A History of the Colonization of Africa by Alien Races

Front matter

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CHAPTER I.^ Mediterranean, Malay, and Muhammadan Invaders

The origin of African man — Distribution of native races three thousand years ago — Bantu invasion of South Africa — The Phoenicians — Carthage — Hanno's voyage — Greeks in Cyrenaica and Egjrpt — Persians in Egypt — Rome replaces Carthage — Malay invasions of Madagascar — Vandals in North Africa — Byzantine Greeks — Muhammadan invasions of North Africa in the seventh century — Berber d3niasties which arose therefrom— Renewed Arab invasions — The Almoravide dynasty from the Niger — succeeded by the Almohades — Counter attacks of Portugal and Spain — Moorish^couquests in Nigeria — Turkish intervention in North Africa — ^Arab settlements on Zanzibar coast . i

CHAPTER II. The Portuguese in Africa

Origin of the State of Portugal — Prince Henry the Navigator — Portuguese explorations of West African coast — Rounding of Cape of Good Hope — East African conquests-^Portuguese in Abyssinia — in the Congo Kingdom — in Angola — Paulo Diaz — The benefits the Portuguese conferred on Africa — Their struggles with the Dutch — Progress of their rule in West Africa — in East Africa — Monomotapa — Dr Lacerda e Almeida — Livingstone's journeys — Present state of Mo9ambique — Delagoa Bay — Beira — Mouzinho de Albuquerque — Mo9ambique Company 27 viii Contents,

CHAPTER III. Spanish Africa

Spain's North African establishments in the i6th century — T he Mooris h Pirates — Gradual loss of Spanish possessions in Algeria and Tunis — Canary Islands — Fernando Po and Corisco . . . . 6i

CHAPTER IV. The Dutch in Africa

Dutch traders on the West Coast — Dutch settle at the Cape of Good Hope — St Helena — Mauritius — The Netherland East India Co. — Huguenot colonists — Governor Tulbagh — extensions of Dutch influence — First hostile British expedition under Commodore Johnstone— First Dutch war with the Kaffirs — First British occupation of the Cape of Good Hope — Interregnum of Dutch rule — British finally annex Cape Colony — ^Their rulers come into conflict with the sentiments of the Dutch colonists (Boers) — ^The Boer Treks — Origin of Transvaal and Orange Free State republics — Annexation and revolt of Transvaal — Sir Charles Warren's expedition — Johannesburg, the Outlanders, and Jameson's raid— Possible future of Dutch states • , , 66

CHAPTER V. The Slave Trade

Negro predisposition" for slavery — Slave trade in the Roman world, in Muhammadan countries and India — Great develo^ent consequent on the exploitation of America — English slav^ traders — English Anti- Slavery movement — Author's own experiences of slave trade — Steps taken by various European countries to abolish Slave Trade — By Great Britain in particular — Rev. S. W. Koelle — Zanzibar slave trade —Ethics of slavery — A word of warning to the Negro • 91

CHAPTER VI. The British in Africa, I

(West Coasts Morocco^ North-Central,)

The English in West Africa — The Gambia — Sierra Leone — Gold Coast — Lagos — Niger Delta— Mr E. H. Hewett — Nigeria — Sir G. Taubman Goldie — Great Britain and Tripoli — and Morocco . . . 103

Contents. ix

CHAPTER VII. ^ The French in West and North Africa

The Dieppe adventurers — ^Jaimequin de Rochefort and the Senegal — Briie and the foundation of the colony of Senegal — Campagnon — Progress of French rule over Senegambia—: Advance to the Niger — Samori and Ahmadu — ^Timbuktu — Binger and the Ivory Coast — Samori — ^Timbuktu definitely occupied — Busa and the Anglo-French Convention — France and Egypt — ^Algiers — Development of Algeria — ^Tunis — ^The Sahara — ^The Gaboon — French Congo — The Shan and Ubangi — French designs on Nileland — The convention with Abyssinia — Obok and Somaliland iii

CHAPTER VIII. Christian Missions

Their work the antithesis to the slave trade — Portuguese missions to V Congoland, to the Zambezi, to Abyssinia — First Protestant missions —

— Church Missionary Society — Dr Krapf — ^Wesleyans, Methodists, Society for Propagation of the Gospel — Roman Catholic missions to Algeria, Congoland, the Nile — Cardinal Lavigerie — The * White Fathers ' — The Jesuits on the Zambezi — in Madagascar — The London Missionary Society— Swiss and German Protestant Missions — Frencl v Evangelical Missions—Presbyterian (Scotch) Missions — Norwegian and Ameri^n Missions — Linguistic work of latter — Universities' Mission — Plymouth Brethren — Baptists — North African Mission — Zambezi Industrial Mission — Abyssinian Christianity . . 146

CHAPTER IX. The British in Africa, II

(South and South- Central,)

Great Britain's seizure of the Cape of Good Hope — Permanent establishment there — ^Abolition of slavery — Dutch grievances — Kaffir Wars — ' Lord Glenelg and intervention of Downing Street — Boer Treks —

Responsible government in Cape Colony — Kaffir delusions as to expected resurrection of their forefathers and expulsion of English — St Helena, Ascension and Tristan d'Acunha — Discovery of diamonds in Grikwaland — History of Natal — Coolie labour and Indian

Contents.

immigration — Delagoa Bay arbitration — Damaraland — Origin of German entrance into South African sphere — ^Walfish Bay — Bechoanaland — ^Zambezia — Nyasaland — British Central Africa — Afiican Transcontinental Telegraph — South African federation — The Transvaal — Sir Bartle Frere — Zululand and the Zulii War — Boer revolt — Rhodes and Rhodesia — Matabele Wars and Dr Jameson — Mauritius . i6o

CHAPTER X. Great Explorers

Old-time travellers — Herodotus — Strabo — Plmy — Ptolemy — ^The Arab geographers — The Portuguese explorers — Andrew Battel — British on the Gambia — Fr ench on t he Sen^^al— James Bruce and the Blue Nile — Timbuktu — Mungo I'ark and the Niger — South African explorations — Portugal and Dr Lacerda — Captain Owen — ^Tuckey and the Congo — Major Laing — Ren^ Caill^ — British Government expeditions in Tripoli, — Bomu, Lake Chad, and Sokoto — Lander and the Niger mouth — Barth and the Western Sudan — the Jewish explorer Mordokhai — Krapf, Rebmann, and the Snow Mountains — Livingstone — Burton and Speke, Speke and Grant — Samuel Baker — Livingstone and Kirk — French explorers in North- West Africa — Livingstone and Central Africa — Cameron — Rohlfs — Nachtigal — Alexandrine TinnI — Paul du Chaillu — Winwood Reade — Stanley and the Congo— Portuguese explorers — Schweinfurth and the Welle — Nile explorers — Nyasaland explorations — Dr Felkin — ^Joseph Thomson— George Grenfell — Emin Pasha — Recent explorers and explorations . . 190

CHAPTER XL Belgian Africa.

Comit^ d'Etudes du Haut Congo — Mr H. M. Stanley founds the Congo Free State — its subsequent history — Long struggle with the Arabs — Lieut. Dhanis — Rumoured atrocities — Katanga — Extension to the White Nile — Murder of Mr Stokes — Railway to Stanley Pool — Future of Congo Free State 225

Contents, xi

CHAPTER XII. The British in Africa, III. y

{Egypt and Eastern Africa,)

England wres ts ^-g yp^ ^^^^ ^^^ Fr<» pgh— -Ris^ of Muhammad Ali — Suez Canal — Arabi's rebellion — Tel-el-Kebir — Mahdi's revolt — Gordon's death — Lord Cromer — Lord Kitchener and the reconquest of the Sudan — Fashoda — Aden and Somaliland — Zanzibar — Sir John Kirk — Kilimanjaro — British EUist African Company— Colonel Lugard and Uganda — Sir Gerald Portal — ** Roddy Owen "— 2Janzibar administration — Dissolution of British East Africa Company . . . 331

CHAPTER XIII. The Italians in Africa. *-^

Italian commercial intercourse with North Africa during Crusades and Renaissance— Italy in Tunis and Tripoli — Assab Bay — Abyssinia — Eritrea — Italian reverse at Adua — Italy in Somaliland . . 143

CHAPTER XIV. German Africa. ^

The Brandenburg traders and the West Coast — German aspirations after colonies in the " 40's " and ** 6o's " — German missionaries in South-west Africa — Herr Ltideritz — ^Angra Pequena — British indecision — German South- West Africa Protectorate founded — Germany in the Cameroons — ^in East Africa — ^Anglo-German partition of the Sultan of Zanzibar's dominions — ^prospects of German rule in Africa — German South- West Africa — ^Togoland 249

CHAPTER XV. The French in Madagascar. ^-^^^

First rumours of the existence of Madagascar — Confusion with Zanzibar and the Comoro Islands — Portuguese discovery — French Company of the East founded to colonize the Island — Fort Dauphin — Pronis, the immoral governor — ^Vacher de Rochelle, King-Consort of a Malagasy Queen — French East India Company founded, lie de Bourboa colonized — ^The Madagascar Pirates — French found settlement of St Marie de Madagascar — Send scientific expeditions to Madagascar xii Contents,

which first make known its peculiar fauna — ^Benyowski, the Polish adventurer — The Malagasy — The Hovas — English capture Mauritius and Bourbon and turn the French out of Madagascar — French r^ain Bourbon and re-occupy St Marie de Madagascar — First missionaries of the London Missionary Society arrive in Madagascar (1818) — Rise of Radama and the Hova power — French repulse in 1829 — ^The shipwrecked sailor, Laborde — Queen Ranavalona and persecutions 6f the Christians — The Sakalavas — Prince Rakoto and Lambert's frustrated coup d*^tat — Accession of Rakoto (Radama II) — Deposition and death — French concession repudiated and indemnity paid — The Laborde succession — Quarrel with France in 1883 — The Shaw incident — General Willoughby— England recognizes French protectorate over Madagascar — final invasion, conquest and annexation of the Island by the French . . . . . • . . 161

Conclusion

Three classes into which Africa falls from colonization standpoint — Healthy Africa — ^Yellow Africa — Black Africa — Prognostications as to future race movements — Predominant European races in the future — The seven great languages of New Africa — Paganism will disappear — Muhammadan zeal will eventually decay — ^The Negro will become identified in national interests with his diverse European rulers, and will not unite to form a universal Negro nation with the cry of 'Africa for the Aifricans * 277

Appendix I. Notable events and dates in the history of African colonization ........... 289

Appendix II. Bibliography 300

Index 303

Xlll

LIST OF MAPS.

1. Map of Africa as known to the Ancients native races and lines of Bantu invasion

3- 4. 5. 6.

7. 8.

Muhammadan Africa .

The Portuguese in Africa

The Slave Trade

The French in Africa

The British in Africa

The Colonizability of Africa

Political Map of Africa in 1898 showing distribution of To face p. 4.

At end.

Note. The spelling of African names adopted throughout this book is the system sanctioned by the Royal Geographical Society, by which all consonants are pronounced as in English and all vowels as in Italian. ]^, fl represents the nasal sound of *ng* in *ri«^i«^,' *so«^,* as distinguished from the *ng' in 'anger.* No consonants are doubled unless pronounced twice in succession: thus *Massowah' is properly written Masawa. But where old established custom has sanctioned a spelling diverging from these rules the official spelling of the name is adopted. Thus : Mozambique instead of Msambiki ; Quelimane instead of Kelimin ; Uganda instead of the more correct Buganda ; Bonny instead of Obani.

Chapter I

f) MEDITERRANEAN, MALAY, AND MUHAMMADAN

INVADERS.

The theme of this book obviously deals rather with the invasion and settlement of Africa by foreign nations than with the movements of people indigenous in their present types to the African continent; but, nevertheless, it may be well to precede this sketch of the history of African colonization by a few remarks explaining the condition and inhabitants of the continent — so far as we can deduce them from indirect evidence — before it was subjected to historic invasions of alien peoples.

In all probability man first entered Africa from Asia, in which continent he almost certainly originated. He followed in the footsteps of those large mammals which now form the most striking features in the African fauna, but which were unknown in that continent before the end of the Tertiary epoch. Later on, and still in prehistoric times, there were no doubt migrations of European man from the northern side of the Mediterranean, just as probably counter race movements occurred from the north of Africa into southern Europe. But it seems much more likely that the bulk of African humanity in its original types passed from India into Arabia, and thence into north-eastern Africa \

^ Geolc^sts seem still to be divided in opinion as to the existence in Tertiary times of a land surface connecting southern Africa with southern

J. A. T

, , • > • ... . . - Early African man was of a very low negroid type, like the Bushmen and Hottentots, and was also akin to the negroid peoples still existing in southern Asia and Oceania. From this stock — either in its first place of expansion, Arabia, or in north-east Africa — diverged the black Negro* and the yellow Hamite, and from this latter, the white Semite; it is probable, however, that the divergence of the Hamites and Semites from the primitive Negro stock took place in Arabia rather than in Africa, though from historical results it is better to assume that the Hamite is an African type and the Semite an Asiatic. One branch of the Hamites invading Europe from north-west Africa possibly created that dark-haired Iberian race which has so permeated southern and western Europe. Another Hamite development in the valley of the Nile resulted in that great Egyptian people with whom the dawn of written history commences, and who threw for a time an eflfulgent light on noith-east Africa. But the ancient Egyptians, being regarded by most authorities as essentially an African people, cannot come within the scope of this book as colonists, though their wonderful civilization did much to attract Asiatic and European races to the invasion of Africa.

About 3000 years ago — a minute in the duration of the human genus — the distribution of African races was probably as follows: — Egypt, Abyssinia, Somaliland, the northern part of the Sahara Desert, and all North Africa, were peopled by

Asia. It is therefore much more easy to assume that the shallow Red Sea was at one time reduced to a series of salt lakes, and that the land between them was the route early man followed. Had Lemuria existed in later Tertiary times why does not its relic, Madagascar, retain descendants of the large African mammals which would have made their way across this route from India to Africa?

^ Not perhaps black originally but a dirty yellow-brown, like the Bushmen and Hottentots and new-bom negro infants; the distinction of hair is perhaps the best definition of these allied races — the woolly-haired ne^o, the curly-haired Hamite, and the straight-haired Semite.

Hamite races, who varied in complexion from dark brown to yellow white. To the south and east were mixed peoples, like the Nubians, Tibbus, Fulas, Mandingoes, who either represent superior offshoots from the negroid stock (though inferior in upward development to the Hamite), or the result of interbreeding between the Hamites and their divergent relations the true Negroes. The latter — the black, woolly-haired Negroes — stretched right across the continent in a great belt from Abyssinia to the Atlantic Ocean, but were arrested in their progress southwards by the Congo forests and some other obstacles unknown to us, which, until relatively recent times, prevented their occupying the southern half of Africa. Through these equatorial forests, and beyond them to the southernmost extremity of Africa, ranged a dwarfish people of pigmy Bushman type, to some extent degenerate, but on the whole representing the earliest form of the Negro species which invaded Africa, a type that perhaps had overrun all Africa and had penetrated thence into Mediterranean Europe, but which had at the period I am reviewing been in a great measure extirpated from all Africa north of the Congo basin. Possibly in the east and west coast regions black Negroes had penetrated to some degrees south of the equator, though no further than the latitude of Zanzibar. There were no foreign settlers then in Africa, unless a few wandering Semites had settled in Egypt or in the highlands of Abyssinia, and except for prehistoric invasions of Mauritania by European savages.

A little later on occurred the great movement of the Bantu Negroes. The actual centre of Africa had by this time (say under 3000 years ago) become extremely populous. Want of space, and possibly the invasion of stronger races from the north or north-east, forced the Negro tribes speaking the Bantu mother language — a speech distantly related to many language groups in the lower Niger basin and on the west coast of Africa, and still more distantly to other linguistic famihes in north central Africa — to invade en masse the southern portion of the continent till then inhabited only by Bushmen, Hottentots*, and such- like dwarfish tribes. Skirting the dense Congo forests, they took the line of least resistance down the eastern side of the continent, along the great lakes, the line by which their main body proceeded due south, while section after section curled back westward into the Congo basin, and eastward on to the Zanzibar and Mozambique coasts. Soon these black Bantu Negroes were the masters of southern Africa, and feeble remnants of the aboriginal dwarf races lingered only in the Congo forests and in the south-west corner of the continent. Some evidence is adduced to show that Madagascar was first inhabited by a dwarfish race of Bushmen stock known as the Kimo. If this is the case, and the evidence offered is very slight, these first inhabitants of Madagascar must have been sufficiently civilized to have been able to travel in canoes fi:om fhe east coast of Africa by way of the Comoro islands to Madagascar. However that may be, it is much more certain that a section of the Bantu Negroes did invade Madagascar from the east coast of Africa at a period antecedent to the arrival of the Malay races. These were known as the Ba-Zimba or Va-Zimba. They were subsequently absorbed by the later invaders of Malay stock, so that along the west and south coasts of Madagascar the people are very negroid in appearance. Almost coincident with the Bantu race movement occurred the first conscient Semitic attempts at colonizing Africa. The enterprising Phoenicians founded Carthage and established trading stations along the north and north-west coasts of Africa. Nearly at the same time came Arabs from the west coast of Arabia voyaging down the east coast of Africa till they ultimately settled in the Sofala' district south of the Zambezi, and

1 The Hottentots are thought by some to represent a cross between the black Negroes and the Bushmen : but it is more likely from linguistic and other reasons that they are an independent offshoot of the original Negroid stock related to the Bushman.

a In Arabic ' ^M}'' Zufar."

I.] Mediterranean and Mukammadan, 5

penetrating inland, commenced to work the gold-mines of modem Rhodesia, leaving there as witnesses of their presence the stone forts and buildings which we have recently rediscovered\ A Semitic people also about the same time began to settle in Abyssinia*, where it has remained the dominant race ever since. Other Phoenicians, besides those who founded Carthage, explored the coasts of Africa, especially the east coast, where they founded stations as far south as Mogambique, possibly. They may have even reached the gold-bearing districts of the Zambezi, and one expedition under Phoenician navigators employed by the Egyptian king, Necho, is said to have circumnavigated Africa from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean (about 600 B.C.).

On the whole, the most fruitful of the pre-Roman invasions of Africa (as it was almost the earliest) was the foundation of Utica (about 11 00 b.c.) and Carthage (about 280 years later). The Phoenicians (whose descendants have become known as the Carthaginians, though to the Romans they were always the Poeni or Ptini) in the main founded trading stations rather than colonies ; but the cities of Utica, Carthage, Hippo', and the other Carthaginian ports on the north-east coast of Tunis, naturally under a centralized government to some extent maintained during centuries a domination over the Berber tribes of what is now Tunisia. There are traces of a C^thaginian causeway running up the valley of the Majerda and south-east towards the country of the dates and the hot springs. When Carthage was most vigorous, no doubt the Berber tribes within 100 mUes of her strongest settlements gave her their allegiance in a varying degree ; but at the least weakening of her power

^ From the graven representations of the natives left by these early Arab-Sabaean settlers we know that they belonged then exclusively to the Hottentot-Boshman type.

2 Semitic invasions of Egypt probably preceded all the events I here enumerate.

3 In this case, the Hippo Diarrhytus of the Greeks and Romans, and the Benzert of modem Tunis. [Low Latin, Hippone-Zaryt.]

they were ready to revolt and take part with her enemies. The troops she employed were alien to her race and mercenaries. A large proportion of them were recruited in Barbary. They frequently mutinied and turned against their Syrian employers. Yet occasionally Carthage produced a man like Hannibal who could win the confidence of these Berber soldiers and lead them to fight the battles of Carthage in Spain, Sicily, and Italy. In the outlying districts of north Africa, however, especially in Morocco, tradition states that the Berbers occasionally rose en masse and destroyed the Carthaginian settlements. These trading stations were dotted over the north coast of Africa to the Straits of Gibraltar, and down the Atlantic coast of Morocco to a point almost within sight of the Canary Islands. There has been transmitted to us through the diligence of ancient Greek geographers the Greek version of what is supposed to be the original description in Punic of the voyage of Hanno the Carthaginian. This Punic explorer started from Carthage some time in the sixth century before Christ (perhaps about 520 B.C.) with a fleet of 60 ships, and a multitude of men and women (said to have been 30,000 in number), on a voyage of discovery mainly, but also for the purpose of replenishing with settlers the Carthaginian stations along the coast of Morocco. In the account given of the journey it is stated that after passing the Straits of Hercules, and stopping at the site of the modern Sebu, they rounded Cape Cantin and came to a marsh in which a large number of elephants were disporting themselves \ They then continued their journey along the coast till they came to the river Lixus, which has been identified with the

^ This is an interesting observation. Not only does the statement repeatedly occur in the writings of ancient Greek and Roman geographers that the African elephant was found wild in Mauritania in these times, but this animal is pictured in the remarkable rock sculptures in the Sus country in the extreme south of Morocco, and in the Roman mosaics and frescoes found in the interior of Tunis, and now to be seen at the Bardo Museum near Tunis. (See for this the travels of the Moroccan Jewish Rabbi, Mordokhai.)

I.J Mediterranean and Muhammadan, 7

river Draa. From here they coasted the desert till they reached the Rio d'Ouro, and on an islet at the head of this inlet they founded the commercial station of Kerne. From Kerne they made an expedition as far south as a river which has been identified as the river Senegal (having first visited the Lagoon of Teniahir). Again setting out from Kerne, they passed Cape Verde, the river Gambia, and the Sierra Leone coast as far as the Sherboro inlet, which was the limit of then: voyage of discovery. Here they encountered "wild men and women covered with hair " — probably the chimpanzees, which are found there to this day, and not the gorilla, which is an ape (so far as we know) peculiar to the Gaboon. As Hanno's interpreter called these creatures " gorilla " that name was long afterwards — I think wrongly — ^applied to the huge anthropoid ape of the Gaboon. When this expedition visited the vicinity of the Senegal river they were attacked by the natives, who were described as ^^ wild men wearing the skins of beasts and defending themselves with stones." So far as we know, this was the first sight that civilized man had of his wild brother since the two had parted company in Neolithic times, except for glimpses of the Troglodytes, whom the Carthaginians appear to have met with in the valley of the river Draa\

At Kerne and other trading stations on the coast to the south of Morocco, the Carthaginians did no doubt a little trade with the Berber natives in the produce of the Sudan, south of the Sahara, but after a time the weakening of the power of Carthage and the attacks of the natives must have destroyed most of these West African settlements ; for the Romans in replacing the Carthaginians do not seem to have gone further south than the river Draa.

1 It does not follow, however, that these Troglodytes were dwarfs* or Negroes, or greatly different in race from the Berbers. They may have been akin to the Troglodytes I have recently seen in the Tunisian Sahara, a Berber people living in caves, which are either natural hollows in the limestone rock or have been deliberately excavated.

The Carthaginians do not seem to have tamed the indigenous African elephant (which was certainly still found in Mauritania), but they introduced and used the Indian elephant They also seem to have imported from Asia the peacock, still very common as a domestic bird in Tunisia. Compared with the Romans, however, they did little to open up the country, and their trade was restricted by jealous monopolies ; but their religion — the worship of Baal and other Syrian deities — spread to some extent among the Berbers, and the peculiar Semitic influence emanating from Carthaginian rule seems to have paved the way for the Judaizing of certain Berber tribes before and after the Roman Empire, and for the Muhammadanizing of the same at a still later date before the Jewish influence had quite died away. Amid all their wrangles, Berber and Semite throughout all the recorded history of North Africa seem to have unconsciously recognized that by descent and language they were more akin than either was with the Aryan peoples.

The earliest historical connection between Europe and Africa was brought about by the Greeks, commencing some 600 years before Christ S who settled in the country of Cyrene, the modem province of Barca. After the successful repulse of the Persians there was a great expansion of Greece. Prior to the historical establishment of settlements in the Ionian Islands, in Sicily, at Marseilles and on the east coast of Spain, Greek seamen had no doubt ranged the coasts of the Mediterranean, and from theu: adventures were evolved the fascinating stories of the Argonauts and Ulysses. Prehistoric settlements of Greeks on the coast of Tunis are argued by modem French ethnologists to have taken place, on the strength of the well-marked Greek type to be found amongst the present population, for instance, in the Cape Bon peninsula ; but these Greek types may be more probably descended from the Byzantine occupation of the country in the Christian era. The

^ The computation given by Eusebius would, according to the late Sir £. H. Bunbury, place the founding of the colony in B.C. 631.

I.] Mediterranean and Muhamtnadan, g

Island of Lotos Eaters, however, of Greek mythology, would seem with likehhood to take its origin in the island of Jerba, where the date palm is indigenous \ But about b.c. 631 an expedition of Dorians from the island of Thera' founded Cyrene on the north coast of Africa, where that continent approaches closest to the Greek Archipelago. Around Cyrene were grouped four other cities — Barke, Teucheira, Euesperides, and ApoUonia. This Greek colony continued to exist with varying fortunes — threatened at times with dissolution through the civil wars of the colonists and the intermittent attacks of the Berbers — till it came under the control of Rome 100 years before Christ It was occasionally dominated by the Greek dynasty of the Ptolemies in Egypt. Its civilization was finally extinguished by the disastrous Arab invasion in the seventh century of the present era. But it had existed under various lords for 1300 years, and it is curious that during this long period its Greek settlers should have made no attempts to open up communication with inner Africa. The fact is that the Cyrenaica is separated from the Sudan by a more complete and absolute stretch of desert than intervenes between Tripoli, Tunis, or Morocco and the regions of the Niger and Lake Chad.

In the adjoining country of Egypt the Greeks began to appear as merchants and travellers in the seventh century b.c. A Pharaoh named Psammetik had employed Greek mercenaries to assist him in establishing his claims to the throne of Egypt. He rewarded their services by allowing their countrymen to trade with the ports of the Nile delta. The city of Naucratis was founded not far from the modern Rosetta, and became almost a Greek colony. Nearly 200 years later Herodotus, a native of Halicamassus (a Greek settlement in Asia Minor),

^ The date was almost certainly the lotos of the ancients. It is much more likely to have made a profound impression on them by its honeysweet pulp than the insipid berries of the Zizyphus.

' The modem Santorin or Thira, the most southern of the Cyclades.

lO The Colonization of Africa, [Chap.

visited Egypt and Cyrene. It is probable that he ascended the Nile as far as^ the First Cataract. He found his fellow-countrymen settled as merchants and mechanics and also as soldiers in the delta of the Nile, and he records that the whole coast of Cyrenaica between Demah, near the borders of Egypt, and Benghazi (Euesperides) was wholly occupied by Greek settlements.