History of Cameroon

The history of the Central African region now comprising Cameroon, from its early societies through colonial rule and independence to the present.

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Sao civilization: An ancient civilization that flourished around Lake Chad and left distinctive settlements and terracotta artifacts. Its archaeological sites illuminate early societies near Cameroon’s northern borders.
German Kamerun: The German protectorate established in 1884 across much of present-day Cameroon and neighboring territories. German rule introduced the first unified colonial administration over much of the region.
Rudolf Duala Manga Bell: A Duala leader executed by German authorities in 1914 after opposing colonial expropriation. His resistance became a prominent early challenge to German rule.
Union of the Peoples of Cameroon: An anticolonial political party founded in 1948 that demanded independence and reunification. Its outlawing and armed struggle marked the transition from colonial rule to independence.
French Cameroons: The former French-administered territory that became the Republic of Cameroon in 1960. Its path to independence differed from that of the British-administered territories.
Kanem-Bornu Empire: A long-lived empire centered around Lake Chad, sustained by trans-Saharan trade and regional states. Its influence reached northern Cameroon through trade, migration, and political ties.
Scramble for Africa: The late nineteenth-century competition among European powers to colonize African territories. It set the geopolitical context for Germany’s acquisition of Kamerun.
André-Marie Mbida: A Cameroonian politician who became the first prime minister of French-administered Cameroon in 1957. His government led the territory through the final years before independence.
Cameroonian independence: The 1960 end of French trusteeship and creation of the independent Republic of Cameroon. Independence began a new state before the former British Southern Cameroons joined it.
Southern Cameroons: The former British-administered territory that joined the Republic of Cameroon in 1961. Its political choice and later status remain central to Anglophone historical accounts.