Human occupation of Rwanda is thought to have begun shortly after the last ice age. By the 16th century, the inhabitants had organized into a number of kingdoms. In the 19th century, Mwami (king) Rwabugiri of the Kingdom of Rwanda conducted a decades-long process of military conquest and administrative consolidation that resulted in the kingdom coming to control most of what is now Rwanda. The colonial powers, Germany and Belgium, allied with the Rwandan court.
A convergence of anti-colonial, and anti-Tutsi sentiment resulted in Belgium granting national independence in 1962. Direct elections resulted in a representative government dominated by the majority Hutu under President Gr