Tombs of Buganda Kings at Kasubi 

These tombs are a 26.8-hectare site located within Kampala City's Kasubi hillside.

Traditional and cultural activities have been preserved at the location, which serves as a primary spiritual center for the Baganda. The Kasubi Tombs are the most active religious site in the kingdom, with ceremonies being performed on a regular basis. Its status as the burial site for the past four kings (Kabakas) qualifies it as a religious center for the royal family, a location where the Kabaka and his representatives perform key Buganda culture ceremonies. The site serves as a hub for maintaining communication with the spiritual realm.

Its spatial organization, which begins with the typical bark cloth trees at the site's border, continues through the gatehouse, the main courtyard, and culminates in the massive thatched building containing the tombs of the four Kabakas, is the best extant example of a Baganda palace/burial complex.

The main tomb edifice, commonly known as the "Muzibu-Azaala-Mpanga," is a masterpiece of this ensemble and is located on the mountaintop. Since the 13th century, there has been a tomb structure. The old palace of the Kabakas of Baganda, completed in 1882 and converted into the royal burial ground in 1884, was the most recent structure. The Muzibu-Azaala-Mpanga presently contains four royal graves.

The main tomb building, which is round and has a dome atop it, is a remarkable example of an architectural achievement built with vegetal materials such as wooden poles, spear grass, reeds, and wattle. Its extraordinary scale and exquisite features attest to the Baganda's creative talent, and as a work of art in form and craftsmanship, it is an uncommon surviving example of an architectural style produced by the mighty Buganda Kingdom since the 13th century.

The Kasubi Tombs site's constructed and natural components are imbued with historical, traditional, and spiritual significance. The site serves as a key spiritual center for the Baganda and is the kingdom's most active religious site. The structures and traditional behaviors associated with the site are one of the most unique displays of African culture that depicts a live tradition's continuance.

The site's principal significance stems from the Baganda people's intangible qualities of beliefs, spirituality, continuity, and identity. For Uganda and East Africa as a whole, the site is a significant historical and cultural emblem.

The Tombs of Buganda Kings at Kasubi were named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001.

(Source UNESCO)