Decolonisation of Africa

Dates of independence of African countries

The Decolonisation of Africa followed World War II, when colonised people agitated for independence and colonial powers withdrew their administrators from Africa.[1]

Background

Areas of Africa controlled by European colonial powers in 1913, shown along with current national boundaries.
  French
  German
  Independent

During the Scramble for Africa in the late nineteenth century, Western European powers divided Africa and its resources into colonies at the Berlin Conference of 1884-85.[2][3] By 1905, control of almost all African soil was claimed by Western European governments, with the only exceptions being Liberia (which had been settled by African-American former slaves) and Ethiopia (which had successfully resisted colonisation by Italy).[4] Britain and France had the largest holdings, but Germany, Spain, Italy, Belgium, and Portugal also had colonies. As a result of colonialism and imperialism, a majority of Africa lost sovereignty and control of natural resources such as gold and rubber. The introduction of imperial polices surfacing around local economies led to the failing of local economies due to an exploitation of resources and cheap labor.[5]

Causes

On February 12, 1941, United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill met to discuss the postwar world. The result was the Atlantic Charter.[6] It was not a treaty and was not submitted to the British Parliament or the Senate of the United States for ratification, but it turned to be a widely acclaimed document.[7] One of the provisions, introduced by Roosevelt, was the autonomy of imperial colonies. After World War II, the US and the African colonies put pressure on Britain to abide by the terms of the Atlantic Charter. After the war, some British considered African colonies to be childish and immature; British colonisers introduced democratic government at local levels in the colonies.

By the 1930s, the colonial powers had cultivated, sometimes inadvertently, a small elite of leaders educated in Western universities and familiar with ideas such as self-determination. In some cases where the road to independence was fought, settled arrangements with the colonial powers were also being placed.[5] These leaders came to lead the struggles for independence, and included leading nationalists such as Jomo Kenyatta (Kenya), Kwame Nkrumah (Gold Coast, now Ghana), Julius Nyerere (Tanganyika, now Tanzania), Léopold Sédar Senghor (Senegal), Nnamdi Azikiwe (Nigeria), and Félix Houphouët-Boigny (Côte d'Ivoire).

One of the leaders Nkrumah strived towards independence and pan Africanism. Under British colonization and influence from indigenous elites Nkrumah endured innumerable amount of challenges towards full liberation.[8] In 1947 the elites established United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) with the influence of British government. Through the UGCC, Nkrumah revealed his opposition towards the British by setting up newspapers, schools, and youth organizations in order to gain support from the community. After verbal and political attack from the UGCC, Nkrumah created his own movement known as the Convention Peoples Party (CPP). Through his nonviolent movement and his legislative victory in 1951, the British soon realized that Nkrumah will continue to fight towards full decolonization. Through the issues of neocolonialism, the United States suggest for Ghana and other independent states to align with them economically and politically in order to suppress colonialism.[9] Although Nkrumah efforts towards black unity, economic and political success was his goal, different views from fellow elites, a large amount of debt, and armed forces against decolonization became evident issues constructed from the European nations. In 1972, Nkrumah died of cancer and his plot towards Ghana's full independence withered away as well during his passing.[9]

Timeline

This table is the arranged by the earliest date of independence in this graph; 58 countries have seceded.

Country[10] Colonial name Colonial power[11] Independence date[12] First head of government Independence won through
 Liberia Commonwealth of Liberia American Colonization Society 26 July 1847 Joseph Jenkins Roberts Liberian independence referendum, 1846
South Africa Union of South Africa Cape Colony
Colony of Natal
Orange River Colony
Transvaal Colony Transvaal Colony
 United Kingdom 31 May 1910[13] Louis Botha South Africa Act 1909
 Kingdom of Egypt[14] Sultanate of Egypt 28 February 1922[15] Fuad I Egyptian Revolution of 1919
Emirate of Cyrenaica British Military Administration 1 March 1949 Idris I Western Desert Campaign
United Kingdom of Libya British Military Administration
Military Territory of Fezzan-Ghadames
Emirate of Cyrenaica
 United Kingdom
 French Fourth Republic
Emirate of Cyrenaica
24 December 1951
Republic of Sudan Anglo-Egyptian Sudan  United Kingdom[17]
Republic of Egypt
1 January 1956 Ismail al-Azhari Egyptian Revolution of 1952
Kingdom of Tunisia French Protectorate of Tunisia  French Fourth Republic 20 March 1956 Muhammad VIII al-Amin
Habib Bourguiba
-[19]
 Morocco French Protectorate in Morocco
Tangier International Zone
Spanish Protectorate in Morocco
Spanish West Africa
Ifni
 French Fourth Republic
 Francoist Spain
2 March 1956[20]
7 April 1956
10 April 1958
4 January 1969
Mohammed V Ifni War
Ghana  Gold Coast  United Kingdom[21] 6 March 1957 Kwame Nkrumah -
 Guinea  French West Africa  French Fourth Republic 2 October 1958 Sékou Touré Guinean constitutional referendum, 1958
 Cameroon French Cameroons
British Cameroons
 France
 United Kingdom
1 January 1960[22]
1 June 1961
1 October 1961
Ahmadou Ahidjo -[23]
 Togo French Togoland  France 27 April 1960 Sylvanus Olympio -
Mali French West Africa 20 June 1960[24] Modibo Keita -
 Senegal Léopold Senghor -
Malagasy Republic French Madagascar 26 June 1960 Philibert Tsiranana
Republic of the Congo  Belgian Congo  Belgium 30 June 1960 Patrice Lumumba Belgo-Congolese Round Table Conference
Somali Republic  British Somaliland
Trust Territory of Somaliland
 United Kingdom
 Italy
26 June 1960
1 July 1960[25]
Aden Abdullah Osman Daar -
Republic of Dahomey  French West Africa  France 1 August 1960 Hubert Maga -
 Niger 3 August 1960 Hamani Diori -
 Upper Volta 5 August 1960 Maurice Yaméogo -
 Ivory Coast 7 August 1960 Félix Houphouët-Boigny -
 Chad  French Equatorial Africa 11 August 1960 François Tombalbaye -
 Central African Republic 13 August 1960 David Dacko -
 Republic of the Congo 15 August 1960 Fulbert Youlou -
 Gabon 17 August 1960 Léon M'ba -
 Nigeria Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria
British Cameroons
 United Kingdom 1 October 1960
1 June 1961
1 October 1961[26]
Nnamdi Azikiwe -
 Mauritania  French Equatorial Africa  France 28 November 1960 Moktar Ould Daddah -
 Sierra Leone Sierra Leone Protectorate  United Kingdom 27 April 1961 Milton Margai -
 Tanganyika[27] Tanganyika Territory 9 December 1961 Julius Nyerere -
 Kingdom of Burundi Ruanda-Urundi  Belgium 1 July 1962 Ntare V -
Republic of Rwanda Grégoire Kayibanda Rwandan Revolution
 Algeria French Algeria  France 3 July 1962 Ahmed Ben Bella Algerian War
Uganda Protectorate of Uganda  United Kingdom 9 October 1962 Milton Obote -
Kenya Colony and Protectorate of Kenya 12 December 1963 Jomo Kenyatta Mau Mau Uprising
Sultanate of Zanzibar[27] Sultanate of Zanzibar 10 December 1963 Jamshid bin Abdullah -[28]
 Malawi  Nyasaland 6 July 1964 Hastings Kamuzu Banda -
 Zambia  Northern Rhodesia 24 October 1964 Kenneth Kaunda -
The Gambia Gambia Colony and Protectorate 18 February 1965 Dawda Kairaba Jawara -
 Rhodesia
 Zimbabwe
 Southern Rhodesia 11 November 1965
17 April 1980[29]
Ian Smith
Robert Mugabe
Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence
Lancaster House Agreement
 Botswana Bechuanaland Protectorate 30 September 1966 Seretse Khama -
Kingdom of Lesotho Territory of Basutoland 4 October 1966 Leabua Jonathan -
Mauritius Mauritius 12 March 1968 Veerasamy Ringadoo -
 Swaziland Swaziland 6 September 1968 Sobhuza II -
Republic of Equatorial Guinea Spanish Territories of the Gulf of Guinea  Francoist Spain 12 October 1968 Francisco Macías Nguema -
 Guinea-Bissau Overseas Province of Guinea  Portugal 24 September 1973 Luís Cabral Guinea-Bissau War of Independence
People's Republic of Mozambique State of Mozambique 25 June 1975 Samora Machel Mozambican War of Independence
Republic of Cape Verde Overseas Province of Cape Verde 5 July 1975 Aristides Pereira Guinea-Bissau War of Independence[30]
Union of the Comoros French Comoros  France 6 July 1975 Ahmed Abdallah Comorian independence referendum, 1974
 São Tomé and Príncipe Overseas Province of São Tomé and Príncipe  Portugal 12 July 1975 Manuel Pinto da Costa -
People's Republic of Angola State of Angola 11 November 1975 Agostinho Neto Angolan War of Independence
Republic of Seychelles Seychelles  United Kingdom 29 June 1976 James Richard Marie Mancham -
Djibouti Republic of Djibouti France French Territory of the Afars and the Issas France French Fifth Republic 27 June 1977 Hassan Gouled Aptidon Afars and Issas independence referendum, 1977
 Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic[31] Spanish Sahara
Southern Provinces
 Francoist Spain
 Morocco
27 February 1976
independence not yet effectuated
El-Ouali Mustapha Sayed
Mohamed Abdelaziz
Western Sahara War
Western Sahara conflict

See also

Notes

  1. Birmingham, David (1995). The Decolonization of Africa. Routledge. ISBN 1-85728-540-9.
  2. "Berlin Conference of 1884-1885". http://www.oxfordreference.com. Retrieved 11 January 2015. External link in |website= (help)
  3. "A Brief History of the Berlin Conference". http://teacherweb.ftl.pinecrest.edu. Retrieved 11 January 2015. External link in |website= (help)
  4. Evans, Alistair. "Countries in Africa Considered Never Colonized". http://africanhistory.about.com. Retrieved 11 January 2015. External link in |website= (help)
  5. 1 2 Hunt, Michael (2017). The World Transformed 1945 to the Present. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 264. ISBN 9780199371020.
  6. "The Atlantic Conference & Charter, 1941". https://history.state.gov. Retrieved 26 January 2015. The Atlantic Charter was a joint declaration released by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill on August 14, 1941 following a meeting of the two heads of state in Newfoundland. External link in |website= (help)
  7. Karski, Jan (2014). The Great Powers and Poland: From Versailles to Yalta. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 330. ISBN 9781442226654. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
  8. Hunt, Michael (2014). The World Transformed 1945 to the Present. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 264.
  9. 1 2 Hunt, Michael (2014). The World Transformed 1945 to the Present. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 267–268.
  10. Explanatory notes are added in cases where decolonization was achieved jointly by multiple countries or where the current country is formed by the merger of previously decolonized countries.
  11. Some territories changed hands multiple times, so in the list is mentioned the last colonial power. In addition, the mandatory or trustee powers are mentioned for territories that were League of Nations mandates and UN Trust Territories.
  12. The dates of decolonization for territories annexed by or integrated into previously decolonized independent countries are given in separate notes.
  13. The Union of South Africa was constituted through the South Africa Act entering into force on 31 May 1910. On 11 December 1931 it got increased self-governance powers through the Statute of Westminster which was followed by transformation into republic after the 1960 referendum. Afterwards, South Africa was under apartheid regime until elections resulting from the negotiations to end apartheid in South Africa on 27 April 1994 when Nelson Mandela became president.
  14. Transcontinental country, partially located in Asia.
  15. On 28 February 1922 the British government issued the Unilateral Declaration of Egyptian Independence. Through this declaration, the British government unilaterally ended its protectorate over Egypt and granted it nominal independence with the exception of four "reserved" areas: foreign relations, communications, the military and the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan.[16] The Anglo–Egyptian treaty of 1936 reduced British involvement, but still was not welcomed by Egyptian nationalists, who wanted full independence from Britain, which was not achieved until the 1952 revolution. The last British troops left Egypt after the Suez Crisis of 1956.
  16. King, Joan Wucher (1989) [First published 1984]. Historical Dictionary of Egypt. Books of Lasting Value. American University in Cairo Press. pp. 259–260. ISBN 978-977-424-213-7.
  17. Anglo-Egyptian Condominium Agreement of 1899, stated that Sudan should be jointly governed by Egypt and Britain, but with real power remaining in British hands.[18]
  18. Robert O. Collins, A History of Modern Sudan
  19. See Tunisian independence.
  20. Cape Juby was ceded by Spain to Morocco on 2 April 1958. Ifni was returned from Spain to Morocco on 4 January 1969.
  21. The British Togoland mandate and trust territory was integrated into Gold Coast colony on 13 December 1956.
  22. After the French Cameroun mandate and trust territory gained independence it was joined by part of the British Cameroons mandate and trust territory on 1 October 1961. The other part of British Cameroons joined Nigeria.
  23. Minor armed insurgency from Union of the Peoples of Cameroon.
  24. Senegal and French Sudan gained independence on 20 June 1960 as the Mali Federation, which dissolved a few months later into present day Senegal and Mali.
  25. The Trust Territory of Somalia (former Italian Somaliland) united with the State of Somaliland (former British Somaliland) on 1 July 1960 to form the Somali Republic (Somalia).
  26. Part of the British Cameroons mandate and trust territory on 1 October 1961 joined Nigeria. The other part of British Cameroons joined the previously decolonized French Cameroun mandate and territory.
  27. 1 2 After both gained independence Tanganyika and Zanzibar merged on 26 April 1964.
  28. The Sultanate of Zanzibar would later be overthrown within a month of sovereignty by the Zanzibar Revolution.
  29. Due the Rhodesia's unwillingness to accommodate the British government's request for black majority rule, the United Kingdom (along with the rest of the international community) refused to recognize the white-minority led government. The former self-governing colony would not be recognized as an independent state until the aftermath of the Rhodesian Bush War, under the name Zimbabwe.
  30. Although the fight for Cape Verdean independence were linked to the liberation movement occurring in Guinea-Bissau, the island country itself saw little fighting.
  31. The Spanish colonial rule de facto terminated over the Western Sahara (then Spanish Sahara), when the territory was passed on to and partitioned between Mauritania and Morocco (which annexed the entire territory in 1979). The decolonization of Western Sahara is still pending, while a declaration of independence has been proclaimed by the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic, which controls only a small portion east of the Moroccan Wall. The UN still considers Spain the legal administrating country of the whole territory,[32] awaiting the outcome of the ongoing Manhasset negotiations and resulting election to be overseen by the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara. However, the de facto administrator is Morocco (see United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories).
  32. UN General Assembly Resolution 34/37 and UN General Assembly Resolution 35/19

References

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