University of Arkansas, Fayetteville ScholarWorks@UARK Theses and Dissertations 12-2015 The ecoloniD zation of Christianity in Colonial Kenya Amanda Ruth Ford University of Arkansas, Fayetteville Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd Part of the African History Commons, European History Commons, and the History of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Ford, Amanda Ruth, "The eD colonization of Christianity in Colonial Kenya" (2015). Theses and Dissertations. 1444. http://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/1444 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UARK. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UARK. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. The Decolonization of Christianity in Colonial Kenya A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History by Amanda Ruth Ford Carson-Newman College Bachelor of Arts in History, 2006 Queen’s University, Belfast Master of Arts in History, 2007 December 2015 University of Arkansas This dissertation is approved for recommendation to the Graduate Council. ___________________________ Dr. Benjamin Grob-Fitzgibbon Dissertation Director __________________________ _____________________________ Dr. Laurence Hare Dr. Joel Gordon Committee Member Committee Member Abstract Kenya was an unusual case within the larger narrative of decolonization in the British Empire. The presence of white settlers, the relative newness of the colony, and the particular way in which the British pursued the civilizing mission all combined to make the end of empire particularly violent for all parties involved. Independence in Kenya was precipitated by a bloody civil war, known as Mau Mau, and the imposition of martial law by the government for almost a decade. In the midst of this chaos, the Church of England’s missionary body, the Church Missionary Society worked to protect their converts while also proving to colonial authorities that they were a necessary part of the civilizing mission. This dissertation analyzes the methods and motivations of the CMS in the midst of civil war and rehabilitation efforts in Kenya, but it also seeks to place mission activities within a larger context of twentieth century empire. Mission activities did not emerge from the ether in 1952 after the declaration of Emergency in Kenya. Rather their work began with the declaration of war in 1914, as Europe fell into the Great War. As such, CMS activities in Kenya must be examined through the long lens of empire, from 1914 to 1963. Missionary reaction to colonial policies throughout the time period are examined in hopes of better understanding the long history of decolonization. The CMS was chosen for this project because they provide special insight into the ways in which empire was formed and destroyed in the twentieth century. This is in due in part to ways in which they created their identity as the state missional body of the British Empire. If the Church of England was the official church of the English state, then so too was the CMS the official religious organization of empire. By examining how the self-identified state missional body of empire handled, or rather mishandled decolonization, we can begin to open new paths of analysis into the larger patterns and pictures for the end of empire. Acknowledgements The typical image of a graduate student in popular culture is one of a solo figure, typing away on their laptop, late into the night with only a cup of tea for solace. And indeed graduate student life involves many cups of tea and many late nights spent alone researching and writing. But the reality is that it takes a village to properly raise a child or write a dissertation. My village has been populated with the finest scholars, teachers, friends, family, and archivists that a researcher could hope for. It would take pages upon pages to acknowledge everyone that made this dissertation possible, but it is my honor and privilege to name a few here in the opening pages of my final product. The History Department at the University of Arkansas provided years of much needed financial and intellectual support. Although my own advisor, Dr. Benjamin Grob-Fitzgibbon left for the greener pastures of the State Department, his advice and support remained in full force throughout the final months of writing and revising. He always pushed for my best work and thought; without him I would not be the historian that I am today. After his departure, Dr. Laurence Hare ably stepped into the breach and provided many hours of patience and sage advice. Dr. Joel Gordon’s mentorship opened up new paradigms of history. My understanding of language, culture, gender, and religion were all shaped by his teachings. Although Dr. Andrea Arrington also left us for the greener pastures of Indiana, she deserves a special thanks for her pep talks and keen insights into both life and history. Not only did my mentors give me more support, advice, and wisdom than any single student can ask for, other faculty in the department also stepped in at keys moments to improve my teaching and writing skills. Special thanks must go to Dr. Jeannie Whayne, Dr. Kathryn Sloan, and Dr. Lynda Coon. Not only did the faculty make living and working in Fayetteville a delight, my fellow graduate students also provided much needed encouragement and feedback. For this I must thank my office mates—Ahmet Akturk, Darren Swaggerty, Matt Parnell, Blake Duffield, Scott Lloyd, Sanket Desai, Saxton Wyeth, and honorary office member Blaine Walker. I can never match your sartorial splendor gentlement, but I shall keep trying! Fellow historians Kelly Jones, Becky Howard, Anne Marie Martin, Sarah Riva, Jeff Grooms, and Bianca Rowlett also provided much needed entertainment and advice throughout my grad school years. Tim Nutt is now an honorary historian after listening to me drone on for hours about missionaries. Brenda Foster, Melinda Adams, and Jeanne Short not only make our department run; they do so with kindness, style and panache. Additional thanks must also be paid to the various archives I visited during my research journeys. The National Archives at Kew, Lambeth Palace Library Archives in London, the National Library of Scotland in Edinburgh, and most particularly the Cadbury Research Library in Birmingham, England. Sifting through thousands of documents is an often tedious, sometimes exhilarating experience and the archivists turned a painstaking process into a joyful one. Aiding in that process were friends and family members who traveled along on some of my archival journeys. My mother, Jennifer Sauceman, and Anna Kapoor made my last to the UK for research my favorite trip of all. I must again thank Sanket Desai at this juncture for introducing me to the joy that is Nandos. At this juncture, my acknowledgements threaten to run longer than the actual dissertation, but before I close, I must thank those closest to me. Without them I could not have completed even a page of this work. Jennifer Saucemen has been a best friend and mentor since childhood. We are living the dream! Saxton Wyeth inspired every page of this dissertation and he is indeed my favorite. Finally, this dissertation is dedicated to my parents. Words cannot express how important their support has been to me in life and academia. Table of Contents Introduction: A Divine History of Decolonization 1 Chapter One: The Advent of Success for the CMS in Kenya 30 Chapter Two: The Problems of Success: Politics, Health, and Education in Kenya 61 Chapter Three: Global and Local Conflicts: CMS in Wartime 110 Chapter Four: Optimism in the Midst of the Devil: 145 CMS and the Outbreak of Mau Mau Chapter Five: Who Will Save Your Soul?—Rehabilitation Efforts in the Pipeline 190 Conclusion: A New Life? 240 Bibliography 250 A Divine History of Decolonization “Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called children of God.” “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.”1 Introduction “I address you as my friends; whether you are my friends or not, only God can tell.” 2 The Archbishop of Canterbury, Geoffrey Fisher, spoke these words in 1955 to five thousand Kikuyu who had gathered in Fort Hall, Kenya to hear the senior bishop of the Church of England memorialize Kikuyu Loyalists who had died in the country’s recent civil war, known as the Mau Mau conflict. At the end of his short speech, Fisher blessed the foundational stone of the forthcoming Anglican Church and memorial hall. Labor for these projects was to be provided by inmates in the nearby British run detention camp as penance and rehabilitation for their dastardly deeds against good Christian men and women. Despite the seeming import of this moment—no less a figure than the head of the Anglican Church participating in forced labor schemes in the midst of a civil war—the ceremony has only been documented twice in the larger historical record. Its first appearance was as a small snippet in the larger documentary series The British Empire in Colour which focuses on the larger narratives and impacts of British decolonization throughout the empire. The incident also makes a brief appearance in the conclusion of Daniel Branch’s work Defeating Mau Mau, Creating Kenya as one example of the use of detainee labor. 3 1 Matthew 5:9; 5:11 KJV. 2 The British Empire in Colour (Silver Spring, MD: Acorn Media, 2002). 3 Daniel Branch, Defeating Mau Mau, Creating Kenya: Counterinsurgency, Civil War, and Decolonization (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009), 210. Branch is less interested in the ways in which Fisher’s visit spoke to the larger questions of decolonization, and more concerned with the ways in which Kenya’s collective memory has remembered, and forgotten, the horrors of war.