Uganda Through History: Who Ruled Its Lands
The land of today's Uganda appears on 39 historical border maps from 500 BC to today. Over that time it was held, in whole or in part, by 7 different states, among them Uganda, Buganda, Rift Valley States, Bunyoro, Tanzania, United Republic of.
UgandaExplore the history of Uganda in the interactive map
Compare 1000 with today · Uganda as a state on the map
Who ruled the land of Uganda, map by map
Share of sample points inside today's borders held by each state on each map. Areas with no organised state on the map are left out.
| Map | Main states on this land |
|---|---|
| 1783 | Rift Valley States 50% |
| 1800 | Rift Valley States 50% |
| 1815 | Buganda 50% · Bunyoro 10% · Nkore 7% |
| 1880 | Bunyoro 37% · Buganda 27% · Rwanda 7% |
| 1900 | Bunyoro 37% · Buganda 27% · Rwanda 7% |
| 1914 | Uganda 100% |
| 1920 | Uganda 97% · Tanzania, United Republic of 3% |
| 1930 | Uganda 97% · Tanzania, United Republic of 3% |
| 1938 | Uganda 97% · Tanzania, United Republic of 3% |
| 1945 | Uganda 97% · Tanzania, United Republic of 3% |
| 1960 | Uganda 97% · Tanzania, United Republic of 3% |
| 1994 | Uganda 97% · Tanzania, United Republic of 3% |
| 2010 | Uganda 97% · Tanzania, United Republic of 3% |
Questions
Which empires and states ruled the territory of Uganda?
On the border maps from 500 BC to today, the largest shares of the territory of modern Uganda belonged to Uganda, Buganda, Rift Valley States, Bunyoro, Tanzania, United Republic of, Rwanda, along with 1 other states.
What was Uganda part of in 1900?
On the border map for 1900, most of the territory of today's Uganda lay within Bunyoro.
Further reading
Last updated 9 November 2026. Sources: border data from historical-basemaps, land and rivers from Natural Earth; texts written for Chronica Maps from standard reference works. How we make the maps.