Orientale Province (
French: ''Province orientale'', "Eastern province") is one of the former
provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Article 2 of the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo divides the country into the capital city of Kinshasa and 25 named provinces. It also gives the capital the status of a province. Therefore, in many contexts Kinshasa is r ...
and its predecessors 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 ...
and the
Belgian Congo
The Belgian Congo (french: Congo belge, ; nl, Belgisch-Congo) was a Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960. The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in 1964.
Colo ...
. It went through a series of boundary changes between 1898 and 2015, when it was divided into smaller units.
The District of Orientale Province was created from
Stanley Falls District on 15 July 1898.
The district was expanded to become Orientale Province in 1913. It was divided in 1933 into
Costermansville (later Kivu) and Stanleyville Province. Stanleyville Province was renamed Orientale Province from 1947 to 1963, when it was broken up into Kibali-Ituri, Uélé and Haut-Congo provinces. Orientale Province was reconstituted in 1966. Between 1971 and 1997 it was called Haut-Zaïre, then it returned to the name of Orientale.
The province contained the
Bas-Uele,
Haut-Uele,
Ituri
Ituri is one of the 21 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning. Ituri, Bas-Uele, Haut-Uele, and Tshopo provinces are the result of the dismemberment of the former Orientale province. Ituri wa ...
and
Tshopo districts. These were elevated to provinces in 2015 under the 2006 constitution.
The province lay in the northeast of the country. Originally it bordered
Équateur to the west,
Congo-Kasaï
Congo-Kasaï was one of the four large provinces of the Belgian Congo defined in 1914. It was formally established in 1919, and in 1933 was divided into the new provinces of Léopoldville and Lusambo.
Location
Congo-Kasaï was named after the Ka ...
to the southwest and
Katanga to the south. After being reduced in size, it bordered
Équateur to the west,
Kasaï-Oriental
Kasaï-Oriental (French for "East Kasai") is one of the 21 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning. Kasaï-Oriental, Lomami, and Sankuru provinces are the result of the dismemberment of the form ...
province to the southwest,
Maniema
Maniema is one of 26 provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Its capital is Kindu.
Toponymy
Henry Morton Stanley explored the area, calling it Manyema.Stanley, H.M., 1899, Through the Dark Continent, London: G. Newnes, Vol. One , ...
to the south, and
North Kivu
North Kivu (french: link=no, Nord-Kivu) is a province bordering Lake Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Its capital is Goma.
North Kivu borders the provinces of Ituri to the north, Tshopo to the northwest, Maniema to the so ...
to the southeast. It also bordered the
Central African Republic
The Central African Republic (CAR; ; , RCA; , or , ) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to the north, Sudan to the northeast, South Sudan to the southeast, the DR Congo to the south, the Republic of th ...
and
South Sudan
South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the C ...
to the north, and
Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
to the east. The provincial capital was
Stanleyville, later renamed
Kisangani
Kisangani (formerly Stanleyville or Stanleystad) is the capital of Tshopo province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the fifth most populous urban area in the country, with an estimated population of 1,312,000 in 2021, and the larg ...
.
History
On 15 July 1898 the Stanley Falls District became the District of Orientale Province (District de la province Orientale), with
Stanleyville as its headquarters.
The
Lualaba District
Lualaba District was a district of the pre-2015 Katanga Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The district dates back to the days of the Congo Free State and the Belgian Congo. The original Lualaba District was merged into Katanga in 1 ...
in the south was split off at this time.
The district was also called
Stanleyville District
Stanleyville District (french: District de Stanleyville, nl, District Stanleystad) was a district of the Belgian Congo and Democratic Republic of the Congo. It went through various changes in extent. Between 1933 and 1963 it had roughly the same e ...
.
In 1910 the new vice-government general of
Katanga was formed the south, with parts of Lualaba District and parts of Stanleyville.
Orientale/Oost Province was formed in 1913 in the
Belgian Congo
The Belgian Congo (french: Congo belge, ; nl, Belgisch-Congo) was a Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960. The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in 1964.
Colo ...
from the District of Orientale Province, expanded to include Haut-Uélé, Bas-Uélé and Aruwimi.
The new province contained the districts of
Bas-Uele,
Haut-Uele,
Ituri
Ituri is one of the 21 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning. Ituri, Bas-Uele, Haut-Uele, and Tshopo provinces are the result of the dismemberment of the former Orientale province. Ituri wa ...
,
Stanleyville,
Aruwimi,
Maniema
Maniema is one of 26 provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Its capital is Kindu.
Toponymy
Henry Morton Stanley explored the area, calling it Manyema.Stanley, H.M., 1899, Through the Dark Continent, London: G. Newnes, Vol. One , ...
,
Lowa and
Kivu
Kivu was the name for a large "region" in the Democratic Republic of the Congo under the rule of Mobutu Sese Seko that bordered Lake Kivu. It included three "Sub-Regions" ("Sous-Régions" in French): Nord-Kivu, Sud-Kivu and Maniema, correspondin ...
.
It was divided in 1933 into
Costermansville (later Kivu) and Stanleyville Province. Stanleyville Province was renamed Orientale/Oost Province from 1947 to 1963, when it was broken up into
Kibali-Ituri,
Uélé and
Haut-Congo
Haut-Congo Province was a province of the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville), now the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
It was formed in April 1962 from part of the Orientale Province.
In 1966 it was merged back into the reconstituted Orientale ...
provinces. Orientale Province was reconstituted in 1966 from the amalgamation of the Uele, Kibali-Ituri and Haut-Congo provinces. In 2015 it was dissolved into the provinces of
Bas-Uélé
Bas-Uélé (French for "Lower Uélé") is one of the 21 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning. Bas-Uélé, Haut-Uélé, Ituri, and Tshopo provinces are the result of the dismemberment of the fo ...
,
Haut-Uélé
Haut-Uélé (French for "Upper Uélé") is one of the 21 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning. Haut-Uélé, Bas-Uélé, Ituri, and Tshopo provinces are the result of the dismemberment of the ...
,
Ituri
Ituri is one of the 21 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning. Ituri, Bas-Uele, Haut-Uele, and Tshopo provinces are the result of the dismemberment of the former Orientale province. Ituri wa ...
and
Tshopo
Tshopo is one of the 21 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning. It is situated in the north central part of the country on the Tshopo River, for which it is named.
Tshopo, Bas-Uele, Haut-Uel ...
.
In 1998 the Orientale villages of
Durba and
Watsa
Watsa is a community in the Haut-Uele Province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, administrative center of the Watsa Territory. It is served by Watsa Airport, a grass airstrip south of the town.
Watsa was the location of the VI battalion o ...
were the center of an outbreak of
Marburg virus disease
Marburg virus disease (MVD; formerly Marburg hemorrhagic fever) is a viral hemorrhagic fever in humans and primates caused by either of the two Marburgviruses: Marburg virus (MARV) and Ravn virus (RAVV). Its clinical symptoms are very similar t ...
among gold mine workers.
The
Ituri district
Ituri District (french: District de l'Ituri, nl, District Iruri), later Kibali-Ituri District, was a district of the Belgian Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It roughly corresponded in area to the present Ituri Province.
Belgian Co ...
of Orientale was the scene of the
Ituri conflict
The Ituri conflict (french: Guerre d'Ituri) is an ongoing conflict between the agriculturalist Lendu and pastoralist Hema ethnic groups in the Ituri region of the north-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). While the two groups had ...
.
As of 2014, militia groups continue to fight in the province and have reportedly committed many atrocities against the local population, such as forcing women into sex slavery and forcing men to work in mines.
Sexual slavery rife in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
/ref>
Approximate correspondence between historical divisions and current provinces
Divisions
The province was divided into the city of Kisangani
Kisangani (formerly Stanleyville or Stanleystad) is the capital of Tshopo province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the fifth most populous urban area in the country, with an estimated population of 1,312,000 in 2021, and the larg ...
and the districts of Bas-Uele, Haut-Uele, Ituri
Ituri is one of the 21 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning. Ituri, Bas-Uele, Haut-Uele, and Tshopo provinces are the result of the dismemberment of the former Orientale province. Ituri wa ...
and Tshopo
Tshopo is one of the 21 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning. It is situated in the north central part of the country on the Tshopo River, for which it is named.
Tshopo, Bas-Uele, Haut-Uel ...
. Cities and towns, with their 2010 populations, are:
See also
* List of governors of Orientale Province
This list of governors of Orientale Province includes governors or equivalent officerholders of the original Orientale Province created in the Belgian Congo in 1913, and of the successor provinces until the 2015 break-up of the province into the ...
* Kisangani history
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...
and timeline
A timeline is a display of a list of events in chronological order. It is typically a graphic design showing a long bar labelled with dates paralleling it, and usually contemporaneous events.
Timelines can use any suitable scale representi ...
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
External links
Site of the province (Gouverneur and province assembly), in French
Bamanisajean.unblog.fr
is Governor Jean Bamanisa's blog site.
Stanleyville.be
City of Kisangani Website.
@Prov_orientale
Twitter for Orentale Provincial Government
Facebook
Orentale Provincial Government
"Map of the Democratic Republic of the Congo indicating the neighboring villages of Durba and Watsa, the epicenter of the 1998 outbreak of Marburg hemorrhagic fever."
* (1913-1960);
Former provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (1966–2015)
Provinces of the Belgian Congo
{{DRCongo-geo-stub