Zulu defeat, the Asante Wars, and the choice to collaborate: Lewanika, Khama and Buganda
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All 12 Flashcards — Zulu defeat, the Asante Wars, and the choice to collaborate: Lewanika, Khama and Buganda
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Question
Who was king of the Zulu kingdom during the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879?
Answer
Cetshwayo — he refused to disband the amabutho regimental system, which the British saw as a threat to their control of the region.
Question
What happened at Isandlwana in January 1879?
Answer
A large Zulu force overwhelmed a British camp of about 1,800 troops — the worst defeat of a modern European army by an African force in the 19th century.
Question
Why did the British ultimately win at Ulundi in July 1879?
Answer
They used concentrated artillery, Gatling guns and disciplined square formations, which the Zulu's largely outdated firearms could not overcome.
Question
What did Britain do to the Zulu kingdom immediately after defeating it in 1879?
Answer
Split it into 13 rival chiefdoms to prevent reunification (divide-and-rule) — full annexation did not happen until 1887.
Question
Name the three Asante Wars covered in this syllabus section and their years.
Answer
1873–74 (Kumasi burned), 1896 (Prempeh I exiled, protectorate imposed), 1900 (War of the Golden Stool, led to full annexation in 1902).
Question
Why did the 1900 Asante war break out?
Answer
A British governor demanded the Golden Stool, the sacred symbol of Asante kingship — a cultural insult that triggered rebellion led by Yaa Asantewaa.
Question
List the four factors influencing a ruler's decision to collaborate with a colonial power.
Answer
Pragmatism; willingness of the colonial power to negotiate; social, political and economic gains including protection; lack of alternative.
Question
Why did Lewanika of the Lozi kingdom sign treaties with the British South Africa Company from 1890?
Answer
To gain protection from Ndebele and Portuguese pressure on Barotseland, while keeping internal authority over his kingdom.
Question
Why did Khama III of the Bangwato seek a British protectorate in 1895?
Answer
To keep Cecil Rhodes's British South Africa Company — seen as more exploitative — from taking control of his territory; he preserved strong internal self-government as a result.
Question
Contrast Kabaka Mwanga and Apolo Kagwa in Buganda.
Answer
Mwanga resisted British and missionary influence by force (1897 rebellion) and was defeated and exiled by 1899. Kagwa collaborated, negotiating the 1900 Buganda Agreement, and kept power for decades.
Question
What did the 1900 Buganda Agreement give Buganda's ruling elite?
Answer
Freehold land rights (mailo) and a privileged, semi-autonomous position within the British protectorate of Uganda.
Question
What is the key exam point about collaboration versus resistance shown by Buganda?
Answer
They were not opposite fixed traits of a whole people — they were strategic choices with different consequences, sometimes made by different individuals within the same kingdom.
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Topic 21.9 hub
Response to European imperialism (1870–1920)
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