Conquest and colonisation: soldier settlers in the Sudan and Uganda, Sudan Notes & Records, NS 4 (2000): 59-79 (original) (raw)

Abstract

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This paper explores the role of Sudanese military colonies in consolidating British rule in North East Africa during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. By examining the practices of settling soldier colonists, the author highlights the complex socio-economic dynamics of these communities, formed by a mix of combatants, families, and dependents, amidst the broader colonial context. The analysis reveals how military colonisation served both military and civil purposes, transitioning from a method of conquest to a solution for managing uprooted civilian populations.

Key takeaways

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  1. Military colonization in Sudan and Uganda involved integrating soldier settlers and their dependents into local economies.
  2. After the fall of Khartoum in 1885, Egyptian reliance on Sudanese battalions shaped military and administrative practices.
  3. Strategic colonization provided solutions for managing uprooted populations and securing territorial control.
  4. The establishment of colonies aimed to create loyal populations while addressing issues of soldier welfare and recruitment.
  5. By the 1920s, changing military needs and economic competition diminished the effectiveness of soldier colonies.

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References (35)

  1. was arguing for the return of black labourers to their masters, may have exaggerated this figure.
  2. P. Machell to Wingate,.XII Soudanese Tokar, 15.08.92, SAD 253110/2.
  3. Wingate to Kitchener,0l.07 .94, SAD 257111573-4.
  4. R.R. Wingate, "Report on the arrival in Cairo of 21 officers and non- commissioned officers with their families from Equatoria via Mombasa", SAD 25318115; A.B. Thruston, African Incidents, London, 1900, p' 175.
  5. F.R. Wingate. "Memorandum on the arrival of refugees from Equatoria", 28 June 1892, SAD 25318169; table of soldiers and families transported to Egypt, SAD 25318/80-7; Thruston, p. 167.
  6. F.R. Wingate to Hunter, Cairo, 10.07.92, SAD 2531916-7 .
  7. lmperial British East Africa Company, "Report of Captain Lugard No. 4", (London, nd {1893}),40, SAD 25511156-94.
  8. A.T. Matson & J.E.G. Sutton, "The role of forts in Safeguarding the Uganda road", Uganda Journal,2912, 1964, pp. 168, 164.
  9. "Report of Captain Lugard No.t",32 SAD 255111564-94'
  10. Thruston, 155, 187. See also Ternan Diary, 1894, Rhodes House Mss Af'r" 128.
  11. J.A. Meldon, "Notes on the Sudanese in Uganda", J. of the Africa Society, 7120,1908, pp. 125, 138"
  12. D.H. Jolmson, "Tribe or nationality? the Sudanese diaspora in East Africa", seminar paper, SOAS,6 March 1991.
  13. Maxwell to Wingate, Omdurman,2S.l4,99 and 19.01.99, SAD 269112158 and270/1176.
  14. G. Matthews to Wingate, Kassala, 12.05.1900, SAD 27015/10; E.B. Wilkinson, Annual Report. Kassala Province for 1905, 1906, 1907, in Reports on the Finance, Administration, and Condition of the Sudan for 1 905, I 907,pp. 87, 633, 276.
  15. See the comments and photographs in John Ward, Our Sudan. hs Pyramids and Progress, London, 1905, pp. 27A-1, and Yacoub Pasha Artin, England in the Srdan (London, 19l l), pp. 79-80, 99-100.
  16. Henry to Wingate, Khartoum, 15.08.04, SAD 27516120-l; C.E. Wilson, Annual Report. Sennar Province, for 1905, 1906, 1908, in Reports on the Finance, Administration and Condition of the Sudanfor 1905, 1906, 1908, pp. 135, 777, 646; E.W. Drummond Hay, Annual Report. Sennar Province, 1911, Reports on the Finance, Administration and Condition of the Sudan, I9lI, vol.Il, p. 222; J. Butler, Annual Report. White Nile Province for 1905, 1906, 1907,1908, 191 l, in Reports on the Finange. ,; Administration and condition of the sudanfor 1905-08, vol. II l9ll, nn'. 163, 746, 422, 679,261; E. Bonus, Annual Report on the Departmeniif -,, Agriculture and Lands, 1908, Reports on the Finance, Administration ana l condition of the sudan, 1908, p. 34. officials complained that the white .r Nile colonists were too prosperous to hire their labour for government l projects. ' rli,
  17. Wilson. Annual Reportsfor Ig\i, 1906 and 1908,pp. 135, 717,646. ,,*r 25. Memorandum from Lieutenant-General Sir R. wingate to sir Eldon Gorst on the Finances, Administration and condition of the Sudan, 190g, in Reports on the Finance, Administration and condition of the sudan, lg0g. , p. 206; Director of Military operations for General staff, Military Reporlt \, on Egtpt. 1906, (War Offrce), p. 181; G.A.V. Keays, Note on the his1ory _
  18. ^ _ gf1h. CamelCorps", Sudan Notes and Records,Z2ll,lg3g,pp. 104-6. " ..j,
  19. Military Report on Egypt. 1906, p. 169; Memorandum from Lieutenant-. . General Sir R" wingate to Fierd Marshal the viscount Kitchener of i!! Khartoum on the Finances, Administration, and condition of the Sudan,:,,ii 1913, Reports on the Finance, Administration and condition of the sudan, , 1913,vol.Il, p. 86. ,r'il'
  20. Memorandum from Major-General Sir R. wingate to Sir Eldon Gorst on the Finances, Administration and condition of the Sudan , 1907, in Reports on the Finance, Administration and Condition of the Sudan, Ig07,T: 14g;
  21. Drummond Hay, Annual Report. Sennar province, l9l l, p. 222;Wingate to Garsia, 14.10.14, SAD lg2/lll, quoted in M.W. Daly, Empire on the Nile (Cambridge, 1986), p. 116. _Yjlrol,Annual Report. Sennar Province, 1908, p. 646. l Ibid; Drummond Hay, Annual Report Sennar province, l9ll, p. 222;, Memorandum from Lieutenant-General sor R. wingate to Field Marshal the viscount Kitchener of Khartoum on the Finances, Administration, and l condition of the Sudan,1913, Reports on the Finance, Administration and Condition of the Sudan, I913,vol.Il, p. 87.
  22. C.P. Browne, Annual Report. Kassala province, 1925, Reports of Governor s of Provinces for the Year 1925, p.256.
  23. Butler, Annual Report. white Nile province, 1909, p. glz; and see T. Niblock class and Power in sudan. The Dynamics of sudanese politics, I 898-1 985 (London 1987), chapter 2.
  24. J'J. Asser, Report on tour of Bahr el-Ghazal, Twefikia and Malakal, 09.09.11, SAD 30U3/26.
  25. Butler, Trip to Akobo with Asser (acting GG) in 1912' SAD 400ill/6' 34. 35. 25',7. 'Ben Assher',A Nomad in South Sudan (London' 1928)' p'257 "-- D.H, Johnson, ,Fro*-*if*r' to tribai police: policing the.Upper Nile Province of the SrO*', in O'M Andt"on A p' Killingray (eds)' Policing ,it i*it i Conrrn*rnr, iutthority and Control' 1830-1940 (Manchester' ,r. ??il:.lf,t;r, 'Malakal town' (1e30), N19 civseg s7t.,t''and in c'A' Willis, et al, The ipp" Nile-Provimce Handbooh ed' D'H' Johnson' (Oxford, 1995), PP.319-20' . -,
  26. C.L.Armstrong, i{;t; District Notes' (August i930)' NRO Civsec 571218' ' and in Willis, ibid.,P.I82'
  27. P. Coriat, Governing the Nuer' Documents in Nuer History and Ethnography, lg)z'-si, "J' O'u' Johnson (Oxford' 1.99j)' document 1'5;
  28. R.T. Johnston, 'Handing over repofi on dot & Duk District" 13'04'34' NRO LrNP 115113. (
  29. Johnson, 'Tribe or nationality?'
  30. SudanMonthlyRecord,N'S'77(May-Jun1935)'Southern.RecordsOffice - iil;
  31. i Bt jtc.i. S;e also Johnson,;F'o* military to tllb-l' police" p' 161'
  32. Lyaute y, Lettres'i ronnrn et de Madagascar (1894-1899), 3rd ed. (Paris, 1933),PP' 630-i'
  33. Lyat*eY, PP. 632-4, 637, 640-3'
  34. M.W. Daly,'The development of th-e governor-generalship of the Sudan' rSgg-1934;, JAH, 241 L, 1 983, pp. 7 Z-8' *
  35. Daly: 'rne gov"rn;-;;;#;hip 6r fre Sudan" pp' -84-1 88; 'Principal office-holders in the Sudan government' 1895-1955" IJAHS' l712' 1984' p' 3 10.

FAQs

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What explains the autonomy of southern military garrisons after Khartoum's fall in 1885?add

The paper reveals that post-1885, southern military garrisons in Sudan became autonomous, reliant on local raiding and patron/client relationships for sustenance and control.

How did soldier settlers contribute to local economies in the Sudan and Uganda?add

Research indicates that soldier settlements like those in Tokar, established in 1891, boosted local economies by cultivating lands and accumulating livestock, creating strategic agricultural bases.

What were the challenges related to soldier's dependants within military colonies?add

Findings illustrate that soldiers' dependants created significant logistical challenges, necessitating provisions for their welfare, which was often neglected, leading to destitution among discharged soldiers and families.

When and how did colonisation schemes begin to decline in the Sudan?add

The study notes that colonisation declined in the 1920s due to changing military recruitment patterns and the inability of aging soldier colonies to compete economically with emerging agricultural schemes.

How did colonial military strategy influence civil administration in the Sudan?add

The analysis suggests that military strategy effectively set the foundation for civil administration in the Sudan, with soldiers being integrated into wider administrative roles following initial pacification efforts.