East Africa Memorial

• Country Kenya
• Total identified casualties 2213 Find these casualties
• Identified casualties from Second World War
• GPS Coordinates Latitude: -1.30973, Longitude: 36.74866

Location information

The East Africa Memorial is within the Nairobi War Cemetery.

Visiting information

ARRIVAL

The cemetery is approximately ten kilometres west of Nairobi city centre on Ngong Road, which is the main road to the Government Forest Reserve. Nairobi War Cemetery is next to Nairobi Racecourse and is included within the Ngong Forest Reserve. The cemetery can only be reached by a long driveway off Ngong Road. The route to the cemetery is signposted.

PARKING

There is a car park at the cemetery with space for up to eight vehicles. The surface of the car park is firm and level.

ACCESS LAYOUT AND MAIN ENTRANCE

At the main entrance to the cemetery there are stone steps leading onto a firm and level path. Access is through metal gates, with an approximate clear opening of 1500 mm for each section. All the internal paths within the cemetery are firm and grass. There are also several level stone pathways within the site.

The cemetery has a Cross of Sacrifice, Stone of Remembrance and two memorials; the East African and Nairobi Memorial. At the main entrance to the cemetery is a shelter building. Inside are visitor benches and a Register Box.

The Stone of Remembrance is located on a raised platform accessible from cemetery level by stone steps from all four sides of the platform.

Around the cemetery are several stone and wooden benches for visitor seating.

ALTERNATIVE ACCESS

There is an alternative access point to the left-hand side of the main entrance of the cemetery. The alternative access point is marked with a signpost and provides step free access onto a firm, level threshold which opens into the cemetery.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Nairobi War Cemetery is open every day between the following hours:

0600 hrs – 1800 hrs

Please note, there have been reported attacks in the vicinity of the cemetery. All visitors are strongly advised to take care and not carry any valuables when visiting the site. Visitors are advised not to walk the one-kilometre track to the cemetery from the main road but should travel to the cemetery entrance by vehicle only.

WILD MONKEYS

There are wild monkeys who live in and around the cemetery. We strongly advise that visitors do not approach or feed the wild monkeys in the cemetery.

History information

The Memorial commemorates men of the land forces who lost their lives in the advance from the south into Italian Somaliland and Ethiopia and during the occupation of those territories, and who have no known grave. Along with them are honoured those who died during the operations in Madagascar in 1942 and who have no known grave. Besides those who died in these campaigns, many men and women who were lost in the sinking of the troopship 'Khedive Ismail' en route to Ceylon on 12 February 1944 are commemorated here; they include a great part of the 301st Field Regiment, East African Artillery.

In the Cemetery, a lawn about 23 metres long and 9 metres wide is surrounded by a hedge. Within this enclosure is a pier which bears the inscription:

1939 - 1945 THE COLUMNS IN THIS ENCLOSURE BEAR THE NAMES OF TWO THOUSAND FOUR HUNDRED MEN AND WOMEN OF MANY RACES UNITED IN SERVICE TO THE BRITISH CROWN WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN ITALIAN SOMALILAND, SOUTHERN ETHIOPIA, KENYA AND MADAGASCAR, BUT TO WHOM THE FORTUNE OF WAR DENIED A KNOWN AND HONOURED GRAVE

Flanking this pier on either side stand two rows of columns, twelve in number, on which are carved the names. The columns are of a light pinkish artificial stone, the bases and capitals being darker in colour. Beside the pier with the main inscription there is a seat; this, and the entrance, are flanked by flower beds.

(Since the erection of the memorial and engraving of the dedicatory panels the burial places of 188 casualties have since been discovered and they are now correctly commemorated by headstone at the graves).