Website design By BotEap.comThe original reference to Uganda as the “Pearl of Africa” ​​seems to have come to be strongly attributed to Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill during the last three or four decades in Uganda. In reality, the “Pearl” with which the world would most significantly associate Spencer-Churchill is Pearl Harbor. A handful of literature shows that Spencer-Churchill referred to Uganda as “the pearl of Africa.” But it was certainly not the origin of the term “Pearl of Africa”, one that may even have been pronounced before Churchill was born. Churchill was born in 1874.

Website design By BotEap.comThe colonial literature of the late 19th and early 20th centuries overwhelmingly attributes Uganda as “the pearl of Africa” ​​to Henry Morton Stanley. Stanley is considered by many to be Africa’s most important early explorer. Stanley chronicled his extensive travels and observations in remarkable detail. It would appear that Churchill, who did not traverse Africa as extensively as Stanley, actually borrowed much of what he wrote about Uganda from Henry Stanley.

Website design By BotEap.comA few quotes feed the evidence about Henry Morton Stanley.

Website design By BotEap.comJames Home Morrison (page 171) writes: “On November 15, 1875, a remarkable letter appeared in the Daily Telegraph … written by Stanley in Uganda … Stanley speaks of Uganda as ‘the Pearl of Africa’ (in Los Missionary Heroes of Africa, Negro Universities Press, 1922).

Website design By BotEap.comIn the article, “Uganda” in Proceedings of the Royal Colonial Institute, Volume 25, Captain WH Williams states, “… your descriptions … led … Uganda to be regarded as a … country of fairies … Is it any wonder that England came to think that the Pearl of Africa was a jewel of great price? (1894: 105).

Website design By BotEap.comGeorge S. Mackenzie, on page 23, says: “‘The Pearl of Africa’, as Uganda has been … named by Mr. Stanley … first made known in Europe by the celebrated travelers Speke and Grant “(” The Problems of Uganda “, in Fortnightly Review, volume 52, 1892).

Website design By BotEap.comOn the world stage, the name Winston Churchill is far more significant than Henry Stanley’s, perhaps an important publicity-laden fuel for Churchill’s strong attribution of “Pearl of Africa”. On the other hand, Henry Stanley was aggressive and ambitious, but he also became known for his cunning, deception, and exaggeration of himself and his stories. It could also be opportunistic and cruel. Stanley is best known for his subsequent campaign of brutal exploitation in the mineral-rich Congo for King Leopold of Belgium. His audacity apparently made Stanley an effective tool for colonial aggression, conquest, and exploitation.

Website design By BotEap.comWhen Henry Stanley died in 1904, Spencer-Churchill had not even written his acclaimed “My African Journey”, in which he describes “the pearl of Africa.”