Shouting “(Your God) is too late! What you’ve begun, now I will finish!” Napoleon Bonaparte massacres up to 6,000 Egyptians to end an insurrection caused by the introduction of a House Tax. When rioting breaks out in Cairo, French troops herd rebels into the mosque at Azhar University. Bonaparte orders his cannons to destroy the mosque, and his soldiers are ordered to slaughter the survivors.
Spain declares war on Morocco after 15 years of attacks on the Spanish city Ceuta that is a colonised enclave along Morocco’s Mediterranean Seacoast. The Hispano-Moroccan War will last for six months, ending when Morocco agrees to let Spain retain its possession on its territory. Spain’s Ceuta colony will still exist in 2023, and be the site of bloody clashes with Ceuta and Moroccan security forces as Africans from various countries seek to migrate to Europe through Ceuta.
Port Louis, the capital of British Mauritius, now has a railway with the opening today of the 56-km Midland line to the town of Mahébourg. The line makes possible the development of suburbs and towns along its length, allowing people to leave congestion in Port Louis, which is prone to the spread of disease epidemics.
South Africa’ Prime Minister Jan Smuts arrives for a lengthy nine-week visit to the U.S. He will address the U.N. General Assembly (pic).
Pretoria National Botanic Garden officially opens in Pretoria, South Africa, but as a research facility that is visited by appointment only. The garden will open to the public daily in 1984, and will become the South African National Biodiversity Institute in 2004.
At Domboshawa, Southern Rhodesia, 196 traditional chiefs and 426 headmen from across the country gather to deliberate on government’s plan to declare national independence from Britain. The conference will end on 26 October - after the country shortens its name to Rhodesia because Northern Rhodesia at its independence will change its name to Zambia. The chiefs approve independence, even though it means white-minority rule, asserting, “People who live far away do not understand the problems of our country.” (pic: Rhodesia Prime Minister Ian Smith)
Nigerian novelist Ben Okri wins the Booker Prize for his novel The Famished Road. The critically-acclaimed story with elements of surrealism is the first book in a trilogy.
After seizing power in Côte d’Ivoire in a December 1999 coup d’état, General Robert Guéï (pic) proclaims himself victor in today’s elections. When it becomes known that opposition candidate Laurent Gbagbo actually won, street protests force Guéï to flee Abidjan. Gbagbo will declare himself President on 25 October. Violent clashes between political factions will follow, leading to civil war.
Morocco restores diplomatic ties with Qatar after angrily cutting them in July when Qatar supported Germany’s bid to host the 2006 FIFA World Cup, the ultimate football championship. It is Morocco’s fierce ambition to be the first African country to host the world's leading soccer event. (pic: Moroccan King Mohammed VI, left, with the Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani)
Five Kenyan survivors of British concentration camps that were maintained during Kenya’s Mau Mau Rebellion of the 1950s sue the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office for damages at London’s High Court of Justice. Torture and abuse was widespread at the Mau Mau camps.
Gambian author, politician, historian, trade unionist, broadcaster and Independence and Pan-Africanist activist, in Bathurst (Banjul), British Gambia. The optimistic and multi-talented Joof was ignored and lied to and finally arrested by British colonial authorities as he fought for workers’ rights in the 1950s. These ordeals inspired his advocacy for national independence and Pan-Africanism.
Writer, playwright and journalist, in Bashagia, Wollo Province, Ethiopian Empire. Toward the end of his career in which he reported the political upheavals of his time as a journalist in different media, he engaged in peacekeeping efforts between Ethiopia and Eritrea undertaken by religious officials.
President of Mozambique (1986-2005). Under his administration, a country that had been broken and seriously impoverished by two decades of civil war established solid economy and democratic institutions.
Namibian filmmaker, in Luanda, Angola. Her debut film as writer/director/producer, 100 Bucks, was an award winner at film festivals; and was followed by other critically-acclaimed movies. She suffered ill health for years, and her death at 38 was felt as a loss for the Namibian and African filmmaking communities.
