The Mau Mau Rebeillion of 1952

1964 Words8 Pages
Why did Mau Mau rebellion breakout in 1952? The Mau Mau rebellion of 1952, was undoubtedly caused by the growing tension between the kikuyu and the white European settlers in Kenya. However, despite the growing unrest between the two sides, the precise cause of the outbreak still remain unclear. In this essay, I will aim to examine the cultural tensions caused by the missionaries of west, whom were through colonial rule, was able educate the Kenyan nation. In addition to this, I will aim to discover weather imposing western civilization caused frictions among the African nation and weather this only could be seen as the cause of the rebellion. Furthermore, I will also interpret the role of capitalism within the African nation and weather surplus gained by European settlers, through the exploitation of the Kenyan workers built seed of revolt among the nation. Lastly, I will also aim examine the democratic legitimacy of the colonial rule and empire government through it legislation and methods and analyse weather this could be seen as cause of the rebellion. Firstly, Britain first laid claim to Kenya and other East African territory “when Africa was carved up by the imperialist powers in the 1880s. The expansionist system of the world trade was fuelled by competition between dominant capitalist powers to establish spheres of influence. This could consequently grant them “control of land, raw material and resources of cheap labour. With each African nation, different form of resources was offered to imperialist countries of the west and therefore their role changed with each country. For example in “Congo and South Africa, the imperialists extracted enormous mineral wealth. However some have argued that the British interest in Kenya was mainly strategic. “In order to control access to the source of the Nile, the British built a railroad from Mombasa on
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