British Somaliland provides a history of the administration of the British Somaliland Protectorate from the time when Somaliland first became governable, following the defeat of Abdullah Hassan, to independence. Describing the interplay between general imperial policies, and greater realities and developments in Somaliland, the focus of the book remains on the mechanism by which the Protectorate was operated. The regime that developed was, in the end, a highly autocratic despotism, generally benign but occasionally predatory. Independence, when it arrived, was, in retrospect, a tragedy. Somaliland was absorbed into Somalia and a governmental style which suited the conditions of the Protectorate was dissolved into something very different. Since the collapse of Somalia, re-emergent Somaliland appears to be attempting to re-connect to a past remembered as something of a golden age. Highly topical, as Somaliland is re-emerging, this book is an invaluable resource for students and scholars of African History, Imperial History and British History.

During the early 1900s, Africa gradually became so populated that there were only a few places left where an adventurer may hope to flourish. But there was still the Eastern Abyssinian border, a territory challenging to infiltrate, inhabited by wild tribes. Of the many tribes inhabiting this wild land, the author writes about the Somali tribe of British Somaliland. They form one of the most prominent ethnic groups on the African continent and cover one of the vastest landmasses by a single ethnic group in Africa. The Somalis have deeply religious tendencies and are the strongest of all tribes on the border. They are considered true wanderers and the most hard-working peple ever. The author and traveler Henry A. Rayne described the tribe with great detail and accuracy. He wrote about their early history, religion, trade, location, economy, and many more.