East AfricaCommand was a Command of the British Army. Until 1947 it was under the direct control of the Army Council and thereafter it became the responsibility of Middle East Command. The formation was an expansion of the East Africa Force which came into being in August 1940. It was reformed as a Command in September 1941 by General Sir William Platt and covered North East Africa, East Africa and British Central Africa. Until 1944 it directed the British Military Mission to Ethiopia. It established its own intelligence network during the Mau Mau Uprising in 1952. During the repression of the Mau Mau the command controlled the 39th Infantry Brigade, 49th Infantry Brigade and the 70th Infantry Brigade. Later the 70th Brigade became the basis for the independent Kenya Army. Other units listed in the Kenya Regiment history as being in Kenya from 1952-56 include the Battle School, Tracker School, Kenya Regiment TF, Kenya Regiment Training Centre and Heavy Battery. Police organisations listed included the Kenya Police, Kenya Police Reserve, Kenya Police Reserve Air Wing, Auxiliary Forces, Dobie Force and General Service Units. KAR battalions listed included 3 KAR, 4 KAR, 5 KAR, 6 KAR, 7 & 23 KARs, 26 KAR, 156 East African Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery RA and the East African Armoured Car Squadron. There were a total of eleven British infantry battalions, 39 Corps Engineer Regiment RE, 73 Indian Fieldd Engineer Squadron RE, Road building Section RE, Royal Army Veterinary Corps Tracker Dogs, RAMC Unit Hospital Nairobi, Nyeri, Nanyuki, plus 1340 Flight RAF, possibly other RAF Harvard units and Lincoln units. The 24th Infantry Brigade remained in Kenya until 1964 and the command maintained a common intelligence system linking Tanganyika, Uganda and Kenya until 1964 at least. Timothy Parsons wrote This did not prevent trouble breaking out on 24 January 1964 in the lines of 11th Kenya Rifles at Lanet Barracks near Nakuru. The uprising was quickly repressed and courts-martial ordered; the unit was eventually disbanded. East Africa Command was disbanded in 1964 and replaced by British Land Forces Kenya.
Commanders-in-Chief
Commanders-in-Chief have included: GOC East Africa Force
