Uganda Martyrs 2025

For the annual Uganda Martyrs Day celebration on June 3rd, pilgrims have been walking vast distances from various districts, and some from neighboring nations, to Namugongo.

People will always remember June 3rd because of the many stories of how brave boys and men—26 in number—were tortured by the Buganda king at the time, Mwanga, and then burned at Namugongo for not converting to Christianity, which the Kabaka did not accept.

The arrival of Christian missionaries, who were cordially received by Kabaka of Buganda Muteesa 1, marked the beginning of these devoted people’s journey. Before launching catechism sessions for both Catholics and Anglicans, they began preaching to the people in the court. Everything was going well until Muteesa’s death, when his son Mwanga took over, and the students were baptized.

Christianity wouldn’t have been an issue, but it required all converts to reject all that was customary, which made them feel as though they were breaking the Kabaka’s laws. All of this took place in 1884.

Only a year after ascending to the throne on January 31, 1885, Kabaka Mwanga executed the first three martyrs, Makko Kakumba, Yusuf Rugarama, and Nuwa Serwanga, because he believed that Christians had adopted rebellious beliefs. In Busega, the three were killed.

The superstitious Kabaka also gave the order to kill Anglican Bishop Hannington James, who was traveling through Eastern Uganda en route to Buganda. He was slain in October 1885 after being informed by the Kabaka’s wise men that the enemy who would destroy him would come from the East.

The greatest murder occurred in 1886, when a large number of converts were put to death after being compelled to renounce their beliefs, which they refused to do. Following their capture at Munyonyo, they were forced to trek up to Namugongo, where they were to be put to death. Under Kabaka Mwanga’s orders, Mukajanga forced them to gather their own firewood before setting them on fire.

After killing the martyrs, Kabaka Mwanga wanted faith to wane, but he was surprised to find that faith continued to grow stronger since the martyrs’ bloodshed marked the start of something magnificent for the nation and the entire globe. Even yet, it is thought that more persons were murdered but their names were not noted.

In 1920, Pope Benedict XV blessed the twenty-two Catholic boys and men, which is considered a significant and positive step for the Catholic Church. In 1964, Pope Paul VI declared them saints during the Vatican II summit, making them the first Africans to be declared saints to this day.

During his journey to Uganda, the gem of Africa, Pope Paul VI paid homage to the saints. He traveled to Namugongo and turned the site of the Charles Lwanga’s burning into a shrine. at 1975, the first Mass was held at this shrine, which was also designated as a basilica. Additionally, Pope John Paul II visited the shrine in 1993, and Pope Paul VI became the first pope to visit the sub-Saharan African nation while still in office.

Among the martyrs from Uganda are the following:

Mawaggali Noe
Adolf Mbaaga Tuzinde Mukasa
Kiwanuka Achilles
Anatoli Baanabakintu Kiligwajjo Luke Buuzabalyawo Gonzaga, James Gonzá
Ngondwe Pontiano
Denis Ssebugwaawo
Andrew Kaggwa
Mulumba, Mathias
Kiriwawanvu mukasa
Lubowa Mugagga
Following a quick overview of their martyrdom, we will examine a brief account of some of these men’s journeys to martyrdom.

Mukasa Joseph Balikuddembe

He was a Catholic convert who served as Kabaka Mwanga’s top counselor. As was customary with the Baganda, he was the first martyr to be executed after denouncing the King for the death of Bishop Hannington, who was not given the opportunity to defend himself. The Kabaka became the first Catholic martyr when he was belittled by a common servant and ordered his arrest. He was then killed at Nakivubo in November 1885.

Muzeeyi Jean-Maries

According to the records, he was the most recent murder victim. On January 27, 1887, he was decapitated at Mengo.

Lwanga, Charles

Following King Mwanga’s accession to the throne, Charles Lwanga—known to the villagers as Kaloli Lwanga—entered the court service. Known for his strength in wrestling, he was also assigned to excavate Kabaka Lake, with Joseph Mukasa serving as his direct supervisor. Because he had reprimanded him for the murder of their then-Christian leader Joseph Mukasa Balikuddembe and the animosity that existed between him and Ssenkoole, the Kabaka ordered his arrest.

Ssenkoole singled him out when he was given a death sentence, and at Namugongo in 1886, he died slowly as fire was started from his feet and spread until it burned his entire body.

Kibuuka Ambrosius

He was a member of the Lugave tribe and was born in Ssingo. Because they knew the missionaries would come for them too and because they wanted to die in Christ, Kibuuka and other Christians fled into the night after Joseph Mukasa was killed to get baptized.

Along with Kiwanuka, he said goodbye to his family and was baptized by Father Loudrel in 1885. After being found guilty in May of the following year, he was transported to Namugongo and burned alive in a powerful furnace.

Sserunkuma Bruno

He was raised in a very careless manner and was the son of a Pokiino chief in Buganda. He was baptized and became a full-fledged Christian after he transformed and began acting more subtly and controlling his temper. As a token of gratitude for his excellent work in the court, the Kabaka eventually granted him two wives. However, when his fellow Christians learned of this, they reminded him that it was wrong. As a kind of atonement, he isolated himself from society, which is how the execution team discovered him while he was praying.

After Bruno was severely beaten by his ex-brother-in-law Lutaaya, he was sent to Mukajanga, who bound him with ropes and immersed him in a mud pool, further tightening the cords. He eventually spent two hours walking with other Christians from Mengo to Munyonyo before being burned on June 3, 1886, following a protracted period of suffering at the hands of his tormentors.

Mukasa, Adolphus Ludigo

Following the Baganda raid, he was transported to the palace as a servant from Bunyoro. He was close to Andrew Kagwa and converted to Christianity. Because of his stubbornness, he would assist the women with peeling and would not mind culture at all.

Because he refused to renounce his faith, he was carried off to be burned with other Christians before being executed in Namugongo.

Kiwanuka Achilleus

Kiwanuka worked as a clerk in Kabaka Mwanga’s court before converting to Christianity under the influence of the White Fathers. On June 3, 1886, he was burned in Namugongo, which caused his death.

 

Andrew Kaggwa

He played the drums in the court with great skill and was a Munyoro by tribe. In 1880, he became a Christian and nearly immediately went to catechism. In addition to teaching, baptizing, and burying those who passed away in the faith, he was baptized in 1882. He was condemned to death in Munyonyo among other Christians after being dubbed a Mugowa by the time of his execution.

He was slain with a tiny catechism book in his hand. The townspeople buried his remains at the precise location where the execution occurred after they first severed his hand, decapitated him, and dismembered the remainder of his body.

Kizito

At just sixteen years old, he became the youngest martyr to die. He is known for being courageous in his religious beliefs and for asking people to wake him up so he wouldn’t miss prayers. Kabaka Mwanga in Namugongo sentenced him to death, and Mukajanga burned him to death on June 3.

Bazzekuketta Anatanansio

When the white fathers arrived in Buganda, Anatanansio Bazzekuketta, a servant in Kabaka Mwanga’s palace, became a Christian. On May 27, 1886, he was cut to pieces in Nakivubo, where he was put to death.