Kingdom of Bamum - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The kingdom of Bamum or Bamoum, also known as Bamun or Bamoun or Mum (1394–1884) was a pre-colonial West African state in what is now northwest Cameroon

Cameroon

Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...

. It was founded by the Mbum, a semi-Bantu ethnic group from northeast Cameroon.

Origins

The Mbum, along with several other peoples, claim descent from the Tikar

Tikar

The Tikar are a group of related ethnic groups in Cameroon. They live primarily in the northwestern part of the country, in the Northwest Province near the Nigerian border. They speak Bantoid language, also called Tikar. Their population is approximately 25,000.The Tikar have elements of...

of the Cameroon highlands. In fact, the Bamum kingdom was founded by emigrants related to the Tikar royal dynasty of Nsaw. The founding king (called a “fon” or “mfon”) was Nchare, a conqueror reputed to have crushed some eighteen rulers. King Nchare founded the capital Foumban

Foumban

Foumban or Fumban is a city in Cameroon, lying north east of Bafoussam. It has a population of 83,522 . It is a major town for the Bamoun people and is home to a museum of traditional arts and culture...

, then called Mfomben. This first group of Tikar emigrants conquerors absorbed the language and customs of their new subjects and were from then on known as Mbum. Later, all peoples falling under their influence would take this name. It is believed that Chamba

Chamba people

The Chamba people of Nigeria and Cameroon that speak two distantly related languages: Chamba Leko, of the Leko–Nimbari languages, and Chamba Daka, of the Dakoid languages...

migrations from the Tikar plain in the southern part of the western Adamaoua plateau

Adamawa Plateau

The Adamawa Plateau is a plateau region in west-central Africa stretching from south-eastern Nigeria through north-central Cameroon to the Central African Republic. The plateau was named after Fulani Muslim leader Modibo Adama. The part of the plateau that lies in Nigeria is more popularly known...

resulted in the kingdom’s foundation.

Organization

The founding king organized his realm around political institutions originating among the Tikar. There were titled or noblemen called the kom ngu (counselors of the kingdom) with whom he divided the land. The Bamum kingdom’s population used secret societies. One society, the ngiri, was for princes. Another, the mitngu, was for the general populace regardless of social status. The mfon recruited most of his retainers from twins and the sons of princesses. The king of Bamum was known as the mfon, a title shared by Tikar rulers. The mfon engaged in large-scale polygamy giving rise to a proliferation of royal lineages. This led to the palace nobility growing rapidly.

Culture

Little is known about the kingdom’s material and social culture during this time. Originally, the language of state in the Bamum kingdom was that of the Tikar. This apparently did not last long, and the language of the conquered, Mben, was adopted. The economy was largely agricultural, and slave owning was practiced on a small scale. The Bamum kingdom also traded with neighboring populations. They imported salt, iron, beads, cotton goods and copper objects.

The Bamun developed an extensive artistic culture at their capital of Foumban at the beginning of the 20th century. During Njoya

Ibrahim Njoya

King Ibrahim Njoya , distinguished ruler, intellectual, and inventor, was 17th in a long dynasty of kings that ruled over Bamum and its people in western Cameroon dating back to the 14th century. He succeeded his father Nsangu and ruled from 1886/7 until his death in 1933...

’s reign six dye pits containing various colors were maintained. The Mbum also imported indigo-dyed raffia-sewn cloth from the Hausa

Hausa people

The Hausa are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa. They are a Sahelian people chiefly located in northern Nigeria and southeastern Niger, but having significant numbers living in regions of Cameroon, Ghana, Cote d'Ivoire, Chad and Sudan...

as royal cloth. This royal cloth was called Ntieya, and Hausa craftsmen were kept at palace workshops to supply nobles and teach the art of dyeing.

History

During the 18th century, the kingdom faced the threat of invasion from the north by Fulani and Chamba warriors. By the end of the century, Bamum had perhaps 10,000-12,000 within its domain. The History and Customs of the Bamum list ten kings between the founder and Kuotu. The nine kings that followed Nchare are not remembered for anything special. They were not conquerors, and territorial expansion did not occur until the reign of the tenth Mbum, Mbum Mbuembue, in the early 19th century. King Mbuembue was the first ruler to expand the Bamun Kingdom. He was also famous for repelling an attack by the Fulani in the early 19th century. Mfon Mbuembue also took steps to fortify the capital with the construction of a trench. He was the founder of the emblem of the Bamun people, characteristic of their capabilities to fight in two fronts and win both at the same time. He represented the Bamun people by a snake with two heads also known as "Ngnwe peh tu".

German Colonization

The Bamun kingdom voluntarily became part of German Kamerun in 1884 during the reign of Mfon Nsangou. During his reign, Bamum fought a war with the Nso. By the end of the conflict, the king was killed, and his head was carried off by the Nso. Immediately after, one of the king’s wives, Njapdunke, took over the kingdom’s government with her lover Gbetnkom Ndo`mbue. We have to remember that this Gbetnkom above was not the Mfon as there was another Gbetnkom who was the son of Mfon Mbuembue the great conqueror. In fact after the death of Mfon Mbuembue, there was no male heir to inherit his throne; so Njapdunke took over for sometime, but fail to represent the king. She was then removed and it was thought that one of the king's son Mbetnkom was at a village called "Massagham" for treatment. He was then brought back and became Mfon Mbetnkom. Mbetnkom was a short man, a dictator and use to order to shop off the legs of those who were taller than him. A practice that finally cost his life during a hunting training session. After his death, his little son, Mbienkuo succeeded him yet was too young to rule. It became a habit for him to wanting to know who was his father amongst the people who were taking guards behind him. His court led by Ngouoh became doubtful and thought the boy may eventually learn that they are the people who killed his father. Mfon Mbienkuo was carried away and killed in a place called nowadays "Mfe shut Mfon mbwere". Now the throne remained vacant for sometime and Ngouoh, the leader of the court ultimately became Mfon, but unfortunately was not a descendant of king Mbuembue. He was a Bamileke slave. Ngouoh was not welcome by his subjects and decided to move the palace to his own location. Mfon Ngouoh was later chased away after a fierce fight between him and the followers of Mbuembue. Nsangou, a grand son of Mbuembue became king.

Njoya the Great

Eventually King Njoya

Ibrahim Njoya

, son of the slain king, came to power. He was one of Bamum’s most prolific rulers and ruled from approximately 1883 to 1931. He voluntarily put his kingdom under the protection of German colonial power and was responsible for modernizing certain elements of Mbum society. In 1897, Njoya and his court converted to Islam, a decision that would affect Bamun culture long after Njoyua’s death. He invented the Shumom

Bamum Scripts and Archives Project

Bamum Scripts and Archives Project at the Bamum Palace is engaged in a variety of initiatives concerning the Bamum script, including collecting and photographing threatened documents, translating and in some cases hand-copying documents, creating a fully usable Bamum computer font for the inventory...

script so that his people would be able to record Bamum’s history. In 1910, Njoya had a school constructed where the script was taught. Germans were allowed to set up the Basel Mission

Basel Mission

The Basel Mission is a Christian missionary society active from 1815 to 2001, when it was merged into Mission 21, the successor organization of Kooperation Evangelischer Kirchen und Missione founded in 2001....

at the capital of and construction was undertaken to build a temple. A school was also built, staffed by missionaries whom taught in German and the native language. The Germans also introduced new housing construction techniques while settling among the kingdom’s inhabitants as farmers, traders and educators. King Njoya remained loyal to his German overlords who in turn respected his rights as king and consulted him on colonial business. Another important element in the kingdom’s history during the period under German protection was the introduction of sweet potatoes, macabo and other new foods, which helped the kingdom become more prosperous than ever. The Mbum were able to trade outside their traditional borders, and the income greatly improved the standard of living. King Njoya was greatly influenced by the missionaries who denounced idols, human sacrifice and polygamy. In response, Njoya cut back on royal excesses. Nobles were allowed to marry slaves and those of the non-landed servile class. The king, however, remained unconverted to Christianity. In fact, he merged some of the tenents of Christianity and Islam with traditional beliefs to create an altogether new religion more palatable to his subjects.
In 1906, Germany sent an expeditionary force against the Nso backed up by King Njoya’s warriors. After the victory, the force was able to reclaim the head of Njoya’s father, which was crucial for legitimizing the king. From then on, the bond between Bamum and Germany was unbreakable. When Germany was besieged on all sides during the first World War, Bamun steadfastly supported them until the bitter end when they came under the more repressive rule of the French.

French Colonization

In 1918, Germany’s colonial possessions were divided up between France and Great Britain. The kingdom of Bamoun thus fell under repressive French rule. In 1923, Njoya was deposed, and his script was banned by the French.