Chapter 88

Chapter 88: Conflict Escalation

In the East African colonial border post of Enzera, the main responsibility was to monitor the movement of indigenous exiled tribes and prevent their return to the east. The "purge" campaign orchestrated by the East African colonial government had successfully disrupted the northwest region, leading to conflicts and significant loss of life among the indigenous population.

The colonial government had established military strongholds along the northwest border, forming a one-way valve to allow indigenous people to leave but not return. Enzera was one of these military outposts.

In the northwest, the affected countries started cooperating to deal with the Eastern Bantu tribes. While these tribes had taken them by surprise and caused internal turbulence, the local nobility still retained some strength, including royal armies.

Despite the challenges, the center of power within these indigenous countries remained intact, even if certain regions were temporarily cut off due to the ongoing conflict.

In response to the growing threat from the Eastern Bantu tribes and their increased numbers due to refugees joining them, the indigenous tribes began forming alliances and launching coordinated attacks on the Eastern Bantu tribes.

As the war escalated, these smaller tribes and individuals were absorbed into larger Eastern Bantu tribes, strengthening their overall capabilities. The conflict took place in the region west of the Great Lake (Lake Victoria).

The ongoing war disrupted the social order in the northwest countries. Slaves, originally used for development and agriculture, either joined the warring factions or fled into the wilderness, further exacerbating the issue of abandoned land.

With the land deserted and food production reduced, families faced worsening conditions. Competition for the remaining resources intensified the conflict between the two sides.

The nobility of the northwest countries had some advantages in the conflict. They possessed more advanced social systems, organizational abilities, and ironworking skills compared to the Eastern Bantu tribes.

However, the Eastern Bantu tribes had the advantage of sheer destructive power. They were focused on resource competition rather than construction, and their nomadic lifestyle made them formidable adversaries.

In response to this ongoing conflict, the nobles of the northwest countries frequently engaged in "friendly matches" as they competed for resources within the confines of their narrow territory between the Great Lake (Lake Victoria) and the East African Rift Valley.

These nobles, who had a history of practicing slavery, were essentially military leaders responsible for suppressing the slaves in their regions.

In contrast, the Eastern Bantu tribes had no noble class and selected strong individuals as leaders. These tribes primarily engaged in plundering the northwest countries, as their original hunting grounds had been lost.

The alliance of Northwest nobles, equipped with iron tools and effective organizational skills, gained an upper hand over the Eastern Bantu tribes.

The war became increasingly brutal, with both sides seeking total annihilation of their opponents. Surrender was not an option, and captured individuals were often executed.

The Northwest countries ultimately emerged victorious after more than three months of intense conflict. The Eastern Bantu tribes, however, remained inexhaustible. The elderly, weak, sick, and disabled among them were made into slaves to compensate for labor losses caused by the war.

This brutal war resulted in millions of casualties and vendettas, leaving entire regions in the northwest sparsely populated. Furthermore, the bodies of the fallen were left unburied due to the scale of the conflict, leading to the spread of a devastating plague.

The East African colonial government, aiming to prevent the plague from affecting its colonies, imposed strict border controls and increased disinfection efforts. These measures successfully prevented the spread of the plague into the East African colonies.

The southern regions of the Northwest countries were the hardest hit, while the northern territories of the Buganda Kingdom, the Kingdom of Turou, and the Kingdom of Jitala were less affected.

This conflict had dire consequences for the entire northwest region, leaving a lasting impact on its social and economic landscape.

(End of Chapter 88)