Empire of Kitara

The Kingdom of the Banyakitara, also known as Empire of Kitara or Chwezi Empire (meaning Empire of the sunlight or Empire of the Moonlight), was an empire in East Africa.[1][2][3][4][5]

Empire of Kitara
PersonMunyakitara
LanguageRunyakitara
CountryUganda
Kitara historical sites

History

The kingdom arose when the Kingdom of Aksum[6][7] disintegrated around 940 AD, when the southern part broke away. According to oral tradition, at the height of its power (XIV-XV centuries), the kingdom included much of Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, northern Tanzania and eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.[8] It was ruled by two dynasties, the Batembuzi and their successors the Bachwezi. The empire is said to have fragmented after the invasion of the Luo in around 1500 CE.[9] The Chwezi dynasty is thought to have been related to the Tembuzi through King Isaza, the last ruler of the Batembuzi dynasty, who married Nyamate daughter of Nyamuyonga King of the underworld. This union produced King Isimbwa who later fathered Ndahura in Runyakitara (known in Rwanda as Ndahiro and in Buganda as Ndaula), the first of the Chwezi dynastic kings.[10][11]

Rulers
Abakama (Kings) of the Empire of Kitara
DynastyKing/OmukamaClanFatherMotherMother's ClanReignBurial Place
1Batembuzi (Reign of the gods)KintuUnknownUnknownUnknownUnknownlate 900Jinja
2KakamaBagabuKintuKatiUnknownearly 1000Unknown
3ItwaleBagabuKakamaUnknownUnknownearly 1000Unknown
4HangiBagabuItwaleUnknownUnknownmid 1000Unknown
5Ira lya HangiBagabuHangiUnknownUnknownmid 1000Unknown
6Kabengera Kazooba ka HangiBagabuHangiUnknownUnknownlate 1000Unknown
7NyamuhangaBagabuKazoobaUnknownUnknownearly 1100Unknown
8Nkya IBagabuNyamuhangaNyabagabeUnknownearly 1100Unknown
9Nkya IIBagabuNyaka IUnknownUnknownmid 1100Unknown
10BabaBagabuNyka IIUnknownUnknownmid 1100Unknown
11KamuliBagabuBabaUnknownUnknownlate 1100Unknown
12NsekaBagabuKamuliUnknownUnknownlate 1100Unknown
13KudidiBagabuNsekaUnknownUnknownearly 1200Unknown
14NtoziBagabuKudidiUnknownUnknownearly 1200Unknown
15NyakahongerwaBagabuNtoziUnknownUnknownmid 1200Unknown
16MukonkoBagabuNyakahongerwaUnknownUnknownmid 1200Unknown
17Ngozaki RutahindukaBagabuMukonkoUnknownUnknownlate 1200Unknown
18Isaza Waraga RugambanabatoBagabuNgozaki RutahindukaUnknownUnknownlate 1200/early 1300Unknown
19Bukuku OmuranziBaranziUnknownUnknownUnknownearly 1300Kisegwe kya Nyinamwiru, Birembo Sub County, Bugangaizi
20Bachwezi (Reign of the demi-gods)Ndahura KyarubumbiBachweziUnknown1300 - 1370Unknown
21Mulindwa Nyabweliza NgangoBachweziIsimbwaNyakwahyaBasaigi1370 - 1430Unknown
22Wamara BwigundaBachweziNdahuraNyanteUnknown1430 - 1500Unknown

Timeline

Preceded by:

Succeeded by:

See also

References
  1. "Empire of Kitara: One of the oldest African Empires that existed since 900 AD to date". Theafricanhistory.com. 2 May 2021.
  2. Bernsten, Jan (1 March 1998). "Runyakitara: Uganda's 'New' Language". Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development. 19 (2): 93–107. doi:10.1080/01434639808666345. ISSN 0143-4632.
  3. Stokes, Jamie (2009). Encyclopedia of the Peoples of Africa and the Middle East, Volume 1. Infobase Publishing. pp. 506–509.
  4. "AfriWetu Ep14 - Bachwezi Dynasty (Kitara Empire) - African Civilisation Series by AfriWetu". Anchor.fm.
  5. Tantala, Renee (1989). The early history of Kitara in Western Uganda: Process models of religious and political change. Ph. D. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin, Madison.
  6. "AfriWetu S2E17 - Axum Empire Pt1 (Civilisations) by AfriWetu". Anchor.fm. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  7. "AfriWetu S2E18 - Axum Empire Pt2 (Civilisations) by AfriWetu". Anchor.fm. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  8. "Empire of Kitara: One of the oldest African Empires that existed since 900 AD to date". Theafricanhistory.com. 2 May 2021.
  9. Uzoigwe, GN (1973). "Succession and Civil War in Bunyoro - Kitara". The International Journal of African Historical Studies. 6 (1): 49–71. doi:10.2307/216973. JSTOR 216973.
  10. "The Bachwezi powers". Newvision.co.ug. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  11. "AfriWetu Ep15 - Origins of the Bachwezi - Legends Series by AfriWetu". Anchor.fm. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  12. "AfriWetu S2E20 - Queen Makeda of Sheba (Legends) by AfriWetu". Anchor.fm. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
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