The Ashanti’s and Zulu’s Political, Military and Economic Institutions - A Comparative Study- (1824-1920)

Abstract

While recent historical scholars have attempted to read back the existence of nations in medieval Europe, a similar revisionism has yet to take place among the scholars of Africa. This doctoral thesis represents an attempt to study African history. It deals with the identification of the African political, economic and military institutions which emerged and evolved among the Ashanti of West African and the Zulu of South Africa in the period stretching from 1824 to 1920. It argues that the existence of institutions in the pre-colonial and colonial periods that should not be dismissed and is based on Eurocentric ideas about the formation of institutions that make up a state. Additionally, the thesis asserts that the formation of institutions in pre-colonial era compared with the colonial Western and Southern Africa is compulsory for a clear understanding of the root causes of problems that abound in the continent today. In order to substantiate these claims, the innovation and achievements made by the Ashanties’ and Zulus’ kings within the political, economic and military institutions from the1820s to 1920s are first traced for the identification of numerous successful ways of state maintenance and recent trends are in second position cleared up to show how African states turn to the past to find solutions to present problems. Thus, both case study states experienced surprisingly similar paths to statehood and at the same time witnessed differences in the formation of some of their institutions. The enclosed thesis examines the specificity in the formation of both empires. A preliminary description of a typical West and South African state is presented for the benefit of future research.