In the mid to late 19th century, the European powers colonized much of Africa and Southeast Asia. During the decades of imperialism, the industrializing powers of Europe viewed the African and Asian continents as reservoirs of raw materials, labor, and territory for future settlement.
Starting in the 1880s, in what became known as the “Scramble for Africa,” European countries raced to occupy the continent, seeking economic and strategic gains. Britain established control over many parts of Africa, including Sudan and much of the south. France began to rule a large territory in the west and north. Germany, Belgium, Italy, Portugal, and Spain also rushed to gain territory. The map of Africa soon looked like a huge jigsaw puzzle, with the land almost completely divided into separate territories controlled by Europeans.
This Scramble for Africa meant African leaders lost their author over their subjects, and African communities who tried to resist colonialism were burnt to ass, and completely destroyed thus many lost their lives, besides Africans lost their land for example between 1902 and 1915, about 7.5 million acres — 20 percent of the best and most fertile land in Kenya—was reserved for the settlers, white settlers came to Kenya as agents of colonials. Generally, Africans became isolated in their own communities which sparked off resistance movements against European colonialism in different African communities across the continent and here we look at the top five of them.
5 (Bambatha Rebellion)
The Bambatha Rebellion of 1906 was led by Bambatha kaMancinza, leader of the Zondi clan of the Zulu people, who lived in the Mpanza Valley against British rule and taxation in the Colony of Natal, South Africa.
This revolt in South Africa is one of the most often cited rebellions against taxation in colonial Africa.
Chief Bambatha kaMancinza, leader of the Zondi clan, was initially willing to pay the tax but held back when he discovered that his subjects were refusing to pay. Bambatha was captured and killed during the battle at Mome Gorge on 10 June, while Sigananda and his men surrendered. Bambatha was decapitated and his head was displayed as a trophy by the colonial troops.
The rebellion came to an end. By 1907 the Natal government was able to collect tax without encountering any form of protest.
4 Battle of Adwa (March 1, 1896, in Ethiopia)
The crushing defeat of Italian forces at the hands of Ethiopian King Menilek’s troops is one of the first decisive victories by African forces over a European colonial power. Menilek’s victory gave him significant credibility with other European countries and bolstered his mandate at home, both of which helped to provide a period of peace in Ethiopia that allowed the country to flourish
3 Mau Mau rebellion
The Mau Mau rebellion, also known as the Mau Mau uprising, Mau Mau revolt, or Kenya State of Emergency, was a war in the British Kenya Colony between the Kenya Land and Freedom Army, also known as the Mau Mau and the British authorities. It was primarily led by the Kikuyu people but also involved members of other ethnic groups in Kenya, who were opposed to British colonial rule and the expropriation of their land.
2 Anglo-Zulu War (1879, in Southern Africa)
The Anglo-Zulu War was a conflict between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom from January 11, 1879, to July 4, 1879, in South Africa. The background of the battle began with the British having an interest in Zululand. They specifically wanted the Zulu population to provide labor in the diamond fields of South Africa. They also wanted to create a South African federation in the region that included Zululand, and they wanted to settle Boer land claims in the region that included territory held by the Zulus.
1 Anglo-Ashanti Wars
The Anglo-Ashanti wars were a series of five conflicts that took place between 1824 and 1900 between the Ashanti Empire—in the Akan interior of the Gold Coast—and the British Empire and its African allies. The wars were mainly due to Ashanti’s attempts to maintain and enforce their imperial stronghold over the coastal areas of present-day Ghana, where peoples such as the Fante and Ga had come under the protection of the British.
Although the Ashanti emerged victorious in some of these conflicts, the British ultimately prevailed in the fourth and fifth conflicts, resulting in the complete annexation of the Ashanti Empire by 1900
Kamukama Rukundo Clinton is a Pan-Africanist, freelance journalist, and book author who can be contacted via
WhatsApp +25670439540 or rukundopeter33@gmail.com
