| West African Independence | |
[Gazetteer Index page]
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Guinea Official name: Republic of Guinea Independence from France: 1959 Despite opposition by the resident Muslim empire, France made Guinea a colony in 1890 -- part of the trade-off between France and Britain over African territories. Independence was achieved in 1959. (A Portuguese backed coup failed in 1970.) |
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Guinea-Bissau Official name: Republic of Guinea-Bissau Independence from Portugal: 1974 Following Portuguese exploration in the 15th century, Portuguese Guinea finally became a colony in 1897. War for independence started in 1960, and independence was achieved in 1974. (It was the first Portuguese colony to gain independence.) |
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Ivory Coast Official name: Republic of the Ivory Coast Independence from France: 1960 Originally one of the great trading empires of West Africa, the region was made the French colony of Côte d'Ivoire in 1893. The Malinke empire of the interior resisted the French until 1918. Towards the end of the 1940's French rule became excessively oppressive. In 1958 it became a French Republic and in 1960 it achieved independence. |
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Liberia Official name: The Republic of Liberia Never a colonial territory Formed by over 22,000 slaves liberated (hence the name) from the USA during the 19th century, Liberia was established as an independent republic in 1847. |
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Mali Official name: Republic of Mali Independence from France: 1960 Once the home a major trans-Saharan empire based on the trade of salt and gold, this area was colonized by the French in the 1880's. Independence was achieved in 1960. |
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Mauritania Official name: Islamic Republic of Mauritania Independence from France: 1960 At the end of the first millennium this region was the western extreme of the trade routes across the Sahara and was populated by the Adrar, famous for their date plantations. By the time the empire of Mali was prospering, the coastal regions were home to nomadic Berber and eventually became part of the Islamic Almoravid state. Portuguese explorers visited and documented the area but decided to travel on. Portuguese raiders however obtained slaves from the area from the fifteenth century. Mauritania became a French colony in 1814. Independence was achieved in 1960. |
West Africa: [Benin - Ghana], [Guinea - Mauritania], [Niger - Togo]
[Gazetteer Index page]
