Guide Note

The Mau Mau Uprising was an eight-year rebellion by native Kenyans against the British colonial power. Although the uprising did not succeed in overthrowing the existing government, it furthered the cause for Kenyan independence, which came three years after the conflict ended.

Fast Facts

The origin of the word "Mau Mau" is unknown
An estimated 15,000 Kenyans were killed during the rebellion
32 Europeans were killed in the uprising
The British imprisoned 80,000 Kenyans in detention camps
State of Emergency declared in 1952
State of Emergency ended in 1960
Kenya gained independence in 1963

The Conflict

As Europeans took over more and more of their land, and relegated the native Kikuyu people to poorly paid tenant farmers, many of the natives migrated to the cities in search of work. In their absence, the few remaining Kikuyu landowners consolidated their lands and formed alliances with the colonial powers.

A rift formed between the landowning and landless Kikuyu and tensions erupted when Jomo Kenyatta, the leader of the Kikuyu Central Association, whose mandate was to peaceably reclaim former Kikuyu lands from European settlers, was jailed for his implied connection the the Mau Mau in 1951.

This led to civil war between the two groups, which resulted in the slaughter of an estimated 2,000 Kikuyu who refused to declare their loyalty to the rebellion and denounce the colonists. Another 13,000 were killed while fighting the British army.

Categories

History | African History

View Note History

Mau Mau Uprising

The Mahalo Top 7

Wikipedia: Mau Mau Uprising
BBC World Service: The Story of Africa: Case Study: Kenya
Wikipedia: Kikuyu Home Guard
Encyclopedia of the Unusual and Unexplained: The Mau Mau
Time Magazine: "The Meow Meows" (1952)
PsyWar.org: Mau-Mau Uprising PSYOPS
YouTube Video: British Newsreel: Mau Mau Chief Captured (Time: 1:12)

Mau Mau Uprising Recent News and Information

BBC News: Bloody uprising of the Mau Maus (2006)
The Guardian: "British brutality in Mau Mau conflict" (2002)
BBC News: Correspondent: Kenya: White Terror (2002)

Mau Mau Uprising Background and Causes

College of Computer and Information Science: Early Days of the Mau Mau Insurrection
GlobalSecurity.org: Emergency In Kenya: Kikuyu And The Mau Mau Insurrection
Suite101: Mau-Mau: Nationalist Movement or Kikuyu Grievances?
Santa Clara University: Modern African History: Mau Mau of Kenya

Primary Sources and Historical Reports=

Time Magazine: "Black & Red Magic" (1952)
Time Magazine: "Spreading Terror" (1954)
Ogiek.org: Daily Nation archives: Part 1 and Part 2

Mau Mau Uprising Central Figures

Dedan Kimathi

Wikipedia: Dedan Kimathi
Pete's Page: Peter Swan: "The Death of Dedan Kimathi"
Amazon.com: Trial of Dedan Kimathi by Ngugi wa Thiong'o
The EastAfrican: Dedan Kimathi was buried at Lang'ata (2001)

Waruhiu Itote aka General China

Wikipedia: Waruhiu Itote
Dave Blumenkrantz: Photojournalism, Documentary, and Visual Communications Studies...
Time Magazine: General China & Friends

Mau Mau Uprising Images and Media

NPR: Podcast: Author Details Harsh British Rule in Kenya (2005)
British Pathe Limited: Mau Mau Newsreels, Videos, and Photographs
FindArticles.com: Lessons from the Mau Mau of Kenya by Al-Amin Mazrui (1987)
Flickr: Dedan Kimathi Statue
Google Images: Mau Mau Uprising

Mau Mau Uprising Books and Research

Google Book Search: Histories of the Hanged by David Anderson
PowellsBooks: Mau Mau search
Questia: Mau Mau Uprising
Orbat.com: United Kingdom: Kenya Insurgency 1952-1960 Units and Operations

Book Reviews

Times Online: Book Reviews: Britain's Gulag by Caroline Elkins and Histories of The Hanged by David Anderson (2005)
London Review of Books: Book Reviews: Britain's Gulag by Caroline Elkins and Histories of The Hanged by David Anderson
Harvard Magazine: 10 Downing Street's Gulag (2005)

Scholarly Papers

University of Michigan: Mau Mau: Kuririkana Gitene by Robbie Bolton (2004)
Journal of Military and Strategic Studies: Mau Mau and the Decolonization of Kenya by Hilda Nissimi
JendaJournal: Review: Mau Mau and Nationhood: Arms, Authority, and Narration (2005)

Mau Mau Uprising Blogs and Message Boards

What An African Woman Thinks: Conversations with A Freedom Fighter
The New Black Magazine: The British War in Kenya (2007)
The Gossamer Thread: Can I Live Without Africa? (2007)
A Kenyan Urban Narrative: State Of Emergency (2007)
Workers World: Mau Mau against the British Empire (2005)
World Socialist Web Site: How Britain crushed the "Mau Mau rebellion" (1999)
Google Blog Search: Mau Mau Uprising

Mau Mau Uprising Timeline

August, 1952: News reaches the British intelligence of a secret society dubbed "Mau Mau"
October, 1952: Senior Chief Waruhiu is assassinated in Nairobi for his anti-Mau Mau stance
October, 1952: A State of Emergency is declared by Governor General Sir Evelyn Baring
October, 1952: Jomo Kenyatta arrested
March, 1953: 150 Kikuyu Kenyans are killed in the Lari Massacre
April, 1953: Kenyatta sentenced to seven years' hard labor
January, 1954: British forces capture Waruhiu Itote, aka "General China"
April, 1954: British crackdown on Kenya rebels, Operation Anvil, begins
October, 1956: Dedan Kimathi is wounded and captured
February, 1957: Dedan Kimathi Executed at Kamiti Maximum Security Prison
March, 1959: Hola Massacre
April, 1959: Kenyatta is moved into exile
January, 1960: Emergency rule revoked

Mau Mau Uprising in Popular Culture

EntertainmentInsider: Review: Mau Mau (1955)
University of California Berkeley Library: No Easy Walk summary
Note: The majority of the links in this timeline are to IMDb, which has pop-ups.
1954: Africa Adventure (documentary)
1955: Mau-Mau (documentary)
1955: Simba
1956: Safari
1957: Something of Value
1966: Africa Addio
1987: The Kitchen Toto
2004: Empire Warriors (TV miniseries)
2005: The Oath

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Kenya | Kikuyu (Tribe) | Jomo Kenyatta | Dedan Kimathi | Waruhiu Itote | The British Empire

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