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Achirimbi II was the tenth Fon ("
Achirimbi II was the tenth Fon ("King
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
") who ruled over the town of Bafut and adjoining areas (the Fondom of Bafut
The Bafut Subdivision or the Kingdom/Chiefdom/Fondom of Bafut is a commune in the Mezam Department of Northwest Province, Cameroon. It is located in the Western Grassfields region - a name for the Northwest Province and surrounding grassland area ...
) in a semi-autonomous fashion. His reign lasted from 1932 to 1968, and included the time of handover from the British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
trust territory
United Nations trust territories were the successors of the remaining League of Nations mandates and came into being when the League of Nations ceased to exist in 1946. All of the trust territories were administered through the United Nati ...
of Southern Cameroons, part of British Cameroons
British Cameroon or the British Cameroons was a British mandate territory in British West Africa, formed of the Northern Cameroons and Southern Cameroons. Today, the Northern Cameroons forms parts of the Borno, Adamawa and Taraba states of ...
to the independent Cameroon
Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...
. He was preceded by Abumbi I and succeeded by Abumbi II.
He alienated himself from other Fons by being sympathetic to the British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
cause. He was awarded a Certificate of Honour in 1946 by the British government 'as a record of the valuable services rendered by him to his own country and people and to the British Government... and loyal services given to the Administration in the maintenance of good order'.
Achirimbi II took advantage of his favourable standing with the administration and sought compensation for loss of sovereignty to arrogate to himself the residual powers the sub-chiefs or the Atangchuo, had retained over land matters and other disputes.
He was befriended by the famous naturalist Gerald Durrell
Gerald Malcolm Durrell, (7 January 1925 – 30 January 1995) was a British naturalist, writer, zookeeper, conservationist, and television presenter. He founded the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust and the Jersey Zoo on the Channel Island o ...
, who visited Bafut on his animal-collecting expeditions twice, in 1949 and 1957. The Fon helped Durrell substantially in these expeditions. The books written by Durrell about these expeditions, '' The Bafut Beagles'' and '' A Zoo in My Luggage'', portray the Fon mostly in a humorous fashion, lampoon
Lampoon may refer to:
*Parody
*Amphol Lampoon (born 1963), Thai actor and singer
*''The Harvard Lampoon'', a noted humor magazine
** ''National Lampoon'' (magazine), a defunct offshoot of ''Harvard Lampoon''
***National Lampoon, Incorporated, a 20 ...
ing his polygamy
Crimes
Polygamy (from Late Greek (') "state of marriage to many spouses") is the practice of marriage, marrying multiple spouses. When a man is married to more than one wife at the same time, sociologists call this polygyny. When a woman is ...
, anglophile
An Anglophile is a person who admires or loves England, its people, its culture, its language, and/or its various accents.
Etymology
The word is derived from the Latin word ''Anglii'' and Ancient Greek word φίλος ''philos'', meaning "frien ...
perspective, and high tolerance for alcohol, but also in more flattering ways. The Fon awarded Durrell the ceremonial dress and staff during his second expedition.
Fon Achirimbi II is famous for having remarked about the choice to join independent Cameroon or independent Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
from the British Cameroons in 1961, saying it was a choice between the "Fire and the Deep Sea".
He was considered by many as being progressive and willing to experiment with new ideas. He was treated with respect by both colonial administrators and nationalist politicians.
References
*''Achirimbi II: Fon of Bafut'', written by Michael Aletum Tabuwé {{Gerald Durrell Cameroonian traditional rulers