Welcome to Kampala, the capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper is divided into five political divisions, and its wider metropolitan area spreads into several neighbouring districts. Kampala is the economic heart of the country: in 2015 its metropolitan area generated more than half of Uganda's entire GDP. It is also one of the fastest-growing cities in Africa. Our tour takes us from the royal tombs of the Buganda kings to churches, a temple and a great mosque on the city's hills, so let us begin.
Kasubi Tombs
Photo: not not phil from SF, CA, US · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia CommonsBefore you lie the Kasubi Tombs, the burial grounds of four kabakas, the kings of Buganda, and other members of the royal family. The site remains an important spiritual and political place for the Ganda people. When it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001, it was described as one of the most remarkable buildings made of purely vegetal materials in all of sub-Saharan Africa. In March 2010 a fire almost completely destroyed some of the major buildings. The kingdom vowed to rebuild, and after restoration in 2023 the site was removed from the list of World Heritage in Danger.
Uganda Museum
Photo: Lindaneruba · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia CommonsWelcome to the Uganda Museum, the oldest museum in East Africa. It was officially established in 1908, after Governor George Wilson called for all articles of interest about Uganda to be collected. The museum began in a small Sikh temple at Fort Lugard on Old Kampala Hill, before the collections outgrew it. Inside you will find ethnological, natural history and traditional life exhibits, from hunting equipment and weaponry to archaeology and insects. Best of all, many of the musical instruments on display are playable.
Basilica of the Uganda Martyrs
Photo: Tusk media · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia CommonsAbout 17 kilometres northeast of central Kampala, at Namugongo, stands the Basilica of the Uganda Martyrs, a Catholic minor basilica dedicated to the Ugandan Martyrs. Groundbreaking took place in 1965 and the building was completed in 1968. The shrines here were first recognised by Joshua Serufusa-Zake, a local chief, who built a structure on the site where shrines for prayer were later raised. Curiously, he was born in 1884, just a year before the killings of the Uganda Martyrs began. This is a place of deep devotion, so please visit quietly.
Kampala Baháʼí Temple
Photo: Bxtst · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia CommonsOn the outskirts of Kampala stands the Baháʼí House of Worship known to Baháʼís as the mother Temple of Africa. Dedicated in 1961, it was the third Baháʼí House of Worship in the world to be completed, and at that time it was the tallest building in East Africa. Interestingly, the third temple was first meant to be built in Tehran, but persecution of Baháʼís in Iran in 1955 made that impossible. Instead, Kampala was chosen, partly for its location at what was called the heart of the African continent.
Uganda National Mosque
Photo: Tusk media · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia CommonsLook up at the minaret of the Uganda National Mosque, which at 50.5 metres defines the city's skyline. Standing on Kampala Hill in Old Kampala, this is the largest mosque in East Africa. It holds up to 15,000 worshippers, with room for more in the gallery and the courtyard. Construction began in 1972 under Idi Amin but halted in 1976, and for years it seemed the mosque might never be finished. It was finally completed in 2006 as a gift from the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, and for some time it carried his name.
Namirembe Cathedral
Photo: Tusk media · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia CommonsClimb Namirembe Hill, about 2 kilometres west of the city centre, to reach Saint Paul's Cathedral, known locally as Namirembe Cathedral. It is the oldest Anglican cathedral in Uganda and the cathedral of Namirembe Diocese, the first diocese of the Church of Uganda, founded in 1890. This hill has been the site of the main Anglican place of worship in Buganda since Bishop Alfred Tucker set up his diocesan offices here that same year. Remarkably, the cathedral you see is not the first: misfortune struck the first four church structures built on this spot.
Lomakuume
