THE UGANDA MARTYRS TRAIL

THE UGANDA MARTYRS

These were  the first Christian converts (Protestant and Catholics) in Uganda and servants in the palace to the king of Buganda. They killed because they disobeyed the king ( mwanga) by refusing to abandon their newly acquired faith. To the king the new religion contradicted and preached against the long held traditional beliefs and practices like polygamy and worship of the king and idols.

The first Christian missionaries to Uganda ( Buganda) arrived from England in 1877 at the invitation of king Mutesa 1 of Buganda through his letter crafted for him by an explore Henry Morton Stanley to to the Queen of England requesting for missionary teachers . Stanley was in Buganda on his search for the source of the Nile. The king was fascinated by Stanley’s wisdom and wanted his people to acquire the same. The king’s latter written on 14th April 1875 was published in the daily telegraph of 15th November 1875 in England. The first Protestant missionaries arrived in Buganda on  30th June 1877 from church missionary society of England. They Shergold Smith and Rev. CT Wilson. However  few months after their arrival, shergold smith was murdered on 30th December 1877 at lukonge on ukererwe island of lake Victoria together with his aid O’Neill on their way back to mpwani to fetch their property. On learning about his colleague’s death, rev. CT Wilson returned back home. He returned to Buganda in November 1878 together with Alexander Mackey a dynamic and practical man who taught people how to read and write, carpentry and joinery and mechanics. He also came with a printing machine that they used to print books and in the translation if the Bible to local languages.

The Protestant missionaries were later joined by uninvited Catholic missionaries of Africa (white fathers) from France. They arrived  on Buganda’s mainland of kigungu on 17th February 1879. These included fr. Simeon laurdel and br. Amans Delmas. The religious organisation was founded by cardinal Lavigerie in 1868 at Career Algiers Algeria north Africa. They were sent to areas of nyanza, (lake Vitoria region) ie. Tanganyika (Tanzania) and Buganda. Those destined for Buganda included fr. Leon Livinhac ( superior), fr. Ludovic Girauilt, fr. Simeon Laurdel, fr. Leon Barbot and br. Amans Delmas. Because of the uncertainty of their welcome in Buganda, the Buganda group first sent the missionaries Simeon laurdel and Amans to first establish the security situation in Buganda before the whole group can join them. This is why the first group included only two missionaries. The two missionary groups were all welcomed in king mutesa’s palace and kept there for some time before being allocated land outside the palace for easy monitoring of their activities by the king and his officials. Because of this their first converts were people who lived in the palace as such they became the victims of martyrdom. This happened after the death of king mutesa1 in 1884 and was inherited by his 19 year old son mwanga a brutal tyrant who hated Christianity and Christians.

One day the king arrived from a disappointing hunting expedition and found the palace empty as all his servants had gone to missionary missions for religious instructions. This was on top of a series of calamities that had befell the kingdom in the recent past including the burning of his palace at mengo by lightening believed to have burnt by gods who were unhappy by presence of Christians in the kingdom. The king made a decision to eliminate all Christians in the kingdom, a red line was drawn, those for Christianity on one side and those for king on the other. Those who opted for Christianity were sentenced to death by burning and now recognized as Uganda martyrs celebrated every 3rd June at numugongo their execution site. They include the following

PROTESTANTS

1. Mark kakuba

2. Joseph lugalama

3. Noah sserwanga

4. Moses mukasa

5. Kayizi kibuuka

6. Mayanja katoogo

7. Omuwanga wa gabunga

8. David muwanga

9. Muddwaguma

10. Noa walukaga

11. Alexader kadoko

12. Frederick wigram kizza

13. Elias mbwa

14. Daniel nakandwa

15. Kiwanuka giyaza

16. Lwanga

17. Mukasa lwakisiga

18. Mubi mubyazaala

19. Wasswa

20. Kwabufu

21. Kifamunyanja

22. Muwanga njigija

CATHOLICS

1. Joseph mukasa balikudembe

2. Dennis ssebugwawo

3. Andrew kagwa

4. Ponsian ngondwe

5. Athanasius bazzekuketa

6. Mathias mulumba

7. Gonzaga gonza

8. Charles lwanga

9. Noah mawagali

10. Luke banabakintu

11. James buzaabalyawo

12. Bruno sserunkuma

13. Adolf mukasa ludigo

14. Ambrose kibuka

15. Achilles kiwanuka

16. Anatoli kirigwajo

17. Kizito omuto

18. Muggagga lubowa

19. Gyavira musoke

20. Mbaaga tuzinde

21. Mukasa kiriwawanvu

22. John Mary kiwanuka muzeeyi

In 1935, one named kisosonkole organized the burial of the remains of the martyrs and a small church was built on top of the tomb.

The Catholic martyrs were declared venerable by pope Pius x in 1912

They were declared blessed by pope Benedict xv in 1920

They were canonized by pope Paul vi in 1964

In 2002 Uganda got another set of new martyrs from northern Uganda. These were young catechists who were speared to death at paimol in kitgum district acholi sub region by malicious agents of slave trader accusing them of preaching against their trade. Despite numerous threats against their life they didn’t not abandon the work of Christ until they paid the ultimate price. They were beatified by pope Paul ii on 20th October 2002. These are

1. Blessed Gildo Irwa

2.Blessed Daudi Okelo

SIMPLE ONE DAY MARTYRS TRAIL ITINERARY SITE BY SITE

Busega martyrs church

This is the site where the first Anglican missionaries established their first church. Its also a site where first Anglican martyrs Mark kakuba 15, Joseph lugalama 11, and Noah sserwanga 17 were killed on 31st January 1885 at about 9am

Mengo kisenyi

This is the site where the last Marty st. John Mary muzeeyi 35 was killed. He was sentenced to death by king mwanga on 27th January 1887 for failure to desist from his Christian practices even after the execution of his fellow converts. He had missed death with the rest of the martyrs is 1886 because he was in prison where he had been falsely accused of  stealing a cow.

Mengo palace

This was king mwanga official palace until it got burnt by lightening and he shifted to his other palace in munyonyo. Today mengo is the official headquarters of Buganda kingdom

Old Kampala

This is the site where st. Mathias mulumba  kalemba 50, was killed. He is the martyr who died the most brutal death.  His limbs were cut of,strips of flesh cut off from his back and left to die an agonising death from 27th to 30th may 1886 dying a slow 3days agonising death but without any complaint but always in prayer for his country and the executioners

St. Balikuddembe market ( owino)

This is the site where the first Catholic martyr Joseph mukasa balikuddembe was killed on 15th November 1885. He was killed because he criticised the king mwanga for ordering the killing of bishop Hannington, a British Anglican missionary who was coming to Buganda, without first listening to him. Joseph mukasa balikuddembe was at that time a leader of all Christian coverts (Protestant and Catholics), a reason it was him who confronted the king even when he was Catholics.

Also here is the memorial site for for st. Athanasius bazekuketta. He was also killed here as the condemned martyrs matched from munyonyo to the execution site of namugongo. On reaching owino, Athanasius bazekuketta saw no reason of working all the way to namugongo as they were going to be killed any way and requested that he be killed at the site where their leader was killed. He was therefore beheaded on 27th may 1886 and his body thrown on fire

Munyonyo

This is where every thing started from. This is where there was a king’s palace and where the martyrs received their death sentences on 26th of may 1886. On evening 25th may 1886, the king returned from a disappointing hunting expedition and brutally wounded Dennis ssebugwawo with a spear after resisting his homosexual approaches and latter killed by mukajanga on 26 may 1886 aged 16, and therefore became the first victims in the wave of martyrdom that followed

In munyonyo also has the memorial site of st. Andrew kagwa. Arrested from his home and taken to katikiro ( prime minster) Musa who ordered that his arm be cut off because he had personal vendetta with him,later he was hacked to pieces on 26 may 1886 aged 30

Kyamula salama road

This where st. Ponsian ngwodwe was killed. He was a king’s militia . He had a personal vendetta with makajanga (chief executioner) who falsely accused of stealing his cow. Mukajanga was worried that ngodwe could change his mind and abandon Christianity and be forgiven by the king,he decided to finish him quickly. Barely as they had started the journal to namugongo at kyamula, he was speared many times by mukajanga himself, his head cut off and backed his body to pieces on 26 may 1886 aged 35

Nalya

This is where st. Gozaga gonza was speared to death by makajanga on 27 may 1886 at the age of 24. He couldn’t walk anymore as chains that tied them together had entered his flesh. The executioner decided to kill him there so that the rest could continue with the journey.

Namugongo

This is the site where the remaining condemned martyrs were burnt to death on 3 June ( ascension day)1886. They included 12 Catholics and 13 Anglicans. The martyrs stayed in this area for one week waiting for their death as they were taunted, tormented, tortured and collecting firewood to be used in burning them. The executioners had hope that some of them could denounce Christianity and ask for pardon from the king but instead the martyrs kept in prayer and for God to accept them into his heavenly kingdom since the earthly kingdom had rejected them.  They include

anglicans

Nowa walukagga

Alexander kadoko

Frederick wigram kizza

Alias mbwa

Daniel nakabandwa

Kiwanuka giyaza

Mukasa lwakisiga

Lwanga

Mubi mubyazaala

Wasswa

Kwabufu

Kifamunyanja

Muwanga njigija

catholics

Charles lwanga 25

Luke banabakintu 30

James buzaabalyawo 26

Bruno sserunkuma 30

Adolf mukasa ludigo 24

Ambrose kiwanuka 18

Anatoli kirigwajo 20

Kizito omuto 14

Muggagga lubowa 17

Gyaviira musoke 17

Mbaaga tuzinde 18

Mukasa kiriwawanvu 20

Achilles kiwanuka 17

mukajanga’s tomb kakiri

This is a site where mukajanga ( chief executioner) was buried after his earthly life. He died of natural cause

Mityana

This is a site where two martyrs who were killed out of Kampala met their death

A Catholic martyr Noah mawagali was speared to death by kamanyi an aid to mbugano ( executioner) on 30 may 1886 at Luke banabakintu’s (also a martyr) house where he was teaching catechism aged 35. His body was eaten by village dogs

Others killed in mityana include the following Protestant martyrs,

Kayizzi kibuuka

Mayanja katoogo

Omuwanga wa gabunga

Killed on 31 may 1886