A review of For Love of Soysambu -The Saga of Lord
Delamere & His Descendants in Kenya by Juliet Barnes, Old Africa Books,
Navaisha, Kenya, 2020.
The title says it all, this is a comprehensive documentation
of the trials and tribulations – and successes – of the Delamere family of
Kenya. The first Lord Delamere – D as he was called – set the stage with his
outsized personality and utter devotion to making Kenya a viable entity, both
agriculturally and politically. D was an
early settler arriving in what was to become Kenya in 1897. D acquired vast tracks of land and spent the
present-day equivalent of tens of millions of dollars over the next 35 years in
trying to adapt the land to make it productive for crops and livestock. Amidst many failures he enjoyed some successes
and paved the way for others to succeed.
Indeed, he is the father of modern agriculture in East Africa. Prominently,
he was a thorn in the side of the colonial government because he ardently
agitated for European settler rights.
Lord Delamere’s descendants: his son Tom, his grandson Hugh,
his great grandson Tom, and great great grandson Hugh all inherited D’s mantle
and mystique of aristocracy, money (whether or not there was any) and
audaciousness. They all figure in this saga. They successively faced economic
barriers posed by WWI, the Great Depression, WWII, Mau Mau, Independence, or
present-day politics. Under their
various suzerainties, the home estate of Soysambu, several tens of thousands of
acres in Kenya’s Great Rift Valley, prospered or didn’t, but it remained the
family strong hold which it still is today.
In addition to detailing the economics and politics of past
years author Barnes strings the story along by focusing on familial
relationships, multiple marriages, liaisons, and friendships. It behooves the
reader to have some understanding of Kenyan history and its settler society:
the Happy Valley crowd and Lord Erroll’s murder, in order to put the saga into
context. Lacking such context readers
might well be puzzled by all the intertangled personages. Similarly, the book
lacks maps. If one does not know Kenya’s geography, figuring out where the
various properties are located is bewildering. A map of Soysambu itself showing
the locations of the various abodes discussed would also be useful.
Author Barnes drew extensively on conversations with Hugh
(D’s grandson and the current Lord). She splices his (and wife Anne’s) comments
into the chronological stream as it progresses.
This provides a bit of a seesaw effect but certainly adds candid
perspective.
A penultimate chapter in the book covers two deaths
perpetrated by Tom (D’s great grandson).
First a Kenyan official was shot when conducting an apparently illegal
raid, thought to be a robbery. After months in prison, Tom was not prosecuted
for the death. Secondly, a year later Tom and a companion shot at poachers. One
subsequently died. Because of his lineage and the fact that he was white there
was again much public bruhaha over the death. Tom was convicted of this death and served
time in prison. I found it interesting that in a book replete with hundreds of
names of individuals who figured into the Delamere saga that author Barnes did
not name the companion present during the second death. Certainly, Barnes knew
who was there. The man subsequently testified at the public trial but is never
named in the book. Research reveals that
the man was Carl Tundo whose parents lived on Soysambu and were friends of the
Delameres and the author. There is no explanation
as to why he was not mentioned in the book.
Throughout the book the fate of the vast lands of Soysambu
figure time and again. Is it a farm, a ranch, a game preserve, a bird sanctuary
or what? In its current configuration the estate is legally a conservancy
designed to protect wildlife while allowing some cattle ranching. The surrounding area is increasingly
subdivided into small barely viable plots.
Whether or not Soysambu can withstand the land hunger and political
pressures of modern Kenya remains to be seen.
In conclusion For Love of Soysambu is an intriguing
book. It melds together history, scandal, politics, conservation, agriculture,
and the changing spectacle of Kenya. I enjoyed it.
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