Last King of Rwanda. Born Ndahindurwa, he was the son of King Yuhi V of Rwanda. Following his father's deposition in 1940, the future king followed him into exile into the Belgian Congo. After the former king's death in 1944, the young boy returned to Rwanda where he was baptized into the Roman Catholic Church, taking the name Jean Baptiste. Following the death of his elder half-brother King Mutara III, he acceded to the throne on July 28, 1959. His rule was brief however, as ethnic instability between the Hutu majority and Tutsi's, to which the king belonged, erupted shortly after his investiture. The Hutu Revolution began on November 1, 1959, marring the country with violence against the Tutsi minority. Nearly four-hundred thousand Tutsi's fled the country to escape the growing violence. Kigeli departed from Rwanda in July of 1960. While seeking arbitration from the United Nation's Secretary General, he took asylum in the bordering Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was there, on January 28, 1961 that the king received news that a coup d'état had occurred in Rwanda, abolishing the monarchy through a nation wide referendum. The deposed king was then arrested by the Belgian colonial authority and exiled to Tanganyika. For the next thirty years, the king lived in exile throughout various African nations until being granted asylum by the United States in 1992. He spent the last decades of his life living in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area in northern Virginia. During this time, he established the King Kigeli V Foundation, a humanitarian organization designed to provide aide to Rwandan refugees throughout the world.
Last King of Rwanda. Born Ndahindurwa, he was the son of King Yuhi V of Rwanda. Following his father's deposition in 1940, the future king followed him into exile into the Belgian Congo. After the former king's death in 1944, the young boy returned to Rwanda where he was baptized into the Roman Catholic Church, taking the name Jean Baptiste. Following the death of his elder half-brother King Mutara III, he acceded to the throne on July 28, 1959. His rule was brief however, as ethnic instability between the Hutu majority and Tutsi's, to which the king belonged, erupted shortly after his investiture. The Hutu Revolution began on November 1, 1959, marring the country with violence against the Tutsi minority. Nearly four-hundred thousand Tutsi's fled the country to escape the growing violence. Kigeli departed from Rwanda in July of 1960. While seeking arbitration from the United Nation's Secretary General, he took asylum in the bordering Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was there, on January 28, 1961 that the king received news that a coup d'état had occurred in Rwanda, abolishing the monarchy through a nation wide referendum. The deposed king was then arrested by the Belgian colonial authority and exiled to Tanganyika. For the next thirty years, the king lived in exile throughout various African nations until being granted asylum by the United States in 1992. He spent the last decades of his life living in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area in northern Virginia. During this time, he established the King Kigeli V Foundation, a humanitarian organization designed to provide aide to Rwandan refugees throughout the world.
Bio by: The Kentucky Hill Hunter
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