Causes of the 1953 Kabaka crisis
Failure to co-operate with the British. Ever since Mutesa ascended to
the throne after death of his father King Daudi Chwa in 1939, he
refused to act according the 1900 Buganda agreement.
Proposal for formation of the East African Federation. The people of
Baganda and their king actually feared loss of land to settlers as it
happened in Kenya.
The desire of Buganda to become independent. In August 1953 Mutesa went
ahead to ask for the independence timetable. He was doing what his
people wanted.
The king wanted to change the Buganda agreement, which trimmed off his powers.
The increasing superiority of Buganda under Mutesa since he came to the throne in 1939.
The increasing superiority of Buganda under Mutesa since he came to the throne in 1939.
The withdraw of support from the Kabaka by the Lukiiko.
The governor's decision to transfer the nomination of Buganda's
representatives to the Legico. Mutesa was not happy with the governor
when he gave the Lukiiko power to nominate Buganda's representatives to
the Lukiiko.
The religious conflicts in Buganda
The newly formed political parties were against the suggested East African federation.
There were also other divisions in Buganda.
Personality differences. The two men Kabaka Mutesa II and Sir Andrew
Cohen had divergent personalities. The Kabaka was a conservative
monarch interested in protecting the interests of the Baganda while
Cohen was a modeniser. There was no way the radical Cohen could
accommodate the out dated views of Kabaka Mutesa II.
It was a result of colonial legacy. The British had given a number of
priviledges to the Kabaka and the Baganda in general. However, the
Buganda agreement of 1900 had reduced the powers of the Kabaka e.g the
Kabaka could no longer pass any new laws in his Kingdom without
consulting the British . The British could also dismiss the Saza chiefs
without consulting the Kabaka. To Mutesa II, this was tantamount to
loss of his powers and was unacceptable. Hence the 1953 - 55 crisis.
Disloyalty to the governor. By the terms of the 1900 Buganda agreement,
the Kabaka was expected to be loyal to the British governor/central
government. However, ever since Andrew Cohen's arrival in Uganda in
1952, the Kabaka had constantly questioned the decisions of the new
governor. This led to his deportation He had breached the 1900
agreement.
Cohen's Unitarism led to the Kabaka crisis. In his reform agenda Sir
Andrew Cohen intended to turn Uganda into a unitary state. However,
Kabaka Mutesa 11 rejected the integration of Buganda into a wider
Uganda. He instead called for secession/independence of Buganda or a
federal government. Cohen couldn't allow this and hence the crisis.
The rejection of Cohen's legislative reforms also led to the
deportation of the Kabaka. In October 1953, Mutesa II influenced the
Lukiiko to reject the nomination of Buganda's representatives to the
Legco. To worsen matters, he also influenced his fellow Kings of Tore,
Ankole and Busoga to reject the nominations to the Legislative
Assembly. He even attempted to influence the UNC top brass to reject
the British proposals. All these annoyed Andrew Cohen to the extent of
deporting the Kabaka.
Mutesa 11's demands for secession persistently annoyed Cohen. When
Mutesa threatened to use force, Cohen concluded that the King deserved
deportation.
Mutesa II's desire to become a hero also earned him a deportation and hence the crisis. Inspired by the traditions of Kabaka Mwanga's resistance against the British (1894 - 97), Mutesa II became determined to follow in the footsteps of his ancestor who was a hero, but this led to his deportation.
Mutesa II's desire to become a hero also earned him a deportation and hence the crisis. Inspired by the traditions of Kabaka Mwanga's resistance against the British (1894 - 97), Mutesa II became determined to follow in the footsteps of his ancestor who was a hero, but this led to his deportation.
Mutesa II s rejection of the East African federation plans led to the
1953 crisis. On 20th June 1953, the British secretary of State, Oliver
Lyttellen announced that Britain was going to create a unification of
her three East African colonies. This was unacceptable to the Kabaka of
Buganda who feared that the Kenyan white settlers could encroach on
Buganda's land. More over, he felt that he had to be consulted first
before announcing such a plan in London. This annoyed Cohen who
deported him. Both men were hard-liners with neither of them ready to
concede to the other's ideas.
National Movements and New States in Africa