Nandi Resistance

The Nandi Resistance was a military conflict that took place in present-day Kenya between 1890 and 1906. It involved members of the Kalenjin ethnic group, mainly from the Nandi section, and elements of the British Army. The close of the 19th century, a time referrefed to as the "'pacification' period" by Matson, saw a number of local populations that resisted the occupation of their lands by the British. Of these, the Nandi resistance would stand out for being the longest and most tenacious.

The Nandi resistance was led by Koitalel Arap Samoei, the Orkoiyot of the Nandi at the time. On October 19, 1905, on the grounds of what is now Nandi Bears Club, Arap Samoei was asked to meet Col Richard Meinertzhagen for a truce. Instead, Meinertzhagen killed Koitalel and his entourage in cold blood.

Background
In the later decades of the 19th century, at the time when the early European explorers started advancing into the interior of Kenya, Nandi territory was a closed country. Thompson in 1883 was warned to avoid the country of the Nandi, who were known for attackes on strangers and caravans that would attempt to scale the great massif of the Mau.

Cause
Matson, in his account of the resistance, shows 'how the irresponsible actions of two British traders, Dick and West, quickly upset the precarious modus vivendi between the Nandi and incoming British'. This would lead to more than a decade of conflict.

End of Conflict
On October 19, 1905, on the grounds of what is now Nandi Bears Club, Arap Samoei was asked to meet Col Richard Meinertzhagen for a truce. Instead, Meinertzhagen killed Koitalel and his entourage in cold blood. Sosten Saina, grand-nephew of one of Arap Samoei's bodyguards notes that “There were about 22 of them who went for a meeting with the ‘mzungu’ that day. Koitalel Arap Samoei had been advised not to shake hands because if he did, that would give him away as the leader. But he extended his hand and was shot immediately".