Throughout my life and many days in school, I have always known Uganda as the Pearl of Africa, but I never got a clear answer to this until now. There are many different stories on the internet today about who came up with the “Pearl of Africa” phrase, and most of them show some proof.
Even during my primary school days, when asked in Social Studies, we always had to choose Sir Winston Churchill as the answer to get the marks. But let’s not go too far yet. Why is Uganda called the Pearl of Africa?
I believe this is the main question we are supposed to answer, but I will not follow the same method most bloggers use when writing about this topic.
I will simply give you the reason and facts about the phrase “Pearl of Africa” so that you can also share the correct information with others who may have read false stories. The truth always sets us free.
More than 90% of the articles I have seen claim that Sir Winston Churchill used the phrase in his 1908 book titled My African Journey, a book about his travel to Uganda. In the book, the phrase is written as:
“For magnificence, for variety of form and color, for profusion of brilliant life — bird, insect, reptile, beast — for vast scale — Uganda is truly ‘the Pearl of Africa.'”
He was referring to Uganda’s green valleys, tall mountains, and deep lakes. Uganda’s high altitude also gives it a cooler climate than other places near the equator, which surprised most of the British travelers who came to Uganda.
That’s the common reason you’ll find online. But did Churchill really create the phrase? The answer is no. If you read the original words from the book, you’ll realize that Churchill actually wrote something similar but different:
“But the forests of Uganda, for magnificence, for variety of form and color, for profusion of brilliant life — plant, bird, insect, reptile, beast — for the vast scale and awful fecundity indeed effaced, all previous impressions.” (My African Journey, Page 151)
Some people say the story about Churchill using the phrase became popular around Uganda’s first Independence Day (October 9th, 1962). Since then, Churchill has often been wrongly credited.
The truth is, an author named Jane Flowers changed the phrase. She added the words “Uganda is truly the Pearl of Africa” to what Churchill originally wrote. But this fact is still not known to many people.
So who really called Uganda the Pearl of Africa?
A book titled The Uganda Railway, written in 1895, gives credit to Henry Morton Stanley for calling Uganda (known as Buganda then) the “Pearl of Africa.” You can find it clearly written on pages 719–720 of Stanley’s book. He wrote:
“It is the ‘Pearl of Africa’ that is our object. I applied that somewhat grandiloquent term to Uganda… the truth is that the term aptly illustrates the superior value of Uganda because of its populousness, the intelligence of its people, its strategic position for commerce, and for spreading Christianity — all of which make it pre-eminently a desirable colony for a trading and civilizing nation like ours.”
Churchill never used the exact phrase in his original writing, while Stanley did. But still, many people continue to believe Churchill said it first.
During the late 19th century, Buganda (now called Uganda) was the center of great interest for the British Empire. Many British officials wanted to find the source of the Nile, believing that if they controlled it, they could also control Egypt. And if they controlled Egypt, they would also control the Suez Canal — a key route to India, which was their most important colony.
Churchill, a young Member of Parliament at the time, took a railway journey to Uganda. Some people believe the phrase “Pearl of Africa” was used to justify Britain’s strong interest in Uganda.
So now you know where the phrase came from and how it was used. It was first written by Stanley to describe Uganda’s value to the British Empire. Churchill may still be remembered for it, but the truth is in the written records.
So where is the Pearl of Africa?
Uganda is located in East Africa. It borders Kenya in the east, the Democratic Republic of Congo in the west, South Sudan in the north, and Tanzania and Rwanda in the south. Uganda is a landlocked country on the northern shores of Lake Victoria — one of the biggest lakes in the world.
It is also known for being the source of the River Nile and home to the endangered mountain gorillas, with over 450 of them living in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park.
Uganda is lucky to be one of the countries crossed by the equator. The green valleys, tall mountains, and deep lakes mentioned by Churchill still exist today. You can visit and see them yourself.
Check out my guide for booking a safari in Uganda to help you plan your trip in advance.
References:
The Uganda Railway: Saturday Review of Politics, Literature, Science and Art, vol. 79 (1895): 719–720
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