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Commonalities/Themes
Route to Independence
Swaziland
Swailand had an unusually peaceful transition from colonialization to independence. The British gave Swaziland independence during scramble for Africa, and was under a triumviral rule of the Brits, Dutch, and Swazi people. After the Anglo-Boer War, Britain gained complete control. The land was distributed between Europeans and non-Europeans (with Europeans given most of the land). In 1963 Swaziland granted limited self-government, and in 1968 it was granted complete independence. In 1973 the constitution was suspended because the king (King Sobhuza II) felt it didn't reflect the culture of the Swazi people. The country was ruled by decree until his death in 1982.
Lesotho
Lesotho was created by Moshoeshoe (minor chief). Lesotho was added to the Cape Colony after his death. The Gun War, in which Basotho couldn't bear arms, let to an uprising between the natives and the white settlers. The British took hold of the land, and Lesotho went from a flourishing agrarian region (maize, wool, sorghum) to labor source for South Africa. Following WWII, two major political parties emerged: the BCP and the BNP. Both wanted reforms (limit powers of chief, eventual independence) but the BNP established relations with the white South African government, which allowed the to campaign more freely, thus securing them seats in teh first elections preluding indpendence. After gaining independence, Lesotho went through many political leaders, and exposed tension between political leaders and traditional chiefs.
Picture of a stamp commemorating the 60 years of rule of King Sobhuza II
Moshoeshoe (minor chief)
-created Lesotho
-welcomed European powers in order to protect land from Afrikaners taking their land
-he was fascinated by European culture
Chief Leabua Jonathan
-first prime minister of Lesotho
-led the BNP Party, and established relations with the White South African government which allowed them to campaign more freely and gain more supporters
King Sobhuza II
-created Swazi Commerical Amadoda which was made to grant licenses to small businesses on reserves and established the Swazi National School to counter the dominance of mission schools
(this weakened the power of the British and helped incorporate Swaziland into the Union of South Africa)
-created Swazi Commerical Amadoda which was made to grant licenses to small businesses on reserves and established the Swazi National School to counter the dominance of mission schools
(this weakened the power of the British and helped incorporate Swaziland into the Union of South Africa)
Major Players
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Both countries had the presence of a monarchy or a king, some sort of royalty in either an actual leadership role or a symbolic one. One reason why these countries were colonized so early or were targeted by Europe is possibly because they shared a monarchy system of government. Britain also had a monarch, so they might have seen Lesotho or Swaziland as more civilized or easier to colonize because they had some semblance of a monarchy-like government akin to Britain. These kings also posed problems later on in both countries' routes to independence, and showed a power struggle between the colonizers, the king, and the rulers and leaders following gaining independence. This poses the question: Do you think the power struggle between the kings and political leaders represents a bigger conflict between ideas of colonial Africa and pre-colonial Africa?
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Both countries were also had a sort of easy or less conflicted gain of independence. In both instances both countries seemed to have been given their independence quite easily from Britain. Why? Well both countries had little economic resources. The cost to maintain the colony and rule it outweighted the benefits of being one. This could explain why their independence was so freely given.
Left: Lesotho landscape
Bottom Right: Swaziland dance group