Colonial History of Kigali

In 1885 European representatives met in Berlin to carve Africa up for colonialization. Rwanda and Burundi were given to Germany, and were administered as a joint colonial territory f Deutsch Ost Afrika. Germany did not intend to colonize Rwanda and Burundi or European habitation, and to adopted a form of indirect rule with a very small European presence.

One of the first European accounts of Rwanda was by Duke Adolphus Frederick of Mecklenberg who said of Rwanda,“It is a land flowing of milk and honey where breeding cattle and bee culture flourish and cultivated soil bears rich crops of fruit. A hilly country, thickly populated, full of beautiful scenery and possessing a climate incomparably fresh and healthy in the heart of Africa.” (National Geographic 1912).

In 1907, Germany, under the Advice of Dr. Richard Kandt, the first European resident of Rwanda, set up an administrative residence in Kigali very close to he current market of Gakinjiro in Cyahafi sector. In 1909, 20 commercial houses were built on he lace f the Nyarugenge market and military camp was built at he current site of the prison of Kigali. At this time a small village occupied only a part of what is now the field hospital complex of kigali.

Kigali remained a small colonial outpost with little link to the outside world until World war1. On May 6, 916, Belgian troops entered Kigali and declared victory over the Germans. The Belgians criticized the choice of he site of Kigali and decided to create another administrative residence in Nyanza —the traditional residence of the King of Rwanda. After the war ended n 1919, Rwanda became a mandate territory under the League of Nations and continued to be administered by Belgium. In 1921, Kigali again became colonial administrative center for Rwanda, but the main administrative center for Rwanda/Burundi was located in Bujumbura, the present-day capital of Burundi.

The growth of Kigali under Belgian rule was very slow, and was contained primarily in the top of he Nyarugenge hill. When Rwanda gained its independence on July 1st, 1962, Kigali remained a small village with primarily administrative functions. In 1962 the population was 5,000 to 6,000 people and the urban area of Kigali was approximately 3 square kilometers.