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Welsh Guy wants to colonise the Congo
The River Congo was so full of rapids and had a broad estuary so sailors hadn't managed to get more than 100km up the river. I was the Welsh explorer Henry Morton Stanley whose expedition in 1967, setting off from Zanzibar on the other coast of Africa , reached the West Coast mouth of the Congo -
King Leopold of Belgium wants Congo
On Stanley's return to Europe in 1878 no one wanted to colonise the Congo except Leopold II of Belgium. King Leopold counln't convince any of his subjects to back his colonial scheme so he funded it personally, with his own wealth. He ruled convo with notable brutality , much to the profit of slave traders in Zanzibar. -
Belgium Government Takes Congo
The Belgian Government took over the administration of Congo from King Leopold in 1908. The colony was visited by many missionaries and it became mainly Roman Catholic. The great majority of schools were religious foundations -
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Belgian Congo during the Second World War
During World War 2 some Congolese troops fought with the British army in Ethiopia . The mines of the Congo became the main supplier of uranium to the USA. It was uranium from Congo that was used in the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki -
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Nationalist Political Parties Gather Strength
ABAKO ( Alliance des Bakongo) , a party representing the interests of the Baking peoples of the coastal regions.
MNC (Movement National Congolais) -
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Nationalism - The 2 Separate Paths
Nationalism in Congo had developed in the 1950s along two different paths.
One was a united Congo, free from Belgian rules- the MNC and Lumumba followed this path.
The second path was based on regional and ethnic lines , determined to protect local interests even at the expense of national unity. The ABAKO party of Kasavubu travelled this path. -
Belgian Authorities start losing control, try to stop ABAKO form meeting, cause Riots
Much of the ABAKO-dominated ( lower Congo ) areas out of control of Belgian government. Belgium tried to prevent ABAKO from meeting, led to large-scale rioting in Leopoldville. -
The Belgian Authorities cause more Rioting
The Belgian Government announced reforms intended to bring more Congolese into government but only in an advisory capacity. This only caused more unrest and there was further rioting in Stanleyville in Oct 1959 after a meeting of the Movement National Congolais (MNC) at which its leader Patrice Lumumba , was arrested and detained -
Round Table Conferences in Brussels
the Belgians held a Round Table Conference in Brussels in for the leaders of the different Congolese parties. The MNC demanded that Lumumba should be released from prison so that he could attend.The Belgians agreed to independence but tried to negotiate for a transitional period of 3-4 years.The Congolese insisted that independence should be granted Immediately . The most that they would concede to the Belgians was a few months . -
Elections Are Held
Elections were held in May 1960.The MNC won the election and its leader Patrice Lumumba was nominated by the party to be the first Prime Minister of Independent Congo. Joseph Kasavubu of the ABAKO party was elected President -
Belgian Congo becomes the Republic of Congo
The Belgian Congo became the Republic of Congo, however almost all 100,000 Belgians who were in the Congo in the 1950s - Doctors, Engineers, Teachers, Military Officers , Civil Servants- fled in alarm at the fighting, leaving all administrative jobs be filled at very short notice by the Congolese. Before independence just 100 Congolese were university graduates and there were none with a higher rank than Sergeant in the Congolese Army -
King Baudouin of Belgium Visits- and is not well received
King Baudouin of Belgium arrived on a visit to attend the independence ceremony Lumumba was not due to speak but he did so anyway His words were angry ones and were not at all welcome to the King or his party He spoke in praise of the independence struggle of " tears fire and blood " He attacked the colonial regime of Belgium for its " injustice oppression and exploitation" He declared to the King " We are no longer your monkeys". Hi words were well received by the Congolese. -
Katanga tries to declare Independence.
The province of Katanga in the SE of Congo , declared its independence. The state was lead by Moise Tshombe , head of the local nationalist party , who was supported by Belgian business interests and over 6000 Belgian Troops.
The whole of Congo's national income depended on the copper, gold and uranium deposits in the region. Lumumba requested UN intervention or he would have to request help from the USSR. The UN sent troops the next day but ordered not to intervene in internal politics -
South Kasai tries to declare freedom too
The state of South Kasai , another mineral rich area with many mines, declared that it wanted to split from Congo. Lumumba was determined to prevent this and, dissatisfied with the UN turned to the USSR for help.They agreed immediately and airlifted Congolese troops into South Kasai. In the bloody campaign that followed , many locals were killed and hundreds of thousands became refugees. -
UN intervenes more in Katanga.
Lumumba wanted the UN forces to crush the rebellion in Katanga but Dag Hammarskjold ( UN Secretary General) disagreed. In his view, the secession of Katanga was an internal matter in Congo. UN intervention would therefore constitute a breach of its Charter. A UN Security Council decision in August 1960 explicitly allowed UN forces to enter Katanga , but not to intervene in internal Congolese politics -
Prime Minister Lumumba is dismissed
The USA was furious with Lumumba for asking for help from the USSR. Faced with this emergency President Kasavubu dismissed Prime Minister Lumumba from office. -
Joseph Mobutu Seizes Power
,Joseph Mobutu , Chief of Staff in the Congolese Army , led a mutiny and seized power. He payed the mutineers himself with financial support from Belgium and the US. Both countries thought that Mobutu would bring order . The USA was determined to support any regime that seemed willing and able to resist communism and it also wanted the uranium, diamond,cobalt and copper. Belgium wanted to secure its interests and counter international criticism of its performance as a colonial power. -
Patrice Lumumba is Killed
In January 1961 , forces from the Province of Katanga , with Belgian officers present, took away and executed Patrice Lumumba. -
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The UN Decides What To Do in February- and doesn't do much for the next Six Months
The worsening situation in Congo after Lumumba's death was discussed at a UN Security Council. The USSR called for Secretary General Dag Hammarskjold to resign blaming him for Lumumba;s death. Hammarskjold refused. UN authorisation for its troops in Congo to use " all appropriate measures..to prevent civil war in the Congo including..the use of force in the last resort" was issued in February . For the next six months it focused on political negotiations between the factions and used no force. -
The UN uses force on the Congo
As it became clear that Katanga had no intention of ending its attempt to break away from the Congo, UN forces eventually launched major military operation. At the end of August and in September they attacked the army of Katanga concentrating on the expulsion of foreign mercenaries . -
Moise Tshombe flees
Tshombe fled the country and went to Ndola in Northern Rhodesia ( now called Zambia) -
UN Secretary General Hammarskjold Dies
In a personal effort to negotiate a ceasefire with Tshombe ,Hammarskjold set off on a night flight to Ndola on 17 September. The plane crashed and all aboard were killed . Although there were numerous inquiries , no evidence was found to suggest that there was an assassination attempt on the UN Secretary General. -
UN launches Attack on Katanga
After months of inconclusive military operations , the UN finally launched a decisive attack on Katanga in December 1962. -
UN Peacekeeping Operation In Katanga Ends
In January 1963, the UN flag flew over Elizabethville, the main town in Katanga. The UN Peacekeeping operation to Katanga was over after 3,5 years. Thousands had been killed, wounded or made homeless.
Significance
Stopped breaking away of Katanga, kept Congo united and restored Congo with the revenue of its wealthiest province
Demonstrated that UN was prepared to act decisively even in situations complicated by the Cold War.
It showed that the UN would try negotiating before using force. -
Simba Rebels Crisis
In 1964 there was a new crisis.Simba Rebels took over areas of eastern Congo including Stanleyville, the regions main town. They executed thousands of Congolese. The Government of Congo , supported by hundreds of mercenaries attacked the rebels. In response they took many hostages of the local white population -
US sends help to rescue the whites being held hostage by the Simba Rebels
Belgian paratroops , transported by the US Air Force were called in tho rescue the hostages. They succeed in rescuing almost all of them, and over the next few days over 1800 Americans and Europeans as well as 400 Congolese were evacuated. The sight of foreign troops and white mercenaries intervening once again was a huge humiliation for Prime Minister Tshombe -
Mobutu Seizes Power- Again
Mobutu brought order and a form of stability to Congo after he seized power in a coup from President Kasavubu in November 1965 -
The Congo changes its name
Instead of the Republic of Congo the country changed its name to the Democratic Republic of Congo -
Mobutu is Completely Unopposed
By 1970 Mobutu had effectively eliminated all opposition to his rule . -
The Congo Changes its Name - Again
From the Democratic Republic of Congo the name was changed to Zaire -
The Congo changes its name - Again
Zaire returned to its former name - the Democratic Republic of Congo