Mau Mau Uprising Kikuyu.. This was coupled with a relaxation of the ban on native Kenyans growing coffee, a primary cash crop. In the cities the colonial authorities decided to dispel tensions by raising urban wages, thereby strengthening the hand of moderate union organisations like the KFRTU. By 1956, the British had granted direct election of native Kenyan members of the Legislative Assembly, followed shortly thereafter by an increase in the number of local seats to fourteen. A Parliamentary conference in January 1960 indicated that the British would accept "one person—one vote" majority rule. The uprising was, in David Anderson's words, "a story
Operation Anvil (Mau Mau Uprising) In the weeks preceding the operation rumors circulated among the African population that Nairobi was due to be subjected to a security sweep. Some insurgents moved to the outskirts of the city and were thus outside the cordoned area. On 04:30 on 24 April British forces initiated Operation Anvil, sealing off every road and track leading in or out of Nairobi. Government forces then surrounded locations which were home to substantial Kikuyu populations in the city such as Makongeni, Bahati, Kariokor, Ziwani, and Pumwani, thus preventing any Mau Mau from escaping. Informers disguised with hoods identified suspected rebels to the