17 Facts About Dedan Kimathi

Dedan Kimathi was captured by the British in 1956 and executed in 1957.

Dedan Kimathi was likely born around 1920 in today's Nyeri County, where his father, valuing education, sent him to school.

Dedan Kimathi excelled and his skills in writing and speech were noted.

Anderson writes however that Dedan Kimathi was fiercely competitive, bullying, and frequently disciplined by teachers.

Dedan Kimathi traveled to Nairobi in the late 1930s and joined the British army in 1940 but, according to Anderson, was discharged after one month, allegedly for drunkenness and violence.

Dedan Kimathi moved from job to job, from swineherd to primary school teacher, from which he was reportedly dismissed after accusations of violence against his pupils.

Around 1947 or 1948, while working in Ol Kalou, Dedan Kimathi came into contact with members of the Kenya African Union.

Dedan Kimathi believed in compelling fellow Kikuyu by way of oath to bring solidarity to the independence movement.

Dedan Kimathi's fight for an independent Kenya came to an end in 1956.

Dedan Kimathi was shot in the leg and captured by a Tribal Policeman called Ndirangu Mau who found Dedan Kimathi armed with a panga.

Dedan Kimathi's capture marked the beginning of the end of the forest war; the image of Kimathi being carried away on a stretcher was printed in leaflets by the British, to demoralise the Mau Mau and their supporters.

Dedan Kimathi's appeal was dismissed, and the death sentence upheld.

Dedan Kimathi asked to see his wife, and the morning of the execution Mukami was allowed to see Kimathi.

Dedan Kimathi was buried in an unmarked grave, and his burial site remained unknown for 62 years until 25 October 2019 when the Dedan Kimathi Foundation reported that the grave-site had been identified at the Kamiti Prison grounds.

In 2010, Dedan Kimathi's widow requested that the search for her husband's body be renewed so she could give him a proper burial.

Mukami Dedan Kimathi died on 4 or 5 May 2023 and was buried in Njabini Kinangop.

Dedan Kimathi was held in high regard by anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela.