghash and o th e r c o n su la r r e p r e s e n ta tiv e s on th e is la n d o f Z anzib ar o f th e d e c la r a tio n of a German p r o te c to r a te over U sag ara, U zigua, Ukami and N guru.-^

The d e c la r a tio n o f a German p r o te c to r a te over an a re a which K irk had h im se lf ad m itted could n o t be s a id to be a c tu a lly under Z a n z ib a r's s o v e re ig n ty , 37 had im m ediately produced a c r i s i s o f co n fid en ce in Seyyid B arg h ash 's r e l a t i o n s w ith th e European pow ers. The B r i t i s h C o n su l-G en eral, who in Jan u ary 1885 had been ta lk in g of h is p la n s ' t o c a u tio u s ly sound th e S u lta n re g a rd in g j o i n t a c tio n p ro p o s e d ', 38 now inform ed London th a t Seyyid Barghash was ta k in g a p p a re n tly independent d e c is io n s to p r o te c t h is own i n t e r e s t s . The f i r s t o f th e s e was to send a body of tro o p s under G eneral Mathews

to th e a re a being claim ed by th e German E ast A frica n Company. On A p ril 25, 1885, th e day th e S u lta n was o f f i c i a l l y inform ed o f th e d e c la r a tio n o f th e German p r o te c to r a te over Usagara and th e n eig h­

bouring d i s t r i c t , Count Joachim von P f e i l , an a g en t of th e German company, who had e s ta b lis h e d h is company's f i r s t s t a t i o n a t Sima in U sagara, had re p o rte d to th e German co n su l in Z an zib ar t h a t about

35. G a lb ra ith , J . S . , o p . c i t . , pp. 96-97.

36. K irk to G ra n v ille , 2 8 ,4 ,1 8 8 5 , E084/1725.

37. K irk to G ra n v ille , 2 .1 .1 8 8 5 , F084/1730..

38. I b id .