IV ISLANDS OF THE VICTORIA NYANZA 43 
Stanley’s appeal were shortly afterwards murdered on 
this island. 
Sesse was believed to be a single island until it 
was captured from the Roman Catholics by Major 
Williams (1892). xAfter subduing Sesse Island this 
enterprising officer circumnavigated it, and found, 
instead of a large triangular island, as represented in 
maps, one large and many small islands, some being 
merely rocky islets. Their true configuration and dis¬ 
tribution was ascertained by Macdonald (1893). 
The natives of the Sesse Islands are known as 
Basesse. Although these islands lie in the north-west 
angle of the Victoria Nyanza and belong to Uganda, 
the people inhabiting them are more allied to the 
Basoga than to the Baganda. 
The Basesse are not only excellent boat builders, 
but they are skilful paddlers and experts in man¬ 
oeuvring their boats on the lakes, either singly or 
in fleets. During the contest between Christians and 
Mahomedans, the Basesse declared for Mwanga against 
the usurper Karema, and by placing their fleet of 
boats at his service gave him the mastery of the 
lake. 
Mwanga had his headquarters at these islands after 
his deposition in 1888. From Bulinguge (an island 
about one mile square in Murchison Bay) he harassed, 
with the help of the Christians, the Mahomedans during 
1889 and could feed his force by means of the Sesse 
fleet. There was a time when the “ Admiral of the 
Fleet ” commanded a fleet of four hundred boats. 
Mwanga and the Roman Catholics retreated to 
Bulinguge after the battle of Mengo (1892). This 
island, which the Roman Catholics regarded as impreg¬ 
nable, was assaulted by the Protestants under Williams, 
but the King escaped by means of boats to Sesse. 
When the Protestant attack became successful the 
fugitives attempted to escape from the southern shores 
by means of their boats. The panic-stricken crowd 
