Queen Elizabeth II is dead. She served an extraordinary seventy years as sovereign of the United Kingdom. She also in subtle ways played a role in Africa’s immediate post colonial history. This thread will look at her engagement with the continent throughout her long life.🧵
I understand that not everyone likes the Queen given her association with British imperialism. But whether the individual is Castro, Putin, FDR, or Merkel, some respect simply has to be given to those who play the geopolitical game for a long time and at a high level. /2
In 1947 after the Second World War, as an 18 year old, Princess Elizabeth undertook her first trip overseas to Southern Africa which at the time was still largely British ruled. In Cape Town she made a speech in which she pledged to serve the commonwealth her entire life. /3
The speech was broadcast globally throughout the entire British empire,
“I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong."
youtu.be
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“I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong."
youtu.be
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In February 1952 while on another global tour, Princess Elizabeth and her husband, Phillip, were staying in Kenya, at the Sagna Lodge, which was built to be her Kenyan royal property. On February 6th news trickled to her that her father had died.
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Elizabeth was now the new Queen of the United Kingdom and by extension the British empire. She was the first sovereign to inherit the position while abroad. /6
In 1961 Britain was in the midst of decolonization globally, but especially in Africa. This formed the basis for one of Queen Elizabeth’s greatest adventures when she visited the famed Kwame Nkrumah in Ghana despite being advised not to by her government and royal advisors. /7
The visit went well and concluded with a famous dance,
“"The wind of change blowing through Africa has become a hurricane. Whatever else is blown into the limbo of history, the personal regard and affection which we have for Your Majesty will remain unaffected." - Nkrumah /7
“"The wind of change blowing through Africa has become a hurricane. Whatever else is blown into the limbo of history, the personal regard and affection which we have for Your Majesty will remain unaffected." - Nkrumah /7
In the 1960s a crisis began to emerge in Modern day Zimbabwe, then Rhodesia, where white settlers refused to agree to British designed timetables to impose full voting rights for the majority black population. Queen Elizabeth formally dismissed Ian Smith as her representative./8
However the actions provoked Rhodesia into unilaterally declaring independence and dropping the Queen as their sovereign in 1970. Rhodesia trembled with unrest until the early 1980s. In 1980 it finally became a free country. /9
In 1986 rumors developed of a rift between the Queen and PM Margaret Thatcher on a number of issues, but including on Apartheid and her government’s refusal to apply sanctions on Apartheid South Africa. Sanctions the Queen was working to aid the commonwealth on. /10
Queen Elizabeth has visited a wide variety of African states and below here are pictures of her varied visits, here she is in Lagos in 1956 and another shot of her there in 2011,
/12 Queen Elizabeth in Nairobi through the years and in a personal audience with Daniel Moi
Queen Elizabeth in Mauritius /13
Queen Elizabeth in Botswana /14
Queen Elizabeth in Nigeria in 1956 and 2011 /15
Queen Elizabeth in Ethiopia, meeting Emperor Haile Selassie, a royal from the House of Solomon, it is rumored he is the only individual Queen Elizabeth ever bowed towards. /16
17/ Queen Elizabeth in Sudan
18/ Queen Elizabeth in Zambia
19/ Queen Elizabeth in Kenya, meeting Daniel Arap Moi
20/ Ban Ki Moon referred to Queen Elizabeth as "an anchor of our age", and she indeed lived through an era of vast scientific, political, and social transformations that will now be bundled up as the Second Elizabethan Era.
21/ If you liked my tweets, please subscribe to my newsletter which focuses on Modern Africa!
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