A martyr's death at Busoga by King Mwanga.

Hobley - 1890 - Our headman was a remarkable native known as Fundi Jones, originally a freed slave ..... he was headman of the ill-fated mission expedition to Uganda, in which Bishop Hannington lost his life, and he only escaped the Bishop's fate owing to the fact that he was left behind at Mumias in charge of some extra stores. .....…..

According to Jones' account, the Bishop had some 30 rifles and, shortly after reaching Luba's village on Napoleon Gulf, Luba came to him and said that the Kabaka of Uganda had sent word that the European traveller was to hand over all his rifles before entering Uganda. Such a request would at once have aroused the suspicion of any ordinary traveller. The saintly Bishop, however, trusting in less material protection and disregarding the advice of his own following, handed over his guns and ammunition. As is well known, he was then attacked by Luba and his tribesmen, acting on Mwanga's orders, and the unsophisticated Bishop was murdered with nearly all his men. ..........

Later on his skull was recovered by James Martin, and buried in Mumias village; it was, however, eventually disinterred by Bishop Tucker and reburied with great ceremony at Kampala.  

Swann - On board ship going to EA in 1882 - Bishop Hannington - 'How well I recall Hannington! His delightfully buoyant spirits and optimistic character made all on board happy. I little thought, as we played at chess together, that those eyes, then so full of laughter, would soon be dimmed by tears shed, not for himself, but for those very Africans to whose benefit he had determined to devote his life and who, in their ignorance, so cruelly imprisoned and murdered him. Such are the perils to which the pioneers of civilization are exposed in a land of superstition, ignorance and savagery, that not even the attractive qualities of Hannington could save him from a fate which has for ever stained the throne of Uganda, by the sacrifice of one who would have been her best friend and champion.

The Buganda have long since realised the great crime committed by their king. Tens of thousands of her sons and daughters are today endeavouring to lead lives which the great martyred missionary would have blessed.'   

Lorimer - It appears that he, contrary to the advice of the missionaries in Uganda, and in open defiance of native rule and custom, approached Uganda, on his arrival in the country, by the road along which the future ruler of Uganda should come. All warnings were disregarded. The Bishop could have come quite well by canoe across the lake, and by so doing have avoided all native hostility, and hurt no man's feelings. He persisted, however, and so met his death. It was not only a foolish indiscretion, but an act of bad taste. He got as far as the village of Lubwa's, on the eastern bank of the Nile, where he was held up, with 40 of his men, who were all killed with him when the orders at last came from the King.

Uganda Journal - Vol 33, pp. 209/10 - Diary of J.P. Nickisson on his trip to Uganda with Bishop Tucker in 1892 - "8 December 1892 - Caravan arrived in Mumias ……. talk with Mumia. Gunther was interpreter as he could speak Swahili. The Bishop asked about Hannington's remains, which he said had been there but had been removed by Martin and Jackson. He said his son was 'Kilongosi' to Bishop Hannington. The son was a young sturdy looking fellow of about 24 …..

Afterwards the son came and told us privately that Bishop H's head had been brought to the village and had been secretly buried under the floor of an empty hut and that the hut had fallen down and been cleared away and that he could point out the spot where the head was buried in a tin box ……

Saturday 10 Dec. - We turned out at 6 o'clock and at 6.30 the search for Bp. Hannington's remains began. The men worked with jembies or native hoes and cleared the ground away with shovels. The earth was very hard at first. They had to dig through baked clay of which the fallen walls were made, also the floor. The men told us that there had been a small-pox epidemic in that quarter of the village, and that the houses had been knocked down in consequence …… We found the ground so hard that we tried further on after digging for about an hour and a half. Dr. Baxter, Fisher and Gunther helped also in clearing out the earth with the shovels. The Bishop thought they would be an hour or more before getting deep enough and went to his breakfast. Gunther and I also went to ours. Just after we had gone they found a very soft place in the ground, and Fisher cleared out the earth with a shovel, and suddenly struck something hard.

The earth being cleared away a wooden box was found with a tin lining which was much decayed and broken, and the tin rusted away. Inside was a skull and a few rib bones and a thigh bone. The skull was recognized at once as Bp. Hannington's by the gold stopping in one of the teeth. The Bishop had been sent for at once on finding the box and received the remains which were placed in a sack together with the fragments of the box. Another skull was found near the box, which was buried near the place.

Also found in the hole the top of a canteen bucket much corroded away with rust, part of some old shoes, the soles much worn, and an india-rubber hot water bottle which no doubt was the property of Bishop Hannington. The things with the remains were taken to the Bishop's tent and packed in a tin-lined box to be taken to Uganda to be buried there. The whole proceedings were carried out as quietly as possible and very few of the people really knew what we had been searching for."

CMS 1882 - Age 34. Of Hurstpierpoint. St Mary Hall, Oxford. 1873 BA and 1875 MA. FLS, FRGS 1874 Deacon by Bishop of Exeter and 1876 Priest by Bishop of Chichester. 1874-75 Curate of Martinhoe and Trentishoe; 1875-82 Minister of St. George's Chapel, Hurstpierpoint. 1882, May 17 to Nyanza Mission as leader of new Mission party. 1883, Jan 31 to England. 1884 Jun 24, consecrated in Lambeth Church as first Bishop of Church of England in Eastern Equatorial Africa; Nov 5 left England, accompanied by W.E. Taylor and E.A. Fitch for EA - to visit the Palestine Missions en route; held ordination, under commission from Archbishop of Canterbury, at Jerusalem, Dec 28 …… 1885, May 31, held his first ordination at Frere Town when W. Jones and I.M. Semler (Native Clergy) were ordained Deacons and Rev. W.E. taylor Priest. July 22 started for Uganda, via the Masai country route; Oct. 29 murdered in Usogo. 19th Bishop from CMS ranks. Married 1876, Feb 10 Blanche Hankin Turvin who died 1932, June 4 at Hurstpierpoint.

Rabai - Hannington's first tour of service in East Africa had lasted barely a year during which time he lost 56 lbs in weight and had to be sent home for health reasons. However he was consecrated during this visit to England and ….. landed in Mombasa in January 1885. He had not lost the good humour that enabled him to send home comic drawings of his adventures for his children even from a bed of sickness

St Paul's Namirembe cemetery - James Hannington DD, first Bishop of Eastern Equatorial Africa, martyred in Busoga, 29 Oct 1885, his last words were reported to be 'Tell the Kabaka I die for Uganda'

Mombasa Cathedral plaque: this dome was erected / to the glory of God / and in loving memory of / the Right Rev / James Hannington D.D. / consecrated June 24th 1884 / first Bishop / of the Diocese of / Eastern Equatorial Africa / he was murdered in Busoga / October 31st 1885