African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 136: Chapter 128: The Northwest Will Battle

In the following days, Werner Juri and others continued their northward journey along the shores of the Great Lake (Lake Victoria), surveying several locations.

From south to north, they initially only saw desolate villages, with the fishing villages built by the lake also abandoned.

After passing Entebbe, the shoreline of the Great Lake (Lake Victoria) began to shift eastwards, and soon the population density increased, up to Kampala, the prosperous capital of the Buganda Kingdom. It was evident that this area, being deep in the center of the Buganda Kingdom, had not been significantly affected by the war.

After passing Kampala, Werner Juri and his team headed east, traveling approximately over two hundred kilometers, observing that the eastern part of the Buganda Kingdom and some basic tribes were unaffected.

Finally, Werner Juri and others arrived at Kisumu, the capital of the Western Kenya District, resupplied, and then headed south back to Mwanza to report the situation.

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In April, the intelligence gathered by Werner Juri was sent to the Central District. After the East African colonial government organized and analyzed this intelligence, it was sent via telegraph to Ernst in Europe.

In the telegram, the East African government believed that the conditions were now ripe for annexing the northwest region, especially since the southern countries in the northwest had clearly been severely hit, and even the more northern countries like Buganda had been deeply affected.

If a large-scale campaign were launched, recruiting more people, it would be entirely feasible to secure this territory.

After carefully reviewing the report from the East African government, Ernst decreed to first capture the southern areas, leaving the Buganda Kingdom and the less severely damaged northern countries untouched for now.

Once the construction of Kisumu and the Western Kenya District was completed, forces could then be concentrated to attack the Buganda Kingdom from both the east and the south.

This strategy could effectively avoid casualties among the East African colonial staff and adhered to the principle of tackling easier tasks first.

In the telegram, Ernst emphasized that occupying a location should be followed by clearing it, leaving no indigenous population behind. As for the Arab merchants and foreign adventurers, they could be arranged for evacuation.

This certainly did not mean slaughtering the indigenous people, rather it was to drive them northwards, to flee toward the places of former allies.

To the west lay the primeval forests of Congo, where entering rashly without sufficient preparation was tantamount to courting death, so it did not matter if the indigenous people tried to flee west.

According to Ernst’s thinking, the ruling class of those southern countries would certainly choose to flee north, having previously allied with northern groups against the invasions of the Eastern Bantu Tribes.

As for resisting the East African colony, these southern countries, ravaged by the Eastern Bantu and plagued by epidemics, had yet to recover. Forming an adequately sizable army was problematic.

In fact, after the last ”purge” campaign, and after a few months of testing, the results seemed to be very good. The East African colony did not have to act personally to solve the problem of the native population’s destination while simultaneously weakening the power of indigenous groups in other regions.

Upon receiving Ernst’s orders, the East African colonial government and the military began to formulate battle plans to ensure the success of this operation.

April 5, 1868.

East Africa Colonial Central Government Conference Hall.

”This action is equivalent to an act of war. Our government’s role is primarily to cooperate with the military, so Minister Arman, it’s best for you to introduce the combat plans so our government departments can make corresponding arrangements.” Director Von der Leyen established the baseline, clarifying the government’s attitude.

”Alright then, I will first represent the military in outlining the general plan.” Arman stood up from his chair, walked to the map, and pointed at the Karavel Kingdom with a baton, saying, ”According to Prince Ernst’s instructions, in the first phase, we will mainly attack from the south. The military plans to replicate the previous ’purge’ campaign, targeting primarily the kingdoms of Rwanda, Ijara, Karaveli, and Burundi, these four countries.

The battle area will cover approximately sixty to seventy thousand square kilometers, and according to Prince Ernst’s requirements, the indigenous population in this region must be eliminated.

Thus, we are also responsible for driving all remaining indigenous forces in this area to the north, to continue impacting the remaining northern four countries, preparing for the second phase, though the second phase operations will depend on Prince Ernst’s plans,” said Arman.

”How many personnel do you plan to deploy for the first phase?” Director Anderson asked.

”Currently, in the Soron Lake District and Great Lake District, near the border with Burundi and Karavel Kingdom, we previously stationed over three thousand people to prevent the Eastern Bantu from returning to the East African colony, including more than three hundred regular troops.

My estimate is that we will need to summon at least an additional six thousand militia and one thousand regular troops from the rear, based on this,” Arman continued. ”The scale of this battle is not expected to be too intense, considering the local kingdoms had already been devastated by the Eastern Bantu. Although the local nobles subdued the Eastern Bantu, it was basically a case of wounding a thousand enemies at the cost of eight hundred of their own.

Additionally, due to previous war-induced land abandonment, famine, and disease, the local population was significantly weakened.

Therefore, we only need to focus on the major military fortresses and cities of these kingdoms, and there should be no large-scale battles.

But to thoroughly comb through such a large area and complete the expulsion of local people, at least a scale of over ten thousand people is necessary. This battle is different from previous ones; it is a typical overseas operation. Only Mwanza and Kigoma have the capacity to support the battle in the short term, so the number of people cannot be too small.”

The East African leadership agreed with Arman’s explanation because this battle was indeed different from previous ones. The northwestern countries are deep inland in East Africa, while the current focus of the East African colony is in the east. The Soron Lake District, as the westernmost major district of East Africa, finds its material supplies more difficult than other districts, making it challenging to ensure supply to the front lines.

”Besides the personnel requirement, the government needs to follow up on immigration relocation work. In the coming months, immigration should prioritize the northwest region, while also considering the second phase of combat. It is necessary to strengthen immigration efforts in the Western Kenya District, with immigration prioritizing these two areas,” said Sivert from the General Staff.

”So, how should the recent immigrant distribution ratio be allocated?” someone asked Von der Leyen.

”Six, three, one. In the next period, sixty percent of new immigrants should go to the Northwest New Occupation Zone, thirty percent to the Western Kenya District, especially in areas bordering Buganda, and the remaining ten percent to Omolate, which is not far from Western Kenya, enabling it to support actions in the Western Kenya District,” said Von der Leyen.

”Agreed, this way it can also fill up the entire western population,” said Anderson.

”If anyone has any good suggestions, feel free to bring them up,” Von der Leyen said to the government staff.

”New immigrants should be placed as close to the front line as possible, even if it means creating a vacuum in the rear, to prevent the indigenous people from coming back around,” someone suggested.

”Agreed. Next.”

”Additionally, the recently formed inland lake troops can also be utilized. Shipping grain and other supplies via the waterway from Mwanza is more convenient.”

”Adopted.”

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After a while, once the government side was done discussing, Von der Leyen’s focus returned to the military.

”Does your military have any other requirements? Please bring them up, and we will try our best to meet them,” Von der Leyen asked.

Several military leaders conferred, and then Arman spoke, ”It’s essential to ensure smooth logistic transportation. New immigrants and supplies can be sent to the front line simultaneously. This ensures the safety of provisions and allows immigrants to proceed to take root in the northwest, enabling us to recruit more militia locally in the second phase.”

”Therefore, new immigrants to the northwest should receive military training as soon as possible, or they won’t catch up with the second phase combat tasks! You can assign more instructors from the rear,” Arman suggested.

”Our General Staff Department will handle the related work,” said Sivert, as training militia needs personnel from the General Staff.

The General Staff, mostly composed of students from the Heixinggen Military Academy, are bilingual and can better handle training for immigrants from the German region, Austria-Hungary, and the Far East, while also serving as Ernst’s key force to oversee East African localities and the military.

”Any other issues?” asked Von der Leyen.

”None,” they replied.

”If that’s all, everyone, prepare well! Meeting adjourned,” Von der Leyen said.

The East African war machinery was set into motion; this time, the entire colony was involved.

Unlike the previous Zanzibar war, which only mobilized the Marine District, this time the entire East Africa was activated.

Even regions not directly involved in the war were affected, such as with immigrants and supplies being prioritized for the front line, and all already developed regions experiencing a temporary steady phase of development.

The Western Kenya District, Soron Lake (Tanganyika Lake) District, and Great Lake (Lake Victoria) District were most affected.

Troops and militias began gathering toward the Soron Lake District and Great Lake District, with immigration to the Western Kenya District being accelerated.

The inland lake troops led by Werner Juri also started actively operating on the western shore of the Great Lake (Lake Victoria), mapping the lake’s shoreline and finding suitable locations for landing supplies and personnel, to prepare for subsequent operations and link up with the battle line.

This battle was a phased advancement, and since the local population was to be driven away, the battle line was essentially a straight line, advancing steadily from south to north.

The replenishment of troops and supplies relied partly on land transportation from the rear and partly on the inland lake troops.

Upon completing the first phase of the battle, new immigrants should be settled as close to the northern border as possible to block the indigenous people from returning to the Eastern African colonial occupied zone.

In the second phase, new immigrants could support the East African colony in conquering the four northern countries, providing militia and labor, with proximity to the temporary boundary facilitating subsequent combat.