Backpacking Through Africa 18

 
90,000 Kenyans – mainly Kikuyu – were killed, maimed, and tortured; another 160,000 were imprisoned in camps under inhumane conditions.

The uprising nevertheless shook the settlers deeply. When the problem was settled at the London conference in 1960, many settlers left for Rhodesia, South Africa, and Australia.

With a Backpack Through Africa 17: Mau Mau

 The colonial authority panicked. They declared a state of emergency, and began confining people to "protected villages" surrounded by barbed wire and ditches, where a curfew applied.

By the defeat of the Mau Mau rebels in 1960, 13,500 Africans – Mau Mau guerrillas, civilians, and soldiers – had died, along with about 100 Europeans, including 32 settlers.

Backpacking Through Africa 16 Mau Mau uprising

 Their demands escalated,but the colonial authority was less willing to concede. Members of the Kikuyu, Maasai, and Luo tribes began gathering at meetings where they solemnly swore death to Europeans and their collaborators.

The Mau Mau uprising began. The rebellion against whites quickly degenerated into widespread slaughter, especially among individual parties, attacks on farms, and killing livestock.

 Janin Klemenčič (to be continued)

Backpacking Through Africa 15 Colonial Authority

 Meanwhile, more and more Kikuyu tribe members were moving to Nairobi or being forcibly relocated from their land, fuelling resentment.

Their leader Harry Thuku was imprisoned by the British.

After World War II, the Kenya African Union (KAU), a political organization opposing colonial rule, strengthened. Its demands became sharper,

Janin Klemenčič (to be continued)

Backpacking Through Africa 14

 The continuation of the story is similar to the colonization history of the USA. White settlers began moving to the fertile highlands north of Nairobi and forced the authorities to push the Maasai into two reserves. 

In 1911, despite the treaty, they seized the northern reserve and relocated the Maasai to the southern one. By 1920, the number of settlers had grown to 9,000, and by 1950 to 80,000.

 Janin Klemenčič (to be continued)

Backpacking Through Africa 14 White Settlers

 At the time, the Maasai were involved in a civil war between two tribal factions, the Ilmaasai and Iloikop.

They were also weakened by hunger and disease. Therefore, the British more easily concluded an agreement with Maasai leader Olonano and built the Mombasa-Uganda railway. They transferred the seat of their colonial authority to Nairobi.

Janin Klemenčič (to be continued)

Backpacking Through Africa 13 Turbulent History

 The history of British colonialism in East Africa is not that long. The Kenyan interior remained untouched until the 1880s due to the fierce Maasai warriors.

However, European explorers had already penetrated all over Africa by then, and the conquest of Kenya was only a matter of time.

Janin Klemenčič (to be continued)