A visit to Uganda Martyrs Museum Namugongo

By Hannington Sebuliba

A Visit to Uganda Martyrs Museum Namugongo takes you back 130 years. You will be interested to know how the  first generation Christians both Catholics and Anglicans showed faith by dying in a fire place while singing daily, daily we sing thy praise.

A mural  at the Uganda Martyrs Museum Namugongo showing how
 Uganda Martyrs  died in an infernal on June 3rd 1886

At the museum which is located in Namugongo, East of Uganda's capital city Kampala, you are ushered in by well trained tour guides. You will just part with as little as Ug. Shs. 5000 adults and 2000 children.

The tour guides start by introducing themselves and getting to know you. As the tour begins, there's a tree stamp that shows the richness of wildlife in Uganda that welcomes. This tree Stamp has a number of wild animals all over it. It is a wonderful piece of art. It is here that you get to appreciate the beauty and richness God put in our beautiful land Uganda. From the King of the jungle, the crocodiles, the monkey, twiga, zebra name it, are all on this tree stamp.

The tree stamp that has all sorts of animals and birds found in Uganda at the Museum

From here, you see the Map of Africa where Pope Francis put a memorial Stone on 28th November 2015. The Map of Uganda is clearly zoomed out with this memorial stone which has wordings from the holy scriptures. Psalms 112:6 and Proverbs 10:7 It reads "A Righteous man will be remembered forever, the memory of the righteous will be a blessing". "THIS STONE WAS LAID BY HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS ON 28th November 2015. This place was also visited by Pope Paul VI on 2-8-1968 and Pope John Paul on 7-3-1993. The tour guide explains that Uganda's place in Africa is very significant because it had it's martyrs who dies for the religion of Jesus Christ in the Church's infancy.

Mr, Nsamba, a tour guide at the Uganda Martyrs Museum explains
the significance of Uganda in Africa's Christianity

From here you go to the core site where the actual Martyrdom took place. This is where the Chief executioner Mukajanga had his command post. Here you are greeted by life size art pieces of Mukajanga, his team and the Martyrs. The site of these takes you back 130 years. You wonder how such young men who had not even learnt a lot about Christianity took the courage to die for their faiths. It is said that they had put the scriptures to their heart.  Revelation 2:10 “Be thou faithful unto death and I will give you a crown of life.” They thus died singing and waiting to receive a crown of life from Jesus Christ.

Mukajanga at his command post in Namugongo

Mukajanga sits on his stool with his eyes protruding as if he has been possessed by demons. He puts on his head the head of an African leopard with it's teeth as if they are ready to devour anyone who crosses his way. He holds a guard with local potent brew to give him the power to do what he is about to do. Besides him, are other soldiers who are equally fearless and ready to spear anyone who crosses their way.

Mukajanga and his sildiers

From Mukajanga's place, there is a firewood place where one of the soldiers is seen placing the firewood in order. It is said that in olden days people used to fetch firewood and would pile it for two to three weeks waiting to burn those who had disobeyed the King's orders.

Soldier collecting firewood

From there there's a place where the soldiers are seen sharpening their tools. Next is   a place that shows how  prisoners were always brought to Namugongo tied on ropes and pulled on  their backs. In Luganda, they used to ask bano bajja batya wano? (meaning how did these come here?) in response they would say "bajja na mugongo" meaning they came on their backs thus the name Namugongo. 

Ndazabazadde tree

The next place is the prison where the prisoners used to spend a week or two before they were executed. They were given this grace period to enable them change their mind and repent. From there, they were put on a tree locally known as Ndazabazadde. They would be tied here while being speared, castrated, or even cut off some body parts for a week, until they would be transferred to the fire place.

The burning place where martyrs met their death

At the fire place they would be placed in wood called enkabazi in Luganda. Then the fire started burning as it consumed them. The guide tells us that they sang a song in Luganda   "Bulijjo tutendereza ekibuga kyaffe. Ekyakubibwa mu Ggulu, Yesu kyeyazimba. Singa mbadde n'ebiwaawa nga Bamalayika, Nandibuuse, nandituuse eri mu Sayuni"
This is the English hymn daily, daily we sing praises.

Archbishop Nkoyooyo flanked by Rev. Kalungi being interviewed by a TV Crew

From the fire place you are ushered into the lobby where there are portraits of Buganda Kings from Kabaka Muteesa I who invited the missionaries, Kakaba Mwanga II, Kabaka Sir Daudi Chwa II, Kabaka Sir Edward Muteesa II and the current Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II. All these are curved out of nice wood (Mahogany). On the other hand are portraits of the Presidents of Uganda from Sir Edward Muteesa II the first president of Independent Uganda. They are Milton Obote, Idi Amin Dada, Yusufu Kironde Lule, Godfrey Lukongwa Binaisa, Paul Muwanga, Gen. Tito Okello Lutwa to the current President Yoweri Museveni. Here the whole political history of Uganda is summarised in this museum.

tourists look at the portraits of the Kings of Buganda at the Museum

Kabaka Muteesa I

Kabaka Mwanga II

Kabaka Daudi Chwa II and Kabaka Muteesa II

Kabaka Muteesa II and Kabaka Mutebi II

The last part is the Martyrs Chapel built by the former Katikkiro of Buganda Tefiro Kisosonkole who donated 49 acres of land to the Church where the museum is built. Kisosonkole was one of the people who were spared together with Kagiri (the grandfather of Archbishop Livingstone Nkoyooyo the promoter and dream bearer of the martyrs Museum) The chapel contains ashes and remains of both the Anglican and Roman Catholic Martyrs. They were buried inside this tiny chapel that was built in 1935.

The pulpit was donated by Kabaka Muteesa II,

Gen. Sir Edward Frederick Walugembe Muteesa II
First President 

Dr. Milton Apollo Opeto Obote - former President 

Field Marshall Idi Amin Oume Dada- Former President

Prof. Yusufu Kironde Lule- Former President

QC. Godfrey Lukongwa Binaisa former President

Paul Muwanga - former Head of state

Gen. Tito Okello Lutwa - former Head of Sate

Gen. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni - President since 1986

Outside the chapel are portraits of the Archbishops that have served both the Anglican and Catholic Churches in Uganda. Glory be to God.

Outside the museum is a big mural showing how the martyrs met their death. You cannot miss it.

Uganda Martyrs Museum Namugongo

100 metres below the slope is the main Namugongo Church adjacent Mukajanga's well, where the soldiers used to clean off blood from their weapons. A scene of soldiers cleaning their weapons is being recreated at the exact spot. The "Blessed" water still flows in the other wells. Namirembe Diocese is soon packing this water to be sold to the public in plastic water bottles.

soldiers clean their weapons after killing the Christian Martyrs at Namugongo

Please take time off to go and retrace the Uganda Martyrs experience.