Decolonisation of Africa
The decolonisation of Africa was a series of political developments in Africa that spanned from the mid-1950s to 1975, during the Cold War. Colonial governments gave way to sovereign states in a process often marred by violence, political turmoil, widespread unrest, and organised revolts. Major events in the decolonisation of Africa included the Mau Mau rebellion, the Algerian War, the Congo Crisis, the Angolan War of Independence, the Zanzibar Revolution, and the events leading to the Nigerian Civil War.[1][2][3][4][5]
Scramble for Africa: Africa in the years 1880 and 1913, just before the First World War
The Scramble for Africa between 1870 and 1914 was a significant period of European imperialism in Africa that ended with almost all of Africa, and its natural resources, claimed as colonies by European powers, who raced to secure as much land as possible while avoiding conflict amongst themselves. The partition of Africa was confirmed at the Berlin Conference of 1885, without regard for the existing political and social structures.[6][7]
Almost all the precolonial states of Africa lost their sovereignty. The only exceptions were Liberia, which had been settled in the early 19th century by formerly enslaved African-Americans and was recognized as independent by the United States in 1862[8] but was viewed by European powers as being in the United States' sphere of influence, and Ethiopia, which won its independence at the Battle of Adwa[9] but was later occupied by Italy in 1936.[10] Britain and France had the largest holdings, but Germany, Spain, Italy, Belgium, and Portugal also had colonies.[11]
By 1977, 50 African countries had gained independence from European colonial powers.[12][better source needed]
External causes
European colonies in Africa in 1939, the year World War II began
In the early 20th century, nationalism gained ground globally. Following the end of World War I, German, Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires according to the principles espoused in Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points. Though many anti-colonial intellectuals saw the potential of Wilsonianism to advance their aims, Wilson had no intention of applying the principle of self-determination outside the lands of the defeated Central Powers. The independence demands of Egyptian and Tunisian leaders, which would have compromised the interests of the victorious Allies, were not entertained. Though Wilsonian ideals did not endure as the interwar order broke down, the principle of an international order based on the self-determination of peoples remained relevant.
After 1919, anti-colonial leaders increasingly oriented themselves toward the Soviet Union's proletarian internationalism.[13]
Many Africans fought in both World War I and World War II. In World War I, African labor was essential on the Western Front, and African soldiers fought in the Sinai and Palestine campaign. Many Africans were not allowed to bear arms or serve on an equal basis with whites. The sinking of the SS Mendi in 1917 was a particularly tragic incident for Africans in the war, with 607 of the 646 crew killed being Black South Africans.[14] In the Second World War, Africans fought in both the European and Asian theatres of war.[15]
Approximately one million sub-Saharan Africans served in European armies in some capacity. Many Africans were compelled or even forced into military service by their respective colonial regimes, but some voluntarily enlisted in search of better opportunities than they could find in civilian employment.[16] This led to a deeper political awareness and the expectation of greater respect and self-determination, which went largely unfulfilled.[17] Because the victorious allied powers had no intention of withdrawing from their colonial holdings at the end of the war, and would instead need to rely on the resources and manpower of their African colonies during postwar reconstruction in Europe, the colonial powers downplayed Africans' contributions to the allied victory.[16]
On 12 February 1941, United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill met to discuss the post-World War II world. The result was the Atlantic Charter.[18] 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 out to be a widely acclaimed document.[19] Clause Three referred to the right to decide what form of government people wanted, and to the restoration of self-government.
Prime Minister Churchill argued in the British Parliament that the document referred to "the States and nations of Europe now under the Nazi yoke".[20] President Roosevelt regarded it as applicable across the world.[21] Anticolonial politicians immediately saw it as relevant to colonial empires.[22]
In 1948, three years after the end of World War II, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights recognised all people as being born free and equal.[23]
After World War II, the American and African colonies put pressure on Britain to abide by the terms of the Atlantic Charter.[citation needed] After the war, some Britons considered African colonies childish and immature.[citation needed] British colonisers introduced democratic government at local levels in the colonies.[citation needed] Britain was forced to agree but Churchill rejected the universal applicability of self-determination for subject nations.[citation needed]
Italy, a colonial power, lost its African empire, Italian East Africa, Italian Ethiopia, Italian Eritrea, Italian Somalia and Italian Libya, as a result of World War II.[24] Furthermore, colonies such as Nigeria, Senegal and Ghana pushed for self-governance as colonial powers were exhausted by war efforts.[25]
Comparison of 1950 Africa to 1960 Africa
The United Nations 1960 Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples stated that colonial exploitation is a denial of human rights, and that power should be transferred back to the countries or territories concerned.[26]
Internal causes
Colonial economic exploitation involved diverting resource extraction, such as mining, profits to European shareholders at the expense of internal development, causing significant local socioeconomic grievances.[27] For early African nationalists, decolonisation was a moral imperative around which a political movement could be assembled.[28][29]
In the 1930s, colonial powers cultivated, sometimes inadvertently, a small elite of local African leaders educated in Western universities, where they became familiar with ideas such as self-determination. Although independence was not encouraged, arrangements between these leaders and the colonial powers developed,[11] and such figures as Jomo Kenyatta (Kenya), Kwame Nkrumah (Gold Coast, now Ghana), Julius Nyerere (Tanganyika, now Tanzania), Léopold Sédar Senghor (Senegal), Nnamdi Azikiwe (Nigeria), Patrice Lumumba (DRC), António Agostinho Neto (Portuguese West Africa) now (Angola) and Félix Houphouët-Boigny (Côte d'Ivoire) came to lead the struggles for African nationalism.
By 1945, the Fifth Pan-African Congress demanded the end of colonialism, and delegates included future presidents of Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, and other nationalist activists.[30]
Transition to independence
Further information: Neocolonialism
Following World War II, rapid decolonisation swept across the continent of Africa as many territories gained their independence from European colonisation.
In August 1941, United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill met to discuss their post-war goals. In that meeting, they agreed to the Atlantic Charter, which in part stipulated that they would, "respect the right of all peoples to choose the form of government under which they will live; and they wish to see sovereign rights and self-government restored to those who have been forcibly deprived of them."[31] This agreement became the post-WWII stepping stone toward independence as nationalism grew throughout Africa.
Consumed by post-war debt, European powers could no longer afford to maintain control of their African colonies.[citation needed] This allowed African nationalists to negotiate decolonisation very quickly and with minimal casualties.[citation needed] Some territories, however, saw large death tolls as a result of their fight for independence.[citation needed]
Historian James Meriweather argues that American policy towards Africa was characterized by a middle road approach, which supported African independence but also reassured European colonial powers that their holdings would remain intact. Washington wanted the right type of African groups to lead newly independent states, in other words not communist and not especially democratic. Meriweather argues that nongovernmental organizations influenced American policy towards Africa. They pressured state governments and private institutions to disinvest from African nations not ruled by the majority population. These efforts also helped change American policy towards South Africa, as seen with the passage of the Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act of 1986.[32]
African countries that have gained independence
Country[a] Colonial name Colonial power[b] Independence date[c] First head of state[d] Independence won through
South Africa[e] Cape Colony
Colony of Natal
Orange River Colony
Transvaal Colony Transvaal Colony United Kingdom 31 May 1910[f] Louis Botha South Africa Act 1909
Remained under white minority rule until 1994.
Egypt[g] Sultanate of Egypt 28 February 1922[h] Fuad I[i] Egyptian revolution of 1919
Emirate of Cyrenaica British Military Administration United Kingdom 1 March 1949 Idris
United Kingdom of Libya British Military Administration
Fezzan-Ghadames Military Territory
Emirate of Cyrenaica United Kingdom
France France
Emirate of Cyrenaica 24 December 1951 Western Desert campaign
Libya[j] Italian Libya[k] Kingdom of Italy Italy
United Kingdom 24 December 1951 Idris Treaty of Peace with Italy, 1947
U.N. General Assembly Resolution 289[34]
Sudan Anglo-Egyptian Sudan United Kingdom[l]
Egypt 1 January 1956[m] Ismail al-Azhari[n] –[o]
Tunisia[p] Tunisia French Tunisia France
United Kingdom 20 March 1956 Muhammad VIII al-Amin
Habib Bourguiba –[q]
Morocco Morocco French Morocco
Tangier International Zone
Spanish Morocco
Spanish West Africa
Ifni France
Spain 2 March 1956[r]
7 April 1956
10 April 1958
4 January 1969
14 November 1975
27 February 1976 Mohammed V Ifni War
Ghana[s] Gold Coast United Kingdom 6 March 1957[t] Kwame Nkrumah[u] 1956 Gold Coast general election
Guinea French West Africa France 2 October 1958 Ahmed Sékou Touré 1958 Guinean constitutional referendum
Cameroon Kamerun
French Cameroon
British Cameroon German Empire
France
United Kingdom 4 March 1916
1 January 1960[v]
1 October 1961 Karl Ebermaier
Ahmadou Ahidjo
John Ngu Foncha –[w]
Togo French Togoland
Togoland
France 27 April 1960 Sylvanus Olympio –
Mali French West Africa 20 June 1960[x] Modibo Keïta –
Senegal Léopold Sédar Senghor –
Madagascar[y] French Madagascar 26 June 1960 Philibert Tsiranana –[z]
Democratic Republic of the Congo[aa] Belgian Congo Belgium 30 June 1960 Joseph Kasa-Vubu Belgo-Congolese Round Table Conference[ab]
Somalia[ac] British Somaliland
Trust Territory of Somaliland United Kingdom
Italy 26 June 1960
1 July 1960[ad] Muhammad Haji Ibrahim Egal
Aden Adde –
Benin Republic of Dahomey Benin Republic of Dahomey
Portugal Fort of São João Baptista de Ajudá France France
Portugal Portugal 1 August 1960
31 July 1961[36] Hubert Maga
Benin[ae] French West Africa France 1 August 1960 Hubert Maga –
Niger 3 August 1960 Hamani Diori –
Burkina Faso[af] 5 August 1960 Maurice Yaméogo –
Ivory Coast 7 August 1960 Félix Houphouët-Boigny –
Chad French Equatorial Africa 11–12 August 1960 François Tombalbaye –
Central African Republic 13 August 1960 David Dacko –
Republic of the Congo 14–15 August 1960 Fulbert Youlou –
Gabon 16–17 August 1960 Léon M'ba –
Nigeria Colonial Nigeria
British Cameroon United Kingdom 1 October 1960
1 June 1961
1 October 1961[ag] Nnamdi Azikiwe –
Mauritania French West Africa France 28 November 1958
28 November 1960 Moktar Ould Daddah –
Sierra Leone Sierra Leone Colony and Protectorate United Kingdom 27 April 1961 Milton Margai –
Tanganyika[ah] Tanganyika Territory 9 December 1961 Julius Nyerere –
Burundi[ai] German East Africa
Ruanda-Urundi German Empire
Belgium 1 July 1919
1 July 1962 Mwambutsa IV of Burundi –
Rwanda Yuhi V Musinga
Grégoire Kayibanda Rwandan Revolution
Algeria French Algeria France 5 July 1962 Ahmed Ben Bella[aj] Algerian War
Évian Accords
Uganda Protectorate of Uganda United Kingdom 9 October 1962 Milton Obote –
Kenya British East Africa 12 December 1963[ak] Jomo Kenyatta[u] –[al]
Sultanate of Zanzibar[ah] Sultanate of Zanzibar 10 December 1963 Jamshid bin Abdullah –[am]
Malawi Nyasaland 6 July 1964[an] Hastings Banda[u] –
Zambia Northern Rhodesia 24 October 1964 Kenneth Kaunda –
The Gambia Gambia Colony and Protectorate 18 February 1965[ao] Dawda Jawara[u] –
Rhodesia
Zimbabwe Southern Rhodesia 11 November 1965 (As Rhodesia)[ap]
18 April 1980 (As Zimbabwe) Ian Smith
Robert Mugabe Unilateral Declaration of Independence
Lancaster House Agreement
Botswana Bechuanaland Protectorate 30 September 1960 – 1966[aq] Seretse Khama –
Lesotho Basutoland 4 October 1966 Leabua Jonathan[ar] –
Mauritius Mauritius 12 March 1968 Seewoosagur Ramgoolam –
Eswatini Swaziland 6 September 1968 Sobhuza II –
Equatorial Guinea Kamerun
French Cameroon
French Equatorial Africa
British Cameroon
Spanish Guinea German Empire
France
United Kingdom
Spain 4 March 1916
1 January 1960
16–17 August 1960[as]
1 October 1961
12 October 1968 Karl Ebermaier
Ahmadou Ahidjo
Léon M'ba
John Ngu Foncha
Francisco Macías Nguema –
Guinea-Bissau Portuguese Guinea Portugal 24 September 1973
10 September 1974 (recognised)
5 July 1975[at] Luís Cabral
João Bernardo Vieira
Aristides Pereira
Pedro Pires Guinea-Bissau War of Independence
Mozambique[au] Portuguese Mozambique 25 June 1975 Samora Machel Mozambican War of Independence
Cape Verde Portuguese Cape Verde 5 July 1975 Aristides Pereira[av] Guinea-Bissau War of Independence[aw]
Comoros French Comoros France 6 July 1975 Ahmed Abdallah 1974 Comorian independence referendum
São Tomé and Príncipe Portuguese São Tomé and Príncipe Portugal 12 July 1975 Manuel Pinto da Costa –
Angola[ax] Portuguese Angola 11 November 1975 Agostinho Neto Angolan War of Independence
Seychelles Crown Colony of the Seychelles United Kingdom 29 June 1976 James Mancham –
Djibouti French Territory of the Afars and the Issas France 27 June 1977 Hassan Gouled Aptidon 1977 Afars and Issas independence referendum
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic[ay] Spanish Sahara
Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara
Western Tiris Spain
Morocco
Mauritania 27 February 1976
independence not yet effected El-Ouali Mustapha Sayed
Mohamed Abdelaziz Western Sahara War
Western Sahara conflict
Namibia South West Africa South Africa 27 October 1966 (de jure)[38]
21 March 1990 Sam Nujoma U.N. Security Council Resolution 269
South African Border War
Eritrea Italian Eritrea
Eritrea Province Italian Empire
Ethiopian Empire 15 September 1952
(Federated with Ethiopia)[39]
24 May 1993
independence) Isaias Afwerki Eritrean war of Independence
British Empire
The British Empire in 1959
British decolonisation in Africa. By 1980, each British colony was decolonized.
Ghana
Main article: History of Ghana
On 6 March 1957, Ghana (formerly the Gold Coast) became the first sub-Saharan African country to gain its independence from European colonisation.[40] Starting with the 1945 Pan-African Congress, the Gold Coast's (modern-day Ghana's) independence leader Kwame Nkrumah made his focus clear. In the conference's declaration, he wrote, "We believe in the rights of all peoples to govern themselves. We affirm the right of all colonial peoples to control their own destiny. All colonies must be free from foreign imperialist control, whether political or economic."[41]
In 1948, three Ghanaian veterans were killed by the colonial police on a protest march. Riots broke out in Accra and though Nkrumah and other Ghanaian leaders were temporarily imprisoned, the event became a catalyst for the independence movement. After being released from prison, Nkrumah founded the Convention People's Party (CPP), which launched a wide-scale campaign in support of independence with the slogan "Self Government Now!"[42] Heightened nationalism within the country grew their power and the political party widely expanded.
In February 1951, the CPP gained political power by winning 34 of 38 elected seats, including one for Nkrumah who was imprisoned at the time. The British government revised the Gold Coast Constitution to give Ghanaians a majority in the legislature in 1951. In 1956, Ghana requested independence inside the Commonwealth, which was granted peacefully in 1957 with Nkrumah as prime minister and Queen Elizabeth II as sovereign.[43]
Winds of Change
Prime Minister Harold Macmillan gave the famous "Wind of Change" speech in South Africa, in February 1960, where he spoke to the country's Parliament of "the wind of change blowing through this continent."[44] Macmillan urgently wanted to avoid the same kind of colonial war that France was fighting in Algeria. Under his premiership, decolonisation proceeded rapidly.[45]
Britain's remaining colonies in Africa, except for Southern Rhodesia, were all granted independence by 1968. British withdrawal from the southern and eastern parts of Africa was not a peaceful process. Kenyan independence was preceded by the eight-year Mau Mau Uprising. In Rhodesia, the 1965 Unilateral Declaration of Independence by the white minority resulted in a civil war that lasted until the Lancaster House Agreement of 1979, which set the terms for recognised independence in 1980, as the new nation of Zimbabwe.[46]
Britain has moved to return its last British-occupied possession in Africa by signing a formal agreement in 2025 transferring sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius. Under the terms of the agreement, the strategic atoll of Diego Garcia and its 38-kilometre buffer zone are immediately returned to Mauritius. This agreement allows for the continued operation of the joint Anglo-American base on Diego Garcia.[47]
Belgium
Equestrian statue of Leopold II of Belgium, the sovereign of the Congo Free State from 1885 to 1908, Regent Place in Brussels, Belgium
Belgium controlled several territories and concessions during the colonial era, principally the Belgian Congo (modern DRC) from 1908 to 1960 and Ruanda-Urundi (modern Rwanda and Burundi) from 1922 to 1962. It also had a small concession in China (1902–1931) and was a co-administrator of the Tangier International Zone in Morocco.
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