This location lies approximately 14 kilometres (8.7 mi), by road, southwest of the central business district of Kampala, the capital of Uganda and the largest city in that country.

It was founded by His Majesty's Acting Commissioner of the Uganda Protectorate, George Wilson and the Church Missionary Society.

[3] In late March 1979, the college staff evacuated the students and the remaining civilian population of Budo hill due to the Uganda–Tanzania War.

Soon after, the Tanzania People's Defence Force (TPDF) and Ugandan rebels attacked and overran the camp[4] as part of Operation Dada Idi.

[4] The TPDF consequently used the King's College Budo as base, and when it was reopened in June 1979, the students coexisted with the Tanzanian soldiers until the latter withdrew from Uganda.