The
Mau Mau
Rebellion was an uprising against
British colonial rule in
Kenya that began in 1952.
During this time there was a long history of resentment caused by the appropriation of land, somewhat similar to the current unrest in Zimbabwe.
The British governing officials repeatedly ignored the grievances brought by the people of Kenya. The Mau Mau rebels formed as a grassroots effort to deal with the problem head on. Their methods often included violence, primarily against Europeans and their Black African supporters.
By the time the rebellion was ended in 1955 over ten thousand rebels were killed and nearly 80,000 of the Mau Mau's Kikuyu ethnic group were confined to detention camps.
The rebellion itself was a failure but it planted the seeds that would eventually free Kenya of British rule.
Interestingly, the father of Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine was a Mau Mau guerilla fighter.