Editing Kikuyu people (section)

===1888–1945===
{{See also|1899 famine in central Kenya}}
The traditional way of life of Agikuyu was disrupted when they came into contact with the British around 1888. British explorers had visited the region prior the "[[Scramble for Africa]]", and now various individuals moved to establish a colony in the region, noting the abundant and fertile farmland. Although initially non-hostile, relationships between the Agikuyu and the Europeans soon turned violent: [[Waiyaki Wa Hinga]], a leader of the southern Agikuyu, who ruled [[Dagoretti]] who had signed a [[treaty]] with [[Frederick Lugard]] of the [[Imperial British East Africa Company|British East Africa Company]] (BEAC) burned down Lugard's fort in 1890. Waiyaki was captured two years later by the company and [[buried alive]] in revenge.<ref name="k-a">{{cite web|url=http://www.kenya-africa.com/historyofkenya.html |title=History of Kenya |publisher=Kenya-africa.com |access-date=22 March 2013}}</ref>

[[File:Sir Percy Girouard with Kikuyu chief c. 1910.png|thumb|left|upright=1.2|Kikuyu chief Wanbugu (seated center) in talks with the High Commissioner of the East Africa Protectorate c. 1910]]

Following severe financial difficulties of the British East Africa Company, the [[Government of the United Kingdom|British government]] on 1 July 1895 established direct [[The Crown|Crown]] rule through the [[East African Protectorate]], subsequently opening in 1902 the fertile highlands to European emigrants.<ref name="k-a"/> The Agikuyu, upset at the waves of emigrants, enforced a policy of killing any of their own that collaborated with the colonial government.<ref>{{harvnb|Boyes}}</ref> When disputes with white settlers and the Agikuyu became violent (usually over land issues), the settlers would employ [[Maasai people|Maasai tribesmen]] together with some [[colonial troops]] to carry out their fighting for them. The Maasai had historically negative relations with the Agikuyu, and thus were willing to take up arms against them. The various conflicts between the settlers and the Agikuyu often resulted in defeat for the latter, thanks to their inferior weaponry.<ref name="Akikuyu"/> The Agikuyu, having been unsuccessful in their conflicts with the European settlers and the colonial government, turned to political means as a method of resolving their grievances.<ref name="digitalcommons.unomaha.edu|title=African">{{cite web|url=https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu|title=African Tribalism, African Socialism and the Goal of Political Democracy in Kenya pg 60|access-date=18 November 2018}}</ref>

Kenya served as a base for the British in the [[World War I|First World War]] as part of their effort to capture the [[German colonial empire|German colonies]] to the south, which were initially frustrated. At the outbreak of war in August 1914, the governors of British East Africa (as the Protectorate was generally known) and German East Africa agreed to a truce in an attempt to keep the young colonies out of direct hostilities. However, Lt. Col [[Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck]] took command of the German military forces, determined to tie down as many British resources as possible. Completely cut off from [[German Empire|Germany]], von Lettow conducted an effective [[guerrilla warfare]] campaign, living off the land, capturing British supplies, and remaining undefeated. He eventually surrendered in [[Zambia]] eleven days after the Armistice was signed in 1918. To chase von Lettow-Vorbeck, the British deployed [[British Indian Army|Indian Army troops]] from [[British Raj|India]] and then needed large numbers of porters to overcome the formidable logistics of transporting supplies far into the interior by foot. The [[Carrier Corps]] was formed and ultimately mobilised over 400,000 Africans, contributing to their long-term politicisation.

The experiences gained by Africans in the war, coupled with the creation of the white-dominated Kenya Crown Colony, gave rise to considerable political activity in the 1920s which culminated in Archdeacon Owen's "Piny Owacho" (Voice of the People) movement and the "Young Kikuyu Association" (renamed the "East African Association") started in 1921 by [[Harry Thuku]] (1895–1970), which gave a sense of nationalism to many Kikuyu and advocated civil disobedience. Thuku's campaign against the colonial government was short-lived. He was exiled to [[Kismayu]] the following year, and it was not until 1924 that the Kikuyu Central Association (KCA) was formed to carry on with Thuku's campaign.<ref name="digitalcommons.unomaha.edu|title=African"/> From 1924, the Kikuyu Central Association (KCA), with [[Jomo Kenyatta]] as its Secretary General focused on unifying the Kikuyu into one geographic polity, but its project was undermined by controversies over ritual tribute, land allocation, the ban on female circumcision, and support for Thuku. The KCA sent Kenyatta to [[England]] in 1924 and again in 1931 to air their grievances against the colonial government and its policies.<ref name="African Tribalism, African Socialism">{{cite web|url=https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu|title=African Tribalism, African Socialism and the Goal of Political Democracy in Kenya pg 61|access-date=18 November 2018}}</ref>

By the 1930s, approximately 30,000 white settlers lived in Agikuyu country and gained a political voice because of their contribution to the [[market economy]]. The area was already home to over a million members of the Kikuyu nation, most of whom had been pushed off their land by the encroaching European settlers, and lived as itinerant farmers. To protect their interests, the settlers banned the production of coffee, introduced a [[hut tax]], and landless workers were granted less and less land in exchange for their labour. A massive exodus to the cities ensued as their ability to provide a living from the land dwindled.<ref name="African Tribalism, African Socialism"/>

In the Second World War (1939–45) Kenya became an important military base. For the Agikuyu soldiers who took part in the war as part of the [[King's African Rifles]] (KAR), the war stimulated [[African nationalism]] and shattered their conceptions of Europeans. Meanwhile, on the political front, in 1944 Thuku founded and was first chairman of the multi-ethnic Kenya African Study Union (KASU).