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Jomo Kenyatta on Obverse of 1966 Kenyan Gold Proof 250 Shillings
Obverse of 1966 Kenyan Gold Proof 250 Shillings
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Father of the Kenya Nation' on Reverse of 1966 Kenyan Gold Proof 250 Shillings
Reverse of 1966 Kenyan Gold Proof 250 Shillings

A Brief History of Kenya
Kenya is an African Republic and former British colony located on the central eastern coast of Africa, bordering Tanzania, Uganda, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Somalia. Its capital is Nairobi.

Pre-colonial History
During the first century AD, Arab traders established trade links with local villages on the Kenyan coast. In around the 8th Century, Arab and Persian Merchants began to establish settlements along the coast, such as Malindi and Mombassa, from which they continued to trade with native villages within the interior. They also introduced Islam into the area.
Parts of what is now Kenya once belonged to the Kilwa Sultanate, a medieval sultanate emanating from Kilwa in Tanzanir between the 10th and the 16th Centuries, when the Sultanate collapsed.
The Sultanate of Zanzibar took over the coastal settlements on the East Coast, including Mombasa and Malindi.

British Protectorate
The first European colonisers of Kenya were the Germans, who established a protectorate over the Sultanate of Zanzibar’s mainland coastal possessions in 1885, whilst Britain established a protectorate over the island of Zanzibar itself (thus permanently severing the link between Zanzibar and what would later become the Kenyan coast).
In 1890, Britain negotiated with Germany for control over the coastal territories in exchange for British holdings in Tanganyika. Five years later, the East Africa Protectorate was established, encompassing the land which is now Kenya.
From 1895, Britain began constructing railways to increase access to the interior, and to Britain’s neighbouring colonial possessions. This gave the protectorate a means to develop its economy and to modernise. Indians from British India began to settle in the coastal cities and established themselves as merchants and artisans, and white settlers also arrived in huge numbers to establish farms in the fertile lands within the interior. During the First World War, Kenya served as military base for British forces campaigning against German forces in neighbouring German East Africa. During the course of the war, hundreds of thousands of Kenyan natives joined the British Army as part of the Carrier Corps and the Kings African Rifles, and their service broke down tribal barriers which would become an important factor later establishing the idea of a Kenyan demos.

Kenyan Colony
Following the First War, people in Kenya (or more specifically, the white settlers in Kenya) demanded more of a say in local affairs. As a result of this lobbying, the East African Protectorate was disestablished and the Colony of Kenya (named after Mount Kenya) created in 1920. Europeans were then allowed to elect representatives to the legislative council. Black and Indian residents were largely excluded from this process.
During World War II, Kenya once again became a frontier against Britain’s enemies, and served as a base for launching a campaign into Italian Somaliland and Italian-occupied Ethiopia. Many Kenyans joined the British army during this period, often serving in the King’s African Rifles. The pay they earned in the British Army was more than they had typically been able to earn in civilian life before the war, and discharged veterans often found themselves thrown back into the relative poverty that they had endured before the war.

Mau Mau Rebellion and Independence
Resentment between the native population and the colonial authorities reached a head in 1952 (the same year that Elizabeth II was informed that she had become Queen at the Treetops Hotel in Kenya), and a rebellion led by a man called Dedan Kimathi broke out. The period of the rebellion, known as ‘the Kenyan Emergence’ saw brutal actions and reprisals on both sides. The British forces, employing a native unit known as the Kikuyu Home Guard (consisting of loyalist natives) rounded up suspected Mau-Mau rebels and confined them in prison camps, where they were often subjected to beatings and on occasion, summary executions. The Mau Mau for their part also committed atrocities against fellow Kikuyu and civilians, as well as white settlers.
The rebellion began to disintegrate as Dedan Kimathi began to turn on his own followers, and many Mau-Mau defected to the British and Loyalist cause, he was eventually arrested in 1956. He was put on trial, found guilty and hanged for his crimes the following year.
The rebellion thereafter slowly petered out and effectively ended in 1960. Three years later, Kenya was granted independence.

Post-Independence
In 1964, Kenya became a republic, governed by Jomo Kenyatta, first Prime Minister, and then President of Kenya. Kenyatta ruled over a fractious country in which he attempted (largely unsuccessfully) to keep white settlers and Indians from leaving the country. Kenyatta died in office in 1978, and was succeeded by his vice president, Daniel Arap Moi.
Moi eventually consolidated his power and turned Kenya into what was in effect a dictatorship governed with an iron fist for the benefit of himself and his allies. A coup attempt in 1982 failed to oust him. However, as the Kenyan economy continued to deteriorate and Moi stepped up his persecution of the majority Kiyuki population (Moi is a member of the minority Kalenjin people) opposition to his rule grew.
He was eventually compelled by opposition and a constitutional amendment to step down in 2002. 2007 elections were marred by political violence. A grand coalition was formed after negotiations in 2008 to enact constitutional reform to reduce the likelihood of political violence in the future.

Coinage of Kenya
During the time of the Kilwa Sultanate, copper fals circulated in what is now Kenya. Trade links with the Arab world ensured that coins from the Arab world were used as a trade medium, at least in the coastal cities. During British Colonial Rule, British East Africa initially used Indian Rupees, but in 1921 the British East Africa shilling was introduced. Unlike its English equivalent (to which it was equal to) the East Africa shilling was considered to be the primary unit of account, and was divided into 100 cents.
Coins of 1, 5, 10, 50 cents and 1 shilling were struck for circulation.
In 1966, the East Africa shilling was replaced at par in Kenya with the Kenyan shilling, which was also divided into 100 cents. Upon the introduction of this currency, coins of 5, 10, 25, 50 cents and 1, 2 shillings were issued. Coins below 1 shilling have since been discontinued and today, coins of 1, 5, 10 and 20 shillings are struck for use in circulation. In 2003, a special commemorative issue 40 shilling was struck to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Kenyan independence.
Between 1967 and 1978, the coinage of the Kenyan Republic featured a regal-style coinage with President Jomo Kenyatta portrayed on the obverse, and President Daniel Arap Moi on the coins dated from 1980-2005. Since 2005, the portrait of Jomo Kenyatta has been restored on the obverse of the Kenyan coinage.

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Kenyan Coins

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Kenyan Gold Coins



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