Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville)
Republic of the Congo (1960–1964) République du Congo Democratic Republic of the Congo (1964–1971) République démocratique du Congo | |||||||||
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1960–1971 | |||||||||
Motto: "Justice – Paix – Travail" (French) "Justice – Peace – Work" | |||||||||
Anthem: Debout Congolais (French) Arise, Congolese | |||||||||
Capital | Kinshasa (named Léopoldville before 1966) | ||||||||
Common languages | |||||||||
Government | Federal parliamentary republic (1960–1964) Unitary parliamentary republic (1964–1965)
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Joseph-Desiré Mobutu | |||||||||
Prime Minister | |||||||||
• 1960 | Patrice Lumumba | ||||||||
• 1960, 1961 | Joseph Iléo | ||||||||
• 1961–1964 | Cyrille Adoula | ||||||||
• 1964–1965 | Moïse Tshombe | ||||||||
• 1965 | Évariste Kimba | ||||||||
• 1965–1966 | Léonard Mulamba | ||||||||
Historical era | Cold War | ||||||||
30 June 1960 | |||||||||
30 December 1961 | |||||||||
16 January 1962 | |||||||||
15 January 1963 | |||||||||
• Country renamed DRC | 1 August 1964 | ||||||||
25 November 1965 | |||||||||
27 October 1971 | |||||||||
Currency | Congolese zaire (1967–1971) | ||||||||
ISO 3166 code | CG | ||||||||
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Today part of | Democratic Republic of the Congo |
History of the Democratic Republic of the Congo | ||||||||||||||||
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See also: Years | ||||||||||||||||
DRC Portal | ||||||||||||||||
The Republic of the Congo (French: République du Congo) was a sovereign state in Central Africa, created with the independence of the Belgian Congo in 1960. From 1960 to 1966, the country was also known as Congo-Léopoldville (after its capital) to distinguish it from its northwestern neighbor, which is also called the Republic of the Congo, alternatively known as "Congo-Brazzaville". In 1964, the state's official name was changed to the Democratic Republic of the Congo,[2][3] but the two countries continued to be distinguished by their capitals; with the renaming of Léopoldville as Kinshasa in 1966, it became also known as Congo-Kinshasa. After Joseph Désiré Mobutu, commander-in-chief of the national army, seized control of the government in 1965, the Democratic Republic of the Congo became the Republic of Zaire in 1971. It would again become the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1997. The period between 1960 and 1964 is referred to as the First Congolese Republic.
Colonial rule
Conditions in the Congo improved following the Belgian government's takeover in 1908 of the Congo Free State, which had been a personal possession of the Belgian king. Some Bantu languages were taught in primary schools, a rare occurrence in colonial education. Colonial doctors greatly reduced the spread of African trypanosomiasis, commonly known as sleeping sickness.
During World War II, the small Congolese army achieved several victories against the Italians in East Africa. The Belgian Congo, which was also rich in uranium deposits, supplied the uranium that was used by the United States to build the atomic weapons that were used in the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.
The colonial administration implemented a variety of economic reforms to improve infrastructure: railways, ports, roads, mines, plantations and industrial areas. The Congolese people, however, lacked political power and faced legal discrimination. All colonial policies were decided in Brussels and Léopoldville. The Belgian Colony-secretary and Governor-general, neither elected by the Congolese people, wielded absolute power.
Among the Congolese people, resistance against their undemocratic regime grew over time. In 1955, the Congolese upper class (the so-called "
Congo Crisis
In May 1960, the MNC party or
The Belgian Congo achieved independence on 30 June 1960. On 1 July Lumumba sent a wire to the UN to request membership, stating that the Congo "accepts without reservation the obligations stipulated in the
Secessionist movements
Shortly after independence, the provinces of
Subsequent events led to a crisis between President Kasa-Vubu and Prime Minister Lumumba. On 5 September 1960, Kasavubu dismissed Lumumba from office. Lumumba declared Kasa-Vubu's action "unconstitutional" and a crisis between the two leaders developed.
Lumumba had previously appointed Joseph Mobutu chief of staff of the new Congolese army, the
On 17 January 1961, Katangan forces, supported by the Belgian government, which desired to retain mining rights for copper and diamonds in Katanga and South Kasai, executed Patrice Lumumba and several of his aides at a pig farm near Élisabethville. From 1960 to 1964 the peacekeeping effort was the largest, most complex, and most costly operation ever carried out by the United Nations.
Coup d'état
Following five years of extreme instability and civil unrest,
He had the support of the US for his staunch opposition to communism, which would presumably make him a roadblock to communist activities in Africa.Mobutu declared himself president for five years, saying that he needed that long to undo the damage that the politicians had done in the country's first five years of independence. However, within two years, he had set up the Popular Movement of the Revolution as the country's only legal party. In 1970, he appeared alone on the ballot in the country's first direct presidential election. Two weeks later, a single list of PMR candidates was elected to the legislature. For all intents and purposes, the Democratic Republic of the Congo had come to an end, but it was another year before Mobutu officially changed the country's name to Zaire.
Flags/Coats of arms
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Flag from 1960–1963
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Flag from 1963–1966
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Flag from 1966–1971
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Coat of arms from 1960–1963
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Coat of arms from 1963–1971
See also
Citations
- ^ "Kikongo" here is actually referring to the Kituba language – which is known as Kikongo ya leta by its speakers – not the Kongo language proper. The confusion arises from the fact that the government of the RC officially recognized and referred to the language simply as "Kikongo".
- ^ "Zaire: Post-Independence Political Development". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on 21 September 2008. Retrieved 15 October 2007.
- ^ "Constitution de la République Démocratique du Congo du 1er août 1964" [Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo of 1 August 1964]. Global Legal Information Network (in French). 1964. Archived from the original on 2 August 2012. Retrieved 11 May 2012.
- ^ Merriam 1961, pp. 207–208.
- ^ Kanza 1994, p. 185.
- ISBN 9781566638234.
- ISSN 0015-7120. Retrieved 2017-09-25.
General and cited sources
- ISBN 978-0-87073-901-9.
- Merriam, Alan P. (1961). Congo: Background of Conflict. Evanston, Illinois: Northwestern University Press. OCLC 424186.
Further reading
- Frank R. Villafaña, Cold War in the Congo: The Confrontation of Cuban Military Forces, 1960–1967. Piscataway, NJ: Transaction Publishers, 2012.