The Ideological Scramble for Africa: How the Pursuit of Anticolonial Modernity Shaped a Postcolonial Order, 1945–1966

319 Pages·2023·6.194 MB·English

by  Frank Gerits

THE IDEOLOGICAL SCRAMBLE FOR AFRICA

THE IDEOLOGICAL
SCRAMBLE FOR
AFRICA
HOW THE PURSUIT OF ANTICOLONIAL
MODERNITY SHAPED A POSTCOLONIAL
ORDER, 1945–1966
Frank Gerits
CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRESS
Ithaca and London
Copyright © 2023 by Cornell University
All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review,
this book, or parts thereof, must not be reproduced in any
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First published 2023 by Cornell University Press
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Gerits, Frank, author.
Title: The ideological scramble for Africa : how the
pursuit of anticolonial modernity shaped a postcolonial
order, 1945–1966 / Frank Gerits.
Description: Ithaca [New York] : Cornell University Press,
2023. | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2022019500 (print) | LCCN 2022019501
(ebook) | ISBN 9781501767913 (hardcover) |
ISBN 9781501767920 (pdf) | ISBN 9781501767937 (epub)
Subjects: LCSH: Nkrumah, Kwame, 1909–1972—Influence. |
Nkrumah, Kwame, 1909–1972—Political and social views. |
Decolonization—Africa—History—20th century. |
Postcolonialism—Africa—History—20th century. |
Pan-Africanism—History—20th century. | World
politics—1945–1989. | Africa—Politics and
government—1945–1960. | Africa—Politics and
government—1960–
Classification: LCC DT30 .G47 2023 (print) | LCC DT30
(ebook) | DDC 960.3/2—dc23/eng/20220901
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022019500
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov
/202 2019501
For Dorien, Theo, and Mathias

Contents
Acknowl edgments ix
Note on Transliteration xii
Introduction: How African Liberation
Shaped the International System 1
1. A Foreign Policy of the Mind,
1945–1954 18
2. Offering Hungry Minds a Better
Development Proj ect, 1955–1956 40
3. The Pan- African Path to Modernity,
1957–1958 62
4. Redefining Decolonization in the
Sahara, 1959–1960 85
5. The Congo Crisis as the Litmus Test
for Psychological Modernization,
1960–1961 103
6. Managing the Effects of
Modernization, 1961–1963 123
7. The Strug gle to Defeat Racial
Modernity in South Africa and
Rhodesia, 1963–1966 144
8. The Collapse of Anticolonial
Modernization, 1963–1966 161
Conclusion: How Decolonization
Made Our Times 181
viii Contents
List of Abbreviations 189
Notes 193
Bibliography of Primary Sources 287
Index 291
Acknowle dgments
This book tells the story of the ideological scram-
ble for Africa which emerged a fter 1945. Unlike the “scramble for Africa” which
took place between the 1880s and World War I, whereby Eur op ean powers had
conflicting claims to African territories, the post–W orld War II scramble was
more multifaceted and symbolic. More importantly, the ideological scramble
included Africans who w ere e ager to compete with the Americans, the Eur op e-
ans, and the Soviets for the hearts and minds of Africans. In 1965, Ghana’s
leader, Kwame Nkrumah, concluded he had been involved in a “new scramble
for Africa, under the guise of aid, and with the consent and even the welcome of
young, inexperienced States” (Kwame Nkrumah, Neo-C olonialism, The Last Stage
of Imperialism [London: Panaf Books, 1965], 109).
To piece together the elem ents of this new scramble I had to visit forty-six
archives and ten universities in the United States, Eu rope, Africa, and Asia.
I am grateful to the staff of all the archives and libraries who made collections
accessible for research. In the Belgian foreign affairs archives, Didier Amaury,
Alain Gerard, and Rafael Storme offered assistance. Staff in the South African
National Archives was extremely helpful, and Cornelis Muller provided tips and
tricks. In Washington, DC, Laurie Baty and Lisa Sleith h oused me. Research in
the Czech National Archives could not have been completed without Jan Koura.
My research in Ethiopia was made poss ib le by Chedza Molefe and Stephen
Mayega, Organisation of African Unity archivists. The cups of coffee with Theo-
dros Yoseph, national archivist in Addis Ababa, w ere a pleas ure. In the K enya
National Archives, I was assisted by Richard Ambani, while Anaïs Angelo, Steph-
anie Lämmert, and Daniel Spence helped me get in touch with Janet Njoroge
and Peterson Kithuka. Lucas Müller accompanied me on a trip to Mombasa.
The Portuguese foreign affairs archives staff, Alic Barreiro, Isabel Coelho, and
Manuel Múrias, went above and beyond, while Alex Marino became an ally in
the hunt for sources. In the National Archives of Zambia, Emma, Winnie, and
Mirriam, as well as Jason Mwambazi, skillfully guided me through the collec-
tions. In Nigeria, Elodie Apard, Ismaël Mazaaz, and Monsour Muritala w ere in-
dispensable, and Leslie James and Brian McNeil answered my frantic e-m ails
ix