Over the Edge: The Contribution of Kikuyu Women to the ‘Mau Mau’ Rebellion, 1950-1960.

The overarching aim of this study is to uncover and explore the contribution of Kikuyu women to the ‘Mau Mau’ Rebellion in Kenya. Building on existing historiography this study will hope to disprove the idea that women were solely a part of a ‘passive wing’ on the periphery, instead finding evidence to support the idea that some women were also active combatants. In addition to this, my research will seek to give women’s ‘passive’ activities the importance they deserve as being crucial to the existence of the movement. The colonial rehabilitation of Kikuyu women will then be explored in order to support the idea that women were a formidable threat to the colonial powers, despite being largely omitted from official records. The exploration of rehabilitation will also attempt to show how colonial powers reconstructed the concept of gender. Additionally, this study will thirdly hope to assess women’s contribution regarding the wider significance of the movement in challenging colonial rule