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East Africa History
eafh.com
History
Period of European Imperialism
East Africa during the 19th and early 20th century became a theatre of
competition between the major imperialistic European nations of the time. During
the period of the Scramble for Africa, almost every country comprising the
present day East African region became part of a European colonial empire.
Portugal had first among other European nations established a strong presence in
southern Mozambique, while during this period their possessions increasingly
grew including parts from the present northern Mozambique country. At Lake
Malawi, they finally met the recently created British Protectorate of Nyasaland
(nowadays Malawi), which surrounded the homonymous lake on three sides, leaving
the Portuguese the control of lake's eastern coast.
The British Empire set foot in the region's most exploitable and promising lands
acquiring what is today Uganda, and Kenya. The Protectorate of Uganda and the
Colony of Kenya were located in a rich farmland area mostly appropriate for the
cultivation of cash crops like coffee and tea, as well as for animal husbandry
with products produced from cattle and goats, such as goat meat, beef and milk.
Moreover this area had the potential for a significant residential expansion,
being suitable for the relocation of a large number of British nationals to the
region. Prevailing climatic conditions and the regions' geomorphology allowed
the establishment of flourishing European style settlements like Nairobi and
Entebbe.
The French settled the largest island of the Indian Ocean (and the
fourth-largest globally), Madagascar along with a group of smaller islands
nearby, namely Reunion and the Comoros. Madagascar - until then under British
control - became part of the French colonial empire being ceded in exchange for
the island of Zanzibar an important hub of spices trade, off the coast of
Tanganyika. The British as well held a number of island colonies in the region.
The Seychelles an extended archipelago and the rich farmland island of
Mauritius, previously under the French sovereignty, were as such.
The German Empire gained control of a large area named German East Africa,
comprising present-day Rwanda, Burundi and the mainland part of Tanzania named
Tanganyika. In 1922, the British gained a League of Nations mandate over
Tanganyika which it administered until Independence was granted to Tanganyika in
1961. Following the Zanzibar Revolution of 1965, the independent state of
Tanganyika formed the United Republic of Tanzania by creating a union between
the mainland, and the island chain of Zanzibar. Zanzibar is now a
semi-autonomous state in a union with the mainland which is collectively and
commonly referred to as Tanzania. German East Africa, though very extensive, was
not of such strategic importance as the British Crown's colonies to the north:
the inhabitation of these lands was difficult and thus limited, mainly due to
climatic conditions and the local geomorphology.
The southern three-fourths of Somalia became an Italian protectorate (Italian
Somaliland), while a narrow coastal strip of northern Somalia remained under
British control (British Somaliland). This northern coast was just opposite the
British colony of Aden on the Arabian Peninsula; together, they served as the
gatekeeper of the sea lane leading to the British Raj. The French also had their
own outpost on their route to Indochina, the small protectorate of Djibouti,
also named French Somaliland.
By then, the Orthodox empire of Ethiopia alone stood independent. Later,
beginning with the Italians buying a small port town (Asseb) from a local sultan
in Eritrea, they were able to colonize Eritrea, while Ethiopia remained
independent (though it was briefly occupied from 1936-1941 by Italy during World
War II)
Conflicts
Until recently most governments were illiberal and corrupt, and several
countries were riven with political coups, ethnic violence and oppressive
dictators. Since the end of colonialism, the region has endured:
Ethiopian Civil War
Eritrean War of Independence
Eritrean-Ethiopian War
Ogaden War
Second Sudanese Civil War
Somali Civil War
Burundi Civil War
Lord's Resistance Army insurgency in Uganda
Rwandan Genocide
Kenya and Tanzania have enjoyed relatively stable governments. However politics
has been turbulent at times, including the attempted coup d’état in 1982.
The Awdal region of Somalia too has seen relative stability.
Tanzania has known stable government since independence although there are
significant political and religious tensions resulting from the political union
between Tanganyika and Zanzibar in 1965. Zanzibar is now a semi-autonomous state
in the United Republic of Tanzania. Tanzania and Uganda fought the
Uganda-Tanzania War in 1978-1979, which led to the removal of Uganda's despotic
leader Idi Amin.
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