About the tombs:
The Kasubi tombs belong to the Buganda Kings (Buganda Kingdom) in the central parts of Uganda. The tombs at Kasubi constitute a site covering about 30 hectares of hillside within Kampala district – Kampala is the capital city of Uganda.
Most of the site is agricultural, farmed by traditional methods. At its core on the hilltop is the former palace of the Kabakas (Kings) of Buganda, constructed in 1882 and converted into the royal burial ground in 1884. Four royal tombs now rest within the Muzibu Azaala Mpanga, the main building, which is circular and capped by a dome.
It is a major example of an architectural achievement in organic materials, principally wood, thatch, reed, wattle and daub. The site’s main significance lies, however, in its intangible values of belief, spirituality, continuity and identity.
Nestled on Kasubi hill, within Kampala, the Kasubi Tombs site is an active religious place in the Buganda Kingdom, currently the largest of the traditional kingdoms in Uganda. The site is the major spiritual centre for the Baganda people (tribe) where traditional and cultural practices have been preserved.
It is the most active religious place in the kingdom, where rituals are frequently performed. As stated above, Kasubi tombs site is the burial ground for the previous four kings (Kabakas) of Buganda; thus qualifying as a religious centre for the royal family, a place where the Kabaka and his representatives carry out important rituals related to Buganda culture. The site represents a place where communication links with the spiritual world are maintained.
Its spatial organization, starting from the border of the site marked with the traditional bark cloth trees, leading through the gatehouse, the main courtyard, and culminating in the large thatched building, residing the tombs of the four Kabakas, represents the best existing example of a Baganda palace/burial site.
To the millions of Baganda people, the Kabaka (King) is definitely the symbol of the spiritual, political, and social state of the Buganda Kingdom.
As the burial ground for the previous four Kabakas, therefore, the Kasubi Tombs are a place where the Kabaka and others in Buganda’s complex cultural hierarchy frequently carry out important centuries-old Ganda rituals.
A miserable history about the Kasubi Tombs:
16th March 2010 was a downhearted day to the people of Buganda Kingdom (Baganda) as the Kasubi tombs site was struck by a ruinous disaster of fire outbreak.
The mausoleum and largest grass-thatched hut in the world was set on fire and was totally destroyed. The cause of the fire outbreak is still unknown up to date regardless of the investigations that broke out immediately after the disaster.
Fortunately, not all of the structures were completely destroyed; the remains of the four Kabakas (Kings) were intact as the inner sanctum of the tombs was protected from total destruction.
On 17th March 2010, His Majesty the Kabaka of Buganda, Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II, and the President of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, visited the site of the tombs. Hundreds of people did also travel to the site to help rescue any remains.
A tourist site:
In 2014, restoration efforts aided by the Japanese government started and were successful. As such, this is still an active spiritual site and is still open to tourists.
On a Kampala city tour, the Kasubi tombs site is one of the top points of interest as you get to learn and know more about the Buganda Kingdom and all its belongings not forgetting the woeful history about the tombs.
Provided there’s no traffic jam, accessing the Kasubi Tombs site takes like 15 minutes’ drive from Kampala city center and less than 50 minutes’ drive from Entebbe, where Uganda’s airport – the Entebbe International Airport nestles.