Pause for Insight: British Indirect Rule and the Political Invention of African

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When setting up systems of rule in Africa, Europeans learned that Africa was diverse
in its languages, cultures, and forms of political organization. Europeans created
various categories based on incorrect assumptions. One of the assumptions was that
Africans lived in tribes under chiefs. The French colonialists pursued a policy of
assimilation, intervening in far-reaching ways in the colonies while leaving room for
Africans to integrate into French society. Unlike the French, the British favoured a
system of indirect rule recognizing 'chiefs' who, in turn, report to them. Through indirect
rule, the British created tribal lands and organized Africans into tribes. However, there
is overwhelming evidence to suggest African people did not live in tribal political
organizations and had no shared perception of themselves as tribal people. The British
put people under chiefs, including many communities that were autonomous at the
dawn of colonization. In some areas, the British even created a hierarchy of
chieftaincy, making some lesser chiefs and others paramount chiefs. Therefore, while
claiming to rule indirectly, the British 'invented' many aspects of political organization.
Interestingly, African states still use the forms of political organization which Britain
'invented.'