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From right to left: Miss Link, King Njoya, Mrs Göhring and her child Njoya, Martin Göhring with Fonyonga, Eugen Schwarz, Teacher Hohner.
The photograph was sent to Basel by Martin Göhring.


German Colonization

The Bamun kingdom voluntarily became part of German Kamerun in 1884 during the reign of Mfon Nsangou. During his reign, Bamum fought a war with the Nso. By the end of the conflict, the king was killed, and his head was carried off by the Nso. Immediately after, one of the king’s wives, Njapdunke, took over the kingdom’s government with her lover Gbetnkom Ndo`mbue. We have to remember that this Gbetnkom above was not the Mfon as there was another Gbetnkom who was the son of Mfon Mbuembue the great conqueror. In fact after the death of Mfon Mbuembue, there was no male heir to inherit his throne; so Njapdunke took over for sometime, but fail to represent the king. She was then removed and it was thought that one of the king’s son Mbetnkom was at a village called “Massagham” for treatment. He was then brought back and
There is no king w/o the scepter,
when it is present so is the king…
became Mfon Mbetnkom. Mbetnkom was a short man, a dictator and use to order to shop off the legs of those who were taller than him. A practice that finally cost his life during a hunting training session. After his death, his little son, Mbienkuo succeeded him yet was too young to rule. It became a habit for him to wanting to know who was his father amongst the people who were taking guards behind him. His court led by Ngouoh became doubtful and thought the boy may eventually learn that they are the people who killed his father. Mfon Mbienkuo was carried away and killed in a place called nowadays “Mfe shut Mfon mbwere”. Now the throne remained vacant for sometime and Ngouoh, the leader of the court ultimately became Mfon, but unfortunately was not a descendant of king Mbuembue. He was a Bamileke slave. Ngouoh was not welcome by his subjects and decided to move the palace to his own location. Mfon Ngouoh was later chased away after a fierce fight between him and the followers of Mbuembue. Nsangou, a grand son of Mbuembue became king.

Njoya the Great

Eventually King Njoya, son of the slain king, came to power. He was one of Bamum’s most prolific rulers and ruled from approximately 1883 to 1931.[7] He voluntarily put his kingdom under the protection of German colonial power and was responsible for modernizing certain elements of Mbum society. In 1897, Njoya and his court converted to Islam, a decision that would affect Bamun culture long after Njoyua’s death.[8] He invented the Shumom script so that his people would be able to record Bamum’s history. In 1910, Njoya had a school constructed where the script was taught. Germans were allowed to set up the Basel Mission at the capital of and construction was undertaken to build a temple. A school was also built, staffed by missionaries whom taught in German and the native language. The Germans also introduced new housing construction techniques while settling among the kingdom’s inhabitants as farmers, traders and educators. King Njoya remained loyal to his German overlords who in turn respected his rights as king and consulted him on colonial business. Another important element in the kingdom’s history during the period under German protection was the introduction of sweet potatoes, macabo and other new foods, which helped the kingdom become more prosperous than ever. The Mbum were able to trade outside their traditional borders, and the income greatly improved the standard of living. King Njoya was greatly influenced by the missionaries who denounced idols, human sacrifice and polygamy. In response, Njoya cut back on royal excesses. Nobles were allowed to marry slaves and those of the non-landed servile class. The king, however, remained unconverted to Christianity. In fact, he merged some of the tenents of Christianity and Islam with traditional beliefs to create an altogether new religion more palatable to his subjects.[9] In 1906, Germany sent an expeditionary force against the Nso backed up by King Njoya’s warriors. After the victory, the force was able to reclaim the head of Njoya’s father, which was crucial for legitimizing the king. From then on, the bond between Bamum and Germany was unbreakable. When Germany was besieged on all sides during the first World War, Bamun steadfastly supported them until the bitter end when they came under the more repressive rule of the French.

King Ibrahim Njoya, distinguished ruler, intellectual, and inventor, was 17th in a long dynasty of kings that ruled over Bamum and its people in western Cameroon dating back to the 14th century. He succeeded his father Nsangu (hn-SAH-hn-goo) and ruled from 1886/7 until his death in 1933. He was succeeded on the throne by his son, Seidou Njimoluh Njoya.


Njoya’s mother, Njapdunke, initially acted as regent until he reached majority. His own official rule was further delayed because his father’s head was held by an adversary people. By tradition the head or skull of an ancestor is of ceremonial importance to the Bamum. The Germans would aid him in recovering the head and this, along with their allowing him relative independence, caused him to have generally good relations with them. Although an additional factor seems to have been a belief that fighting the Germans would prove counterproductive to his people. Hence he rejected the resistance proposals of Rudolf Duala Manga Bell.

He also initially tried to adapt Western, and particularly German, ways to his society. In one experiment the uniforms of his soldiers were influenced by an idealized version of those worn by the Hussars. This experiment met with disfavor from Germans who either felt mocked or intimidated by Africans trained and dressed in a German-influenced manner. He also studied Christianity for a time, possibly converting to it and also to Islam at a different point. After this he ultimately created his own religion that mixed Christianity, Islam, and Bamum traditional religion.

Ibrahim Njoya is credited with developing the Bamum script, a syllabic system for writing in the Bamum language. Prior to his reign at the end of the 19th century, the long history of the Bamum people was preserved primarily through oral transmission from one generation to the next in the manner of the African Griot tradition. This was largely true of many other African civilizations of the time. Recognizing the inherent danger of important historical facts being omitted or corrupted, he set out to establish a means of written recording of Bamum history. When his work was completed, his alphabet, called, A-ka-u-ku, contained 73 signs.

Njoya is also credited with having invented a hand-powered mill for grinding corn. via wiki

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