Organisation of Pre-colonial Rwanda
Senior 1 · History and Citizenship
Organisation of Pre-colonial Rwanda
Lesson 2 of 5
25 min
This chart shows how the kingdom was governed in the middle of the 19th century. Start at the top and follow the lines down to an ordinary household.
Definition
Mwami: (plural abami) the king of Rwanda, head of the government, the army and the rituals of the kingdom. In theory all land and cattle belonged to him, and he was believed to rule with the blessing of Imana.
Definition
Umugabekazi: the queen mother: the mother, or appointed mother, of the reigning Mwami. She ruled beside him, had her own court and estates, and often advised on the choice of chiefs.
Definition
Umwiru: (plural abiru) a member of the council of ritual specialists who kept ubwiru, the secret code of the monarchy. The abiru announced the heir chosen by the late king, enthroned the new Mwami and led the royal rituals.
Definition
Umutware: (plural abatware) a chief appointed by the Mwami. The main kinds were chiefs of land (ubutaka), chiefs of pastures and cattle (umukenke) and chiefs of armies (ingabo).
| Level | Who | Main duties |
|---|---|---|
| The court (ibwami) | the Mwami, the queen mother, the abiru, advisers | made war and peace; appointed and removed chiefs; judged the most serious cases; led rituals such as Umuganura |
| Army chiefs | abatware b'ingabo | commanded armies whose members lived all over the country; collected gifts from them for the court |
| Province chiefs | a land chief and a cattle chief in each province | the land chief collected dues in crops (sorghum, beans, beer); the cattle chief collected dues in cattle and milk |
| Hill chiefs | one for each hill (umusozi) | passed on orders, collected dues, settled local disputes |
| Lineage heads | elders of each inzu | spoke for their families; settled family quarrels |
The king could appoint and remove chiefs, and chiefs usually owed their posts to his favour. There was no written law: the rules were customs, remembered and applied by the king, the chiefs and the elders.
Worked example: using the chart to solve a problem
Situation: Around 1850, two farmers on the same hill quarrel over the boundary of a field. One of them is also a member of an army, and the other is a client of the local cattle chief. Where would the quarrel go?
From the reign of Yuhi IV Gahindiro in the early 19th century, many provinces had both a land chief and a cattle chief, and the people living there also belonged to armies commanded by other chiefs. At first sight this looks wasteful. Historians explain it as a deliberate way of keeping power at the centre:
Rwanda was not unique. In the neighbouring kingdom of Buganda, the Kabaka also appointed and removed his chiefs, and kept a council, the Lukiiko, around him.
Warning
Do not describe the Mwami's power as unlimited. He was bound by the rules of ubwiru kept by the abiru; he needed the loyalty of powerful chiefs and armies; and the queen mother and her family often had great influence at court.
Tip
Memory hook: the three chiefs are L-C-A: Land (ubutaka: crops), Cattle (umukenke: pastures), Army (ingabo: people).
Class debate: "The Mwami had absolute power." Use the chart and the warning box to argue for and against this statement. Then compare: who can remove a leader from office in Rwanda today?
Practice
Sources and credits
