istoryworld
Events relating to africa
Madagascar becomes independent (under the name Malagasy republic from till 1975), with Philibert Tsiranana as president
Patrice Lumumba becomes prime minister of the newly independent Democratic Republic of the Congo, previously the Belgian Congo
The South West Africa People's Organization is founded to fight against South African control of Namibia
British and Italian colonies merge as the independent Somali republic, also known as Somalia, with Aden Abdullah Osman as president
Moise Tshombe, taking advantage of chaos in the Congo, declares the independence of Katanga
Anti-European riots in the Congo cause some 25,000 Belgians to flee the country
Nelson Mandela leads a new armed section of the ANC (African National Congress), formed in response to Sharpeville
The French colony of Dahomey (known from 1975 as Benin) becomes independent but suffers six military coups in its first twelve years
Niger becomes independent, with Hamani Diori as the new nation's first president
Kenyatta, still in prison, is elected leader of KANU, a new political party in Kenya
The French colony of Upper Volta becomes independent as Burkina Faso, with Maurice Yaméogo as president
Félix Houphouët-Boigny, first president of the newly independent Ivory Coast, begins thirty-three years of relatively peaceful rule
The French colony of Chad becomes independent with François Tombalbaye as president
The French colony of Gabon becomes independent with Léon M'ba as president
The French colony of Ubangi-Shari becomes independent and takes the name Central African Republic
The French Congo becomes independent as the republic of Congo, with Fulbert Youlou as president
Mobutu Sese Seko takes power in a military coup in the midst of chaos in the Congo
The French colony of Senegal becomes independent, with Léopold Senghor as the new nation's first president
Nigeria wins independence, with Abubakar Tafawa Balewa as prime minister, but its stability is threatened by tribal and regional factions
Patrice Lumumba, the dismissed prime minister of the Congo, is arrested on the orders of the army chief of staff, Mobutu Sese Seko
The French colony of Mauritania becomes independent, with Moktar Ould Daddah as president
Albert Luthuli, president of the ANC in South Africa, is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize
Patrice Lumumba is sent to Katanga, where he is murdered
Hassan II begins a 38-year reign as the king of Morocco
Former British colony Sierra Leone becomes an independent state within the Commonwealth
