Kasongo, also known as Piani Kasongo, is a town and a

Territory A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or a ...

, located in the Maniema Province of the eastern

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

Geography

Kasongo lies east of the Lualaba River, northwest of its confluence with the Luama River, at an altitude of 2188 ft (666 m). Kasongos population is approximately 63,000. The town is served by Kasongo Airport. Kasongo is connected to the provincial capital Kindu by the 150 mile 'Kasongo Road' (a section of National Road 31 (N31)), however the journey takes two days due to the road's poor state.Congo rising from chaos, isolation - The Boston Globe
Boston.com (2005-07-10). Retrieved on 2017-05-22. The City also lies on National Road 2 (N2) and Regional Road 629 (R629) Kasongo is part of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Kasongo The Roman Catholic Diocese of Kasongo ( la, Kasongoën(sis)) is a diocese located in the cities of Kasongo in the Ecclesiastical province of Bukavu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. History * January 10, 1952: Established as Apostolic Vic ...

History

The town was founded around 1850-60, but the first

Sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it c ...

named Dougombi (métis) established in 1868. Ramazani Munia Muhara (

Manyema Manyema (WaManyema) (Una-Ma-Nyema, eaters of flesh), are a powerful and, in the past, warlike Bantu people in the southeast of the Congo basin in Nyangwe (Kasongo) in Maniema, Democratic Republic of Congo and in the city of Kigoma, Kigoma region o ...

) was the

the town by the time of the Congo-Arab war during 1892–1894 in Kasongo, Maniema A

trading post A trading post, trading station, or trading house, also known as a factory, is an establishment or settlement where goods and services could be traded. Typically the location of the trading post would allow people from one geographic area to tr ...

was established in Nyangwe (Piani-Kasongo) in 1875 by Tippu Tip, an

Afro-Arab Afro-Arabs are Arabs of full or partial Black African descent. These include populations within mainly the Sudanese, Emiratis, Yemenis, Saudis, Omanis, Sahrawis, Mauritanians, Algerians, Egyptians and Moroccans, with considerably long est ...

trader. Nyangwe and the greater part of Kasongo, Maniema became the capital of the Sultanate of Utetera controlled by Tippu Tip and local sultans. It’s key trading partner and ally was the Sultanate of Zanzibar and thus, was related to

Omani Monarchy Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...

through Tippu Tip; However, the death of Said bin Sultan in 1856 saw the division of the

Omani Empire The Omani Empire ( ar, الإمبراطورية العُمانية) was a maritime empire, vying with Portugal and Britain for trade and influence in the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean. At its peak in the 19th century, Omani influence or control ...

between his sons. Two sultanates: an African section called the Sultanate of Zanzibar through

Majid bin Said Sayyid Majid bin Saïd al-Busaidi ( ar, ماجد بن سعيد البوسعيد) ( – ) was the first Sultan of Zanzibar. He ruled Zanzibar from 19 October 1856 to 7 October 1870. He succeeded his father Said bin Sultan as ruler of Zanzibar and ...

and an Asian section called the

Sultanate of Muscat and Oman The Sultanate of Muscat and Oman ( ar, سلطنة مسقط وعمان, Salṭanat Masqaṭ wa-‘Umān), also known briefly as the State of Muscat and Oman () during the rule of Taimur bin Feisal, was a sovereign state that encompassed the prese ...

ruled by

Thuwaini bin Said Thuwaini bin Said al-Busaidi ( ar, ثويني بن سعيد ال سعيد, ) (1821–1866) also called (19 October 1856 – 11 February 1866), was the third son of Said bin Sultan, Sultan of Muscat and Oman. Thuwaini was born in Oman, and never v ...

. The area was visited by

Henry Morton Stanley Sir Henry Morton Stanley (born John Rowlands; 28 January 1841 – 10 May 1904) was a Welsh-American explorer, journalist, soldier, colonial administrator, author and politician who was famous for his exploration of Central Africa and his sear ...

sometime between 1879 and 1884, on his third expedition. The territory was at the centre of the Congo-Arab War and the Batetela Revolt in 1898. A century later, Kasongo and its inhabitants were severely affected by the

Second Congo War The Second Congo War,, group=lower-alpha also known as the Great War of Africa or the Great African War and sometimes referred to as the African World War, began in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in August 1998, little more than a year a ...

(1998-2003), and the CARE and Concern Worldwide NGO's are active in the area.

References

External links

Worldstatesmen.org: Details of traditional kingdom leadership, including in Kasongo area
{{Authority control Populated places in Maniema

Geography

History

See also

References

External links