Historians of Africa have lots of debates about the nature of colonialism, but two things are clear: colonialism caused a great deal of change, and the vast majority of that change was not good for Africans. However, we need to think clearly about African resistance to colonialism. It is easy to imagine people constantly fighting guerrilla wars.
In reality, this kind of resistance is difficult, if not impossible, for big populations. Most people under colonialism lived their lives normally until a policy like this came about. Then they resisted the policy as much as possible. Most resistance is invisible to us today. It didn’t take the form of big battles or dramatic campaigns. It happened when workers slowed down their work, or people gave fake directions to visiting colonial officials and got them lost, or clerks sabotaged or lied on forms. However, that does not mean societies didn’t use military campaigns to resist colonialism; they often did, at least in the beginning of a colonial conquest.
Military resistance also emerged in many cases when, after the conquest, conditions became particularly difficult, or people organized around a particularly skilled or charismatic leader. In the early period of formal colonialism in Africa, military resistance could sometimes be effective, but this was rare. In general, Europeans had the weapons and organization to defeat African armies and conquer their societies. Overt battles like this subsided for much of the next half-century, while subtler, more underground types of resistance endured.
The decolonisation of Africa was a series of political developments in Africa that spanned from the mid-1950s to 1975, during the Cold War. Colonial governments gave way to sovereign states in a process often marred by violence, political turmoil, widespread unrest, and organised revolts. The Scramble for Africa between 1870 and 1914 was a significant period of European imperialism in Africa that ended with almost all of Africa, and its natural resources, claimed as colonies by European powers, who raced to secure as much land as possible while avoiding conflict amongst themselves. Almost all the precolonial states of Africa lost their sovereignty.
Let's examine a few examples of African resistance movements and the factors that contributed to their lack of ultimate success.
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The Battle of Adwa (Ethiopia)
By 1895, Europeans were rushing to claim African colonies across the continent. In northeast Africa, the Italians saw an opportunity to conquer the vast, fertile territory of Ethiopia. They had already occupied some territory along the coast, and they hoped both to build their national reputation and to use Ethiopia as a place to resettle poor, landless Italians. Never mind the fact that Ethiopia was already fully populated by a vast and multi-cultural state led by Emperor Menelik II.
The Italians first tried to trick Menelik by having him sign a treaty that said different things in Italian than in Amharic (the main language of Ethiopia). They also tried to divide Ethiopians with promises that appealed to ethnic minorities such as the Oromo people. Emperor Menelik II responded immediately. He was helped immensely by Empress Taytu, who was both strongly suspicious of the Italians and had relatives among the Oromo. Taytu reportedly stated that “we will slaughter those who come to invade us.
Together, Menelik and Taytu managed to mobilize the entire nation. They brought together an army of 100,000 men from all of the ethnic and religious groups of Ethiopia and all of the regions. Meanwhile, Ethiopian peasants melted into the forests and harassed the approaching Italian army. On March 1, 1896, the two armies met at Adwa. The Italians were divided into three groups, each of which was surrounded and attacked by Ethiopian cavalry, artillery, and finally infantry.
Battle of Adwa, 2 March 1896. Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia is depicted in the top left corner. Empress Taitu of Ethiopia is shown in the bottom left corner.
Samori Ture's Resistance (West Africa)
In densely populated West Africa, many different states and independent societies resisted colonialism. One important example of military resistance came from the Mandinka state led by Samori Ture. Samori, as he is known, was a Muslim leader although-unlike many other resistance leaders-he was not himself a trained religious figure. He also did not inherit a kingdom.
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Samori had become a soldier as a young man in the 1840s, and he waged a military campaign in the 1860s and 1870s before Europeans really began to push into the interior of West Africa. By the 1880s, he had created a military state that allowed for religious freedom and supported trading in the region. When the French first began to push into his territory in 1881, Samori did try to negotiate. He also pursued a strategy to balance the British and the French against each other. He was a careful student of the military and constantly tried to update his weapons. Unfortunately, he had no artillery. Thus, his forces were defeated in several battles. As a result, he agreed to a treaty with the French that gave them some of his territory in return for peace.
However, the French military consistently broke this treaty and encouraged Samori’s people to rebel against him. Therefore, Samori was forced to fight the French again. At this point, Samori decided to uproot everyone in his empire. Burning everything man-made behind him, he moved his entire population eastward. However, this brought him into conflict with the British as well. Samori managed to bring together two powerful groups-long-distance trading merchants and traditional rulers in the region.
Samori Ture (c. 1830-1900), founder of the Wassoulou Empire.
Resistance of Samori Toure
The Maji Maji Rebellion (Tanganyika)
In East Africa, resistance to colonial invasion in the 1890s was at first very fragmented. For example, in Tanganyika, the Germans fought campaigns against coastal city-states like Kilwa and large communities in the interior. Along the coast, a Muslim leader named Abushiri defended his city by attacking the Germans with 8,000 men in 1888. However, this kind of fragmented resistance was not strong enough to stop the well-organized and well-armed German forces.
By 1905, Tanganyika was largely under German rule and about 300 settlers had taken over much of the best land. Many of the Indigenous people had been turned into poorly paid laborers who also had to pay taxes. As resentment grew, a prophet named Kinjikitile Ngwale used religion to unify people of different communities. He claimed that God had told him that if everyone unified and fought for their freedom, their ancestors would return to help them. He built a large shrine, and soon attracted followers from many different communities-as many as 20 ethnic groups, according to some accounts.
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Many leaders of the movement told their people that they would be immune from German bullets. One, Selemani Mamba, told his followers: “We shall not die. German bullets, however, proved deadly. In a few mass battles, the Tanganyikans were badly defeated. As a result, the mass uprising was relatively short-lived. But because conditions were so bad, resistance nevertheless continued. New groups, including a number of Muslim brotherhoods, joined in. The strategies of the rebels became more effective. They turned to ambushes and guerrilla warfare to make German weapons less effective. In the end, German forces managed to put the rebellion down, but it took two years.
A German depiction of events in the Tanzanian uprising sometimes known as the Maji Revolt.
Factors Contributing to Unsuccessful Resistance
Several factors contributed to the lack of success in many African resistance movements:
- Military Disadvantages: European powers generally possessed superior weaponry and military organization.
- Internal Divisions: Colonial powers often exploited existing ethnic, religious, and political divisions within African societies to weaken resistance efforts.
- Treaty Violations: European powers frequently disregarded treaties and agreements, undermining trust and forcing renewed conflict.
These examples illustrate the complex and varied nature of African resistance to colonialism. While many military campaigns were ultimately unsuccessful in preventing colonial rule, they represent significant acts of defiance and resilience in the face of European expansion.
| Resistance Movement | Leader(s) | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Battle of Adwa | Emperor Menelik II, Empress Taytu | Ethiopian victory, maintained independence |
| Samori Ture's Resistance | Samori Ture | Defeated by French, Samori exiled |
| Maji Maji Rebellion | Kinjikitile Ngwale, Selemani Mamba | Suppressed by German forces |
