   the maji maji rebellion, sometimes called the maji maji war, was a violent resistance to colonial german rule by several indigenous communities in german east africa, situated in the present-day african great lakes region. it was in response to a german policy designed to force tanganyikans to grow cotton for export, lasting from 1905 to 1907.p.495 the organization of the maji maji rebellion john iliffe, the journal of african history, vol. 8, no. 3 (1967), pp. 495-512 after the scramble for africa among the major european powers in the 1880s, germany had reinforced its hold on several formal african colonies. these were german east africa (now tanzania, rwanda, burundi, and part of mozambique), german southwest africa (present-day namibia, cameroon, and togoland (today split between ghana and togo). the germans had a relatively weak hold on german east africa. however, they did maintain a system of forts throughout the interior of the territory and were able to exert some control over it. since their hold on the colony was weak, they resorted to using violently repressive tactics to control the population. germany began levying head taxes in 1898, and relied heavily on forced labor to build roads and accomplish various other tasks. in 1902, peters also ordered villages to grow cotton as a cash crop (for export). each village was charged with producing a quota of cotton. the headmen of the village were left in charge of overseeing the production, which set them against the rest of the population. these german policies were not only unpopular, they also had serious effects on the lives of the natives. the social fabric of society was being changed rapidly. the social roles of men and women were being changed to face the needs of the communities. since men were forced away from their homes to work, women were forced to assume some of the traditional male roles. not only that, but the fact that men were away strained the resources of the village and the peoplesâ ability to deal with their environment and remain self-sufficient. these effects created a lot of animosity against the government at this period. in 1905, a drought threatened the region. this, combined with o
20th-century_rebellions African_resistance_to_colonialism Conflicts_in_1905 Conflicts_in_1906 Conflicts_in_1907 East_Africa German_Empire_in_World_War_I Military_history_of_German_East_Africa Rebellions_by_people Rebellions_in_Africa