Mirambo

Mirambo, actually Mytela Kasanda (ca. 1840-1884 ), was a warlord in the area of the Nyamwezi in Zentraltanganyika who could bring large parts of Central East Africa under his control in the second half of the 19th century.

Mirambo was born into the family of a political leader of Uyowa and rose presumably after the death of his father in 1860, even in this position on. His political career started as a caravan dealer between Zentraltanganyika and the Swahili coast, where he acted with the most profitable goods this time, ivory and slaves. By trading with European and Swahili traders, he acquired large amounts of firearms and money. This he put into the creation of armies, which were mainly composed of orphaned children and young people and known as Rugaruga. He used the war tactics and organizational structures of the military experienced Nguni, who had immigrated in the first half of the 19th century in several waves from southern Africa in the area of ​​today Tanganyika.

In several campaigns, he was able to bring a large area between Lake Victoria, Lake Tanganyika and Zentraltanganyika under his control. This Mirambo had created a large Nyamwezi Empire of a size that it had never existed among the stateless societies of the region. Mirambo controlled so that large parts of the caravan routes from the coast to Buganda and the Congo Basin and became a military and economic main actor in inter-regional trade in East Africa caravan. This also makes him an enemy of the Zanzibari traders in Tabora, who endeavored to keep the trade in Zentraltanganyika under their control.

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