Reborn as King of South America

Chapter 304 Kismayo IV

The British acquiesced to Italy's expansion of colonial power on the Somali coast, but were unwilling to allow the French and Germans to replace its position in Somalia.

Starting from July 1879, 7, as the British forces completely withdrew from Mogadishu, Hobya and other areas, several indigenous tribal conflicts broke out in the central and southern regions of Somalia. In order to seize the strongholds and coastal ports left by the British, several indigenous tribes mobilized their young and strong men to fight. However, within four or five days, the ambitious Gedabursi tribe and the Gayi tribe defeated their competitors and successively acquired a total of seven village settlements in the suburbs of Mogadishu and Hobya. More than a dozen white people who had not had time to withdraw with the British were unfortunately killed in this tribal conflict, and their bodies were hung on tree trunks in the village as trophies for exhibition.

The power vacuum left by the British's hasty withdrawal also gave the French and Germans an opportunity. The German colonists who had been isolated from the Somali coast by the British gathered thirty or fifty desperate people, took advantage of the chaotic situation to land on the Somali coast, and then used obsolete muzzle-loading muskets to trade with the local indigenous tribal leaders, half with promises and half with threats, to lure the indigenous tribes into signing a protection agreement, acknowledging that the Germans were responsible for the security of the tribes and their surrounding areas.

Following the Germans, the French consul in Djibouti, who had a strong sense of professionalism and patriotism, was not willing to lag behind. On July 1879, 7, the French consul sent a light frigate to visit Berbera on the pretext of protecting the safety of merchants and travelers in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, intending to completely incorporate the northwestern region of Somalia into the French colonial empire.

When Germany and France successively intervened on the Somali coast, the British government responded quickly. On the one hand, it quickly dispatched British troops stationed in Aden to the Somali coast to maintain order. On the other hand, it issued diplomatic notes to Germany and France, seriously warning the two countries to abandon their current actions that infringe on the interests of the British Empire. At the same time, the British consul in Aden stepped up efforts to urge Italy to respond, immediately dispatched troops to take over the evacuated strongholds by the British, and suppressed the rioting Somali natives in a short period of time, restoring the local colonial order in a timely manner.

Faced with the urging of the British, the Italians could only draw 500 people from the domestic reinforcements and assign a part of the Italian colonial troops to form a receiving force, and rushed to several important coastal strongholds in central and northern Somalia. Among the several coastal strongholds, Cape Hafun, Cape Gwadarfur and Berbera in northern Somalia control the central waterway of the Gulf of Aden. Their strategic location is no less than that of Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia. Therefore, these three coastal ports occupied more than half of the Italians' energy. Due to the influence of the division of troops to suppress the indigenous riots, the strength of the Italian troops used to attack Kismayo was reduced by more than people, which made the remaining troops on the front line no longer have a clear advantage over the Han garrison. As a result, the Italians' plan to attack Kismayo was postponed again.

On August 1879, 8, in Dujuma in the middle basin of the Juba River, the Italians expelled the two powerful tribes of Gedabursi and Ige from Mogadishu and Hobya areas, and began to send small groups of regular troops deep into the inland areas. Then, with the assistance of local Italian colonial groups, they brought the Somali tribes in the controlled areas into colonial rule.

"In view of the fact that the British army is about to withdraw from Dujuma, in order to maintain the security and order of Somalia and to safeguard our independence, the Habar tribe is willing to conclude an agreement with the Italian government that without the permission of the Italian Kingdom, we will never cede, sell, mortgage or otherwise hand over any territory currently occupied or controlled by us to other countries..."

In a spacious brick church, an Italian missionary dressed in black priest robes read solemnly.

"Sign it. After signing the agreement, your tribe will become a subject of the great Kingdom of Italy, and the glory of the Lord will shine upon you."

Salvatore, the former Italian colonial chief who had just been appointed as the colonial affairs officer of Dujuma, urged.

Inside and outside the church, more than one hundred Italian regular soldiers armed with rifles closely guarded the area around the house. Under the threat of the black muzzles of the guns, six indigenous tribal chiefs signed their names on the agreement obediently, regardless of whether they understood the content read by the Italian missionaries.

"Thank you for your hard work, Father Amor. The Royal Government is very satisfied with your efforts in the Juba River Basin. His Excellency the Consul has submitted an application to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, recommending that you serve as the senior assistant of the Consulate General of the Universal Government in Somalia. I believe your appointment letter will be issued before the end of the month."

After sending away a group of Somali natives, Captain Hunter, the highest military commander in the Juba River Basin appointed by the Italian colonial army, congratulated Father Amor.

"Everything is God's grace. It was God's call that brought me to the barren Somalia to bring the glory of God to these uncivilized natives."

Father Amor spoke in a gentle voice, and from his smiling face there was no sign that the various policies targeting the indigenous blacks were his doing.

Missionaries and businessmen are the vanguard and main force of Western colonial forces. A missionary who does not engage in colonial activities is not a qualified businessman. Yes, missionaries generally serve as businessmen, leaders of armed forces, etc.

After entering the inland area of ​​the Juba River Basin, Father Amor first found a place to stay as a missionary, then made his first fortune as an arms dealer, and then won over a group of desperate criminals. The two parties cooperated to monopolize the trade route from the Juba River Basin to the coastal ports. The cooperation between Father Amor and Sawato adhered to the spirit of long-term and clear responsibilities. Amor was responsible for preaching and winning over local natives, while Sawato was responsible for formulating business rules and maintaining local order by force. Sawato stipulated that every Somali caravan driving camels into Dujuma had to use a sling to pull two stones to build a church for Father Amor.

Also, if any Somalis started a fight in Dujuma without permission, the patrol would catch them, confiscate their weapons, and force them to dig a grave. Then they would return their weapons and let them continue fighting, but the winner would bury his opponent in the grave.

After implementing the policies formulated by Amor and Savato, they found that the order in the town had improved a lot. The indigenous blacks who used to love to make trouble no longer dared to make trouble easily after seeing several dead compatriots.

Father Amor and Savato's reputation quickly spread throughout the Somalia region because they were good at handling colonial affairs. The benefits of a good reputation are enormous. With the help of their growing popularity, the two golden partners, Amor and Savato, took four years to squeeze out other competitors and monopolize the colonial and commercial activities in the Juba River Basin. The private colonial armed forces under their control also expanded from more than 40 people to nearly 200 people, becoming one of the most powerful colonial forces in the whole of Somalia.

Most of the members of private colonial armed forces are lower-class civilians who cannot make it in their homeland. Among them, many are even carrying criminal charges. Once they return to their homeland, they will be immediately detained and imprisoned by the court.

Savato was such a desperado. Before participating in colonial activities, he was a merchant sailor traveling between the Far East and Southeast Asia. By chance, he discovered opium and muskets hidden in the cabin. So, seeing an opportunity, Savato instigated seventeen or eighteen sailors on the transport ship to steal the muskets and opium. The group boarded a French merchant ship to Africa and embarked on a colonial adventure.

Although the Italian government contracted the colonies to Savato and others to manage, it imposed restrictions on them in many aspects.

"Mr. Savato, the town of Dujuma is directly under the leadership of the consulate. Your duties are equivalent to those of a sheriff stationed in Dujuma by the kingdom. Your guard team will be reorganized into colonial police, who are only responsible for maintaining law and order and cannot exceed this authority."

After informing him of the arrangement for Father Amor, Captain Hunter reiterated the Italian government's request to him with a blank expression, "I would like to remind you that the commercial tax revenue at each checkpoint in the Juba River Basin will be taken over by the colonial government. You and your police officers will receive 20% of the revenue from the tax revenue every month as a security maintenance fund, and the remaining tax revenue will be handed over to the colonial government for processing. The town of Dujuma is not allowed to arbitrarily misappropriate the remaining 80% of the commercial tax revenue!"

"According to you, if an indigenous tribe resists the kingdom's rule, my men and I will need to apply for funding from the Colonial Department in advance to suppress the rebellion?"

"Yes, small-scale indigenous riots are handled by the public security police. If you are unable to handle it, the consul will authorize my company to take over."

"You can't do this. The Juba River Basin only has some agricultural output. Relying on 20% of commercial taxes, it is impossible to support more than 200 public security police."

Savato didn't want the government to take away the benefits he had worked so hard to gain, so he argued, "Captain, the situation in the Juba River Basin is complicated. The consul may not understand the real situation here. 20% of commercial tax revenue is too low. At least 70% of commercial tax revenue can maintain the daily expenses of the public security police."

"The Juba River Basin lacks mineral resources. Mr. Savato and his team have persisted in Dujuma because of their belief in opening up colonial territories for the kingdom. I hope the captain can introduce the real situation of Dujuma to the consul and grant Mr. Savato more colonial power. Mr. Savato and I will thank you for your kindness."

"Please rest assured, Father Amor, I will convey Mr. Salvatore's considerations to the consul."

The difference in the identities of Amor and Savato led to Captain Hunter's very different attitude towards the two. After completing the procedural process, Captain Hunter led more than 100 subordinates out of the church and prepared to choose a suitable location to serve as the troop camp, while Father Amor and Savato stayed in the church to discuss subsequent plans and arrangements.

(End of this chapter)