Rwanda’s impressive rise to the top of the development chain has been a bumpy road of struggles for many years. The country’s development and stability are a true testimony of resilience and a fighting spirit. Rwanda’s history is shaped by events from the colonial days to the present after independence. This small country was an enclave of instability and civil war among peaceful nations, pushing its development journey further back. However, it has come up to overtake most of its neighbors and become a fast-developing country in Africa and the cleanest.
Museums in Rwanda are a form of representation of the country’s history, heritage, and culture. Some museums also represent specific events that unfolded in history to shape the country’s present and future. A casing point is the 1994 Rwandan genocide of the Hutus against the Tutsis and some few Hutus who sympathized with the Tutsis. This is one of the most traumatic events in the history of mankind and the most tragic. The Rwanda genocide of 1994 was over 100 days in which more than 800,000 people were killed mostly Tutsis and event some sources say over a million. This tragic event of the Rwanda genocide took over 100 days before being ended by the Tutsi rebels coming from Uganda. Museums in Rwanda you should visit include the following.
Ethnographic Museum of Rwanda
The Ethnographic Museum of Rwanda was built in 1989 by the King of Belgium as a gift to the Rwandan government. The museum showcases some unique archeological artifacts of the country and the cultural heritage of the people of Rwanda. The museum has seven galleries with each displaying historical items such as traditional hunting tools and animal husbandry tools, arts and crafts such as weaving works like mats and baskets, woodwork, and pottery. The museum displays the social life of a traditional Rwandan before civilization. It also displays the cultural beliefs, values, and norms of the Rwandan people. The museum also showcases the social and cultural importance of the traditional long-horned cattle. A section of the museum displays what the traditional homestead of the King of Rwanda used to look like. This is because the place where the museum was built is also a site where Queen Dowager Rosalie Gicanda was killed. She was the wife of King Mutara III Rudahigwa. Cultural dances entertain the visitors as they enter the museum to showcase their traditional dances and songs as part of the museum and heritage.
Nyanza King’s Palace Museum
Talking about Rwanda’s history and also present cannot be complete without a tale of events from the monarchical days, this means mentioning the King’s palace at Nyanza. The King’s Palace at Nyanza is a traditional site of the home of the then King of Rwanda. Before this site at Nyanza, the King’s palace was mobile often set in other others across the country. However, when the palace was set up at Nyanza, the topography of the area stole the King’s admiration, and this site was made permanent. This palace at Nyanza is a representation of the many kingdom battles that were fought and won here. The royal palace was built using traditional materials crafted in the form of a bee hive and thatched and inside had a doom shape. The palace area hosted as many as 2,000 inhabitants. The back of the palace was the kraal of the Inyambo long-horned cattle of the king. These majestic cows represent royalty with their striking beauty and gentleness. They were dressed with traditional jewelry and sang to traditional lullabies as they tended. Visiting Nyanza King’s Palace Museum is a great way to tap into the traditional life of the monarchy life of Rwanda.
Kwigira Museum
The Kwigira Museum is located in the Nyanza district on Rwesero Hill. It was opened in 1958 after its construction which took a year. The museum showcases artifacts of the traditional kings of Rwanda displaced on portraits, and texts explaining the homegrown initiatives that revived the nation. This museum, however, was initially built to house the King of Rwanda Mutara III Rudahigwa but he unfortunately died before his inauguration. The building was then turned into government property to host government bodies like the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, and the Financial Court.
Rwanda Liberation Museum
The Rwanda Liberation Museum is also known as the National Liberation Museum Park. The museum displays the untold stories of the events that transpired during the liberation struggle. The museum also displays texts and artifacts used during the liberation war like the Arusha agreement, campaigns against the genocide, also the Muhavura radio that was used in these campaigns. The museum is located in the Gicumbi district an area that was once a hotspot for the Rwandan Patriotic Front a military group that began the liberation struggle in October 1990 until July 1994 with the end of the Rwandan genocide. The museum also hosts the bunker of the then head of high command the current president of Rwanda.
Museum for Campaign against Genocide
The museum is located in the former parliamentary building in the heart of Kigali. This museum is a true testimony of the resilience that ended the Rwandan 1994 genocide. In 1993 as the Rwandan Patriotic Front soldiers about 600 of them used the parliamentary building as their protection unit in agreements to form a transitional government in the Arusha Peace Accord. As the genocide intensified, the chairman of the high command ordered the soldiers to rescue the victims and fight the perpetrators hence ending the genocide and the regime. Peace was restored in the country and the museum portrays a sick bay that was used to treat wounded soldiers, a hero’s garden to honor the fallen soldiers of the campaign, and a 12.7 mm machine gun on the roof that provided fire support to the campaign.
Kandt House Museum
The museum named after Richard Kandt, is located in Nyarugenge Hill in Kigali city. Richard Kandt was the first colonial governor of Rwanda and the museum was his home. The museum has three sections that present the different events that shaped Rwanda. The first section displays the years before the colonial era during the rules of the traditional kings. The second section presents the coming of the Belgian colonialists who took over the country after the Belgian Conference of 1884. This section also continues to display the early years of Kandt and his experience in Rwanda. The third and last section of the museum displays the years towards independence and the post-colonial era to the current Rwanda. The museum displays the steps of the development of Kigali to the capital city status.
Rwanda Art Museum
Visiting the Rwanda Art Museum is like taking a ride through history and culture. The museum displays artifacts that date as far as the 1800s. The art displays at the museum represent the traditional heritage of the country. The museum was once called the Presidential Palace Museum as it once housed Juvenal Habyarimana the former president of Rwanda. He died in a plane crash and even the plane wreckages can still be seen to present.
Museum of environment
The Museum of the Environment is a conservation hub of the environment. It teaches the visitors about the non-renewable and renewable sources of energy to protect the environment. Located along the shores of Lake Kibuye, this museum sits on a two-story building with a rooftop conserving and displaying the traditional medicine plants native to Rwanda.
