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Mau Mau Uprising

Definition

The Mau Mau Uprising was an armed military conflict that took place from 1952-1960 in British Kenya between rebel groups known as 'Mau Mau' and British colonial forces. The rebellion is seen as a major step towards Kenya’s eventual independence in 1963.

Analogy

Imagine you're playing a game where you're trying to reclaim your stolen property from a powerful opponent (like capture-the-flag). That's what Kenyans were doing during the Mau Mau Uprising – they were fighting to regain control over their land and resources taken by colonial powers.

Related terms

Jomo Kenyatta: He was one of Kenya's leading independence activists and later became the country's first Prime Minister and then President. He was initially accused of leading the Mau Mau Uprising but was acquitted.

Colonialism: This is a system where one country (the colony) is controlled by another more powerful country (the colonizer). In this case, Kenya was a colony of Britain.

Decolonization: This refers to the process by which colonies become independent from their colonizers. The Mau Mau Uprising was part of Kenya's decolonization process.