Chapter XVI: Part 16

[v.04 p.0592] The mill was another element which tended to promote the same principle. There can be little doubt that before the Anglo-Saxons came to Britain they possessed no instrument for grinding corn except the quern (_cweorn_), and in remote districts this continued in use until quite late times. The grinding seems to have been performed chiefly by female slaves, but occasionally we hear also of a donkey-mill (_esolcweorn_). The mill proper, however, which was derived from the Romans, as its name (_mylen_, from Lat. _molina_) indicates, must have come into use fairly early. In the 11th century every village of any size seems to have possessed one, while the earliest references go back to the 8th century. It is not unlikely that they were in use during the Roman occupation of Britain, and consequently that they became known to the invaders almost from the first. The mills were presumably driven for the most part by water, though we have a reference to a windmill as early as the year 833.

All the ordinary domestic animals were known. Cattle and sheep were pastured on the common lands appertaining to the village, while pigs, which (especially in Kent) seem to have been very numerous, were kept in the woods. Bee-keeping was also practised. In all these matters the invasion of Britain had brought about no change. The cultivation of fruit and vegetables on the other hand was probably almost entirely new. The names are almost all derived from Latin, though most of them seem to have been known soon after the invasion, at all events by the 7th century.

From the considerations pointed out above we can hardly doubt that the village possessed a certain amount of corporate life, centred perhaps in an ale-house where its affairs were discussed by the inhabitants. There is no evidence, however, which would justify us in crediting such gatherings with any substantial degree of local authority. So far as the limited information at our disposal enables us to form an opinion, the responsibility both for the internal peace of the village, and for its obligations to the outside world, seems to have lain with the lord or his steward (_gerefa_, _villicus_) from the beginning. A quite opposite view has, it is true, found favour with many scholars, viz. that the villages were orginally settlements of free kindreds, and that the lord's authority was superimposed on them at a later date. This view is based mainly on the numerous place-names ending in _-ing_, _-ingham_, _-ington_, &c., in which the syllable _-ing_ is thought to refer to kindreds of cultivators. It is more probable, however, that these names are derived from persons of the _twelfhynde_ class to whom the land had been granted. In many cases indeed there is good reason for doubting whether the name is a patronymic at all.

The question how far the villages were really new settlements is difficult to answer, for the terminations _-ham_, _-ton_, &c. cannot be regarded as conclusive evidence. Thus according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle (ann. 571) Bensington and Eynsham were formerly British villages. Even if the first part of Egonesham is English--which is by no means certain--it is hardly sufficient reason for discrediting this statement, for Canterbury (_Cantwaraburg_) and Rochester (_Hrofes ceaster_) were without doubt Roman places in spite of their English names. On the whole it seems likely that the cultivation of the land was not generally interrupted for more than a very few years; hence the convenience of utilizing existing sites of villages would be obvious, even if the buildings themselves had been burnt.

7. _Towns._--Gildas states that in the time of the Romans Britain contained twenty-eight cities (_civitates_), besides a number of fortresses (_castetta_). Most of these were situated within the territories eventually occupied by the invaders, and reappear as towns in later times. Their history in the intervening period, however, is wrapped in obscurity. Chester appears to have been deserted for three centuries after its destruction early in the 7th century, and in most of the other cases there are features observable in the situation and plan of the medieval town which suggest that its occupation had not been continuous. Yet London and Canterbury must have recovered a certain amount of importance quite early, at all events within two centuries after the invasion, and the same is probably true of York, Lincoln and a few other places. The term applied to both the cities and the fortresses of the Romans was _ceaster_ (Lat. _castra_), less frequently the English word _burg_. There is little or no evidence for the existence of towns other than Roman in early times, for the word _urbs_ is merely a translation of _burg_, which was used for any fortified dwelling-place, and it is improbable that anything which could properly be called a town was known to the invaders before their arrival in Britain. The Danish settlements at the end of the 9th century and the defensive system initiated by King Alfred gave birth to a new series of fortified towns, from which the boroughs of the middle ages are mainly descended.

8. _Houses._--Owing to the fact that houses were built entirely of perishable materials, wood and wattle, we are necessarily dependent almost wholly upon literary evidence for knowledge of this subject. Stone seems to have been used first for churches, but this was not before the 7th century, and we are told that at first masons were imported from Gaul. Indeed wood was used for many churches, as well as for most secular buildings, until a much later period. The walls were formed either of stout planks laid together vertically or horizontally, or else of posts at a short distance from one another, the interstices being filled up with wattlework daubed with clay. It is not unlikely that the houses of wealthy persons were distinguished by a good deal of ornamentation in carving and painting. The roof was high-pitched and covered with straw, hay, reeds or tiles. The regular form of the buildings was rectangular, the gable sides probably being shorter than the others. There is little evidence for partitions inside, and in wealthy establishments the place of rooms seems to have been supplied by separate buildings within the same enclosure. The windows must have been mere openings in the walls or roof, for glass was not used for this purpose before the latter part of the 7th century. Stoves were known, but most commonly heat was obtained from an open fire in the centre of the building. Of the various buildings in a wealthy establishment the chief were the hall (_heall_), which was both a dining and reception room, and the "lady's bower" (_brydbur_), which served also as a bedroom for the master and mistress. To these we have to add buildings for the attendants, kitchen, bakehouse, &c., and farm buildings. There is little or no evidence for the use of two-storeyed houses in early times, though in the 10th and 11th centuries they were common. The whole group of buildings stood in an enclosure (_tun_) surrounded by a stockade (_burg_), which perhaps rested on an earthwork, though this is disputed. Similarly the homestead of the peasant was surrounded by a fence (_edor_).

9. _Clothes._--The chief material for clothing was at first no doubt wool, though linen must also have been used and later became fairly common. The chief garments were the coat (_roc_), the trousers (_brec_), and the cloak, for which there seem to have been a number of names (_loða_, _hacele_, _sciccing_, _pad_, _hwitel_). To these we may add the hat (_haet_), belt (_gyrdel_), stockings (_hosa_), shoes (_scoh_, _gescy_, _rifeling_) and gloves (_glof_). The _crusene_ was a fur coat, while the _serc_ or _smoc_ seems to have been an undergarment and probably sleeveless. The whole attire was of national origin and had probably been in use long before the invasion of Britain. In the great bog-deposit at Thorsbjaerg in Angel, which dates from about the 4th century, there were found a coat with long sleeves, in a fair state of preservation, a pair of long trousers with remains of socks attached, several shoes and portions of square cloaks, one of which had obviously been dyed green. The dress of the upper classes must have been of a somewhat gorgeous character, especially when account is taken of the brooches and other ornaments which they wore. It is worth noting that according to Jordanes the Swedes in the 6th century were splendidly dressed.

10. _Trade._--The few notices of this subject which occur in the early laws seem to refer primarily to cattle-dealing. But there can be no doubt that a considerable import and export trade with the continent had sprung up quite early. In Bede's time, if not before, London was resorted to by many merchants both by land and by sea. At first the chief export trade was [v.04 p.0593] probably in slaves. English slaves were to be obtained in Rome even before the end of the 6th century, as appears from the well-known story of Gregory the Great. Since the standard price of slaves on the continent was in general three or four times as great as it was in England, the trade must have been very profitable. After the adoption of Christianity it was gradually prohibited by the laws. The nature of the imports during the heathen period may be learned chiefly from the graves, which contain many brooches and other ornaments of continental origin, and also a certain number of silver, bronze and glass vessels. With the introduction of Christianity the ecclesiastical connexion between England and the continent without doubt brought about a large increase in the imports of secular as well as religious objects, and the frequency of pilgrimages by persons of high rank must have had the same effect. The use of silk (_seoluc_) and the adoption of the mancus (see below) point to communication, direct or indirect, with more distant countries. In the 8th century we hear frequently of tolls on merchant ships at various ports, especially London.

11. _Coinage._--The earliest coins which can be identified with certainty are some silver pieces which bear in Runic letters the name of the Mercian king Æthelred (675-704). There are others, however, of the same type and standard (about 21 grains) which may be attributed with probability to his father Penda (d. 655). But it is clear from the laws of Æthelberht that a regular silver coinage was in use at least half a century before this time, and it is not unlikely that many unidentified coins may go back to the 6th century. These are fairly numerous, and are either without inscriptions or, if they do bear letters at all, they seem to be mere corruptions of Roman legends. Their designs are derived from Roman or Frankish coins, especially the former, and their weight varies from about 10 to 21 grains, though the very light coins are rare. Anonymous gold coins, resembling Frankish trientes in type and standard (21 grains), are also fairly common, though they must have passed out of use very early, as the laws give no hint of their existence. Larger gold coins (_solidi_) are very rare. In the early laws the money actually in use appears to have been entirely silver. In Offa's time a new gold coin, the _mancus_, resembling in standard the Roman solidus (about 70 grains), was introduced from Mahommedan countries. The oldest extant specimen bears a faithfully copied Arabic inscription. In the same reign the silver coins underwent a considerable change in type, being made larger and thinner, while from this time onwards they always bore the name of the king (or queen or archbishop) for whom they were issued. The design and execution also became remarkably good. Their weight was at first unaffected, but probably towards the close of Offa's reign it was raised to about 23 grains, at which standard it seems to have remained, nominally at least, until the time of Alfred. It is to be observed that with the exception of Burgred's coins and a few anonymous pieces the silver was never adulterated. No bronze coins were current except in Northumbria, where they were extremely common in the 9th century.

Originally _scilling_ ("shilling") and _sceatt_ seem to have been the terms for gold and silver coins respectively. By the time of Ine, however, _pending_, _pen(n)ing_ ("penny"), had already come into use for the latter, while, owing to the temporary disappearance of a gold coinage, _scilling_ had come to denote a mere unit of account. It was, however, a variable unit, for the Kentish shilling contained twenty _sceattas_ (pence), while the Mercian contained only four. The West Saxon shilling seems originally to have been identical with the Mercian, but later it contained five pence. Large payments were generally made by weight, 240-250 pence being reckoned to the pound, perhaps from the 7th century onwards. The mancus was equated with thirty pence, probably from the time of its introduction. This means that the value of gold relatively to silver was 10:1 from the end of Offa's reign. There is reason, however, for thinking that in earlier times it was as low as 6:1, or even 5:1. In Northumbria a totally different monetary system prevailed, the unit being the _tryms_, which contained three _sceattas_ or pence. As to the value of the bronze coins we are without information.

The purchasing power of money was very great. The sheep was valued at a shilling in both Wessex and Mercia, from early times till the 11th century. One pound was the normal price of a slave and half a pound that of a horse. The price of a pig was twice, and that of an ox six times as great as that of a sheep. Regarding the prices of commodities other than live-stock we have little definite information, though an approximate estimate may be made of the value of arms. It is worth noticing that we often hear of payments in gold and silver vessels in place of money. In the former case the mancus was the usual unit of calculation.

12. _Ornaments._--Of these the most interesting are the brooches which were worn by both sexes and of which large numbers have been found in heathen cemeteries. They may be classed under eight leading types: (1) circular or ring-shaped, (2) cruciform, (3) square-headed, (4) radiated, (5) S-shaped, (6) bird-shaped, (7) disk-shaped, (8) cupelliform or saucer-shaped. Of these Nos. 5 and 6 appear to be of continental origin, and this is probably the case also with No. 4 and in part with No. 7. But the last-mentioned type varies greatly, from rude and almost plain disks of bronze to magnificent gold specimens studded with gems. No. 8 is believed to be peculiar to England, and occurs chiefly in the southern Midlands, specimens being usually found in pairs. The interiors are gilt, often furnished with detachable plates and sometimes set with brilliants. The remaining types were probably brought over by the Anglo-Saxons at the time of the invasion. Nos. 1 and 3 are widespread outside England, but No. 2, though common in Scandinavian countries, is hardly to be met with south of the Elbe. It is worth noting that a number of specimens were found in the cremation cemetery at Borgstedterfeld near Rendsburg. In England it occurs chiefly in the more northern counties. Nos. 2 and 3 vary greatly in size, from 2½ to 7 in. or more. The smaller specimens are quite plain, but the larger ones are gilt and generally of a highly ornamental character. In later times we hear of brooches worth as much as six mancusas, _i.e._ equivalent to six oxen.

Among other ornaments we may mention hairpins, rings and ear-rings, and especially buckles which are often of elaborate workmanship. Bracelets and necklets are not very common, a fact which is rather surprising, as in early times, before the issuing of a coinage, these articles (_beagas_) took the place of money to a large extent. The glass vessels are finely made and of somewhat striking appearance, though they closely resemble contemporary continental types. Since the art of glass-working was unknown, according to Bede, until nearly the end of the 7th century, it is probable that these were all of continental or Roman-British origin.

13. _Amusements_.--It is clear from the frequent references to dogs and hawks in the charters that hunting and falconry were keenly pursued by the kings and their retinues. Games, whether indoor or outdoor, are much less frequently mentioned, but there is no doubt that the use of dice (_taefl_) was widespread. At court much time was given to poetic recitation, often accompanied by music, and accomplished poets received liberal rewards. The chief musical instrument was the harp (_hearpe_), which is often mentioned. Less frequently we hear of the flute (_pipe_) and later also of the fiddle (_fiðele_). Trumpets (_horn_, _swegelhorn_, _byme_) appear to have been used chiefly as signals.

14. _Writing._--The Runic alphabet seems to have been the only form of writing known to the Anglo-Saxons before the invasion of Britain, and indeed until the adoption of Christianity. In its earliest form, as it appears in inscriptions on various articles found in Schleswig and in Scandinavian countries, it consisted of twenty-four letters, all of which occur in abecedaria in England. In actual use, however, two letters soon became obsolete, but a number of others were added from time to time, some of which are found also on the continent, while others are peculiar to certain parts of England. Originally the Runic alphabet seems to have been used for writing on wooden boards, though none of these have survived. The inscriptions which have come down to us are engraved partly on memorial stones, [v.04 p.0594] which are not uncommon in the north of England, and partly on various metal objects, ranging from swords to brooches. The adoption of Christianity brought about the introduction of the Roman alphabet; but the older form of writing did not immediately pass out of use, for almost all the inscriptions which we possess date from the 7th or following centuries. Coins with Runic legends were issued at least until the middle of the 8th century, and some of the memorial stones date probably even from the 9th. The most important of the latter are the column at Bewcastle, Cumberland, believed to commemorate Alhfrith, the son of Oswio, who died about 670, and the cross at Ruthwell, Dumfriesshire, which is probably about a century later. The Roman alphabet was very soon applied to the purpose of writing the native language, _e.g._ in the publication of the laws of Æthelberht. Yet the type of character in which even the earliest surviving MSS. are written is believed to be of Celtic origin. Most probably it was introduced by the Irish missionaries who evangelized the north of England, though Welsh influence is scarcely impossible. Eventually this alphabet was enlarged (probably before the end of the 7th century) by the inclusion of two Runic letters for _th_ and _w_.

15. _Marriage._--This is perhaps the subject on which our information is most inadequate. It is evident that the relationships which prohibited marriage were different from those recognized by the Church; but the only fact which we know definitely is that it was customary, at least in Kent, for a man to marry his stepmother. In the Kentish laws marriage is represented as hardly more than a matter of purchase; but whether this was the case in the other kingdoms also the evidence at our disposal is insufficient to decide. We know, however, that in addition to the sum paid to the bride's guardian, it was customary for the bridegroom to make a present (_morgengifu_) to the bride herself, which, in the case of queens, often consisted of a residence and considerable estates. Such persons also had retinues and fortified residences of their own. In the Kentish laws provision is made for widows to receive a proportionate share in their husbands' property.

16. _Funeral Rites._--Both inhumation and cremation were practised in heathen times. The former seems to have prevailed everywhere; the latter, however, was much more common in the more northern counties than in the south, though cases are fairly numerous throughout the valley of the Thames. In _Beowulf_ cremation is represented as the prevailing custom. There is no evidence that it was still practised when the Roman and Celtic missionaries arrived, but it is worth noting that according to the tradition given in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Oxfordshire, where the custom seems to have been fairly common, was not conquered before the latter part of the 6th century. The burnt remains were generally, if not always, enclosed in urns and then buried. The urns themselves are of clay, somewhat badly baked, and bear geometrical patterns applied with a punch. They vary considerably in size (from 4 to 12 in. or more in diameter) and closely resemble those found in northern Germany. Inhumation graves are sometimes richly furnished. The skeleton is laid out at full length, generally with the head towards the west or north, a spear at one side and a sword and shield obliquely across the middle. Valuable brooches and other ornaments are often found. In many other cases, however, the grave contained nothing except a small knife and a simple brooch or a few beads. Usually both classes of graves lie below the natural surface of the ground without any perceptible trace of a barrow.

17. _Religion._--Here again the information at our disposal is very limited. There can be little doubt that the heathen Angli worshipped certain gods, among them Ti (Tig), Woden, Thunor and a goddess Frigg, from whom the names Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday are derived. Ti was probably the same god of whom early Roman writers speak under the name Mars (see TÝR), while Thunor was doubtless the thunder-god (see THOR). From Woden (_q.v._) most of the royal families traced their descent. Seaxneat, the ancestor of the East Saxon dynasty, was also in all probability a god (see ESSEX, KINGDOM OF).

Of anthropomorphic representations of the gods we have no clear evidence, though we do hear of shrines in sacred enclosures, at which sacrifices were offered. It is clear also that there were persons specially set apart for the priesthood, who were not allowed to bear arms or to ride except on mares. Notices of sacred trees and groves, springs, stones, &c., are much more frequent than those referring to the gods. We hear also a good deal of witches and valkyries, and of charms and magic; as an instance we may cite the fact that certain (Runic) letters were credited, as in the North, with the power of loosening bonds. It is probable also that the belief in the spirit world and in a future life was of a somewhat similar kind to what we find in Scandinavian religion. (See TEUTONIC PEOPLES, §6.)

The chief primary authorities are Gildas, _De Excidio Britanniae_, and Nennius, _Historia Britonum_ (ed. San-Marte, Berlin, 1844); Th. Mommsen in _Mon. Germ. Hist., Auct. Antiquiss._, tom. xiii. (Berlin, 1898); Bede, _Hist. Eccl._ (ed. C. Plummer, Oxford, 1896); the _Saxon Chronicle_ (ed. C. Plummer, Oxford, 1892-1899); and the _Anglo-Saxon Laws_ (ed. F. Liebermann, Halle, 1903), and Charters (W. de G. Birch, _Cartularium Saxonicum_, London, 1885-1893). Modern authorities: Sh. Turner, _History of the Anglo-Saxons_ (London, 1799-1805; 7th ed., 1852); Sir F. Palgrave, _Rise and Progress of the English Commonwealth_ (London, 1831-1832); J.M. Kemble, _The Saxons in England_ (London, 1849; 2nd ed., 1876); K. Maurer, _Kritische Überschau d. deutschen Gesetzgebung u. Rechtswissenschaft_, vols. i.-iii. (Munich, 1853-1855); J.M. Lappenberg, _Geschichte von England_ (Hamburg, 1834); _History of England under the Anglo-Saxon Kings_ (London, 1845; 2nd ed., 1881); J.R. Green, _The Making of England_ (London, 1881); T. Hodgkin, _History of England from the Earliest Times to the Norman Conquest_ (vol. i. of _The Political History of England_) (London, 1906); F. Seebohm, _The English Village Community_ (London, 1883); A. Meitzen, _Siedelung und Agrarwesen d. Westgermanen, u. Ostgermanen, &c._ (Berlin, 1895); Sir F. Pollock and F.W. Maitland, _History of English Law_ (Cambridge, 1895; 2nd ed., 1898); F.W. Maitland, _Domesday Book and Beyond_ (Cambridge, 1897); F. Seebohm, _Tribal Custom in Anglo-Saxon Law_ (London, 1903); P. Vinogradoff, _The Growth of the Manor_ (London, 1905); H.M. Chadwick, _Studies on Anglo-Saxon Institutions_ (Cambridge, 1905); _The Origin of the English Nation_ (_ib._, 1907); M. Heyne, _Über die Lage und Construction der Halle Heorot_ (Paderborn, 1864); R. Henning, _Das deutsche Haus_ (_Quellen u. Forschungen_, 47) (Strassburg, 1882); M. Heyne, _Deutsche Hausaltertümer_, i., ii., iii. (Leipzig, 1900-1903); G. Baldwin Brown, _The Arts in Early England_ (London, 1903); C.F. Keary, _Catalogue of Anglo-Saxon Coins in the British Museum_, vol. i. (London, 1887); C. Roach Smith, _Collectanea Antiqua_ (London, 1848-1868); R.C. Neville, _Saxon Obsequies_ (London, 1852); J.Y. Akerman, _Remains of Pagan Saxondom_ (London, 1855); Baron J. de Baye, _Industrie anglo-saxonne_ (Paris, 1889); _The Industrial Arts of the Anglo-Saxons_ (London, 1893); G. Stephens, _The Old Northern Runic Monuments_ (London and Copenhagen, 1866-1901); W. Vietor, _Die northumbrischen Runensteine_ (Marburg, 1895). Reference must also be made to the articles on Anglo-Saxon antiquities in the _Victoria County Histories_, and to various papers in _Archaeologia_, the _Archaeological Journal_, the _Journal of the British Archaeological Society_, the _Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries_, the _Associated Architectural Societies' Reports_, and other antiquarian journals.

(H. M. C.)

[1] The hide (_hid_, _hiwisc_, _familia_, _tributarius_, _cassatus_, _manens_, &c.) was in later times a measure of land, usually 120 acres. In early times, however, it seems to have meant (1) household, (2) normal amount of land appertaining to a household.

BRITANNICUS, son of the Roman emperor Claudius by his third wife Messallina, was born probably A.D. 41. He was originally called Claudius Tiberius Germanicus, and received the name Britannicus from the senate on account of the conquest made in Britain about the time of his birth. Till 48, the date of his mother's execution, he was looked upon as the heir presumptive; but Agrippina, the new wife of Claudius, soon persuaded the feeble emperor to adopt Lucius Domitius, known later as Nero, her son by a previous marriage. After the accession of Nero, Agrippina, by playing on his fears, induced him to poison Britannicus at a banquet (A.D. 55). A golden statue of the young prince was set up by the emperor Titus. Britannicus is the subject of a tragedy by Racine.

Tacitus, _Annals_, xii. 25, 41, xiii. 14-16; Suetonius, _Nero_, 33; Dio Cassius lx. 32, 34; works quoted under NERO.

BRITISH CENTRAL AFRICA, the general name given to the British protectorates in South Central Africa north of the Zambezi river, but more particularly to a large territory lying between 8° 25' S. on Lake Tanganyika and 17° 6' S. on the river Shiré, near its confluence with the Zambezi, and between 36° 10' E. (district of Mlanje) and 26° 30' E. (river Luengwe-Kafukwe). Originally the term "British Central Africa" was applied by Sir H.H. Johnston to all the territories under British [v.04 p.0595] influence north of the Zambezi which were formerly intended to be under one administration; but the course of events having prevented the connexion of Barotseland (see BAROTSE) and the other Rhodesian territories with the more direct British administration north of the Zambezi, the name of British Central Africa was confined officially (in 1893) to the British protectorate on the Shiré and about Lake Nyasa. In 1907 the official title of the protectorate was changed to that of Nyasaland Protectorate, while the titles "North Eastern Rhodesia" and "North Western Rhodesia" (Barotseland) have been given to the two divisions of the British South Africa Company's territory north of the Zambezi. The western boundary, however, of the territory here described has been taken to be a line drawn from near the source of the Lualaba on the southern boundary of Belgian Congo to the western source of the Luanga river, and thence the course of the Luanga to its junction with the Luengwe-Kafukwe, after which the main course of the Kafukwe delimits the territory down to the Zambezi. Thus, besides the Nyasaland Protectorate and North Eastern Rhodesia, part of North Western Rhodesia is included, and for the whole of this region British Central Africa is the most convenient designation.

_Physical Features._--Within these limits we have a territory of about 250,000 sq. m., which includes two-thirds of Lake Nyasa, the south end of Lake Tanganyika, more than half Lake Mweru, and the whole of Lake Bangweulu, nearly the whole courses of the rivers Shiré and Luangwa (or Loangwa), the whole of the river Chambezi (the most remote of the headwaters of the river Congo), the right or east bank of the Luapula (or upper Congo) from its exit from Lake Bangweulu to its issue from the north end of Lake Mweru; also the river Luanga and the whole course of the Kafue or Kafukwe.[1] Other lesser sheets of water included within the limits of this territory are the Great Mweru Swamp, between Tanganyika and Mweru, Moir's Lake (a small mountain tarn--possibly a crater lake--lying between the Luangwa and the Luapula), Lake Malombe (on the upper Shiré), and the salt lake Chilwa (wrongly styled Shirwa, being the Bantu word _Kilwa_), which lies on the borders of the Portuguese province of Moçambique. The southern border of this territory is the north bank of the Zambezi from the confluence of the Kafukwe to that of the Luangwa at Zumbo. Eastwards of Zumbo, British Central Africa is separated from the river Zambezi by the Portuguese possessions; nevertheless, considerably more than two-thirds of the country lies within the Zambezi basin, and is included within the subordinate basins of Lake Nyasa and of the rivers Luangwa and Luengwe-Kafukwe. The remaining portions drain into the basins of the river Congo and of Lake Tanganyika, and also into the small lake or half-dried swamp called Chilwa, which at the present time has no outlet, though in past ages it probably emptied itself into the Lujenda river, and thence into the Indian Ocean.

As regards orographical features, much of the country is high plateau, with an average altitude of 3500 ft. above sea-level. Only a very minute portion of its area--the country along the banks of the river Shiré--lies at anything like a low elevation; though the Luangwa valley may not be more than about 900 ft. above sea-level. Lake Nyasa lies at an elevation of 1700 ft. above the sea, is about 350 m. long, with a breadth varying from 15 to 40 m. Lake Tanganyika is about 2600 ft. above sea-level, with a length of about 400 m. and an average breadth of nearly 40 m. Lake Mweru and Lake Bangweulu are respectively 3000 and 3760 ft. above sea-level; Lake Chilwa is 1946 ft. in altitude. The highest mountain found within the limits previously laid down is Mount Mlanje, in the extreme south-eastern corner of the protectorate. This remarkable and picturesque mass is an isolated "chunk" of the Archean plateau, through which at a later date there has been a volcanic outburst of basalt. The summit and sides of this mass exhibit several craters. The highest peak of Mlanje reaches an altitude of 9683 ft. (In German territory, near the north end of Lake Nyasa, and close to the British frontier, is Mount Rungwe, the altitude of which exceeds 10,000 ft.) Other high mountains are Mounts Chongone and Dedza, in Angoniland, which reach an altitude of 7000 ft., and points on the Nyika Plateau and in the Konde Mountains to the north-west of Lake Nyasa, which probably exceed a height of 8000 ft. There are also Mounts Zomba (6900 ft.) and Chiradzulu (5500 ft.) in the Shiré Highlands. The principal plateaus or high ridges are (1) the Shiré Highlands, a clump of mountainous country lying between the river Shiré, the river Ruo, Lake Chilwa and the south end of Lake Nyasa; (2) Angoniland--a stretch of elevated country to the west of Lake Nyasa and the north-west of the river Shiré; (3) the Nyika Plateau, which lies to the north of Angoniland; and (4) the Nyasa-Tanganyika Plateau, between the basin of the river Luangwa, the vicinity of Tanganyika and the vicinity of Lake Mweru (highest point, 7000-8000 ft.). Finally may be mentioned the tract of elevated country between Lake Bangweulu and the river Luapula, and between Lake Bangweulu and the basin of the Luangwa; and also the Lukinga (Mushinga) or Ugwara Mountains of North Western Rhodesia, which attain perhaps to altitudes of 6000 ft.

The whole of this part of Africa is practically without any stretch of desert country, being on the whole favoured with an abundant rainfall. The nearest approach to a desert is the rather dry land to the east and north-east of Lake Mweru. Here, and in parts of the lower Shiré district, the annual rainfall probably does not exceed an average of 35 in. Elsewhere, in the vicinity of the highest mountains, the rainfall may attain an average of 75 in., in parts of Mount Mlanje possibly often reaching to 100 in. in the year. The average may be put at 50 in. per annum, which is also about the average rainfall of the Shiré Highlands, that part of British Central Africa which at present attracts the greatest number of European settlers.

_Geology._--The whole formation is Archean and Primary (with a few modern plutonic outbursts), and chiefly consists of granite, felspar, quartz, gneiss, schists, amphibolite and other Archean rocks, with Primary sandstones and limestones in the basin of Lake Nyasa (a great rift depression), the river Shiré, and the regions within the northern watershed of the Zambezi river. Sandstones of Karroo age occur in the basin of the Luangwa (N.E. Rhodesia). There are evidences of recent volcanic activity on the summit of the small Mlanje plateau (S.E. corner of the protectorate: here there are two extinct craters with a basaltic outflow), and at the north end of Lake Nyasa and the eastern edge of the Tanganyika plateau. Here there are many craters and much basalt, or even lava; also hot springs.

_Metals and Minerals._--Gold has been found in the Shiré Highlands, in the hills along the Nyasa-Zambezi waterparting, and in the mountainous region west of Lake Nyasa; silver (galena, silver-lead) in the hills of the Nyasa-Zambezi waterparting; lead in the same district; graphite in the western basin of Lake Nyasa; copper (pyrites and pure ore) in the west Nyasa region and in the hills of North Western and North Eastern Rhodesia; iron ore almost universally; mica almost universally; coal occurs in the north and west Nyasa districts (especially in the Karroo sandstones of the Rukuru valley), and perhaps along the Zambezi-Nyasa waterparting; limestone in the Shiré basin; malachite in south-west Angoniland and North Western Rhodesia; and perhaps petroleum in places along the Nyasa-Zambezi waterparting. (See also RHODESIA.)

_Flora_.--No part of the country comes within the forest region of West Africa. The whole of it may be said to lie within the savannah or park-like division of the continent. As a general rule, the landscape is of a pleasing and attractive character, well covered with vegetation and fairly well watered. Actual forests of lofty trees, forests of a West African type, are few in number, and are chiefly limited to portions of the Nyika, Angoniland and Shiré Highlands plateaus, and to a few nooks in valleys near the south end of Tanganyika. Patches of forest of tropical luxuriance may still be seen on the slopes of Mounts Mlanje and Chiradzulu. On the upper plateaus of Mount Mlanje there are forests of a remarkable conifer (_Widdringtonia whytei_), a relation of the cypress, which in appearance resembles much more the cedar, and is therefore wrongly styled the "Mlanje cedar." This tree is remarkable as being the most northern form of a group of yew-like conifers confined otherwise to South Africa (Cape Colony). Immense areas in the lower-lying plains are covered by long, coarse grass, sometimes reaching 10 ft. in height. Most of the West African forest trees are represented in British Central Africa. A full list of the known flora has been compiled by Sir W. Thiselton-Dyer and his assistants at Kew, and is given in the first and second editions of Sir H. H. Johnston's work on British Central Africa. Amongst the principal vegetable products of the country interesting for commercial purposes may be mentioned tobacco (partly native varieties and partly introduced); coffee (wild coffee is said to grow in some of the mountainous districts, but the actual coffee cultivated by the European settlers has been introduced from abroad); rubber--derived chiefly from the various species of _Landolphia_, _Ficus_, _Clitandra_, _Carpodinus_ and _Conopharygia_, and from other apocynaceous plants; the _Strophanthus_ pod (furnishing a valuable drug); ground-nuts (_Arachis_ and _Voandzeia_); the cotton plant; all African cultivated cereals (_Sorghum_, _Pennisetum_, maize, rice, wheat--cultivated chiefly by Europeans--and _Eleusine_); and six species of palms--the oil palm on the north-west (near Lake Nyasa, at the south end of Tanganyika and on the Luapula), the _Borassus_ and _Hyphaene_, _Phoenix_ (or wild date), _Raphia_ and the coco-nut palm. The last named was introduced by Arabs and Europeans, and is found on Lake Nyasa and on the lower Shiré. Most of the European vegetables have been introduced, and thrive exceedingly well, especially the potato. The mango has also been introduced from India, and has taken to the Shiré Highlands as to a second home. Oranges, lemons and limes have been planted by Europeans and Arabs in a few districts. European fruit trees do not ordinarily flourish, though apples are grown to some extent at Blantyre. The vine hitherto has proved a failure. Pineapples give the best result [v.04 p.0596] among cultivated fruit, and strawberries do well in the higher districts. In the mountains the native wild brambles give blackberries of large size and excellent flavour. The vegetable product through which this protectorate first attracted trade was coffee, the export of which, however, has passed through very disheartening fluctuations. In 1905-1906, 773,919 lb of coffee (value £16,123) were exported; but during this twelve months the crop of cotton--quite a newly developed product, rose to 776,621 lb, from 285,185 lb in 1904-1905. An equally marked increase in tobacco and ground-nuts (_Arachis_) has taken place. Beeswax is a rising export.

_Fauna._--The fauna is on the whole very rich. It has affinities in a few respects with the West African forest region, but differs slightly from the countries to the north and south by the absence of such animals as prefer drier climates, as for instance the oryx antelopes, gazelles and the ostrich. There is a complete blank in the distribution of this last between the districts to the south of the Zambezi and those of East Africa between Victoria Nyanza and the Indian Ocean. The giraffe is found in the Luanga valley; it is also met with in the extreme north-east of the country. The ordinary African rhinoceros is still occasionally, but very rarely, seen in the Shiré Highlands, The African elephant is fairly common throughout the whole territory. Lions and leopards are very abundant; the zebra is still found in great numbers, and belongs to the Central African variety of Burchell's zebra, which is completely striped down to the hoofs, and is intermediate in many particulars between the true zebra of the mountains and Burchell's zebra of the plains. The principal antelopes found are the sable and the roan (_Hippotragus_), five species of _Cobus_ or waterbuck (the puku, the Senga puku, the lechwe, Crawshay's waterbuck and the common waterbuck); the pallah, tsessébe (_Damaliscus_), hartebeest, brindled gnu (perhaps two species), several duykers (including the large _Cephalophus sylvicultrix_), klipspringer, oribi, steinbok and reedbuck. Among tragelaphs are two or more bushbucks, the inyala, the water tragelaph (_Limnotragus selousi_), the kudu and Livingstone's eland. The only buffalo is the common Cape species. The hyaena is the spotted kind. The hunting dog is present. There are some seven species of monkeys, including two baboons and one colobus. The hippopotamus is found in the lakes and rivers, and all these sheets of water are infested with crocodiles, apparently belonging to but one species, the common Nile crocodile.

_Inhabitants._--The human race is represented by only one indigenous native type--the Negro. No trace is anywhere found of a Hamitic intermixture (unless perhaps at the north end of Lake Nyasa, where the physique of the native Awankonde recalls that of the Nilotic negro). Arabs from Zanzibar have settled in the country, but not, as far as is known, earlier than the beginning of the 19th century. As the present writer takes the general term "Negro" to include equally the Bantu, Hottentot, Bushman and Congo Pygmy, this designation will cover all the natives of British Central Africa. The Bantu races, however, exhibit in some parts signs of Hottentot or Bushman intermixture, and there are legends in some mountain districts, especially Mount Mlanje, of the former existence of unmixed Bushman tribes, while Bushman stone implements are found at the south end of Tanganyika. At the present day the population is, as a rule, of a black or chocolate-coloured Negro type, and belongs, linguistically, entirely and exclusively to the Bantu family. The languages spoken offer several very interesting forms of Bantu speech, notably in the districts between the north end of Lake Nyasa, the south end of Lake Tanganyika, and the river Luapula. In the more or less plateau country included within these geographical limits, the Bantu dialects are of an archaic type, and to the present writer it has seemed as though one of them, Kibemba or Kiwemba, came near to the original form of the Bantu mother-language, though not nearer than the interesting Subiya of southern Barotseland. Through dialects spoken on the west and north of Tanganyika, these languages of North Eastern Rhodesia and northern Nyasaland and of the Kafukwe basin are connected with the Bantu languages of Uganda. They also offer a slight resemblance to Zulu-Kaffir, and it would seem as though the Zulu-Kaffir race must have come straight down from the countries to the north-east of Tanganyika, across the Zambezi, to their present home. Curiously enough, some hundreds of years after this southward migration, intestine wars and conflicts actually determined a north-eastward return migration of Zulus. From Matabeleland, Zulu tribes crossed the Zambezi at various periods (commencing from about 1820), and gradually extended their ravages and dominion over the plateaus to the west, north and north-east of Lake Nyasa. The Zulu language is still spoken by the dominating caste in West Nyasaland (see further ZULULAND: _Ethnology_; RHODESIA: _Ethnology_; and YAOS). As regards foreign settlers in this part of Africa, the Arabs may be mentioned first, though they are now met with only in very small numbers. The Arabs undoubtedly first _heard_ of this rich country--rich not alone in natural products such as ivory, but also in slaves of good quality--from their settlements near the delta of the river Zambezi, and these settlements may date back to an early period, and might be coeval with the suggested pre-Islamite Arab settlements in the gold-bearing regions of South East Africa. But the Arabs do not seem to have made much progress in their penetration of the country in the days before firearms; and when firearms came into use they were for a long time forestalled by the Portuguese, who ousted them from the Zambezi. But about the beginning of the 19th century the increasing power and commercial enterprise of the Arab sultanate of Zanzibar caused the Arabs of Maskat and Zanzibar to march inland from the east coast. They gradually founded strong slave-trading settlements on the east and west coasts of Lake Nyasa, and thence westwards to Tanganyika and the Luapula. They never came in great numbers, however, and, except here and there on the coast of Lake Nyasa, have left no mixed descendants in the population. The total native population of all British Central Africa is about 2,000,000, that of the Nyasaland Protectorate being officially estimated in 1907 at 927,355. Of Europeans the protectorate possesses about 600 to 700 settlers, including some 100 officials. (For the European population of the other territories, see RHODESIA.) The Europeans of British Central Africa are chiefly natives of the United Kingdom or South Africa, but there are a few Germans, Dutchmen, French, Italians and Portuguese. The protectorate has also attracted a number of Indian traders (over 400), besides whom about 150 British Indian soldiers (Sikhs) are employed as the nucleus of an armed force.[2]

_Trade and Communications._--The total value of the trade of the protectorate in the year 1899-1900 was £255,384, showing an increase of 75% on the figures for the previous year, 1898-1899. Imports were valued at £176,035, an increase of 62%, and exports at £79,449, an increase of 109%. In 1905-1906 the imports reached £222,581 and the exports £56,778. The value of imports into the Rhodesian provinces during the same period was about £50,000, excluding railway material, and the exports £18,000. The principal exports are (besides minerals) coffee, cotton, tobacco, rubber and ivory. A number of Englishmen and Scotsmen (perhaps 200) are settled, mainly in the Shiré Highlands, as coffee planters.

From the Chinde mouth of the Zambezi to Port Herald on the lower Shiré communication is maintained by light-draught steamers, though in the dry season (April-November) steamers cannot always ascend as far as Port Herald, and barges have to be used to complete the voyage. A railway runs from Port Herald to Blantyre, the commercial capital of the Shiré Highlands. The "Cape to Cairo" railway, which crossed the Zambezi in 1905 and the Kafukwe in 1906, reached the Broken Hill mine in 1907, and in 1909 was continued to the frontier of Belgian Congo. There are regular services by steamer between the ports on Lakes Nyasa and Tanganyika. The African trans-continental telegraph line (founded by Cecil Rhodes) runs through the protectorate, and a branch line has been established from Lake Nyasa to Fort Jameson, the present headquarters of the Chartered Company in North Eastern Rhodesia.

_Towns._--The principal European settlement or town is Blantyre (_q.v._), at a height of about 3000 ft. above the sea, in the Shiré Highlands. This place was named after Livingstone's birthplace, and was founded in 1876 by the Church of Scotland mission. The government capital of the protectorate, however, is Zomba, at the base of the mountain of that name. Other townships or sites of European settlements are Port Herald (on the lower Shiré), Chiromo (at the junction of the Ruo and the Shiré), Fort Anderson (on Mount Mlanje), Fort Johnston (near the outlet of the river Shiré from the south end of Lake Nyasa), Kotakota and Bandawe (on the west coast of Lake Nyasa), Likoma (on an island off the east coast of Lake Nyasa), Karonga (on the north-west coast of Lake Nyasa), Fife (on the Nyasa-Tanganyika plateau), Fort Jameson (capital of N.E. Rhodesia, near the river Luangwa), Abercorn (on the south end of Lake Tanganyika), Kalungwisi (on the east coast of Lake Mweru) and Fort Rosebery (near the Johnston Falls on the Luapula [upper Congo]).

_Administration._--The present political divisions of the country [v.04 p.0597] are as follows:--The Nyasaland Protectorate, _i.e._ the districts surrounding Lake Nyasa and the Shiré province, are administered directly under the imperial government by a governor, who acts under the orders of the colonial office. The governor is assisted by an executive council and by a nominated legislative council, which consists of at least three members. The districts to the westward, forming the provinces of North Eastern and North Western Rhodesia, are governed by two administrators of the British South Africa Chartered Company, in consultation with the governor of Nyasaland and the colonial office.

_History._--The history of the territory dealt with above is recent and slight. Apart from the vague Portuguese wanderings during the 16th and 17th centuries, the first European explorer of any education who penetrated into this country was the celebrated Portuguese official, Dr F.J.M. de Lacerda e Almeida, who journeyed from Tete on the Zambezi to the vicinity of Lake Mweru. But the real history of the country begins with the advent of David Livingstone, who in 1859 penetrated up the Shiré river and discovered Lake Nyasa. Livingstone's subsequent journeys, to the south end of Tanganyika, to Lake Mweru and to Lake Bangweulu (where he died in 1873), opened up this important part of South Central Africa and centred in it British interests in a very particular manner. Livingstone's death was soon followed by the entry of various missionary societies, who commenced the evangelization of the country; and these missionaries, together with a few Scottish settlers, steadily opposed the attempts of the Portuguese to extend their sway in this direction from the adjoining provinces of Moçambique and of the Zambezi. From out of the missionary societies grew a trading company, the African Lakes Trading Corporation. This body came into conflict with a number of Arabs who had established themselves on the north end of Lake Nyasa. About 1885 a struggle began between Arab and Briton for the possession of the country, which was not terminated until the year 1896. The African Lakes Corporation in its unofficial war enlisted volunteers, amongst whom were Captain (afterwards Sir F.D.) Lugard and Mr (afterwards Sir) Alfred Sharpe. Both these gentlemen were wounded, and the operations they undertook were not crowned with complete success. In 1889 Mr (afterwards Sir) H.H. Johnston was sent out to endeavour to effect a possible arrangement of the dispute between the Arabs and the African Lakes Corporation, and also to ensure the protection of friendly native chiefs from Portuguese aggression beyond a certain point. The outcome of these efforts and the treaties made was the creation of the British protectorate and sphere of influence north of the Zambezi (see AFRICA; § 5). In 1891 Johnston returned to the country as imperial commissioner and consul-general. In the interval between 1889 and 1891 Mr Alfred Sharpe, on behalf of Cecil Rhodes, had brought a large part of the country into treaty with the British South Africa Company, These territories (Northern Rhodesia) were administered for four years by Sir Harry Johnston in connexion with the British Central Africa protectorate. Between 1891 and 1895 a long struggle continued, between the British authorities on the one hand and the Arabs and Mahommedan Yaos on the other, regarding the suppression of the slave trade. By the beginning of 1896 the last Arab stronghold was taken and the Yaos were completely reduced to submission. Then followed, during 1896-1898, wars with the Zulu (Angoni) tribes, who claimed to dominate and harass the native populations to the west of Lake Nyasa. The Angoni having been subdued, and the British South Africa Company having also quelled the turbulent Awemba and Bashukulumbwe, there is a reasonable hope of the country enjoying a settled peace and considerable prosperity. This prospect has been, indeed, already realized to a considerable extent, though the increase of commerce has scarcely been as rapid as was anticipated. In 1897, on the transference of Sir Harry Johnston to Tunis, the commissionership was conferred on Mr Alfred Sharpe, who was created a K.C.M.G. in 1903. In 1904 the administration of the protectorate, originally directed by the foreign office, was transferred to the colonial office. In 1907, on the change in the title of the protectorate, the designation of the chief official was altered from commissioner to governor, and executive and legislative councils were established. The mineral surveys and railway construction commenced under the foreign office were carried on vigorously under the colonial office. The increased revenue, from £51,000 in 1901-1902 to £76,000 in 1905-1906, for the protectorate alone (see also RHODESIA), is an evidence of increasing prosperity. Expenditure in excess of revenue is met by grants in aid from the imperial exchequer, so far as the Nyasaland Protectorate is concerned. The British South Africa Company finances the remainder. The native population is well disposed towards European rule, having, indeed, at all times furnished the principal contingent of the armed force with which the African Lakes Company, British South Africa Company or the British government endeavoured to oppose Arab, Zulu or Awemba aggression. The protectorate government maintains three gunboats on Lake Nyasa, and the British South Africa Company an armed steamer on Lake Tanganyika.

Unfortunately, though so rich and fertile, the land is not as a rule very healthy for Europeans, though there are signs of improvement in this respect. The principal scourges are black-water fever and dysentery, besides ordinary malarial fever, malarial ulcers, pneumonia and bronchitis. The climate is agreeable, and except in the low-lying districts is never unbearably hot; while on the high mountain plateaus frost frequently occurs during the dry season.

See _Narrative of an Expedition to the Zambezi_, &c., by David and Charles Livingstone (1865); _Last Journals of David Livingstone_, edited by the Rev. Horace Waller (1874); L. Monteith Fotheringham, _Adventures in Nyasaland_ (1891); Henry Drummond, _Tropical Africa_ (4th ed., 1891); Rev. D.C. Scott, _An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of the Mang'anja Language, as spoken in British Central Africa_ (1891); Sir H.H. Johnston, _British Central Africa_ (2nd ed., 1898); Miss A. Werner, _The Natives of British Central Africa_ (1906); John Buchanan, _The Shiré Highlands_ (1885); Lionel Décle, _Three Years in Savage Africa_ (1898); H.L. Duff, _Nyasaland under the Foreign Office_ (1903); J.E.S. Moore, _The Tanganyika Problem_ (1904); articles on North Eastern and North Western Rhodesia (chiefly by Frank Melland) in the _Journal of the African Society_ (1902-1906); annual _Reports_ on British Central Africa published by the Colonial Office; various linguistic works by Miss A. Werner, the Rev. Govan Robertson, Dr R. Laws, A.C. Madan, Father Torrend and Monsieur E. Jacottet.

(H. H. J.)

[1] The nomenclature of several of these rivers is perplexing. It should be borne in mind that the Luanga (also known as the Lunga) is a tributary of the Luengwe-Kafukwe, itself often called Kafue, and that the Luangwa (or Loangwa) is an independent affluent of the Zambezi (_q.v._).