Francis Ernest Joseph Marie Dhanis (11 March 1861 – 13 November 1909) was a Belgian colonial

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

and soldier noted for his service for the

Congo Free State ''(Work and Progress) , national_anthem = Vers l'avenir , capital = Vivi Boma , currency = Congo Free State franc , religion = Catholicism (''de facto'') , leader1 = Leopo ...

during the

Congo Arab War Congo or The Congo may refer to either of two countries that border the Congo River in central Africa: * Democratic Republic of the Congo, the larger country to the southeast, capital Kinshasa, formerly known as Zaire, sometimes referred to a ...

and

Batetela Rebellion The Batetela rebellion (french: Révolte des Batetela) was a series of three mutiny, military mutinies and a subsequent low-level insurgency which was attributed to members of the Tetela people, Tetela ethnic group in the Congo Free State between 1 ...

Early life and career

Dhanis was born in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in 1861. His father was a Belgian merchant and his mother was an Irish woman named Brigitte Maher. He spent the first fourteen years of his life at

Greenock Greenock (; sco, Greenock; gd, Grianaig, ) is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council areas of Scotland, council area in Scotland, United Kingdom and a former burgh of barony, burgh within the Counties of Scotland, historic ...

, where he received his early education. After completing his education at the Royal Military Academy in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, he entered the Belgian army, joining the Regiment of Grenadiers, in which he eventually rose to the rank of Major.

Congo Free State

As soon as he reached the rank of Lieutenant he volunteered for service in the

Congo Free State ''(Work and Progress) , national_anthem = Vers l'avenir , capital = Vivi Boma , currency = Congo Free State franc , religion = Catholicism (''de facto'') , leader1 = Leopo ...

of King

Leopold II of Belgium * german: link=no, Leopold Ludwig Philipp Maria Viktor , house = Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , father = Leopold I of Belgium , mother = Louise of Orléans , birth_date = , birth_place = Brussels, Belgium , death_date = ...

, and in 1887 he went out for a first term. He did so well in founding new stations north of the Congo that, when the government decided to put an end to the Arab domination on the Upper Congo, he was selected to command the chief expedition sent against the slave traders in the 'Congo Arab war'. The

Congo Arab war Congo or The Congo may refer to either of two countries that border the Congo River in central Africa: * Democratic Republic of the Congo, the larger country to the southeast, capital Kinshasa, formerly known as Zaire, sometimes referred to a ...

began in April 1892, and it was not brought to a successful conclusion until January 1894. The story of this war was narrated in detail by

Sidney Langford Hinde Sidney Langford Hinde, (23 July 1863 – 18 October 1930) was a medical doctor and colonial administrator in East Africa. He was involved in the Congo–Arab War in the service of King Leopold II of Belgium. He is commemorated in the scientific na ...

, who took part in it, in his book ''The Fall of the Congo Arabs''. The principal achievements of the campaign were the capture in succession of the three Arab strongholds at

Nyangwe Nyangwe is a town in Kasongo, Maniema on the right bank of the Lualaba River, Lualaba in the Democratic Republic of Congo (territory of Kasongo). It was an important hub for the Arabs for trade goods like ivory, gold, iron & slaves: it was one of ...

Kasongo Kasongo, also known as Piani Kasongo, is a town and a Territory, located in the Maniema Province of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Geography Kasongo lies east of the Lualaba River, northwest of its confluence with the Luama River ...

and Kabambari. For his services Dhanis was awarded the title of

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

, and in 1895 was made vice-governor of the Congo Free State.

Later life

In 1896 he was given command of an expedition to the Upper Nile. His troops, largely composed of the

Batetela The Tetela people (or Batetela in the plural) are an ethnic group of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, most of whom speak the Tetela language. Description The Batetela live in the region between Lusambo and the Upper Congo River, in the prov ...

tribes who had only been recently enlisted. The Batetela under Dhanis were well-armed and experienced mercenaries. The Batetela had been irritated by the execution of some of their chiefs, allegedly for

cannibalism Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is well documented, b ...

, they mutinied and murdered many of their white officers in what has become known as the

. From 1897 to 1898, Dhanis was constantly occupied by the rebellion. Eventually he succeeded in breaking up the several bands of Batetela. In 1899, Baron Dhanis returned to Belgium with the honorary rank of vice governor-general. He died in Brussels on 13 November 1909.

References

Footnotes

Bibliography

* Dhanis, Francis ''La campagne arabe.'', Bulletin de la Société royale de Géographie d'Anvers, vol. 30, 1906, pp. 58–63

External links

Arcive Francis Dhanis
Royal museum for central Africa * 1861 births 1909 deaths Barons of Belgium 19th-century Belgian civil servants Belgian people of Irish descent British emigrants to Belgium Congo Free State officials Officers of the Force Publique People from Greenock Royal Military Academy (Belgium) alumni {{EB1911 article with no significant updates