The Role of The Home Guard
The Guard undertook a variety of mission roles. For the majority of the time, they guarded the fortified villages that had been set up to protect the Kikuyu from the Mau Mau. In the early period of the Guard, it was common for the Mau Mau to overrun these fortified positions because the Guard lacked sufficient firepower to resist their attackers. In due course, as the Guard demonstrated its political and military reliability, the Kenya Government supplied shotguns and rifles to the Guard.
The Guard also took part in anti-Mau Mau sweeps and local patrolling. Their local knowledge and intimate understanding of the Mau Mau made them very effective in this role. It is estimated that the Tribal Police and the Home Guard were responsible for some 42% of all Mau Mau deaths, making them the most effective branch of the Kenya security forces.
The Tribal Police / Home Guard was behind the capture of the head of the Mau Mau, Dedan Kimathi.
Read more about this topic: Kikuyu Home Guard
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