Background to Genocide
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The kingdom was created in the 15th century
through the conquest of chiefdoms.
The king was called the Mwami.
The royal family was held to be descended
from a god-like people called the Abechwezi,
who vanished, leaving behind a single child.
The population was said to consist of three
ethnic groups:
The Tutsi were cattle
pastoralists. They
constituted 15% of the
population.
They believed that they
descended from pastoral
invaders from the north
who conquered the
resident Hutu
agriculturalists.
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The Hutu were agriculturalists. They attached
themselves to Tutsi patrons to gain access to
land and for protection, in return for crops.
They made up 85% of the population.
They were held to be shorter and darker and
possessing facial features that differed from the
Tutsi.
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The Twa were originally hunter-gatherers who
originally traded game to agriculturalists.
They make up .275% of the population (33,000).
After losing most of their territories to
agriculturalists they made their living as
laborers and entertainers for the Tutsi.
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Rwanda state grows by conquest to reach its
greatest extent in the late 19th century under
king Kigeri IV Rwabugiri (Ruanda’s greatest
king).
1884 Germans claim Ruanda as part of Deutsch
Ost-Afrika. Don’t really take control of it.
1916-18 Assigned to Belgium following WWI.
They rule through the monarchy.
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1959 Hutus revolt and slaughter Tutsis. Many
Tutsis flee to neighboring countries.
1961 In a referendum the population votes to
abolish the monarchy.
1962 Ruanda becomes independent. Cycles of
killings follow.
1973 Juvénal Habyarimana seizes power in a
coup.
1990 The Rwandan Patriotic Front invades
northern Ruanda. Rwandan civil war begins.
April 6th 1994 Habyarimana’s plane is shot
down, initiating the genocide.