In 1942, General Anders' Army was evacuated from the USSR, and with it some 40,000 civilians managed to reach Iran. As a result of agreements between the Polish Government in London and the English authorities, refugee settlements were established for civilians in India, East and South Africa, Mexico and New Zealand. One of the African countries that took in Polish refugees was the then Tanganyika (now Tanzania).
The largest settlement of Polish refugees in Africa was in Tengeru. It was home to nearly 5,000 people. The settlement functioned between 1942 and 1955, with 3 primary schools, a mechanical school, a merchant's gymnasium, a tailor's gymnasium, a secondary agricultural school and a junior and senior high school. There were also 2 orphanages and an old people's home.
DFor those who died of exhaustion from exile and long wandering and from illness, a Polish cemetery was established, where at least 153 people were laid to rest; 148 tombstones remain today. Most of the deceased were of the Catholic faith, a few of the Orthodox and Mosaic faiths. The first burials date back to 1942, so to the early period of the Polish community's stay in Africa. The last burials were still made in the 1960s. The cemetery covers an area of 1656 m2 and is surrounded by a brick fence with a metal entrance gate. The fence covers the area of two cemeteries: a Catholic-Orthodox one and a Mosaic one. To the right of the entrance is a chapel bearing the coats of arms of the largest Polish cities. To the left of the gate, a red and white plaque with the inscription: "CMENTARY OF POLISH WAR REFUGEES / CEMETERY OF POLISH WAR REFUGEES / TENGERU 1942-1952".
Ahead of the cemetery entrance is a terrazzo obelisk on which a brass plaque informs in three languages (Polish, Swahili and English): , "Cemetery of Polish Exiles 1942-1952"; an altar also stands here. Near the cemetery, Poles built a church, and on its wall one can read the Polish inscription, "Panno Święta, co Jasna bronisz Czestochowa i w Ostrej Bramie".
Cemetery has been renovated many times. It was cared for by local Poles and Polish missionaries of the Franciscan Fathers. In 2001, with a grant from the Council for the Protection of Struggle and Martyrdom Sites, a wall with a padlocked gate and a Memorial Chamber building were erected. A paved road was brought to the cemetery. In 2009, the cemetery was renovated and cleaned by members of the Student Scientific Circle of the Pedagogical University of Krakow. The last renovation was carried out in 2018 with funds from the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage in cooperation with the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Dar-es-Salaam, which takes permanent care of the cemetery.
Information about the settlement in Tengeru and the cemetery can be found in the publication "Zmarli Polacy w drodze do Ojczyzny. Polskie cmentarze w Afryce Wschodniej i Południowej 1942-1952" by Hubert Chudzio and Marcin Solarz, Kraków 2020 and on the website: https://polskiecmentarzewafryce.up.krakow.pl/.