World War One in Africa
At the start of World War One, British and German colonial forces went into battle in East Africa. We hear very rare recordings of Kenyan veterans of the brutal four year war.
At the start of World War One, British and German colonial forces went into battle in East Africa. Tens of thousands of African troops and up to a million porters were conscripted to fight and keep the armies supplied. We hear very rare recordings of Kenyan veterans of the King's African Rifles, talking about their experiences of the war. The interviews were made in Kenya in the early 1980s by Gerald Rilling with the help of Paul Kiamba. Photo: Locally recruited troops under German command in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania (then part of German East Africa), circa 1914. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Last on
Broadcasts
- Wed 11 Nov 202008:50GMTBBC World Service
- Wed 11 Nov 202012:50GMTBBC World Service
- Wed 11 Nov 202018:50GMTBBC World Service except East and Southern Africa & West and Central Africa
- Wed 11 Nov 202023:50GMTBBC World Service East and Southern Africa & West and Central Africa only
- Thu 12 Nov 202003:50GMTBBC World Service
Podcast
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Witness History
The story of our times, told by the people who were there

