During the 1950's the pressures of colonial independence movements became harder to contain
British forces found themselves fighting against national independence movements in Malaya, Kenya and Cyprus
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Decolonisation in the early 1950's
Britain's rulers believed they could manage a gradual transition from the Empire to the New Commonwealth
They thought colonial resistance movements could be controlled until their peoples were 'ready' for independence
In 1952 the Mau Mau rebellion broke out in Kenya, it was assumed it could be quashed by military and at that time independence for Kenya was unthinkable
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The Mau Mau rebellion
Violent nationalist uprising against British colonial rule after 1945
The leader of the revolt, Kenyatta, was imprisoned by authorities but later emerged as president of an independent Kenya
In the 1950's, the struggle led to bitterness on both sides
The Mau Mau fighters were accused of committing atrocities
Revelations about brutal treatment of captives held at the Hola prison camp damaged Britain's reputation
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Impact of the Mau Mau rebellion
The struggle to contain the rebellion demonstrated problems with Britain's colonial policies
After the Suez Crisis, British policymakers reconsidered the pace of decolonisation
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Decolonisation in the late 1950's
1957- Ghana (formerly the Gold Coast) became the first of Britain's African policies to be granted independence
1960- Nigeria and Cyprus gained independence
1961- Sierra Lione became independent
1962- Uganda gained independence
1963- Kenya was finally granted independence
The shift in policy was signalled by Macmillan's 'wind of change' speech
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Wind of change speech
Before 1960- the central aim of British foreign policy was to defeat nationalist revolts and maintain control over British African colonies
Macmillan's 'wind of change' speech at Cape Town was a significant change in policy
He called for decolonisation and recognition of independence movements
He seeked to persuade these countries to accept majority rule
However, South Africa preferred to follow minority white rule and voted in a referendum that year to break all ties with Britain
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Was decolonisation successful?
Extremely successful
The process did not always go as planned but British decolonisation was completed with far less violence than was the case with other colonial powers e.g. Belgium and Portugal
By 1964, the transition from Empire to Commonwealth seemed to represent significant achievement
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