...aftermath of a succession war, swallowed the small kingdom of Gissaka, to its east. It failed to defeat Burundi, to the south, but under its mwami, or ruler, Kigeri IV (who reorganized its military forces) it extended its control by raiding to the north.

...were subdued by the mwami (“king”) Ruganzu II Ndori in the 17th century. The borders of the kingdom were rounded out in the late 19th century by Kigeri IV Rwabugiri, who is regarded as Rwanda’s greatest king. By 1900 Rwanda was a unified state with a centralized military structure.