✦ History

Decolonisation of Africa

December 24, 1951 – November 11, 1975

Process in which almost all African colonies became independent, from Libya in 1951 to the Portuguese colonies in 1975; 1960 alone brought independence to 17 countries.

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Battles and events 5

October 7, 1952 – January 12, 1960
Mau Mau uprising Nyeri, central Kenya Jomo Kenyatta
November 1, 1954 – March 19, 1962
Algerian War of Independence Algeria Charles de Gaulle, Houari Boumédiène, Mohamed Boudiaf
October 23, 1957 – June 30, 1958
Ifni War Spanish Sahara Francisco Franco
February 4, 1961 – April 25, 1974
Portuguese Colonial War Carnation Revolution Portuguese Angola José Eduardo dos Santos, Agostinho Neto, Lúcio Lara
July 4, 1964 – December 12, 1979
Rhodesian Bush War Lancaster House Agreement Rhodesia Samora Moisés Machel, Robert Mugabe, P. W. Botha

Key commanders

France 6

Charles de Gaulle belligerent leader Pierre Mendès France belligerent leader Guy Mollet belligerent leader Jacques Massu military commander Paul Aussaresses military commander Raoul Salan military commander

FLN 8

Houari Boumédiène belligerent leader Mohamed Boudiaf belligerent leader Rabah Bitat belligerent leader Ahmed Ben Bella belligerent leader Ferhat Abbas belligerent leader Krim Belkacem belligerent leader Larbi Ben M'hidi belligerent leader Didouche Mourad military commander

Mau Mau 1

Jomo Kenyatta Nationalist leader, Jailed by the British as an alleged leader; later Kenya's first president

Spain 1

Francisco Franco belligerent leader

MPLA 11

José Eduardo dos Santos belligerent leader Agostinho Neto belligerent leader Lúcio Lara belligerent leader Aristides Pereira belligerent leader João Bernardo Vieira belligerent leader Luís Cabral belligerent leader Joaquim Chissano belligerent leader Samora Moisés Machel belligerent leader Amílcar Cabral belligerent leader Álvaro Holden Roberto military commander Jonas Malheiro Savimbi military commander

Portugal 5

Américo Tomás belligerent leader António de Spínola belligerent leader Francisco da Costa Gomes belligerent leader António de Oliveira Salazar belligerent leader Marcelo Caetano belligerent leader

Zimbabwe African National Union 5

Samora Moisés Machel belligerent leader Robert Mugabe belligerent leader Oliver Tambo belligerent leader Herbert Chitepo military commander Josiah Tongogara military commander

Southern Rhodesia 5

P. W. Botha belligerent leader B. J. Vorster belligerent leader Ian Smith belligerent leader P. K. van der Byl military commander Peter Walls military commander

Other 1

Kwame Nkrumah Led Ghana to independence in 1957