A copy follows of the documentary record of the Enquiry into the death of John Chilembwe called by the Resident Magistrate Colin Grant at the Mulanje boma on the 4th February 1915, the day after John Chilembwe and his nephew Morris were both shot dead fleeing the hot pursuit of government forces and local bounty hunters, keen to claim the 20 pounds per capita reward authorized in a proclamation published on 27th January 1915.
This record of the Inquiry at Mulanje boma is deeply persuasive both in regard to its directness and the gravity and implications of its explicit content.
Private Thomas : "We received word at Makanamaba's after dark from Garnet Kaduya that he had got on the track of John Chilembwe and told us to come to him at his village. We slept at Makanamaba's and next day at daylight we went to Garnet. Eight of us went to Garnet and we told him let us go quickly. We then went with Garnet to the place to which he had followed the night before. We went on in the rain and found the place where the fugitives had slept. We then went on very quickly as we thought they might reach the Portuguese border. We went on to near a stream when we crossed a garden and were going down to the stream when three shots were fired at us. Then Lance Corporal Makanda fired a shot and wounded Morris through the back and then Kambalame fired and hit him through the ribs and then I fired and hit him in the breast. He fell at the first shot and got up again and tried to go on, he fell again at the second shot and again got up but the third shot killed him. John Chilembwe ran away to the right and the two children to the left. The others ran on after Chilembwe but the Sergeant shouted to me to go with Ndembe and cut off Morris' head, as we were going towards the body we heard shots fired in front and Ndembe said come on they are fighting again so he went on and joined the others. When we got there we found John Chilembwe dead. He had his boots on but his spectacles fell off when he was shot."
By Court. Did you know John Chilembwe by sight.
Answer. Yes. I was three years in Chiradzulu and had often seen him.
By Court. Then the body you brought in here today and which the Court has seen is that of John Chilembwe.
Answer. Yes it is his body. +++ The Identification of John Chilembwe's Body and its Secret Burial Author(s): David T. Stuart-Mogg Source: The Society of Malawi Journal, 2008, Vol. 61, No. 2 (2008), pp. 42-50
1Victor De Lion
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