Historical ties of King Charles III with Kariokor
Kariokor, formerly known as the Carrier Corps, is allegedly where Africans transported everything, including food and water, for the soldiers’ survival during the First World War.
According to Donald C. Savage’s article titled: Carrier Corps Recruitment in British East Africa Protectorate 1914-1918, the colonial government implemented a policy of recruiting young Africans to meet labor demands at the time.
He adds that initial confusion surrounded the method and the extent to which coercion could be used.
“African reluctance to serve was heightened by complaints about conditions, and their frequent attempts to evade conscription.”
As the conflicts grew, following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in 1914, it was alleged that the British recruited thousands of youth in East Africa to fight in the war, as over 70 million militaries were mobilized for the conflict.
Germany, Bulgaria, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire fought against the United Kingdom, France, Russia, Italy, Romania, Japan, and the United States during World War I.
The role of Africans, and much largely, east Africans was to also clean, cook, construct roads, bridges, and dig trenches.
As they were unable to correctly pronounce ‘Carrier Corps,’ they elected to say Kariokor and the name stuck, making it one of Kenya’s most well-known locations.Â
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Kariokor became a busy center, as an estimated another thousand of the youth were allegedly being recruited to serve over 60,000 military personnel in different countries.
As much as it was reported that Kariokor was known for recruiting African laborers to assist in the conscripted into the conflict, there is no clear evidence of such allegations.
Kariokor is renowned for its curio shops, garages, jua kali shelters, at least 59 graves of unidentified Africans killed during the Second World War, and cemeteries.
According to Geoffrey Hodges’s book Kariokor: The Carrier Corps, the purportedly recruited East African youth ultimately perished due to factors such as illness.
“They succumbed to hunger, poor medication, mistreatment, and harsh physical conditions,” the book stated.
King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla arrived in Nairobi for their four-day visit to Kenya shortly before 11 p.m. local time on Monday, in response to an invitation from President William Ruto to commemorate Kenya’s 60 years of independence.
This is his first visit to the country since his coronation and his late mother Queen Elizabeth II’s proclamation as queen.
The Majesties will travel to multiple regions of the country, including Nairobi, Mombasa, and the surrounding counties.
The final date of their tour is November 3, 2023.Â
Historical ties of King Charles III with Kariokor
