Biography
Anatoli Kiriggwajjo
About Anatoli Kiriggwajjo
Anatoli Kiriggwajjo was a Buganda court page. Paul VI’s account says he refused a royal promotion that threatened his Christian faith and encouraged his companions as they faced death.
Thomas’s historical concordance records his name as Kirigwajo, Anatoliyo Kirigwajo and Anatole Kirigwajjo, with his death on 3 June 1886.
The Catholic calendar published by the Archdiocese of Barcelona includes Anatoli among Charles Lwanga’s companions killed at Namugongo in 1886. Their commemoration falls on 3 June. John Paul II recalls their canonization by Paul VI on 18 October 1964.
At Namugongo in 2015, Pope Francis spoke of the martyrs’ continuing legacy. He remembered the Anglican martyrs too and urged listeners to carry their witness into homes, neighbourhoods and work. His homily connected that remembrance with forgiveness, care for vulnerable people and cooperation for a more just society. This was a call to the living community, rather than a further account of Anatoli’s personal deeds.
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