The Kingdom of Rwanda was a Bantu kingdom in the African Great Lakes region, in the territory of what is now the Republic of Rwanda, that developed under a Tutsi royal dynasty into one of the most centralized precolonial states in Central and East Africa. Its king, the mwami, ruled through an elaborate hierarchy of court officials and cattle-based patron-client relationships that bound Hutu and Tutsi subjects into a single administrative order. The kingdom came under German colonial oversight in the late nineteenth century and passed to Belgian control after the First World War, retaining a measure of internal autonomy under both administrations. Rising ethnic tension between Hutu and Tutsi culminated in the Rwandan Revolution beginning in 1959, and the monarchy was formally abolished in 1961 after a referendum that established Rwanda as a Hutu-led republic ahead of full independence from Belgium in 1962.
Facts
Classification
Status (Extant or Former) Government type (class) Connections
In Era
Source Kingdom of Rwanda (Wikipedia)
Source Kingdom of Rwanda (Wikipedia)
Source Kingdom of Rwanda (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases
- Also in Society and Culture Atlas: Monarchy, government type there.
Sources
1. Rwanda - History (GlobalSecurity.org)
paragraph on the 1961 abolition of the monarchy
In 1961 the monarchy was abolished and Rwanda became a republic, gaining independence from Belgium in 1962.
paragraph on the Mwami's position in the political structure
The Mwami, who stood at the apex of the pyramid-like political structure, was considered to be of divine origin and was said to be 'the eye through which God looks upon Rwanda.'
View the SourceKingdom of Rwanda (Wikipedia)
In Era: The Early Modern Period, lead paragraph and infobox, existence dates
The Kingdom of Rwanda (also known as the Nyiginya Kingdom or Nyginya Dynasty) was a Bantu kingdom in modern-day Rwanda which grew to be ruled by a Tutsi monarchy.
In Era: The Late Modern Period, lead paragraph and infobox, existence dates
The Kingdom of Rwanda (also known as the Nyiginya Kingdom or Nyginya Dynasty) was a Bantu kingdom in modern-day Rwanda which grew to be ruled by a Tutsi monarchy.
In Era: The Contemporary Period, lead paragraph and infobox, existence dates
The Kingdom of Rwanda (also known as the Nyiginya Kingdom or Nyginya Dynasty) was a Bantu kingdom in modern-day Rwanda which grew to be ruled by a Tutsi monarchy.
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