THE KINGDOM OF ANKOLE IN UGANDA 159
and a large following. When the accession war was finally over, the new king went back to the royal kraal with Bagyendanwa, his mother and sister, and the Enganzi, killed the ekyibumbe, and was finally proclaimed and accepted as the new Mugabe.
Several days later there was an accession ceremony, after which the king went on a long purification journey through the land. With him went a number of special magicians, a small herd of cattle, and a group of expert hunters. Upon his return to the royal enclosure, the most thoroughgoing changes took place among the office-holders immediately surrounding the king's person. A new group of retainers would be selected from among the king's friends. These were usually men who had fought for him in the accession war. In the selection of the most important functionaries, the old Enganzi acted as adviser along with the king's mother and sister. After the principal appointments had been made, the old Enganzi retired and was rewarded for his long service with many cattle. The king then selected a new Enganzi from among his followers and the governmental machinery was again complete. In the change from the old to the new reign, the strongest link was the old Enganzi. In a sense, he was the kingmaker. During the accession rites, he was the one who announced the new king to the Bahima chiefs and who aided in the selection of the next governmental personnel. His retirement was due to a stipulation which said that 'the Enganzi [evening star] must set with the Mugabe [moon]5.
Succession in the Banyankole kingdom was regulated by a particular body of beliefs and practices, the general function of which was to maintain the continuity of kingship as an essential part of political co-operation and to eliminate, as far as possible, competition and discord as permanent elements of political leadership. The dynastic principle, by restricting kingship to the Abahinda clan, at once ruled out general competition. The dynasty found its source in the legendary past, in the person of Ruhinda, the descendant of the Abachwezi. Patrilineal descent further restricted the range of candidates. The accession war, which at first appears as chaos and anarchy, in the long run serves the purpose of eradicating likely rivals. After the accession war, the Mugabe stands alone in the kingly line. The accession war, therefore, is a way of defining the succession, similar in general function to the rule of primogeniture or the rule of the favourite son.