Lesson Two – Sub-Topic: East Africa and World war II

2.1 EAST AFRICA AND THE SECOND WORLD WAR (1939-1945)

Qn: Why did East Africa get involved in world war 11?

World war 11 was fought between 1939 and 1945 in Europe.
It was between Germany, Italy and their allies against Britain, France and their allies.
East Africa was under the rule of one of the warlords.
When the war broke out, it was impossible for east Africa to remain neutral.
Moreover the Germans in east Africa had conflicting opinions: some supported Hitler while others did not.
There were British in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania and yet back at home they were both opponent warlords.
In neighboring Somalia and Eritrea was Italy.
The presence of such opponents in such areas caused suspension and tension.
Several battalions of the Kings African Riffles (KAR) were stationed on the Somalia boarder.
East Africa also contributed large sums of money to the British war cost.
In 1940, Italy joined the war as German ally.
Later when japan joined the war on Germany’s side and attacked Britain, the KAR was expanded to 30 battalions.
Thousands of East African soldiers went to India and Burma while others went to Madagascar.
The KAR was used because of their good performance in the First World War and the need to protect British interests in the Far East.

Many Kenyans fought in the war and they served in Middle East, Burma, India, and Somalia.
They fought side by side with the Europeans, Indians and Arabs.
European superiority was spoilt.
They expanded their Horizons from the new land and people.
While in the army, they learnt how to read and write in English, others learnt technical skills.
After the war, the ex-service men became more critical and were less prepared to submit to subordination.
They demanded for better conditions for Africans.
Several ex-service men became leaders of the nationalistic movements for example Dedan Kimath, General China.
Anti- colonial movements overseas gave encouragement and support to Africans in the struggle (Mau-Mau).
There was loss of lives of the people of east Africa leading to depopulation.
The war experiences led to the rise of nationalism among the East Africans.

Qn : what were the effects of world-war 11 on the peoples of east Africa?