The Iloikop Wars of the mid-19th century were civil wars between Maasai sections, fought over cattle, pasture, and supremacy. The wars were catastrophic, weakening the Maasai just as European colonialism arrived. The victorious sections dominated the narrative, and the defeated were absorbed or marginalized. The wars are remembered as a time of chaos and loss, a rupture that left the Maasai vulnerable. When the British imposed treaties in 1904, the Maasai were still recovering from wars they had fought among themselves.