The Heroes of Old

In the past, I read with interest many stories about the Bachwezi and Ab'engo who are people from the leopard clan of Buganda.  I have also read about the history of the Ssese Islands with less enthusiasm even though I wanted to know more about these Islands for the sake of my maternal grandfather Katumba and grandfather Kafeero who were brothers and who are said to have come from there.

After discovering that General Katumba Wamala came from the Ssese Islands, I began reading more about the people of these Islands.  As I read about them, I learnt that Kibuuka (the god of war) of Buganda came from these Islands.  This reminded me of how my late mother and I used to wonder about the similarities between Kibuuka’s death story and that of Luanda Magere of the Joluo of Kenya.  My mother used to joke about this saying that maybe we were once Luo.

Both men were great warriors who died after giving away the secret to their power on the battlefield to their wives. The stories of these two heroes are actually very similar to that of Samson and Delilah, where after the wives found out where the secret to the power of these men lay during battle, they spilled the secret to their people and their people were able to defeat these men and kill them.  While Samson’s secret lay in his long hair, Kibuuka’s lay in his ability to fly and hide in the clouds, while that of Luanda Magere lay in his shadow.

Now Luanda Magere's wife was from the Nandi people who are a sub-community of the Kalenjin ethnic group and who were enemies of the Joluo. Kibuuka's wife was from the Banyoro people who were enemies of the Baganda.

After reading about these two heroes, I realised that the two men might not be the same because Kibuuka is said to have lived during the time of Ssekabaka Nakibinge, a King of Buganda who is said to have reigned in the 16^th century from 1524 – 1554.  It is said that Luanda Magere was born in the 18^th century in 1720 and fought his battles against the Nandi between 1750 and 1770.

According to legend, hundreds of years ago, the Bassese people of the Ssese Islands were a race of super humans famous for their impressive size and strength and also for their connection to the supernatural world. 

Since Kibuuka who is referred to in Buganda as the god of war, was able to fly like a bird during battle, he is believed by some to have been a supernatural being.  Someone even called him one of the sons of God mentioned in the Bible, who fell for the daughters of men.  In other words, he meant to say that he might have been a Muchwezi and the Bachwezi might have been the Nephilim.

Apart from ruling the empire of Kitara between the 14^th to the 16^th century, one African writer claims that the Bachwezi were tall supernatural beings with oblong shaped heads and dark brown skin.  They are said to have had supernatural powers such as the power to instantly disappear and then reappear in a different place, the ability to move objects with their mind, the ability to read thoughts, fly and to see into the future.  These abilities helped them to avoid danger.

The origin of the Bachwezi is still under debate.  Some claim that they were descendants of the Kush, Nubian, and Khamitian (ancient Egyptian) royalty.  Incidentally, the Kalenjin people are also believed to have been from the military clan of Ancient Egypt. 

There are two legends that explain how the Bachwezi disappeared. One claims that after being overpowered by the Luo-Biito, the Bachwezi disappeared into Lake Wamala which was named after the last Chwezi king called Wamara. The second one has it that they disappeared into Lake Albert.  There is a belief held among scholars that the Bachwezi dispersed and mixed up with the indigenous people who became the Hima, Tutsi, Hinda clan, Kiga, Nyambo of Tanzania, Basoni of Zimbabwe, Baganda and related tribes on the northern banks of Lake Victoria.  This theory held among scholars might be closer to the truth.

References:

Young, Sarah P. “The Cwezi: Ancient Race of Mystical People and the Modern-Day Cwezi Cult Accused of Black Magic.” Ancient Origins, Ancient Origins, 1 July 2019, www.ancient-origins.net/myths-legends-africa/cwezi-cult-0012220.

Jenkins, Dr. Orville Boyd. Tutsi and Chwezi:  History and Pre-History, orvillejenkins.com/peoples/tutsihistoryandprehistory.html.