A small memorial in the city centre commemorates John Chilembwe, the Baptist pastor and educator who led the 1915 uprising against British colonial rule — the first organised African revolt in the protectorate. Chilembwe is one of the most important figures in modern Malawian history, and his face appears on every banknote in the country.
The memorial itself is modest — a bust on a plinth and an inscription — but the Chilembwe story is the obvious entry point for anyone interested in pre-independence politics. Zomba was the colonial capital at the time of the uprising and the centre of the British response; the connection between the city's gracious avenues and the violent suppression of the revolt is part of what makes Zomba interesting to walk through.