Gongo Lutete
Encyclopedia
Gongo Lutete was a Congolese
leader and chieftain during the late 19th century.
As a boy he was enslaved by Arabs, but after winning his freedom he became a respected leader of the Batetela and Bakussu tribes in the Congo. In 1886, he joined forces with the Arab slave trader Tippu Tip
near Stanley Pool
, where Tip was organizing resistance to Leopold II
's Congo Free State
. When the 1892-1894 war in the Eastern Congo began, he and his people fought for the Arabs initially, under the command of Tippu Tip's son Sefu. However, the Arabs failed to pay Lutete for his allegiance and also for some ivory which he had provided for them, so he defected to the Free State's Force Publique
in 1892, infuriating Sefu, who sent the Free State a message demanding that they surrender Lutete to him and threatening to drive his forces all the way to Stanleyville
in the western Congo if they did not comply. Lutete fought for the Free State until in 1893, when he was accused of plotting to betray the Free State and executed.
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
leader and chieftain during the late 19th century.
As a boy he was enslaved by Arabs, but after winning his freedom he became a respected leader of the Batetela and Bakussu tribes in the Congo. In 1886, he joined forces with the Arab slave trader Tippu Tip
Tippu Tip
Tippu Tip or Tib , real name Hamad bin Muḥammad bin Jumah bin Rajab bin Muḥammad bin Sa‘īd al-Murghabī, , was a Swahili-Zanzibari trader. He was famously known as Tippu Tib after an eye disease which made him blind...
near Stanley Pool
Pool Malebo
The Pool Malebo , is a lake-like widening in the lower reaches of the Congo River....
, where Tip was organizing resistance to Leopold II
Leopold II of Belgium
Leopold II was the second king of the Belgians. Born in Brussels the second son of Leopold I and Louise-Marie of Orléans, he succeeded his father to the throne on 17 December 1865 and remained king until his death.Leopold is chiefly remembered as the founder and sole owner of the Congo Free...
's Congo Free State
Congo Free State
The Congo Free State was a large area in Central Africa which was privately controlled by Leopold II, King of the Belgians. Its origins lay in Leopold's attracting scientific, and humanitarian backing for a non-governmental organization, the Association internationale africaine...
. When the 1892-1894 war in the Eastern Congo began, he and his people fought for the Arabs initially, under the command of Tippu Tip's son Sefu. However, the Arabs failed to pay Lutete for his allegiance and also for some ivory which he had provided for them, so he defected to the Free State's Force Publique
Force Publique
The Force Publique , French for "Public Force", was both a gendarmerie and a military force in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1885, , through the period of direct Belgian colonial rule...
in 1892, infuriating Sefu, who sent the Free State a message demanding that they surrender Lutete to him and threatening to drive his forces all the way to Stanleyville
Kisangani
Kisangani is the capital of Orientale Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the 3rd largest urbanized city in the country and the largest of the cities that lie in the tropical woodlands of the Congo....
in the western Congo if they did not comply. Lutete fought for the Free State until in 1893, when he was accused of plotting to betray the Free State and executed.