Mbweni: Settlement history and school
Mbweni can be understood through its history of missionary work, settlement, and education. On 8 September 1870, Bishop Tozer, Bishop of Zanzibar from 1863 to 1873, purchased a plot of about 30 acres in Mbweni for the Universities’ Mission to Central Africa (UMCA). It served to expand the mission’s work in Shangani, Zanzibar Town. The purchase took place in Mbweni; the expansion of missionary work concerned Shangani. In early 1874, a settlement was established in Mbweni for people who had previously been enslaved and were now free.
Mbweni St. Mary’s School grew out of an old Arab house that was renovated and extended to establish a girls’ school to educate formerly enslaved people. The school was used for a time as a convent by UMCA sisters. Its history therefore encompasses both its educational purpose and a temporary monastic use.
The Mbweni Ruins and botanical gardens are tourist attractions associated with Mbweni. They offer two distinct points of interest alongside the history of the settlement and school, adding another perspective on the area.
Zanzibar Urban/West: Stone Town as a separate context
Within the wider destination of Zanzibar Urban/West, Stone Town is a well-known tourist area and a Swahili coastal trading town. Its townscape reflects cultural influences from Africa, the Arab region, India, and Europe. Narrow, winding streets, clusters of low-rise buildings, and large mansions on the seafront define its historic townscape. Together with open spaces, these features form an urban settlement that reflects long-standing trade between the African and Asian coasts.
Stone Town’s buildings are made mainly of coral limestone and mangrove wood. The wood was set in thick lime mortar before the surfaces were plastered and whitewashed. The houses also offer a closer look at the construction methods: the two-storey buildings have long, narrow rooms arranged around open courtyards and accessed via narrow corridors. Their exterior façades are distinguished by elaborately carved double Zanzibar doors.
Important historic buildings in Stone Town dating from the 18th and 19th centuries include the Old Fort, the House of Wonders, the Old Dispensary, St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Cathedral, Christ Church Anglican Cathedral, Tippu Tip’s residence, Malindi Bamnara Mosque, Jamat Khan, the Royal Cemetery, as well as Hamamni and other Persian baths. The House of Wonders was built as a grand ceremonial palace for Sultan Barghash; Jamat Khan was built for the Ismaili community. Christ Church Anglican Cathedral commemorates David Livingstone’s work to abolish the slave trade and stands on the site of the last slave market.
Also within the wider destination of Zanzibar Urban/West, the Zanzibar Conservation Centre has a publicly accessible exhibition and handicraft sales area on the ground floor. As a thematic comparison, the focus is on Mbweni’s settlement and school history on the one hand, and Stone Town’s townscape, coastal trade, and historic buildings on the other.
Discover more destinations: Fumba, Bububu, Grave Island, Selem, Zanzibar City
Return to the destination overview: Zanzibar Urban/West.
