The Ankole Kingship Controversy

Revisiting the history of the Ankole Kingship - a Ugandan Monarchy abolished in 1967 - has been inspired by recent political controversy and violent discourse in Uganda. This centres around the possible restoration of kingship in the southern and western parts of the country and the associated wider social and political implications - in particular in Ankole. This new revised edition sets out to shed light on what has become an insoluble stalemate. The author, and historian, interprets the role and evolution of the institution from the pre-colonial era, to its abolition after independence, and its present day status. He is concerned to understand the kingship on its own terms, and the conflict as part of a wider mesh of geographical, ethnic and administrative loyalties, which were realigned in the wake of social and political change, especially under the colonial administration.