Dedan Kimathi

Dedan Kimathi was born in what is now Nyeri County, Kenya, and educated at a Church Missionary School, where he was remembered as a clever and capable student. He worked as a teacher before becoming involved in politics through the Kenya African Union in the years following the Second World War.

As British colonial policy increasingly favoured white settlers over Kikuyu land rights, Kimathi joined the militant '40 Group,' composed largely of African veterans of the war, and became a key recruiter for what developed into the Kenya Land and Freedom Army, more widely known as the Mau Mau. His natural charisma and organisational skill saw him rise quickly through the movement's ranks, and after the British colonial government declared a state of emergency in 1952, Kimathi became a central leader convening a war council and formalising the movement's military structure, eventually earning the rank of field marshal.

Kimathi led the armed struggle against British colonial rule from Kenya's forests for several years, evading capture despite an intensive British manhunt. He was finally captured in October 1956 and hanged in February 1957, six years before Kenya achieved independence in 1963. For decades afterward, Kenya's postcolonial governments continued to classify the movement he led as a criminal organisation, and it was not until 2003 that the ban was lifted; today Kimathi is honoured as a national hero, with a university and numerous monuments named in his memory.