Liberia–United Kingdom relations
Liberia |
United Kingdom |
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Liberia–United Kingdom relations refer to the bilateral relations between
History
After Liberia gained independence in 1847, the United Kingdom became the first country to acknowledge its sovereignty in 1848.[1] During much of his first term, President Joseph Jenkins Roberts spent time traveling Europe and the Caribbean, making state visits to gain recognition for his newly independent nation. During Roberts' 1848 visit to England, Queen Victoria received President Roberts and his wife, on board one of the Queen's Royal ships, and they were greeted with a seventeen-gun salute.[2] The United Kingdom gifted Liberia two British schooners for their navy.[1]
Territorial disputes
In the decades following independence, Liberia and the United Kingdom developed more antagonistic relations, both financially in the form of loan conditions as well as territoriality between the Republic of Liberia and the
In 1882, British Governor of Sierra Leone
In 1903, the border between the Colony of Sierra Leone and Liberia was adjusted by agreement. Further adjusting of the border happened in the Anglo-Liberian convention of 21 January 1911, in which the northern and southern borders were readjusted to have greater congruence with natural features as well as tribal divisions. Adjustments continued with agreements made in 1917 and 1930.[6]
Economic entanglement
Economic problems involving a lack of funds for developing and industrializing Liberia's agricultural economy and its interior became pressing during the Roye administration.[7] This is what caused President Roye to send two representatives of the Liberian government to negotiate a £100,000 loan with a British bank operated by British Consul-General in Liberia, David Chinery. The loan was successfully negotiated, however, it ultimately hurt the Liberian economy due to the loan's uneven terms, such as large deductions limiting the amount of money the Liberian government actually received.[7][8] The loan is credited as a key factor for the 1871 coup d'état which overthrew President Roye.[8]
In 1906, under President
Yet another major loan was negotiated in 1911, under President Arthur Barclay, and ratified in 1912, under President
At the onset of World War II, Liberia's economic ties with the United Kingdom threatened its neutrality early in the conflict. The United Kingdom wanted to get rid of German economic influence in Liberia, though by the early 1940s, Germany did not have much influence over Liberia. The United Kingdom ordered the Bank of Monrovia to stop handling German accounts.[13]
Involvement in military
The Liberian Frontier Force (LFF) was made a legal reality in 1907. Under the conditions of the 1906 loan, the LFF was to be led by the British. In 1908, the LFF was modelled after the West African Frontier Force. Many of the initial soldiers of the LFF were Sierra Leonean British subjects, with personal allegiances to the British officer of the LFF, Major R. MacKay Cadell. Cadell saw himself as being under the command of the British Receiver Generals in charge of customs revenue, rather than the Liberian government. Cadell held a number of civil offices while still a part of the LFF, including chief of police, as which he replaced many Liberian policemen with Sierra Leonean soldiers. In 1909, Major Cadell attempted a coup against the Liberian government, with the pretext of his soldiers not being paid. After the Liberian government deployed militiamen to prevent Cabell's coup, Cabell surrendered. In 1912, the Liberian government pursued military men from the United States to lead the LFF, instead of those from the United Kingdom.[14]
Recent relations
In 2006, former Liberian President Charles Taylor, was set to be tried by an international tribunal for war crimes in the Sierra Leone Civil War. The United Kingdom agreed that if he were convicted, Taylor could be imprisoned in Britain. The request had been made by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, to facilitate the holding of the trial.[15] After Taylor's conviction in 2012, he was imprisoned in HM Prison Frankland.[16]
The most recent state visit from the United Kingdom to Liberia was on 23 November 1961, in which
See also
- Foreign relations of Liberia
- Foreign relations of the United Kingdom
- Embassy of Liberia, London
- Liberia–Sierra Leone relations
References
Citations
- ^ a b c American Colonization Society 1884, p. 6.
- ^ Gates & Higginbotham 2008, pp. 620–621.
- ^ Dunn, Beyan & Burrowes 2000, p. 141.
- ^ American Colonization Society 1884, p. 8.
- ^ a b Dunn, Beyan & Burrowes 2000, p. 22.
- ^ United States. Department of State. Office of the Geographer 1972, pp. 2–4.
- ^ a b Duva 2002.
- ^ a b Van Der Kraaij, Fred P.M. "The 1871 loan: Prelude to a coup-d'etat". Liberia Past and Present. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- ^ Nevin 2011, p. 280.
- ^ Van Der Kraaij, Fred P.M. "President Arthur Barclay (1904–1912) The 1906 Loan: Foreigners in strategic positions". Liberia Past and Present. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- ^ a b Dunn, Beyan & Burrowes 2000, p. 216.
- ^ Van Der Kraaij, Fred P.M. "President Arthur Barclay (1904–1912) The 1912 Loan: More foreigners appointed". Liberia Past and Present. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- ^ Akingbade 1985, p. 26.
- ^ Nevin 2011, pp. 280–281.
- ^ "UK agrees to jail Charles Taylor". 15 June 2006. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- ^ Johnson 2020.
- British Royal Family. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- British Royal Family. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- ^ "Our Mission". Embassy of Liberia, London. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- ^ "British Ambassador to the Republic of Liberia Neil Bradley". Government of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
Bibliography
- American Colonization Society (1884). England and Liberia. Washington, D.C.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Akingbade, Harrison (1985). "U.S. Liberian Relations during World War II". Phylon. 46 (1). Atlanta, Georgia: JSTOR 274943. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- Dunn, Elwood D.; Beyan, Amos J.; Burrowes, Carl Patrick (2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9781461659310.
- Duva, Anjali Mitter (2002). "The Lone Star: The Story of Liberia". PBS. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- Gates, Henry Louis; Higginbotham, Evelyn Brooks (2008). The African American National Biography: Moore, Lenny-Romain. Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-516019-2.
- "INWARD STATE VISITS SINCE 1952" (PDF). British Royal Family. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- Johnson, Obediah (2020). "Liberia: Charles Taylor Fears Losing Life in Prison Due to COVID-19; Request to Serve Remaining Term in a Safe Country Denied". FrontPage Africa. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- Nevin, Timothy D. (2011). "The Uncontrollable Force: A Brief History of the Liberian Frontier Force, 1908—1944". The International Journal of African Historical Studies. 44 (2). Boston, Massachusetts: JSTOR 23046881. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- "Outward State Visits Since 1955" (PDF). British Royal Family. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- United States. Department of State. Office of the Geographer (1972). International Boundary Study No. 129 (PDF).
- Van Der Kraaij, Fred P.M. "The 1871 loan: Prelude to a coup-d'etat". Liberia Past and Present. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- Van Der Kraaij, Fred P.M. "President Arthur Barclay (1904–1912) The 1906 Loan: Foreigners in strategic positions". Liberia Past and Present. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- Van Der Kraaij, Fred P.M. "President Arthur Barclay (1904–1912) The 1912 Loan: More foreigners appointed". Liberia Past and Present. Retrieved 8 August 2022.