Agents of colonialism in Africa

Explorers were important agents who prepared Europe to colonise Tanzania in particular and Africa in general. Most of them came to East Africa during the second half of the 19th century. Initially, explorers were sent to East Africa by associations and commercial companies. From the mid-19th century onwards, nation-states such as Belgium, Germany, France and Britain sponsored explorers directly. The explorers had the objectives presented below.

1. To identify the most fertile land suitable for growing cash crops such as tea, coffee, cotton, sunflower, rubber and sisal;
2. To locate areas that had excellent weather for the settlement of Europeans;
3. To investigate areas that had rich mineral deposits, navigable rivers and lakes;
4. To explore indigenous cultures and the stability of indigenous political institutions;
5. To explore commodities that were readily available from Tanzania and East Africa more generally; and
6. To identify areas with large populations, which would provide markets and labourers during colonialism.

The explorers from Europe came to East Africa through Zanzibar. They sought permission from the Sultan of Zanzibar to travel from Zanzibar to the interior to carry out their exploratory activities. The Sultan gave them guides who accompanied them to the interior. In most cases, the explorers used the same routes, which were used during the slave trade and the long distance trade.

The prominent explorers who visited Tanzania included Ludwig Krapf, David Livingstone, Henry Morton Stanley, Richard Burton and John Speke. Let us look at how these explored East Africa. Livingstone's exploration journey started at Mikindani in Mtwara in 1866. He followed the southern slave trade routes from the Indian Ocean to Lake Nyasa. From Lake Nyasa, he moved northwards to the northern parts of Lake Tanganyika. Other explorers such as Richard Burton and John Hanning Speke travelled and explored the Lake Tanganyika region around the mid-1870s. Speke also visited Lake Victoria. Henry Morton Stanley explored the region around Lake Victoria in 1874 and 1875 (see Figure 5). The explorers recorded everything they found in the interior. They reported about fertile lands, potential markets, population sizes, local cultures, political institutions, climate and natural resources. They conveyed that information to Europe in order to inform the companies, associations and states of the potentialities found in East Africa. These reports helped the European nations to make decisions on conquering and partitioning Africa. The trading companies used the reports to make decisions on the kind of business to pursue in East Africa and on places to invest in.

Missionaries arrived in Tanzania in the 1840s through Zanzibar. They also received permission to enter the interior from the Sultan of Zanzibar. They were sent by Christian associations. Johann Ludwig Krapf and Johannes Rebman were sponsored by the Church Missionary Society (CMS) to go to the interior of Tanzania through Zanzibar.

The Holy Ghost Fathers built the first mission station in Zanzibar in 1863. They also built a mission station in Bagamoyo. In 1868, the missionaries of the Universities' Mission to Central Africa (UMCA) built a mission station in Zanzibar called Magila and another mission station in Masasi. The White Fathers missionaries arrived in 1870 and later built stations in Ujiji, Unyanyembe, Karema and Mwanza. The Moravian Church missionaries arrived in Rungwe in 1890 and over time built stations in many places, including Rungwe, Lutengano, Isoko and Mbozi. The Lutheran Church (LC) missionaries established many mission stations in Dar es Salaam, Moshi, Arusha, Njombe, Makete and the eastern parts of Rungwe.

The missionaries wanted to spread Christianity in East Africa. They also advocated the abolition of the slave trade. They believed that the trade was an obstacle to the development of capitalism and the welfare of human beings. They wanted Africans to be free to produce agricultural crops in their own villages. Generally, the main objectives of the missionaries included the following:

1. Converting Africans to Christianity;
2. Introducing western education that focused on reading, writing and arithmetic;
3. Spreading European culture in Africa;
4. Convincing traders from Europe to come to Tanzania to do business;
5. Establishing the cultivation of the cash crops needed in Europe; and
6. Preparing Africans to accept the colonial economy, culture and politics.

Like the missionaries and explorers, traders paved the way for the establishment of colonialism in Africa. European nations such as Britain, France, Germany, Belgium and Portugal wanted to abolish the slave trade and replace it with trade in agricultural and mineral products that were needed as raw materials for their industries. Trading companies from these nations signed commercial treaties with the Sultan of Zanzibar, who controlled commercial interests in Eastern and Central Africa.

These treaties gave them access to the interior of East Africa, including Tanzania. One of the prominent traders who engaged in trade with Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda was William Mackinnon. He operated a trading company known as the British East Africa Company (BEACO). However, Mackinnon did not succeed in his trade because he lacked support from the British government. The other British trader was known as Charles Stokes, who conducted his commercial dealings in Unyanyembe and many parts of Central Tanzania. The most famous German trader, who operated in many parts of Tanzania, was known as Carl Peters. He represented a company called the German East Africa Company (GEACO). He signed fake and dubious treaties with local chiefs such as Chief Mangungo of Msowero and Usagara (Kilosa).

Through these treaties Mangungo and other chiefs gave Carl Peters access to many parts of the territory. Local chiefs such as Mangungo did not know the contents of the treaties, which the Germans had prepared because they did not know how to read the German language. Carl Peters used such treaties to claim that Tanzanians had agreed to be colonised by the Germans.

The pre-colonial interactions between Tanzania and Europe had many effects, as described below.

1. In the second half of the 19th century, the interactions led to the colonisation of Tanzania in particular and of Africa in general. The missionaries, explorers and traders paved the way for the colonisation of Africa, including Tanzania;
2. Introduction of new commercial crops such as tea, coffee and cotton. The missionaries grew these crops and exported them to Europe as raw materials;
3. Abolition of the slave trade in the 19th century. The objective was to replace the slave trade with trade in agricultural and mineral products. These products were needed by European industries in Europe;
4. The spread of Christianity was another effect of the interactions between Tanzania and Europe. Some Africans were converted to Christianity. Thus, Tanzanians began to follow denominations such as Moravian, Lutheran, Anglican and Roman Catholic denominations. Some of the oldest churches in Tanzania which were built during the 19th century are still in use today. Some of them are the Catholic church in Bagamoyo and the Anglican church in Zanzibar;
5. Destruction of African culture. The agents of colonialism imposed western culture on Tanzanians which shortly began to negatively affect Tanzanian culture; and
6. Exploitation of Tanzanian resources such as agricultural and natural resources.