Brief History of Fort Patiko

In 1863, as they travelled south to find Lake Albert, Samuel Baker and Florence Baker were warmly welcomed by the Patiko peoples. Baker wrote “We arrived at Patiko, situated upon a splendid plateau of rock upon elevated ground with beautiful granite cliffs, bordering a level tableland of fine grass. The people were wonderfully friendly, and insisted upon a personal introduction to both myself and Mrs. Baker. They performed the salaam of their country, by seizing both my hands and raising my arms three times to their full stretch above my head.”  All seemed peaceful and well ordered.

However, later in the 1860s Arab slave traders arrived and created an outpost at Patiko where they kept their captives before transporting them in slavery to Egypt. It was the scene of unbelievable brutality and the callous murder of those who the traders though were unfit to make the journey northwards, or whom they considered would not make a good price. Their raids on local peoples, their callousness and their theft of cattle resulted in desolation and mistrust.

Then in 1859 Sir Samuel Baker took on the task of eliminating the hated trade in slaves along the Nile. As usual he travelled with his young wife Florence. They faced great difficulties: illness, opposition by corrupt officials, attacks by the well-armed slavers, the almost impassable Sudd, and acute shortages of food. They made slow progress but in 1872 Sir Samuel Baker overcame a much larger force of slavers and set up a Fort at Patiko.  He writes “During the battle, my wife had placed sentries on the high rocks which commanded a view of the entire country; she also had the cattle driven within the fence; and had secured the prisoners. Florence was magnificently cool in a crisis. Sam once said “She is not a screamer.” How true that proved to be!

Later, when peace had been established, Samuel Baker wrote “The children and women flocked to our camp; and marketing upon a large scale was conducted without a squabble. The two good men, Shooli and Gimoro, who were daily visitors, assured me that there was only one feeling throughout the country, of gratitude and good-will.” The slave trade ceased from Fort Patiko northwards to the Nile at Juba and was all but eliminated along the Nile all the way to Khartoum.

When the Bakers returned to England in 1873 the Fort continued to be an outpost preventing the slave trade and keeping the peace. Both Colonel Gordon who took over from Samuel Baker and later in 1878 Emin Pasha used Fort Patiko as a base. Each was strongly opposed to slavery and each did all they could to deny the slave traders the opportunity to capture and transport slaves.

Location

The Fort lies some 32km north of Gulu town in Kal Parish, Patiko sub-county. The road is not tar macadam so do not expect a fast journey. Built on extra-ordinary rock formations the fort is a magnificent feature to visit. The dramatic landscape covers 9.4 hectares and from the heights commands the view for miles around. This made it an ideal place to build fortifications. Several structures remain from the period when Sir Samuel Baker created his fort , among them a granary, another was for storing guns and ammunition, and a third is now an administrative office and visitors’ room.

In addition to the ancient buildings there are some modern structures to welcome the visitor.

Fort Patiko is an historic place which is located in dramatic scenery. There one can sense the terrible events of slavers’ brutality, learn something of the fight against slavery while also appreciating the amazing position of this fort.

The Fort is one of the key places on the Sir Samuel and Lady Florence Baker Trail, which stretches from Juba in South Sudan to Baker’s view on Lake Albert. Visitors can either embark on the Trail, or simply visit this amazing place: in either case you will be rewarded.