After the fall of colonialism, African kings lost power de jure, but they remained with them de facto. As elsewhere in the Third World, tribal leaders, when ruling, combine archaism and the desire for themselves and their court to live in a Western way. Three stories of how the throne in Africa is passed to the new generation now, as well as how the local kings look like - in a large photo gallery.
Tribal monarchies in Africa were abolished in the 1960s and 70s. They lost their powers de jure, but in fact remained the leaders of many hundreds of thousands of their loyal subjects. They do not have formal powers, but they have a large informal influence, thanks to which they often serve as intermediaries between the people and the official government of the country. Here are three stories from the life of a new generation of African kings.
Lamido Sanusi, Nigeria
Lamido Sanusi studied in England, was a banker for over 30 years, wore expensive suits and traveled to the West on vacation. His last place of work was the Central Bank of Nigeria, and he even made the list of the 100 most influential people according to the Times newspaper. But then the case intervened: even before the expiration of his 5-year contract as head of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Sanusi was removed from office by President Jonathan for … revealing a gigantic embezzlement of public funds by a relative of the ruler of Nigeria.
In return for leaving the post of head of the Central Bank, the President of Nigeria promised Sanusi to lobby for his appointment as Emir of Kano Province (Sanusi had the right to do so by blood). Jonathan kept his promise and the former banker became the most powerful monarch in Nigeria, as Kano is one of the richest provinces in Nigeria. Sanusi now has about $ 200 million a year - firms operating in the Kano area donate 5% of their income to him.
Lamido Sanusi before and after the inauguration of the king.
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Sanusi is a pro-European intellectual, but he kept the archaic order in Kano, believing that modernization in the province would lead to political pluralism, and that, in turn, to chaos.
Kano state has Sharia law (as do 11 other states in Nigeria). Nigerian Sharia law is very strict: women must cover their faces, and crimes such as flogging, amputation, or stoning are threatened. In the state of Kano there is a "Sharia" police - Hisbach. Not only do they provide religious instruction, they also arrest homosexuals and prostitutes, and fight the alcohol trade.
Togbe Ngorifa Kifa Kosi Banash, Ghana
Togbe Ngorifa Kifa Kosi Banash became king of the Ghanaian province of Hohoye on the occasion of his birth in the ruling family. However, he immediately set a condition for his mother - that he would rule the tribe from a distance. And he moved to live in Germany. Banash's decision was also aided by the fact that he never thought he would become king. The fact is that the title passed to him from his grandfather, bypassing his father and his older brother - they were both left-handed, retrained to be right-handed, but to no avail, and according to the law of the tribe, left-handers could not occupy the throne.
Banash now lives in Ludwigshafen, near Frankfurt, with his German wife Gabriela. He runs his 200,000-strong tribe from Germany via Skype and by phone. He travels to Ghana at least six times a year (mainly to deal with the most difficult cases of intra-tribal disputes). German charitable foundations collect money and humanitarian aid for his tribe, which is then distributed by King Banash.
King Banash:
Peggelen Bartels, Ghana
Five years ago, Peggelen Bartels worked as a secretary near Washington, DC, USA. She lived in a two-room apartment, and her leisure time was limited to cooking and other household chores.
One day in 2008, late at night, she was awakened by a phone call. It turned out that her uncle, the king of the small 7,000-strong Otuam tribe, had died, and the vacated throne would now have to be occupied by Bartels. She became the first female king in Africa.
Bartels graduated from a university in England, then moved to the United States, where she became a citizen of this country in 1997. She made a decision, like her relative Banash, to also rule her tribe from a distance - via the Internet. After Bartels became king, she went on to rise in the United States - becoming the second secretary of the Ghanaian embassy in this country.
Once a year for one month, she comes to Ghana to her Otuam tribe to settle the most difficult affairs of her subjects. During this period, she wears there national clothes, a golden scepter and a crown, and lives in a large palace.
With the help of American friends, she collects money in the United States for the needs of her subjects - for computers in schools, for treatment plants and a hospital.
Queen Bartels:
The three cases of African kings described above are not unique to Third World countries. For example, a similar system operates in Russia: our upper class of managers is also a part of the Western world, they themselves (or their children) received education there, store capital there, and consider their historical homeland only as a rent, resource base. At the same time, the Russian pro-Western upper class is planting on the rental territory, in the Russian Federation, archaic, obscurantist values, covered by the "theory" about the uniqueness of our civilization, the "third way" and historical traditions.
Below is a photo gallery of modern African kings: