This book's central focus is General China, the most important but controversial leader of the notorious Mau Mau rebellion that exploded in Kenya colony during the 1950s. We read the story through the lens of China, his memoirs - now published for the first time outside of Kenya -and archival sources, to understand important themes in African history: how Africans fought for the end of colonial rule, and the complex histories of nationalist movements; how Britain tried to handle such resistance; the wider moment of decolonisation on the world stage; and how past conflicts still have contemporary relevance.

Africans and Britons in the Age of Empires, 1660-1980 tells the stories of the intertwined lives of African and British peoples over more than three centuries. In seven chapters and an epilogue, Myles Osborne and Susan Kingsley Kent explore the characters that comprised the British presence in Africa: the slave traders and slaves, missionaries and explorers, imperialists and miners, farmers, settlers, lawyers, chiefs, prophets, intellectuals, politicians, and soldiers of all colors. The authors show that the oft-told narrative of a monolithic imperial power ruling inexorably over passive African victims no longer stands scrutiny; rather, at every turn, Africans and Britons interacted with one another in a complex set of relationships that involved as much cooperation and negotiation as resistance and force, whether during the era of the slave trade, the world wars, or the period of decolonization. The British presence provoked a wide range of responses, reactions, and transformations in various aspects of African life; but at the same time, the experience of empire in Africa - and its ultimate collapse - also compelled the British to view themselves and their empire in new ways. Written by an Africanist and a historian of imperial Britain and illustrated with maps and photographs, Africans and Britons in the Age of Empires, 1660-1980 provides a uniquely rich perspective for understanding both African and British history.

This book is about the creation and development of ethnic identity among the Kamba. Comprising approximately one-eighth of Kenya s population, the British considered the Kamba East Africa s premier "martial race" by the mid-twentieth century: a people with an apparent aptitude for soldiering. The reputation, indeed, was one that Kamba leaders used to leverage financial rewards from the colonial state. However, beneath this simplistic exterior was a maelstrom of argument and debate. Men and women, young and old, Christians and non-Christians, and the elite and poor fought over the virtues they considered worthy of honor in their communities, and which of their visions should constitute "Kamba" identity. Based on extensive archival research and more than 150 interviews, Ethnicity and Empire is one of the first books to analyze the complex process of building and shaping "tribe" over more than two centuries. It reveals new ways to think about themes crucial to the history of colonialism: soldiering, "loyalty," martial race, and indeed the nature of empire itself."

Africans and Britons in the Age of Empires, 1660-1980 tells the stories of the intertwined lives of African and British peoples over more than three centuries. In seven chapters and an epilogue, Myles Osborne and Susan Kingsley Kent explore the characters that comprised the British presence in Africa: the slave traders and slaves, missionaries and explorers, imperialists and miners, farmers, settlers, lawyers, chiefs, prophets, intellectuals, politicians, and soldiers of all colors. The authors show that the oft-told narrative of a monolithic imperial power ruling inexorably over passive African victims no longer stands scrutiny; rather, at every turn, Africans and Britons interacted with one another in a complex set of relationships that involved as much cooperation and negotiation as resistance and force, whether during the era of the slave trade, the world wars, or the period of decolonization. The British presence provoked a wide range of responses, reactions, and transformations in various aspects of African life; but at the same time, the experience of empire in Africa - and its ultimate collapse - also compelled the British to view themselves and their empire in new ways. Written by an Africanist and a historian of imperial Britain and illustrated with maps and photographs, Africans and Britons in the Age of Empires, 1660-1980 provides a uniquely rich perspective for understanding both African and British history.

This book is about the creation and development of ethnic identity among the Kamba. Comprising approximately one-eighth of Kenya s population, the British considered the Kamba East Africa s premier "martial race" by the mid-twentieth century: a people with an apparent aptitude for soldiering. The reputation, indeed, was one that Kamba leaders used to leverage financial rewards from the colonial state. However, beneath this simplistic exterior was a maelstrom of argument and debate. Men and women, young and old, Christians and non-Christians, and the elite and poor fought over the virtues they considered worthy of honor in their communities, and which of their visions should constitute "Kamba" identity. Based on extensive archival research and more than 150 interviews, Ethnicity and Empire is one of the first books to analyze the complex process of building and shaping "tribe" over more than two centuries. It reveals new ways to think about themes crucial to the history of colonialism: soldiering, "loyalty," martial race, and indeed the nature of empire itself."

This book's central focus is General China, the most important but controversial leader of the notorious Mau Mau rebellion that exploded in Kenya colony during the 1950s. We read the story through the lens of China, his memoirs - now published for the first time outside of Kenya -and archival sources, to understand important themes in African history: how Africans fought for the end of colonial rule, and the complex histories of nationalist movements; how Britain tried to handle such resistance; the wider moment of decolonisation on the world stage; and how past conflicts still have contemporary relevance.