Juba

Private Juba was a member of the Force Publique, the Congolese army serving under Belgian colonial rule and a member of the trans-African expedition to retrieve the Belgian arms at Port-Gentil. He served under the command of Henri Defense (Indiana Jones) and Sergeant Barthélèmy.

It is likely that Private Juba participated in the battle against German forces in German East Africa, in which Defense earned a promotion to captain.

Juba was part of the expedition sent from Colonel Mathieu's camp across to Cape Lopez to pick up a shipment of machine guns. As part of the expedition, he watched his fellow soldiers die from tropical diseases and accidents, and how Barthélèmy secretly cared for a young boy found in the Ubangi village. When Barthélèmy forced a confrontation with the commanding officer, Major Boucher, Juba joined his fellow comrades in standing up for the boy's survival, and disobeying Boucher's orders.

Later, the expedition reached Franceville, where they hired the Collette for traveling down the Ogooué River, and Juba helped fight against the rebel separatists that opened fire on the boat. During the battle, Barthélèmy was shot, but the orphan boy steered the boat to safety. When the expedition reached Port-Gentil, Juba accompanied Defense and Remy Baudouin to the hospital where the Army Doctor inspected the orphan, and they learned that Barthélèmy had died. When the Black Nun offered to take charge of the boy, Juba was one of the soldiers who hugged the child before they left.

On the return trip upriver, Juba and the rest of the expedition fell ill with a tropical disease. One day when Zachariah Sloat asked Defense to help stoke the fire, Defense tried to get Juba to assist him, but Baudouin realized that Juba had died. Had he lived a few days more, he might have been saved by Dr. Schweitzer. It is likely that Juba's body was buried in the river, as had been done with the bodies of his other comrades who died on the Collette.

Behind the scenes
John Chavanga played Private Juba in two episodes of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles: "German East Africa, December 1916" and "Congo, January 1917".

While the role is credited, it is not clear if the role of Juba had any spoken lines.

Appearances

 * The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
 * "German East Africa, December 1916" Oganga, The Giver and Taker of Life
 * "Congo, January 1917" Oganga, The Giver and Taker of Life ❌