Namugongo: How a haunted village became world famous

Namugongo is a place with a rich history of being soaked with the blood of courageous young men, a legend now written both in stone and hearts of believers.

But also, today Namugongo is a fast growing middle-class suburb boasting of supermarkets, hotels, schools including one of the highly rated schools in the country, Uganda Martyrs SS Namugongo.

With the increase in the population, development has expanded, thanks to the booming real estate sector. Real estate companies like Akright, and Jomayi, have set up housing estates there.

The development have extended to the neighbourhoods; Kyaliwajala, Naalya and Kamuli, villages of yesteryears, and places that were the tracks walked by martyrs on their way to execution.

According to Ben Tenywa, a tour guide based at the Uganda Martyrs shrine, Namugongo was originally called Busale. It was the chief execution grounds of Buganda kingdom.

Those who committed grave offences were sentenced to death were executed from there. But, also, not everyone met their death there apart from high status people like chiefs and members of the royal family.

Isaac Musanje, another tour guide, adds that this place was established as an execution site by Kabaka Kyabagu who was Buganda ruler’s around the mid-1700s.

Busale becomes Namugongo
The name “Namugongo” was got from the word Omugongo, a Luganda word for the “back” of the body. Tenywa explains that “during the journey or movement to the execution site, the prisoners went through a lot of torture, which also included dragging them on their backs (omugongo). The Baganda would say “abassajja baabatutte namugongo” meaning “the men were dragged on their backs”.

He explains that on the way to Namugongo, there lived an executioner called Wajjala, and near his home was frog called Gabogola. Prisoners used to stop there on their way to Namugongo, to “rest”. Whenever the frog croaked, Wajjala would superstitiously believe it meant that the prisoner(s) had to be burnt to death. If the frog remained silent, they would be forgiven. Many prisoners were killed at that place; people cried while begging for forgiveness and word went around, “Banange ekyali e Wajjala” meaning, “what happened at Wajjala’s place” and the name Kyaliwajala, was born.

To Christians the world over, Namugongo is a holy destination because of what took place about 126 years ago.

Pages disobey their master
Tenywa narrates that back then, families usually offered their children to work as servants or pages at the Kabaka’s court. This was not only prestigious but also brought pride to the families who were pleased to have children serving the Kabaka.

When the missionaries came to Buganda, they first settled at the palace. Buganda kingdom was then under Mutesa I who later passed on in 1884, living the kingdom to Mwanga II, a youthful leader whose ruling style fell short of the charisma and maturity that his late father had demonstrated in dealing with the foreigners.

The missionaries who had settled at the king’s palace soon converted the king’s pages. The new converts were quick to denounce their old ways and embraced Christianity.

When they put their faith before duty, the Kabaka was displeased. Tenywa points out events such as when the king returned to his palace and found it empty because the pages had gone to pray. This angered the king. It was disobedience because the king always came first.

Another incident is when Kabaka’s palace was struck by lightning and burnt down. This led the Kabaka to consult with his fortunetellers as to what had really caused the fire. They blamed it on the pages and advised the Kabaka to kill them.

Kabaka Mwanga summoned his chiefs to discuss the disobedience of his pages. He gave orders for all the pages to be brought before him. He also commanded the attendance of Mukajjanga, the chief executioner and his assistant executioners. Mwanga then asked the pages to denounce their faith publicly, something they refused to do. He went ahead and sentenced the pages to death and ordered Mukajjanga to take them to Namugongo and burn them.

The Christian pages stood by their word – they were later tied and made to match in a single file to Namugongo; some died on the way. Those that reached Namugongo were wrapped in mats made out of spear grass, laced together and were put on fire.

Later, a Catholic shrine was raised at the place Charles Lwanga, was murdered. The big shrine stands on twenty two pillars representing the 22 Catholic martyrs and its round shape depicting the African hut.

Inside the walls of the shrine are several paintings depicting events in the history of the martyrs. In the compound of the shrine is the manmade lake. Mr Tenywa says this used to be a swamp where the executioners washed themselves after killing the prisoners. This lake was dug in remembrance of the work of Charles Lwanga who spearheaded the excavation of the manmade lake at Mengo while he was still a page in Mwanga II’s court.

The pavilion at the centre of the lake is one of the outstanding features at Namugongo. It has a clear view and can be seen from all angles of the 15 acres the shrine’s compound.

Celebrations on big occasions like Uganda Martyrs Day are usually held there. This grass thatched pavilion, also in circular form like the shrine is supported by four pillars and can accommodate the hundreds of priests and bishops that turn up for mass on Martyrs Day.

Just about half a kilometre from the Catholic shrine is the Protestant shrine raised in the area where the actual holocaust took place. Unique features there is the tree “Ndazabazade” which covers the tree stump on which the victims were tied and tortured before they were killed. Another imposing feature is the hut said to be the command post of the chief executioner, Mukajanga. Another hut built artistically re-acts the martyrdom experience of how the martyrs were burnt. A chapel was erected in memory of the 25 men burnt there. The relics of the martyrs were buried under the altar of this church.

However, Namugongo, perhaps very famous for the shrine is now a big residential hub. Residents say Namugongo which used to be an area covered with bushes and trees is sprouting with a lot of development.

The place is no longer as bushy as it used to be and it looks promising to be one of the self-contained residential areas with the coming in of real estate companies and other businesses. The growth in the infrastructure such as the road network has equally opened up Namugongo making it accessible from all directions to the neighbouring areas of Sonde, Kireka, Kyaliwajjala and Nakiyanja.

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