Early Years
Jomo Kenyatta was born in 1889. His father was the chief of their small farm village, Kiambu in British East Africa (now Kenya). His father died when he was very young so his uncle became chief and adopted Jomo. At a young age, Jomo showed great interest in his native culture, Kikuyu. He often assisted his grandfather, the town's medicine man. Jomo's first contact with Europeans was when he needed surgery on his feet. He was so impressed by their success that he decided to join the Church of Scotland mission. There he attended school and converted to christianity. The Start of a Political Career
In 1924 a group called the Kikuyu Central Association (KCA) was formed. Their mission was to represent the Kikuyu people when meeting with the British government. Kenyatta started out as the editor of the association's journal and slowly moved up in status. By 1928 he was the secretary of the KCA. In the same year he began to publish a paper who's name in English translates to "He who brings together". Its purpose was to unite the Kikuyu people without the making the British government feel threatened. Time For Action
Jomo continued growing as a politician and helped to form the Kenya African Union (KAU) , a stronger organization than the KCA . At the end of World War 2, he saw an opportunity to demand independence from Britain because the war had weakened it. They demanded more land from the British government that at the time was inhabited by only whites. The British saw this as a great threat to their power in Kenya. They arrested Jomo as well as five other KAU leaders. He remained in prison for about nine years. During his jail time rebellion continued and when Jomo was released, the people nominated him prime minister. A year later Britain granted Kenya its independence. Kenya's First President
After Kenya's independence in 1963, Jomo Kenyatta was elected the first president. His main goal was to unify the Kenyan people. This was a hard task because Kenya was made up of many tribal ethnicities who battled for control of the Kenyan government. Kenyatta used a movement called Kenyanization to accomplish unity and strenghthen the Kenyan economy. Jomo Kenyatta died in office in 1987. He is considered by many to be one of the most important Africans and the most important Kenyan of all time.
Early Years
Jomo Kenyatta was born in 1889. His father was the chief of their small farm village, Kiambu in British East Africa (now Kenya). His father died when he was very young so his uncle became chief and adopted Jomo. At a young age, Jomo showed great interest in his native culture, Kikuyu. He often assisted his grandfather, the town's medicine man. Jomo's first contact with Europeans was when he needed surgery on his feet. He was so impressed by their success that he decided to join the Church of Scotland mission. There he attended school and converted to christianity.
The Start of a Political Career
In 1924 a group called the Kikuyu Central Association (KCA) was formed. Their mission was to represent the Kikuyu people when meeting with the British government. Kenyatta started out as the editor of the association's journal and slowly moved up in status. By 1928 he was the secretary of the KCA. In the same year he began to publish a paper who's name in English translates to "He who brings together". Its purpose was to unite the Kikuyu people without the making the British government feel threatened.
Time For Action
Jomo continued growing as a politician and helped to form the Kenya African Union (KAU) , a stronger organization than the KCA . At the end of World War 2, he saw an opportunity to demand independence from Britain because the war had weakened it. They demanded more land from the British government that at the time was inhabited by only whites. The British saw this as a great threat to their power in Kenya. They arrested Jomo as well as five other KAU leaders. He remained in prison for about nine years. During his jail time rebellion continued and when Jomo was released, the people nominated him prime minister. A year later Britain granted Kenya its independence.
Kenya's First President
After Kenya's independence in 1963, Jomo Kenyatta was elected the first president. His main goal was to unify the Kenyan people. This was a hard task because Kenya was made up of many tribal ethnicities who battled for control of the Kenyan government. Kenyatta used a movement called Kenyanization to accomplish unity and strenghthen the Kenyan economy. Jomo Kenyatta died in office in 1987. He is considered by many to be one of the most important Africans and the most important Kenyan of all time.
To listen to a radio broadcast announcing Jomo Kenyatta's election go to this link:Jomo Kenyatta- Kenya's First President