Kenya Colony

Colony and Protectorate of Kenya
1920–1963
Ensign of the Colony and Protectorate of Kenya Badge
Anthem: God Save the King (1920–1952) God Save the Queen (1952–1963)
Map of British East Africa in 1909
Status	British colony
Capital	Nairobi
Common languages	English (official) Swahili, Kikuyu, Kamba, Luhya, Luo, Gusii, Meru, Nandi–Markweta, Somali, Arabic
Government
• Governor of the Kenya Colony	Edward Northey (first)
• Governor of the Kenya Colony	Malcolm MacDonald (last)
• Governor of the Protectorate of Kenya	Ali bin Salim Al-Busaidi (1920–1940)
• Governor of the Protectorate of Kenya	Mbarak bin Ali Al-Hinawy (1940–1959)
Legislature	Legislative council
History
• Colony established	23 July 1920
• Protectorate established	29 November 1920
• Self-rule	1 June 1963
• Independent as Kenya	12 December 1963
Area
1924	639,200 km2 (246,800 sq mi)
Population
• 1924	2,807,000
• 1931	3,040,940
• 1955	6,979,931
• 1960	8,105,440
Currency	East African florin (1920–21) East African shilling (1921–60)
Preceded by Succeeded by East Africa Protectorate 1924: Italian Trans-Juba 1963: Dominion of Kenya
Today part of	Kenya Somalia

The Colony and Protectorate of Kenya, commonly known as British Kenya or British East Africa, was a colony part of the British Empire located in East Africa from 1920 until 1963. It was established when the former East Africa Protectorate was transformed into a British Crown colony in 1920. Technically, the "Colony of Kenya" referred to the interior lands, while a 16-kilometre (9.9 mi) coastal strip, nominally on lease from the Sultan of Zanzibar, was the "Protectorate of Kenya", but the two were controlled as a single administrative unit. The colony came to an end in 1963 when a native Kenyan majority government was elected for the first time and eventually declared independence.