Analysing the Impact of World War II on African Decolonisation

This essay examines the profound impact of World War II on the decolonisation of Africa. It argues that, despite its negative consequences, the war served as a catalyst for African independence by fostering nationalism and a collective desire for self-determination. The essay explores how the war experience, including participation in the conflict and exposure to new ideas, instilled leadership skills, and fostered unity among Africans, enabling them to challenge European colonial powers. It highlights the psychological shifts among Africans, who began to question the perceived invincibility of Europeans and realized the possibility of achieving freedom. The essay also discusses how the war weakened European powers, raising political awareness, and inspiring nationalist movements. Ultimately, the essay concludes that World War II played a pivotal role in accelerating the decolonisation process, leaving a lasting impact on the continent's political, social, and economic landscape.

Running Head: THE IMPACT OF WORLD WAR II ON DECOLONISATION OF AFRICA
The Impact of World War II on the Decolonisation of Africa
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1THE IMPACT OF WORLD WAR II ON DECOLONIALISM OF AFRICA
Introduction
The mid twentieth century was marked as the era of decolonisation of the Asian and
African nations which were under the rule of the Europeans. Africa had always been indebted
to three white men in the history, Hitler, Nietzsche and Karl Marx. It had been Karl Marx
who had instilled the knowledge of economic exploitation and also the awareness of being
oppressed in the minds of the African people. The main thesis argument that this essay aims
to argues is that the Second World War , in spite of having negative consequences, acted as a
catalyst for the political independence of Africa. The war had been a boon to the Africans
since it had been able to sow the seeds of nationalism in Africa and in turns acting as a
common goal for the native Africans to fight for their independence.
Discussion:
The Native Africans were under the British colonial power, they still retained certain
of their native beliefs. In both the World Wars, World War I and II, the Africans were
encouraged to fight against the imperialism and the colonisation forces1. They had been
fighting a war against Germany. The main motive was to gain freedom against the allied
powers. The time when they themselves were not civilized and free, they had been fighting to
set free the European nations. It has been claimed often that the Second World War had not
been a war of the Africans. However their involvement in the war itself helped them to gain
knowledge and lessons. The war had taught them different lessons of leadership skills and
knowledge of using military ammunitions. This was extremely beneficial for the Africans
since they could use the knowledge to their own benefits and fight to decolonize themselves.
1 Young, Crawford. "The African colonial state and its political legacy." In The Precarious
Balance, pp. 25-66. Routledge, 2019.

2THE IMPACT OF WORLD WAR II ON DECOLONIALISM OF AFRICA
The most important skill that the Africans needed was to work together with a strong
unity2. The World Wars taught the Africans how to communicate with one another and work
as a team since the goal of every African had been the same, to set themselves free from the
shackle of the colonial rule. The Africans were initially colonised by the whites because the
nation lacked unity and it had been easier for the Europeans to oppress them. The African
countries had been fighting within themselves when the Europeans came to colonize them.
The attention of the Africans were divided, which was a sharp contrast to the Europeans since
their prime focus was on the military expansion. World War II thus helped the Africans to get
united and the bondage between the people to fight collectively for independence. This
togetherness eventually strengthened the base of the Africans and the seeds of nationalism
started sprouting3. The Africans together formed a large group which made them easier to
raise their voice and they were being heard all over the world. Eventually this helped to break
the colonisation power in Africa. The behaviour of the Europeans actually was an impetus to
the Africans to raise for protest. The European soldiers and the militants used to be given
awards and they were praised for their bravery, along with a pompous celebration. On the
contrary the African militants were only provided with a ticket to travel home. They were not
receiving any gratitude from the Europeans even if they were working alongside the white
men. This made them angry and they rose to protest. The anger eventually bonded them
together and they became more determined to fight for their self-respect and their
independence from the European rule.
The impact of the Second World War had also brought changes psychologically
among the Africans. This helped them to fight for their decolonisation. Wars are influential in
the sense that they change the life of millions of people4. The Second World War helped to
2 Lyons, Michael J. World War II: A short history. Routledge, 2016..
3 Smith, Andrew WM, and Chris Jeppesen, eds. Britain, France and the Decolonization of
Africa: Future Imperfect?. UCL Press, 2017.
4 Juselius, Katarina, Niels Framroze Møller, and Finn Tarp. "The long‐run impact of foreign aid
in 36 African countries: Insights from multivariate time series analysis." Oxford Bulletin of Economics

3THE IMPACT OF WORLD WAR II ON DECOLONIALISM OF AFRICA
change the view of the Africans. They no longer viewed the Europeans the way they had
presented themselves. They began to understand that the colour was not a criteria for their
discrimination. The superiority of the white colour began to diminish from the mind as of the
Africans and they understood that they were as powerful as the Europeans. According to the
Africans, earlier, the white people were undefeatable. They could not be brought down. But
after the Second World War the Africans understood that they could be defeated. For
hundreds of year, the Africans had merely dreamt of freedom. However post Second World
War, they began to realize that the dream of freedom was no longer a fantasy but could be
genuinely hoped for and achieved. For the very first time, Second World War taught the
Africans that freedom and decolonisation from the shackles of the European powers were
possible and they could strive to obtain it.
The Second World War not only empowered the Africans and made them realise that
they could gain independence, they also brought in psychological changes within the
Europeans. The European powers began to feel that the Africans were no longer impenetrable
and that they were losing their control over their colonised people. The European countries
such as France and Britain after the Second World War were shaken and their confidence
started diminishing.5 The Africans were no longer invincible. Seeing the Europeans lack the
confidence of their imperial authority, the Africans started getting the notion of liberation.
This fear had not been the same when the World War II had begun. However, after the war,
they began to take the nationalism of the A/Africans more seriously. The European imperial
power began to understand that the nationalists of Africa could erupt any day, suddenly,
without a warning. Thus the Second World War forced them to prepare themselves so that
they could fight against the upsurge of nationalism in Africa.
and Statistics 76, no. 2 (2014): 153-184.
5 Dülffer, Jost. "The Impact of World War II on Decolonization." In The Transformation of
Southeast Asia, pp. 37-48. Routledge, 2015.

4THE IMPACT OF WORLD WAR II ON DECOLONIALISM OF AFRICA
Along with the psychological changes, the Second World War had been successful in
raising political awareness among the Africans. This had been possible because the war was
anti-racist. Adolf Hitler who wanted the world to exist as a master race, targeted the Jews in
the War6. He was responsible for the gruesome mass killing. Jews were sent to the
concentration camp. He allowed them to die in the death camps only because they were Jews.
This mass slaughter had caught the eyes of the Africans. It was evident to them that the allied
powers began to fight against the racist regime of the Germany. Europe had helped thousands
of Jews and freed them from the death camps of Hitler. However, the Africans saw that they
themselves were not free and were continuously being oppressed under the colonial regime.
The political consciousness heightened among the Africans after the Second World
War. The nationalist’s movements in Asian countries kept inspiring the Africans and they
were gaining more confidence to fight for their nation’s freedom and independence. Thus the
World War II had been successful in making the whole world politically agitated. Political
movements had been increasing all around the globe7. There mere other political
organisations that was developed after the war had ended. The United Nations had been one
such example. According to the organisation, it was mandatory for the colonial powers all
across the world to send annual reports. This implementation had been proved to be
successful. The colonial power was shifting and the colonial political views were
transforming into anti-colonial ones.
The Europeans were unsuccessful and the political scenario had changed entirely after
the Second World War. It was left in ruined. An Era of Cold War had been started. The
United States and the Soviet Union played no part in helping the European rule. They had
different political agendas and they did not help them to strengthen their colonial regime over
6 Kahler, Miles. Decolonization in Britain and France: the domestic consequences of
international relations. Princeton University Press, 2014.
7 Beihami, Hussein, and Fahram Meifa. "The effects of decolonization in Africa." World
Scientific News 3 (2014): 34-30.

5THE IMPACT OF WORLD WAR II ON DECOLONIALISM OF AFRICA
the Africans8. The fight for the independence had indeed been a severe struggle for the
Africans. Due to the change in the political views in the international level, the Europeans
lost control over their colonial rule.
Conclusion
Thus from the above discussion it can be concluded that irrespective of the severe
negative impacts of the Second World War, it had proved to be a boon to the nationalism of
Africans. The Second World War not only affected Africa psychologically, militarily,
economically and politically, but also the entire world had been affected eventually. The
European countries who had colonized the greater part of Africa were unable to resist the
upsurge of nationalist movements of the Africans. It can be said that if the Second World
War did not happen, the European colonisation would have continued and the people would
be continued to be oppressed for ages. Therefore the World War II had been a great even
acting as a catalyst that helped in the African struggle and fight for their freedom. World War
II is something that the Africans would always be indebted to, since it had helped the nation
to come out of the oppression of the Europeans and the whites.
8 Barkawi, Tarak. "Decolonising war." European Journal of International Security 1, no. 2
(2016): 199-214.

6THE IMPACT OF WORLD WAR II ON DECOLONIALISM OF AFRICA
Bibliography
Barkawi, Tarak. "Decolonising war." European Journal of International Security 1, no. 2
(2016): 199-214
Beihami, Hussein, and Fahram Meifa. "The effects of decolonization in Africa." World
Scientific News 3 (2014): 34-30.
Dülffer, Jost. "The Impact of World War II on Decolonization." In The Transformation of
Southeast Asia, pp. 37-48. Routledge, 2015.
Juselius, Katarina, Niels Framroze Møller, and Finn Tarp. "The long‐run impact of foreign
aid in 36 African countries: Insights from multivariate time series analysis." Oxford Bulletin
of Economics and Statistics 76, no. 2 (2014): 153-184.
Kahler, Miles. Decolonization in Britain and France: the domestic consequences of
international relations. Princeton University Press, 2014.
Lyons, Michael J. World War II: A short history. Routledge, 2016..
Smith, Andrew WM, and Chris Jeppesen, eds. Britain, France and the Decolonization of
Africa: Future Imperfect?. UCL Press, 2017.
Young, Crawford. "The African colonial state and its political legacy." In The Precarious
Balance, pp. 25-66. Routledge, 2019.