Willem Frans Van Kerckhoven

**Willem Frans Van Kerckhoven**, ko **Guillaume François van Kerckhoven** (28 ga watan Janairun shekara ta 1853 - 10 ga watan Agustan shekara ta 1892) sojan Belgium ne, mai bincike, mai kula da mulkin mallaka wanda ke aiki a cikin hidimar Ƙungiyar Ƙasashen Duniya ta Kongo da kuma Ƙasar Congo ta gaba. An san shi da tafiyarsa mai tsawo ta hanyar Kogin Uele da ci gaba zuwa Kogin Nilu, wanda ke da alhakin mutuwar mutane sama da 1,800 kuma ya kafa kasancewar Belgium a yankin. Van Kerckhoven ya mutu a hatsari kafin ya kai Kogin Nilu.

## Shekaru na farko (1853-1883)
An haifi Willem Frans Van Kerckhoven a Mechelen, Belgium, a ranar 28 ga watan Janairun shekara ta 1853. Iyayensa sune Frans Van Kerckhoven da Jeanne-Catherine Miller . A ranar 22 ga Fabrairu 1869 ya shiga cikin rundunar soja ta 6. An nada shi mataimakin na biyu a cikin rundunar soja ta 3 a ranar 17 ga Afrilu 1875.A ranar 29 ga watan Agustan shekara ta 1878 an shigar da shi a Kwalejin Yakin. A ranar 21 ga watan Fabrairun shekara ta 1883, a matsayin mataimakin ma'aikatan ma'aikata, an tura shi zuwa Cibiyar Nazarin Soja don aiki a Kongo.

## Lokacin farko na Kongo: Bas Congo da Bangalas (1883-1886)
Van Kerckhoven ya bar Liverpool a ranar 7 ga Maris 1883 a kan jirgin ruwa na *Biafra*, wanda ke kan hanyar zuwa Kongo.A Vivi a ranar 24 ga Afrilu 1883 an ba shi danƙa wa jigilar wasu kayan aiki don bindigogi zuwa saman Kogin Kongo.Henri Avaert ya kasance a cikin kwamandan post a Isangila, wanda zai zama tushe ga balaguron Niari-Kwilu karkashin jagorancin Edmond Hanssens.Rashin lafiyar Avaert ba shi da kyau, kuma a ranar 16 ga watan Agusta 1883 Van Kerckhoven ya maye gurbinsa.Saboda makamashi da iyawarsa an ba Van Kerckhoven ayyuka daban-daban ciki har da sayen ƙasa a Bas-Congo, daukar ma'aikata a Laberiya da kuma binciken watanni 3 na yankin a hannun dama na Kongo tsakanin Manyanga da Brazzaville.Guillaume Casman ya isa Kongo a watan Janairun 1884, ya yi tafiya zuwa gefen dama na Kongo zuwa shaguna na Mukumbi wanda ya isa a ranar 19 ga Fabrairu 1884.A ranar 3 ga watan Agustan shekara ta 1884 Lieutenant Van Kerckhoven ya ziyarce shi a can wanda aka cire shi daga umurninsa a Isangila kuma yana kammala yarjejeniyoyi tare da kabilun da ke kusa da Mukumbi.Van Kerckhoven ya wuce ta Léopoldville a watan Afrilu na shekara ta 1885, kuma an aika shi don ya gaji Camille Coquilhat a matsayin kwamandan Tashar Bangalas, wanda ya isa ranar 7 ga watan Agusta 1885.Ofishin yana da sojoji kaɗan kuma matsayinsa a bakin kogi ba shi da tabbas.Mutanen yankin ne suka kai masa hari, wanda ya yi nasarar fatattakar su, kuma ya karfafa palisades.Ya sami nasarar samun goyon bayan shugabannin Iboko da Mabali.Ya fara aikin gona, kuma mutanen Bangala a hankali suka fara taimakawa da wannan.

Van Kerckhoven ya sami isasshen amincewa daga Bangalas cewa a shekara mai zuwa ya sami damar aika da dakarun sojojin Bangala zuwa Léopoldville.Goma daga cikinsu sun sauka zuwa Boma don zama 'yan Afirka na farko a cikin Force Publique, kuma daga baya wasu 75 sun sauka.Camille Van den Plas ne ke da alhakin jagorantar rundunar farko ta sojoji 84 na Bangala, tare da mata 11 zuwa Boma.Van Kerckhoven ya kuma aika da dakarun zuwa Falls a karkashin mataimakinsa Walter Deane don kare mukamin a can, wanda ke cikin haɗarin Faduwa ga Larabawa na Tippu Tip.Ba su yi nasara ba, kuma an tilasta Deane da Dubois su janye a ranar 28 ga watan Agusta 1886.Van Kerckhoven ya bar Bangalas a lokacin.A ranar 8 ga Yuni 1886 ya tashi a Boma don komawa Turai a ƙarshen lokacin aikinsa.

## Gundumar Bangalas (1886-1890)
Van Kerckhoven ya nemi wa'adi na biyu, kuma a watan Disamba na shekara ta 1886 ya wuce ta Lisbon a kan *Cape Verde*.An nada shi kwamishinan gundumar Léopoldville .Wannan tushe an tsara shi sosai kuma yana buƙatar kulawa kaɗan.An aika shi don tsarawa da faɗaɗa yankin da ke kusa da tashar Bangalas wanda jihar ta karbe shi kwanan nan.A watan Disamba na shekara ta 1888 an nada shi kwamishinan gundumar aji na 1.Tare da taimakon Ernest Baert da Francis Dhanis ya fara babban fadadawa a yankin shinkafa, kofi da koko, ya gina gine-ginen tubali na farko kuma ya kirkiro sabbin mukamai na gwamnati.

Jules Alexandre Milz ya isa Boma a ranar 25 ga Yuli 1888 kuma an sanya shi a Gundumar Bangalas, inda Van Kerckhoven ke shirin tafiyar Léon Roget zuwa arewa.Aikin shi ne kafa sansanoni a kan Kogin Aruwimi don karewa daga masu bautar Larabawa.Ko da yaushe a kan tafiya a kan karamin jirgin ruwa Association Internationale Africaine, Van Kerckhoven shine Turai na farko da ya hau Kogin Itimbiri.Ya kafa mukamai har zuwa bakin Aruwimi, wasu karkashin jagorancin mataimakansa wasu kuma tare da kananan garuruwan Afirka.Van Kerckhoven ya sami damar sanya hannu kan yarjejeniyoyi tare da mutanen yankin a duk faɗin yankin, da kuma kawo karshen tasirin Larabawa.

Van Kerckhoven ya zo don taimakawa bayan masu tsaron Emin Pasha Relief Expedition a karkashin Manjo Edmund Musgrave Barttelot, a Yambuya a kan Aruwimi, kuma ya ba shi kayan aiki don ya ci gaba da tafiyarsa.Van Kerckhoven ya sadu da Tippu Tip a cikin 1888, bayan haka aka ba da masu ɗaukar kaya 400 ga Barttelot.A cikin rahotonsa ga gwamnan janar Van Kerckhoven ya ba da shawarar yin jinkiri tare da Larabawa, amma yana yin duk wani ƙoƙari don hana su cinye yankin daga Bangalas, gami da sansanin da aka gina a bakin Aruwimi.A shekara ta 1889 ya kula da gina wannan sansanin a Basoko.Daga baya ya bi Gwamna Janar Janssens zuwa Falls, inda ya yi aiki a matsayin matsakanci a tattaunawar.Bayan wannan tafiya ya dawo ta hanyar Léopoldville da Boma zuwa Belgium, inda ya isa ranar 2 ga Janairun 1890. 

## Tafiyar Nilu (1890-1892)
A lokacin tafiyar Van Kerckhoven ta Congo-Nile, masu bautar Larabawa sun mamaye Falls kuma suna ci gaba da arewa maso yamma daga can zuwa Djabir a kan Kogin Uele.Sarki Léopold II ya umarci Kyaftin Roget da ya kafa wani kariya a Basoko, a bakin Aruwimi, kuma daga can don fadada layin kariya a arewa.Roget da Milz sun kafa tashar Ibembo a kan Itimbiri, sannan suka isa Uele a Djabir a kusan lokaci guda da Alphonse van Gèle ya tashi zuwa Kogin Ubangi zuwa Yakoma, kilomita 180 (110  daga Djabir.Ba su iya saduwa ba, duk da haka, kuma Roget ya koma Turai.Léopold II yanzu ya yanke shawarar aika da balaguro mai karfi daga sabbin tushe zuwa Kogin Nilu, yana toshe hanyar arewa zuwa Larabawa kuma yana buɗe yankin da har yanzu Turawa ba su bincika ba tun ziyarar Wilhelm Junker a 1871.Van Kerchhoven, yanzu kyaftin-kwamanda, an nada shi mai binciken jihar kuma an ba shi umurni na balaguron.Sojojin kusan 500 masu dauke da makamai masu dauke da bindigogi sun hada da jami'an Turai 14 da wadanda ba su da kwamishinan jami'ai, likitoci biyu, ma'aikata biyu da masu fassara uku 

### Tafiya zuwa Djabir

Van Kerckhoven ya isa Boma a ranar 2 ga Disamba 1890 kuma ya jagoranci babban rundunar sojoji zuwa wurin da aka mayar da hankali a Kogin Bumba, dan kadan daga Itimbiri.Van Kerckhoven ya sadu da Milz a Stanley Pool a watan Maris na shekara ta 1891.Lokacin Milz ya ƙare, amma ya amince ya bi Van Kerckhoven zuwa Uele a matsayin na biyu a cikin umurnin tafiyarsa zuwa Kogin Nilu.Jirgin ya bar Léopoldville a ranar 4 ga Fabrairu 1891. An tura dakarun da ke karkashin Kyaftin Pierre Ponthier ta ƙasa zuwa Djabir.A kan hanyar Larabawa ne suka kai masa hari da ke da goyon bayan mutanen yankin, wadanda suka rage ci gabansa sosai.Van Kerckhoven ya yi ɗan gajeren ziyara zuwa Falls don ƙoƙarin rage tsoron Larabawa Rachid, sannan ya ɗauki yawancin mutanensa zuwa Djabir.A Ibembo ya aika Milz zuwa Kogin Mbomou don yin duk wani ƙoƙari don samun goyon bayan Sultan Semio, wanda ke hulɗa da ƙungiyoyin Larabawa.A farkon watan Yuli yawancin tafiyar Van Kerckhoven sun taru a Djabir.

### Djabir zuwa Bomokandi
A ranar 8 ga watan Yulin, har yanzu a karkashin Ponthier, sun fara tafiya zuwa gabas ta hanyar yankin da ba a san shi ba tare da Uele.Ya kafa tashoshin rediyo a wurare biyu a bakin kogin tare da ɗan hamayya daga mutanen yankin ko masu bautar Larabawa.Ya isa Bima sannan kuma bakin Kogin Bomokandi, inda ya kafa kansa sosai.Van Kerckhoven ya yi tafiya mai wahala.Da farko, ya yi yaƙi da masu bautar da aka ci nasara bayan Adhémar Daenen ya ba da ƙarfafawa.Sa'an nan kuma Ababuas suka kai masa hari a gefen kogi, kuma Daenen ya sake kira don taimako, wanda ya sadu da shi tare da mutane 40 a Bima.

## Manazarta