"MUFULA'S TREE" AND THE HISTORY OF THE FIRST NAVY IN PRECOLONIAL KENYA: ABAKHOONE NAVY
Mufula was the general in charge of Abakhoone army during the war of Ifunikho in 18oo. This is the war that led to the emigration of Abakhoone from Bunambo. As I had mentioned in an earlier post on "The war of Ifunikho", Mufula was a feared warrior. He was a brave one-eyed giant. He was killed during the war of Ifunikho at the present day Budala Primary school near Ndekwe.
At his homestead which stood between Budala Primary and Erukala, there is very big African Teak or in Kiswahili it known as "Mvule" tree. In luhya language is known as "Murumba". Scientifically known as "milicia excelsa".
This tree has a long history. In the early 1700 when slave traders from Buganda used to cross lake victoria to capture slaves on the shores in the Budalang'i, abakhoone warriors used this tree as their sentry. They used to send a young warrior to climb on top to observe the oncoming boats far away in the lake. The mature experienced warriors sat underneath smoking hemp.
Once a foreign boat was spotted, he alerted the warriors who jumped into their boast with speed and went for the oncoming boat. Their spears were attached to long strings which were fastened on their boats. This ensured that once they threw at their enemy, they could use the string to pull back the spear and re-use it. This helped not run out of spears during a fight with an enemy in the lake. Also, whenever an enemy was speared, the string was pulled in such a way that the enemy boat capsized killing its occupants. After losing several boats to the Abakhoone navy, the slave hunters stopped raiding across Lake Victoria.
Arguable, the abakhoone armed forces actually established the first pre-colonial navy capable of effectively engaging an enemy deep in the lake. It is this navy that stopped slave raids against Africans by Ugandans in Lake Victoria.
To this date, this African Teak tree still stands. Where it is was where Mufula the great general lived. the tree has been christened "Mufula's Tree". It is the tallest tree in the area around the shores of Lake Victoria. It is one of the landmarks that fishermen use to assess have far they have gone into the lake . the more the canopy of Mufula's tree disappears, the further they know they have gone away from the shores or the nearer they are to enter Ugandan waters of Lake Victoria.
At his homestead which stood between Budala Primary and Erukala, there is very big African Teak or in Kiswahili it known as "Mvule" tree. In luhya language is known as "Murumba". Scientifically known as "milicia excelsa".
This tree has a long history. In the early 1700 when slave traders from Buganda used to cross lake victoria to capture slaves on the shores in the Budalang'i, abakhoone warriors used this tree as their sentry. They used to send a young warrior to climb on top to observe the oncoming boats far away in the lake. The mature experienced warriors sat underneath smoking hemp.
Once a foreign boat was spotted, he alerted the warriors who jumped into their boast with speed and went for the oncoming boat. Their spears were attached to long strings which were fastened on their boats. This ensured that once they threw at their enemy, they could use the string to pull back the spear and re-use it. This helped not run out of spears during a fight with an enemy in the lake. Also, whenever an enemy was speared, the string was pulled in such a way that the enemy boat capsized killing its occupants. After losing several boats to the Abakhoone navy, the slave hunters stopped raiding across Lake Victoria.
Arguable, the abakhoone armed forces actually established the first pre-colonial navy capable of effectively engaging an enemy deep in the lake. It is this navy that stopped slave raids against Africans by Ugandans in Lake Victoria.
To this date, this African Teak tree still stands. Where it is was where Mufula the great general lived. the tree has been christened "Mufula's Tree". It is the tallest tree in the area around the shores of Lake Victoria. It is one of the landmarks that fishermen use to assess have far they have gone into the lake . the more the canopy of Mufula's tree disappears, the further they know they have gone away from the shores or the nearer they are to enter Ugandan waters of Lake Victoria.
Where is the much vaunted navy?
ReplyDeleteThe much vaunted abakhoone navy dispersed in 1800 AD. When abakhoone army was defeated by the combined army of abanyala clans and their allies from Marachi, Wanga, Samia and Luoland, abakhoone emigrated to different places. Akhudu Mbaye who had taken over the command emigrated to Elwero (at the present location of Busia GK Prison) in Matayos constituency. In fact the Matayo after whom this constituency is named is a grandson of Akhudu Mbaye. His cousin Ekobi the great grandfather of Cardinal Otunga settled briefly in Elwero before proceeding to Bumula in Bungoma. Ekobi's Uncles, Otunga, Wakoko and Situma too emigrated to Bungoma. Others emigrated to Busitema in Uganda while others settled in Lumino in Uganda.
ReplyDeleteBut 1830, the abasamia attacked abanyala to reclaim the district of Esamia that Abakhoone had annexed from the in 1750. With their allies who helped them win the war of Ifunikho having left, abanyala were weak. The samia onslaught was severe. So the leader of Abanyala from the abamulembo Clan called Khainja sent an emissary to convince Abakhoone to return to Bunyala and assist the banyala with war. In return the abakhoone were reclaim back all their ancestral lands that abanyala had occupied. Some of the Abakhoone reassembled what was known as Abaofu battalion and went to help abanyala. It was the abaofu battalion that finally vanquished the Samia warriors and saved abanyala from defeat.
However, the most decorated warriors like Akhudu Mbaye and their descendants refused to join Abaofu because Abakhoone believed that all abanyala were their subjects. Psychologically, they did not understand how they could be subjected by their former subjects. So most of the great warriors remained away from Bunyala and settled wherever they had gone. This how the abakhoone navy failed to regroup.
If you read my post on "abakhoone burials" you will see that abakhoone believed that any mukhoone is born a king. He was meant to rule others. That is why most prominent leaders and warriors never returned to Bunyala.
Orie Luke,
ReplyDeleteWho led the Abaofu army that returned to assist the Abanyala with this war?
Kind regards
Fred
Good morning Fred. This is a very good question. I am glad that you guys are being inquisitive about abakhoone. The story goes this way. At the time of the war of Ifunikho cirka 1800AD, Opetu Owado was the King of Bunambo. But as a way grooming the next King and minimising the succession conflicts, the crown prince was also called Opetu. That is why in the narrative of the war of Ifunikho, you will here Abanyala (the clans that formed the allied force that defeated Abakhoone) claim that the war ended with the overthrowing of Owado and his son Opetu.
DeleteNow after the dispersion of abakhoone, the leadership structure remained. Even though some of the abakhoone had fled as far away as Bungoma and Rusinga, those who remained around the King were led by their Opetu. From what i was told in my inquiries, it is the grandson of Opetu Owado (i.e., the son of crown prince Opetu) called Opetu Mutsuuba who was approached by Mukudi the 2nd, the then leader of Abanyala, to bring back abaofu. (This Mukudi II was the son of Khainja who was the Son of Khasamba who leader Abanyala in the war against Abakhoone). The terms of returning were that abakhoone would resettle in their former settlements and they would be accorded equal rights like their abanyala counterparts. Also, their settlement across river Ndekwe would remain semi-automous being ruled from Erukala by their Opetu although this time as part of Bunyala and not as Bunambo Kingdom. In memory of the bravery of abakhoone warriors in battle and in memory of their greatest warrior, Mufula who was one eyed, abanyala renamed the location across Ndekwe as Buofu (the land of the blind). Another reason why the place came to be known as Buofu is because whenever the Abanyala teased Abakhoone about their past history of wars, they simple joked and replied that "ever since you abanyala killed our blind one, i.e., Mufula, we are nowadays blind so we do not see enemies anymore.
That is why you find that today abakhoone occupy more lands than most of abanyala clans. In order to minimise hostility from abanyala who considered abakhoone their enemies, most of them preferred to identify themselves by the name of their houses instead of their clan, abakhoone. That is why you will hear some people calling themselves abadiera, abaholo, abadubuusi, abamembwe, abaimini, abasukudi, abasinani etc...actually all these are abakhoone. In most cases some people mistake them to be abanyekera or abasinyama. But they are all abakhoone.
So Fred, in summary, the leader of who brought abakhoone back to Bunambo or present day Bunyala was Opetu Mutsuuba. As for the leader of the Abaofu (the warriors) who assisted Abanyala in the war against Abasamia, I will make further inquiries. I have never inquired. But what is documented is that it is the return of Abaofu, this time fighting for Abanyala that saved Bunyala from being occupied by Abasamia and Luos. John Osogo (1965) in the History Of Buluhya noted that "abaofu fought for the abanyala with the same fervor and bravery that they had fought against them when they fought for kingdom of bunambo against the same abanyala for centuries.