Nandi Resistance
Nandi Resistance The Kalenjin-led resistance | |
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Sculpture of Koitalel Arap Samoei in the Kenyan National Library Service building | |
| Koitalel Arap Samoei | |
| In office 1890 – 19 October 1905 | |
| Preceded by | Kimnyole arap Turukat |
| Succeeded by | Kipeles arap Kimnyole (Tamasun) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c.1860 Samitui, Aldai, Nandi County |
| Died | 19 October 1905 (aged 45) Ketbarak, Nandi Hills, Kenya Colony |
As of Resistance to British Rule: (1890–1906) | |
| History of Kenya |
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| Kenya portal |
The Nandi Resistance (1890–1906), also known as the Anglo-Nandi War or the Kalenjin Resistance, was a major military conflict in the Rift Valley region of present-day Kenya. It was waged by the Kalenjin people, predominantly the Nandi section, alongside the Kipsigis against British colonial occupation. This struggle represented the earliest, most prolonged, and one of the most effective military resistances against British colonial expansion in the territory that would later become "British East Africa" (the East Africa Protectorate). Lasting nearly two decades, this fierce opposition significantly delayed British efforts to establish administrative control over the Western Highlands. Nandi warriors effectively employed guerrilla warfare tactics. They frequently targeted and sabotaged the construction of the "Iron Snake" (the Uganda Railway), stealing telegraph wires and attacking supply lines.
The resistance was led by the Orkoiyot (the community's spiritual and military leader), Koitalel Arap Samoei.