The British prisoners were the basis for East Africa's negotiation strength, and when Herman played this card, it had the greatest impact on those present, especially on colonial powers like the UK and France. Naturally, the UK was on the defensive, while the French were gloating.
In the colonial wars of the 19th century, colonizers often needed only a small force to achieve significant gains.
For instance, before East Africa, the total number of Portuguese troops in Angola and Mozambique was less than ten thousand.
Most striking was the 18th-century conquest of India by the British East India Company, which used less than a thousand local troops along with about two thousand mercenaries to achieve dominance over India. Even by the 19th century, the total number of British troops stationed in India did not exceed ten thousand.
