Laying the Foundations of the Local State: The Relevance of Nineteenth Century History and Archaeology to the New State of South Sudan
Posted: 16 Apr 2013
Date Written: April 16, 2013
Abstract
The Turco-Egyptian invasion of Sudan in 1820 has been officially recognised by the South Sudanese government as the starting point of the South Sudanese ‘struggle for freedom’. The invasion pushed the frontiers of the ivory and slave trade further south, followed eventually by the extension of Egyptian government control as far as what is now northern Uganda. The history and commemoration of this period in southern Sudan established an enduring sense of the predatory, extractive nature of state power and commercial forces; government personnel have continued to be referred to as ‘Turks’ in many areas, and the history of slavery has been prominent in popular and political discourse regarding north-south relations. But much less attention has been paid to the significance of this period in terms of the formation of the local state. This paper will draw on recent historical and archaeological research to explore the mechanisms, strategies and institutions that emerged to deal with the predatory imperial and commercial forces in the nineteenth century. It will argue that these laid the foundations for subsequent local government, traditional authority and relations with the state in South Sudan, with continuing relevance for the new state.
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