Ankole, also referred to as Nkore, is one of the traditional kingdoms in Uganda.

The kindom is
located in the South Western Uganda, East of Lake Edward. It was ruled by a monarch known as
The Mugabe or Omugabe of Ankole. The kingdom was formally abolished in 1967 by the
government of President Apollo Militon Obote, and is still not officially restored. The people of
Ankole are called Banyankole (Singular: Munyankole) in Runyankole language, a Bantu
language.
The Banyankore are a Bantu group. They inhabit the present districts of Mbarara, Bushenyi,
Ntungamo, Kiruhura, Ibanda and Isingiro in western Uganda. People from the present counties
of Rujumbura and Rubabo in Rukungiri District share the same culture. From time immemorial,
Ankole has been also praised as Kaaro- Karungi (The beautiful hamlet) (The word Ankole was
introduced by British colonial administrators to describe the new kingdom which had lost
Mahogora, Kabura, Buraga, Kibumbiro & Kitagwenda and gained Igara, Buhweju, Bunyaruguru
and some parts of Mpororo
Origins
Banyankole are Bantu speakers. Legends hold that the first king of Ankole was Ruhanga (the
creator), who is believed to have come from heaven to rule the earth. Ruhanga is believed to
have come with his three sons Kairu, Kakama and Kahima. There is a story about how Ruhanga
gave a test to determine which of his sons would become the heir. The test is said to have been
that of keeping milk –filled pots on their laps through out the night. At the end of it all, the
youngest son, Kakama, is said to have passed the test followed by Kahima and last came the
eldest son, Kairu. Judging from the performance in the test, Ruhanga is said to have decreed that
Kairu and Kahima would=d serve their brother Kakama. Thereafter he went back to heaven,
leaving Kakama or Ruhanga, as he was also called, to rule the land. This legend portrays social
stratification in Ankole society. It was an ideological construct to explain the social relations of
the Banyankole and other Bantu in the great Lakes region
Social stratification.

The Banyankole society stratified into Bahima (pastoralists) and the Bairu (agriculturalists). A
caste-like system of the Bahima over the Bairu existed. The society was a dual pyramid with
pastoral and agricultural legs. Within the two groups or castes ( I call them castes not classes
because within the Bahima and Bairu, there were those who had some thing in common), the
clans cut across both the Bairu and the Bahima.The two groups recognized a common ancestry.
There was a general belief that what made a mwiru (singular Bairu) what he is was a hoe and
what made a Muhima (singular Bahima) what he is was a cattle. This kind of belief was not very
accurate because merely acquiring cows would not immediately transform one from a Mwiru
into a Muhima nor would the loss of cows transform a Muhima into a Mwiru. A Muhima who
owned few cattle would be called a Murasi. A Mwiru who owned cattle was called a Mwambari.

The two groups lived together and they depended on each other. The Bairu exchanged cattle
products with Bahima and the Bahima equally received agricultural goods fro the Bairu. This
was because the Bairu needed milk, meat, hides and other cattle products form the Bahima, while
the Bahima would also need agricultural products from the Bairu, equally local beer.

Political set-up
The Banyankole had a centralized system of government. At the top of the political ladder, there
was a king called omugabe. Below him there was a prime minister known as Enganzi. Then there
were provincial chiefs known as Abakuru b’ebyanga. Below them, there were chiefs who took
charge of local affairs at the parish and sub-parish levels.
The position of the king was hereditary. The King had to belong to the Bahinda royal clan who
claimed descendant from Ruhanga, son of Njunaki.Whenever a King died, there were often
succession disputes to determine who would succeed to the throne. Thereafter, there would be an
elaborate ceremony to install the new King. Whenever a king died, some of his wives would
commit suicide or they would be forced to do so. Some of the servants in the royal court would
also commit suicide. It is said that in the earlier times, some people of the Baingo clan would
also be killed in order to accompany the King in the afterworld. The corpse of the king was also
known as omuguta to distinguish it from that of an ordinary person which was known as
omurambo. It was specially buried by the Bayangwe clan styling themselves for the occasion as
the Abahitsi. To communicate the message that the King had died, one would not say the t
Omugabe afire which is the appropriate Runyankole term, rather one would say that Omugabe
ataahize.

Wars

The Kingdom had a standing army. The army was divided into battalions known as emitwe
(singular omutwe). Each battalion was under a province known as Mukuru w’ ekyanga some
times referred to as Omukungu. Often, the kingdom of Nkore was a war with the neighboring
states and sometimes she sent raiding expeditions to Karagwe and Buhweju. The Kingdom of
Bunyoro sometimes raided Nkore and took away a lot of cattle. Notable among the Banyoro
invasions of Nkore were those of Omukama Olimi I during the reign of Ntare I Nyabugaro and
that of Omukama I Walimi in the 17th century during the reign of Ntare IV Kitabanyoro. During
the reign of Ntare IV, there occurred another war between the Banyankole and the Nkondami
(soldiers) of Kabaundami of Buhweju.
During the reign of King Machwa after the death of Ntare IV, an expedition was sent against
Irebe, the King of Bwera. The expedition brought a lot of plunder among which were cattle and
Irebe’s sacred circlet, Rutare, which was thereafter used by the Bagabe of Nkore in making rain.
Another invasion of Nkore took place during the reign of Kahaya I Nyamwanga. The invasion
was by the Banyarawanda under the King Kigyeri III Ndabarasa.

The Royal Regalia

The royal regalia of Ankole consisted of a spear and drums. The main instrument of power was
the royal drum called Bagyendanwa. This drum was believed to have been made by Wamala, the
last Muchwezi ruler. This drum was only beaten at the installation of a new King. It had its
special hut and it was considered taboo to shut the hut. A fire was always kept burning for
Bagyendanwa and this fire could only be extinguished in the event of the death of the King. The
drum had its own cows and some other attendant drums namely; kabembura, Nyakashija, eigura,
kooma and Njeru ya Buremba which was obtained from the kingdom of Buzimba
Religion

The Banyankole’s idea of Supreme Being was Ruhanga (creator). The abode of Ruhanga was
said to be in heaven, just above the clouds. Ruhanga was believed to be the maker and giver of
all things. It was, however, believed that the evil persons could use black magic to interfere with
the good wishes of Ruhanga and cause ill- health, drought, death or even bareness in the land and
among the people.

At a lower level, the idea of Ruhanga was expressed in the cult of Emandwa. These were gods
particularly to different families and clans and they were easily approachable in the event of
need. Each family had a shrine where the family gods were supposed to dwell. Whenever beer
was brewed or a goat slaughtered, a gourd full of beer and some small bits of meat were put in
the shrine to the Mandwa. In the event of sickness or misfortune, the family members would
perform rituals called okubandwa as a way of supplicating the gods to avert sickness or
misfortune