WHEN we were primary schoolchildren we were taught by our Rhodesian colonial masters that it was very very important for us to learn very hard even by heart about some white people called explorers.
These explorers were projected as holy men who were endowed with extraordinary kindness, benevolence and philanthropism.
This was because these people were said to have made tremendous personal sacrifices to come to Africa, the dark continent to open it up to civilisation!!
The colonial master went on to make legends out of the explorers saying they had super human attributes.
And so as kids we were supposed to commit to memory in our young minds the dates of birth and deaths of the explorers, as well as their deeds in Africa which were always painted in heroic colours.
Furthermore the explorers were described as people of very sound and rich backgrounds who had left everything behind to come to Africa and rescue it out of its misery.
In short the explorers were depicted as cult figurers.
But the reality was totally different.
In this article we would like to explore (pun intended) the life and times of one of the explorers – Henry Morton Stanley.
This man was always projected as a great liberator of Africa and a world statesman par excellence.
Yes, Africa’s greatest explorer they preached.
Contrary to the sayings of the colonial myth makers who said Henry Morton Stanley had a very sound and rich upbringing, on the contrary Henry Morton Stanley was in fact an illegitimate son of a Welshman called John Rowlands.
This man Stanley was born in 1814 and at age 15 he ran away from home – Britain and ended up in America.
There he was adopted by a merchant from whom he got his surname Stanley.
In 1861he fought in the American civil war where he was captured. After the war he became a news correspondent.
With that the lying, mythmaking and ultimately the murder of Africans started.
Colonial historians allege that in 1869 “ he was commissioned by the “New York Herald” newspaper to lead an expedition into Central Africa to find – – David Livingstone who had disappeared into Africa and had not been heard of for some years”.
The truth is quite different.
First and foremost why was Stanley who had never been to Africa sent as leader of an expedition to Africa?
And when he found David Livingstone did he make a u-turn and return to America now that his mission had been completely accomplished? Not at all.
Once Stanley had met David Livingstone he went on a frolic of his own going up and down Africa, America and back again to Africa all in the interest of colonisation of our motherland.
“In 1874 Stanley was back in Africa – to lead another expedition to trace the source of the Nile.
During that three – year sojourn he circumvented Lake Victoria, ‘discovered’ Lake Edward, surveyed Lake Tanganyika and followed the Congo river from Nyangeve to the Atlantic arriving at the month on August 9 1877. All these journeys were not for fun or in the interest of Africans. All the journeys were done to further the interests of colonisation.
And any of the Africans who challenged him, and tried to stop him from spying their lands for imperialism came into trouble.
One of the African people who tried to stop Stanley from spying their lands and resources was one called the Bumbire people.
Faced with the challenge from the Bumbire, Stanley embarked on several of his murders. Below we highlight some of those horrific murders. One day Stanley decided to wipe the Bumbire. The two sides met at the shores of Lake Victoria.
“The Bumbire people came in their canoes at the lakeside. Stanley discharged his elephant gun loaded with two large conical balls into their midst.
He next fired his double barreled shotgun loaded with buckshot. The roaring explosion from this did terrible damage.
Two more canoes full of the Bumbire came out of another inlet. Stanley let them approach to within 100 yards before unleashing a killing fusilade from the elephant gun now loaded with explosive balls.
Four were enough to kill all men and sink both canoes”.
The worst thing about the rifles Stanley used was that the bullets he used exploded which killed more people than if he had used ordinary bullets. “For him the rifles real value lay in its being almost an artillery piece with smashing power when needed.
Explosive bullets were in use at this time – detonated by a copper tube containing fulminate of mercury – in practical terms a percussion cap-designed to explode on impact”. Terrible.
Next is one of Stanley’s massacres using the exploding bullets. Stanley had quarrelled with a group of villagers over his nefarious activities and he decided to teach them a lesson.
This was somewhere in Uganda. “The method he chose was to return to the villagers and empty box after box of snider bullets into the ranks of the tribesmen while staying just out of range of their spears and arrows.
He claimed to have shot down thirty-three men and wounded a hundred many fatally”.
He was then heard to boast saying: “We had great cause to feel gratitude. We made a brave show.
The victory had put everyone into excellent heart”. And to add insult to injury Stanley flew British and American flags in triumph. But everyone was shocked at the massacre.
The terrible example of Stanley must act as a warning to us Africans whenever we deal with Western racists.
They will encourage you to worship people who have committed heinous atrocities against your own people.
On top of this, Stanley’s murderous activities in East Africa teaches us many things.
Western racists always tell you lies they are going to do this or that innocent thing and yet they end up eating your children.
They will tell you they are going to look for the source of the Nile or David Livingstone who is lost only to end up killing whole villages and colonising the country.
Today they will tell you they are coming to your country to promote democracy and carry out development only to end up stealing your resources and carrying out regime change.
By the way here in Zimbabwe we have a place named after the murderer Stanley. True. Stanley Square in Bulawayo. Goodness me!