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| Muteesa I 1835-1884 |
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Muteesa I was born around 1835 and was crowned in 1856. He established his palace at
Kasubi in 1882, as did his father, Kabaka Suuna II. He was so afraid of a rebellion that he
imprisoned all his brothers in a great trench, where many died. Muteesa became a very
powerful Kabaka, and had more wives than any of his predecessors. He was also the first
Kabaka to be influenced by foreign cultures. He adopted some Islamic religious practices,
learned from ivory and slave traders who traveled inland from Zanzibar. He also showed
interest in Europe after hosting John Hannington Speke, who was the first European visitor
to Buganda in 1862. When the explorer Henry Stanley visited him in 1875, he requested
teachers of European learning and religion. At this time, European countries, particularly
England and Germany, were seeking the territories at the source of the Nile. Although
Muteesa allowed his Muslim and Christian guests to compete with each other for converts
among his royal staff , he never let them threaten his authority. He died in 1884 and his
body was buried, whole, at his palace in Kasubi. He had decreed that his jawbone should
not be removed from his body. He thus broke two traditions; first, being buried whole,
and second, being buried at his former palace in Kasubi.
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| Mwanga II 1867-1903 |
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Mwanga II succeeded his father in 1884, and was the last monarch of an independent
Buganda. In 1886, many of Muteesa’s subjects who had converted to Christianity or Islam
were burned to death. Mwanga’s leading Christian and Muslim chiefs became worried and
combined their forces to overthrow him. Mwanga II joined the resistance against
the British colonial forces in 1897. He joined forces with Kabalega, the king of
Bunyoro-Kitara kingdom, but they were defeated and captured on 9th April 1899. Both kings were
exiled in the Seychelles Islands. Mwanga II, who had, by then, been christened Daniel,
died there in 1903. His remains were brought back in 1910 and buried at Kasubi tombs. This
again broke the old tradition of burying Kabakas at different sites, thus making Kasubi an
important burial site for the Kabakas of Buganda.
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| Daudi Chwa II 1896-1939 |
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Mwanga II was succeeded by his son, Daudi Chwa II in 1897 at the age of one. He ruled with the help of a
regency of 1 Catholic and 2 Protestant chiefs until the age of 18. Daudi Chwa II died in 1939. He too was buried at Kasubi tombs, like his two predecessors. This strengthened further the cultural value of the site
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| Muteesa II 1924-1969 |
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Daudi Chwa II was succeeded by his son Edward Muteesa II in 1939. In 1953, a conflict developed
between Muteesa II and the then Governor of the Uganda Protectorate, Sir Andrew Cohen,
over changes in the Buganda Agreement of 1900. Muteesa II was exiled in England until 1955. When Uganda attained independence from the British on 9th October 1962, Muteesa II became the constitutional President of Uganda. However, tensions soon developed between him and the then Prime Minister Apollo Milton Obote which culminated in the storming of the Kabaka’s palace in May 1966.
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In 1967, Obote abrogated the 1962 Federal Constitution
and introduced a Republican Constitution with himself as
President. This change abolished the kingdoms of Uganda.
The Ugandan government repressed the tribal Kingdoms,
which were perceived as a threat to the national interest.
The palace of Kabaka Mutesa II was attacked by government
troops led by Idi Amin, and the Kabaka forced into exile. This
presaged 20 years of repression of the Kingdom that was
brought to an end by President Museveni. Mutesa II died
in London in 1969, but his son Ssabasajja Kabaka Ronald
Muwenda Kimera Mutebi II returned from exile and was
crowned in 1993. This coronation has helped catalyse a
cultural renaissance amongst the Baganda, many of whom
had little awareness of Ganda traditions.
Hence with four succeeding Kabakas of Buganda being buried in the same tomb, the Kasubi tombs site has become an important shrine. Each prince and princess who is a descendant of the four Kabakas is also buried at Kasubi tombs behind the main shrine. Consequently, the site has also become culturally important as the cemetery of the royalty of the Buganda kingdom. |
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