[31] In the evenings, he took classes in a church mission school. The family has invested in various sectors, including banking with shares in local banks, the oil industry, insurance, hotel and tourism, media, manufacturing, and airline. Jomo Kenyatta[a] CGH (c.1897 22 August 1978) was a Kenyan anti-colonial activist and politician who governed Kenya as its Prime Minister from 1963 to 1964 and then as its first President from 1964 to his death in 1978. [237] The administration then placed a restricting order on Kenyatta, forcing him to reside in the remote area of Lodwar, where he had to report to the district commissioner twice a day. International Consortium of Investigative Journalists - ICIJ "[309] He had flown Edna and Peter over for the ceremony, and in Kenya they were welcomed into Kenyatta's family by his other wives. [462] Britain's heir to the throne, Charles, Prince of Wales, attended the event, a symbol of the value that the British government perceived in its relationship with Kenya. [180] Kenyatta built a friendship with Koinange's father, a Senior Chief, who gave Kenyatta one of his daughters to take as his third wife. Jomo married Grace, Wahu Kenyatta in 1942, at age 48. [333] To this end, it made efforts to assert the dignity of indigenous African cultures which missionaries and colonial authorities had belittled as "primitive". [290] MacDonald sped up plans for Kenyan independence, believing that the longer the wait, the greater the opportunity for radicalisation among African nationalists. - 1950) (her death) (1 child) See also [371] Voices began to condemn the redistribution; in 1969, the MP Jean-Marie Seroney censured the sale of historically Nandi lands in the Rift to non-Nandi, describing the settlement schemes as "Kenyatta's colonization of the rift". Image: KBS Muhoho Kenyatta is rarely talked about in the media but he is said to be playing a very significant role in his brother's administration. [467] After Kenyatta's death, the transition of power proved smooth,[466] surprising many international commentators. [507] As President he collected a variety of expensive cars. [373] This exacerbated urban unemployment and housing shortages, with squatter settlements and slums growing up and urban crime rates rising. "[203] Despite Kenyatta's vocal opposition to the Mau Mau, KAU had moved towards a position of greater militancy. Renison's administration and most white settlers favoured this system as it would prevent a strong central government implementing radical reform. Estate Duty Act. (1 child) Grace Wahu (1919 - ?) [178] Under Kenyatta's leadership, additional funds were raised for the construction of school buildings and the number of boys in attendance rose from 250 to 900. Jomo Kenyatta, Circa 1894 - 1978. He concluded by saying that the lack of these measures must inevitably result in a dangerous explosionthe one thing all sane men wish to avoid.. [228] In April 1954, they had been joined by a captured Mau Mau commander, Waruhiu Itote; Kenyatta befriended him, and gave him English lessons. . She got married to Jomo Kenyatta, a commoner, when she was only 18 years old. President Uhuru Kenyatta. Conversely, his rule was criticised as dictatorial, authoritarian, and neocolonial, of favouring Kikuyu over other ethnic groups, and of facilitating the growth of widespread corruption. The children were not spared. Margaret is daughter to German beauty Magdalenna Gakuo and Njuguna Gakuo and sister to Maina Gakuo . [5], Edna, who died in 1995 at the age of 86, was Kenyatta's second wife. The Anti-Slavery Society advanced him funds to pay off his debts and return to Kenya. [497] The academics Bruce J. Berman and John M. Lonsdale argued that Marxist frameworks for analysing society influenced some of his beliefs, such as his view that British colonialism had to be destroyed rather than simply reformed. Kenyatta was a controversial figure. (Itara is where the groom's family performs the last traditional marriage ceremony before the real wedding.) [161] He continued to give lectures around the country, including to groups of East African soldiers stationed in Britain. [318] Kenya therefore became a de facto one-party state. Besides the Kenyatta family, whose patriarch was Kenya's founding president, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, the Moi family is ranked among centimillionaires. [82] Anger between the two sides had heightened, several churches expelling KCA members from their congregations, and it was widely believed that the January 1930 killing of an American missionary, Hulda Stumpf, had been due to the issue. Jomo Kenyatta with his sons Uhuru and Muhoho (right). The first family welcomed a new member after President Uhuru Kenyatta 's first son, Jomo Kenyatta and wife Fiona Achola welcomed a baby girl on Sunday. "[479], To Ochieng, Kenyatta was "a personification of conservative social forces and tendencies" in Kenya. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). August 21 Jomo Kenyatta, Kenyan independence leader, is freed from prison Jomo Kenyatta, leader of the Kenyan independence movement, is released by British colonial authorities after nearly. I believe in Christianity as a whole. [7] When he was ten, his earlobes were pierced to mark his transition from childhood. [316] To prevent further military unrest, he brought in a review of the salaries of the army, police, and prison staff, leading to pay rises. He was the country's first indigenous president and played a significant role in the transformation of Kenya from a colony of the British Empire into an independent republic. [282] KADU desired a federalist state organised on a system they called Majimbo with six largely autonomous regional authorities, a two-chamber legislature, and a central Federal Council of Ministers who would select a rotating chair to serve as head of government for a one-year term. In 1919, Jomo Kenyatta met and married his first wife Grace Wahu, according to Kikuyu tradition. [417] Under growing pressure, in 1966 Odinga stepped down as state vice president, claiming that Kenya had failed to achieve economic independence and needed to adopt socialist policies. [516], Kenyatta has also been described as a talented orator, author, and editor. Kenyatta and five Kenyan anti-colonial activists would go on to become the Kapenguria Six. Comprueba la oferta de todas las compaas areas - Reserva vuelos baratos Nuremberg Jomo Kenyatta en eDestinos.com.co! [446] The December 1969 general electionin which all candidates were from the ruling KANUresulted in Kenyatta's government remaining in power, but many members of his government lost their parliamentary seats to rivals from within the party. [15] While there, Kenyatta stayed at the small boarding school, where he learnt stories from the Bible,[16] and was taught to read and write in English. In this war large numbers of my people have been fighting to smash fascist power in Africa and have borne some of the hardest fights against the Italians. He studied the Bible, English, mathematics, and carpentry and paid his fees by working as a houseboy and cook for a European settler. "[552] As the historian Keith Kyle put it, for many whites Kenyatta was "Satan Incarnate". [327] He preserved some elements of the old colonial order, particularly in relation to law and order. [412] In 1966, it launched a commission to examine reforms to local government operations,[412] and in 1969 passed the Transfer of Functions Act, which terminated grants to local authorities and transferred major services from provincial to central control. Updates? [162] He became frustrated by the distance between him and Kenya, telling Edna that he felt "like a general separated by 5000 miles from his troops". They upset the life of the people. His siblings are: Christine Wambui who was born 1952, Uhuru (1961) and Nyokabi Muthama (1963). [187] He was nevertheless aware that to achieve independence, KAU needed the support of other indigenous tribes and ethnic groups. [195] He called on his supporters to work hard, and to abandon laziness, theft, and crime. [322] Over the course of 1965 and 1966, several constitutional amendments enhanced the president's power. [115] The book was published under Armstrong's name, although Kenyatta claimed he should have been listed as co-author. [380], The government oversaw a massive expansion in education facilities. He was a well educated intellectual who authored several books, and is . [66] In the city, Kenyatta met with W. McGregor Ross at the Royal Empire Society, Ross briefing him on how to deal with the Colonial Office. [287], The British government considered Renison too ill at ease with indigenous Africans to oversee the transition to independence and thus replaced him with Malcolm MacDonald as Governor of Kenya in January 1963. In 1914, he was baptized a Christian and given the name John Peter which he changed to Johnstone. On 20 November 1922 Kamau's first son, Peter Muigai, was born (he died in 1979); a daughter, Margaret Kenyatta, was born in 1928 (she died in 2017). [531] The Israeli diplomat Asher Naim visited him in this period, noting that although Kenyatta was "not a religious man, he was appreciative of the Bible". [224] Pritt finally took the case to the Privy Council in London, but they refused his petition without providing an explanation. [506] One of Kenyatta's fellow LSE students, Elspeth Huxley, referred to him as "a showman to his finger tips; jovial, a good companion, shrewd, fluent, quick, devious, subtle, [and] flesh-pot loving". Prior to Kenyan independence, many of its white settlers regarded him as an agitator and malcontent, although across Africa he gained widespread respect as an anti-colonialist. The Kenyatta family has come a long way if you consider that President Uhuru Kenyatta's father once worked as a 'Kanjo', reading water meters for the City Council of Nairobi for Sh250 a month. At some point, he took to calling himself "Kinyata" or "Kenyatta" after this garment. [69] Grigg was in London at the same time and, despite his opposition to Kenyatta's visit, agreed to meet with him at the Rhodes Trust headquarters in April. [389] This put a severe strain on social services; Kenyatta's government promoted family planning projects to stem the birth-rate, but these had little success. [140] Utilising a functionalist framework,[141] he promoted the idea that traditional Kikuyu society had a cohesion and integrity that was better than anything offered by European colonialism. [26], Kenyatta moved to Thika, where he worked for an engineering firm run by the Briton John Cook. [24] After his baptism, Kenyatta moved out of the mission dormitory and lived with friends. His children included President Uhuru Kenyatta, by his fourth and youngest wife, Ngina. Discover lesser-known facts about celebrities that matter to you and find out how you. [473], "Kenyatta possessed the common touch and great leadership qualities. [335] The government encouraged the use of Swahili as a national language, although English remained the main medium for parliamentary debates and the language of instruction in schools and universities. [445] With the organised opposition eliminated, from 1969, Kenya was once again a de facto one-party state. [505] He adopted his surname, "Kenyatta", after the name of a beaded belt he often wore in early life. An agreement was reached that an election would be called for a new 65-seat Legislative Council, with 33 seats reserved for black Africans, 20 for other ethnic groups, and 12 as 'national members' elected by a pan-racial electorate. [123], Kenyatta returned to his former dwellings at 95 Cambridge Street,[124] but did not pay his landlady for over a year, owing over 100 in rent. [568] [77] B. Assensoh later suggested that the authorities "knew very well" that Kenyatta was not involved in the Mau Mau, but that they were nevertheless committed to silencing his calls for independence. photo: [President Uhuru Kenyatta] [22] Asked to take a Christian name for his upcoming baptism, he first chose both John and Peter after Jesus' apostles. [416] Between 1964 and 1966, Kenyatta and other KANU conservatives had been deliberately trying to push Odinga to resign from the party. [533] In Facing Mount Kenya, he challenged the missionaries' dismissive attitude toward ancestor veneration, which he instead preferred to call "ancestor communion". [353] To this end it emphasised social welfare schemes over traditional industrial institutions,[353] and in 1965 transformed the Kenya Federation of Labour into the Central Organization of Trade (COT), a body which came under strong government influence. There he secured a job as a clerk in the Public Works Department, and he also adopted the name Kenyatta, the Kikuyu term for a fancy belt that he wore. [207] Kenya's authorities believed that detaining Kenyatta would help quell civil unrest. In the end, however, the government temporarily abandoned its plan for union. During the 1930s Kenyatta briefly joined the Communist Party, met other black nationalists and writers, and organized protests against the Italian invasion of Ethiopia. [500], Assensoh suggested that Kenyatta initially had socialist inclinations but "became a victim of capitalist circumstances";[501] conversely, Savage stated that "Kenyatta's direction was hardly towards the creation of a radical new socialist society",[502] and Ochieng called him "an African capitalist". Kenyatta enacted capitalist economic policies, and for the first 20 years of its independence Kenya had one of the fastest-growing economies on the continent. Jomo, who had been incessantly nudged by his blood relations in the larger Kenyatta family to finally settle down, took paternity leave from State House following the birth of the twins. During his presidency, he was given the honorary title of Mzee and lauded as the Father of the Nation, securing support from both the black majority and the white minority with his message of reconciliation. [223] The government took the case to the East African Court of Appeal, which reversed the Supreme Court's decision in August. [10] Ngengi was harsh and resentful toward the three boys, and Wambui decided to take her youngest son to live with her parental family further north. In this position, he was tasked with fetching the company wages from a bank in Nairobi, 25 miles (40km) away. Gradually, the number of enrolled pupils fell. [138] Featuring an introduction written by Malinowski,[139] the book reflected Kenyatta's desire to use anthropology as a weapon against colonialism. [50] In either 1925 or early 1926, Beauttah moved to Uganda, but remained in contact with Kenyatta. [335] The Kenya Cultural Centre supported indigenous art and music, and hundreds of traditional music and dance groups were formed; Kenyatta personally insisted that such performances were held at all national celebrations. [83] As Secretary of the KCA, Kenyatta met with church representatives. [306], A celebration to mark independence was held in a specially constructed stadium on 12 December 1963. [328] The police and military structures were left largely intact. Keywords Decolonisation land Majimboism centralisation settlement schemes Type Chapter Information [48] Kenyatta had not taken part in these events,[49] perhaps so as not to disrupt his lucrative employment prospects. About this time he married and began to raise a family. [509] Referring to Kenyatta's appearance in 1920s Kenya, Murray-Brown stated the leader presented himself to Europeans as "an agreeable if somewhat seedy 'Europeanized' native" and to indigenous Africans as "a sophisticated man-about-town about whose political earnestness they had certain reservations". [204], "We Africans are in the majority [in Kenya], and we should have self-government. He is also the. [216] The prosecution failed to produce any strong evidence that Kenyatta or the other accused had any involvement in managing the Mau Mau. But soon a new challenge appeared. Explore Kenya on AnswersAfrica.com, find out all about your favorite celebrities and indepth biographies of notable people including trending stories, quick facts, and updates. [120] [153] Kenyatta remained there for the duration of the war, renting a flat and a small plot of land to grow vegetables and raise chickens. [145] The book was published under the name "Jomo Kenyatta", the first time that he had done so; the term Jomo was close to a Kikuyu word describing the removal of a sword from its scabbard. [221] It appropriated his land at Gatundu and demolished his house. In 1938, he published an anthropological study of Kikuyu life before working as a farm labourer in Sussex during the Second World War. [58], Simon Gikandi argued that Kenyatta, like some of his contemporaries in the Pan-African movement, was an "Afro-Victorian", someone whose identity had been shaped "by the culture of colonialism and colonial institutions", especially those of the Victorian era. [262] He reiterated that he had never supported violence or the illegal oathing system used by the Mau Mau,[263] and denied having ever been a Marxist, stating: "I shall always remain an African Nationalist to the end". He adopted the name of Jomo Kenyatta taking his first name from the Kikuyu word for "burning spear" and his last name from the masai word for the bead belt that he often wore.[2]. [383] Between 1964 and 1966, the number of primary schools grew by 11.6%, and the number of secondary schools by 80%. [130] Appearing in the film also allowed him to meet and befriend its star, the African-American Paul Robeson. [175] Kenyatta met with the new Governor of Kenya, Philip Euen Mitchell, and in March 1947 accepted a post on an African Land Settlement Board, holding the post for two years. [37] The church insisted that a traditional Kikuyu wedding would be inadequate, and that he must undergo a Christian marriage;[38] this took place on 8November 1922. [277] He was also aware that the confidence of the white minority would be crucial to securing Western investment in Kenya's economy. [215] The government followed the verdict with a wider crackdown, banning KAU in June 1953,[221] and closing down most of the independent schools in the country, including Kenyatta's. [369] Kenyatta's government encouraged the establishment of private land-buying companies that were often headed by prominent politicians. [375] Kenyatta's government was eager to control the country's trade unions, fearing their ability to disrupt the economy. He is an alumna of Hilton College and Micheal House in KwaZulu Natal Midlands, South Africa. [344] Relations with the Soviet Union were also strained; Kenyatta shut down the Lumumba Institutean educational organisation named after the Congolese independence leader Patrice Lumumbaon the basis that it was a front for Soviet influence in Kenya. [220] The historian Wunyabari O. Maloba later characterised it as "a rigged political trial with a predetermined outcome". [395] In 1964, Kenya and the UK signed a Memorandum of Understanding, one of only two military alliances Kenyatta's government made;[395] the British Special Air Service trained Kenyatta's own bodyguards. [114] The pro-independence sentiments that he was able to express in Britain would not have been permitted in Kenya itself. HOME; SEARCH; MY TREE Start Family Tree; Jomo Kenyatta Hill - Flint, Michigan - (810) 336-8411 . [89] In Britain, he spent the summer attending an Independent Labour Party summer school and Fabian Society gatherings. One of those who joined was Kongo, who disappeared during the conflict; his family never learned of his fate. [234] In 1958, Rawson Macharia, the key witness in the state's prosecution of Kenyatta, signed an affidavit swearing that his evidence against Kenyatta had been false; this was widely publicised. [183] In January 1952, KAU members formed a secret Central Committee devoted to direct action, formulated along a cell structure. 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