Brazzaville Conference

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Charles de Gaulle speaking at the opening of the Brazzaville Conference on 30 January 1944

The Brazzaville Conference (French: Conférence de Brazzaville) was a meeting of prominent Free French leaders held in January 1944 in Brazzaville, the capital of French Equatorial Africa, during World War II.

After the Fall of France to Nazi Germany, the collaborationist Vichy France regime controlled the colonies. One by one, however, they peeled off and switched their allegiance to the Free France, a movement led by Charles de Gaulle. In January 1944, Free French politicians and high-ranking colonial officials from the French African colonies met in Brazzaville, now in the Republic of the Congo. The conference recommended political, social and economic reforms and led to an agreement called the Brazzaville Declaration.

De Gaulle believed that the survival of France depended on support from the colonies, and he made numerous concessions. They included the end of forced labour, the end of special legal restrictions that applied to indigenous peoples but not to whites, the establishment of elected territorial assemblies, representation in Paris in a new "French Federation" and the eventual entry of black Africans in the French National Assembly. However, independence was explicitly rejected as a future possibility.

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History of the Central African Republic
Early history Kanem Empire c. 700–1380 Trans-Saharan slave trade c. 1500–1600 Sultanate of Bagirmi 1522–1897 Wadai Empire 1635–1909
Colonial period French Equatorial Africa    French Congo 1882–1910    French Chad 1900–1960    Ubangi-Shari 1903–1958    French Cameroon 1918–1960 Decolonization    Kongo-Wara rebellion 1928–1931    Brazzaville Conference 1944–0000    African Democratic Rally 1946–1958
Independence Bokassa period 1966–1979    Bokassa coup d'état 1966–0000    Central African Empire 1976–1979       Coronation of Bokassa I 1977–0000          Emperor of Central Africa Operation Caban 1979–0000    Operation Barracuda 1979–1981 Kolingba coup d'état 1981–0000 Patassé coup attempt 1982–0000
Current period General election 1993–0000 Heightened tensions 1993–1998    Bangui Peace Accords 1997–0000    United Nations Mission 1998–0000 Bush War 2004–2007    Kolingba coup attempt 2001–0000    Bozizé coup d'état 2003–0000 Civil War 2012–0000    Conflict under Djotodia 2013–2014       Fall of Bangui 2013–0000
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During World War II, the French colonial empire played an essential role in the Liberation of France by gradually aligning with Free France. After the end of the Tunisia campaign, the entire colonial empire reunited toward the Allies with the exception of French Indochina, which remained loyal to the Vichy government.

That made the French Committee of National Liberation begin questioning the future of the colonies. The war created many difficulties for local people and saw the growth of nationalist aspirations and tensions between communities in French North Africa, particularly in Algeria and Tunisia. In addition, the French were being aided by the United States which opposed colonialism. In Madagascar, the month of occupation by the United Kingdom after the invasion of the island had weakened French authority.

René Pleven, Commissioner for the Colonies in the French Committee of National Liberation, wanted to avoid international arbitration of the future of the French Empire and in that regard organized the Brazzaville Conference in French Equatorial Africa.

The Brazzaville Conference was held in early February 1944 in Brazzaville, the capital of French Equatorial Africa, during World War II.^[1]

Initially, the French Committee of National Liberation wanted to include all the governors from all free territories, but difficulties from the war made the Committee include administrative représentants from French territories in Africa, which had already joined de Gaulle and René Pleven. Invitations were sent to 21 governors; nine members of the Provisional Consultative Assembly and six observers from Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco.

De Gaulle opened the Conference by saying that he wanted to build new foundations for France after years under the domination of Philippe Pétain's authoritarian Vichy France regime. There was also a seemingly more open tone towards the French colonies. De Gaulle wanted to renew the relationship between France and French Africa.

The Brazzaville Declaration included the following points:

1. The French Empire would remain united.
2. Semi-autonomous assemblies would be established in each colony.
3. Citizens of France's colonies would share equal rights with French citizens.
4. Citizens of French colonies would have the right to vote for the French National Assembly.
5. The native population would be employed in public service positions within the colonies.
6. Economic reforms would be made to diminish the exploitative nature of the relationship between France and its colonies.

However, the possibility of complete independence was soundly rejected.^[2] As de Gaulle stated:

The aims of France's civilizing mission preclude any thought of autonomy or any possibility of development outside the French empire. Self-government must be rejected - even in the more distant future.^[3]

This is stated in the preamble of the draft document of the Conference:^[4]

The ends of the civilizing work accomplished by France in the colonies excludes any idea of autonomy, all possibility of evolution outside the French bloc of the Empire; the eventual Constitution, even in the future of self-government in the colonies is denied.^[4]

The Conference also recommended ending forced labour.^[2]

The Brazzaville Conference is still regarded as a turning point for France and its colonial empire. Many historians view it as the first step towards decolonization, albeit a precarious one.

• Decolonisation of Africa § French colonial empire
• Second colonial occupation
• Fonds d'Investissements pour le Developpement Economique et Social (FIDES), established 1946
• Declaration of Philadelphia (10 May 1944)

• Brazzaville, janvier-février 1944 : aux sources de la décolonisation. Colloque. Paris: Plon. 1988. ISBN 9782259019927.
• Shipway, Martin (1999). "Reformism and the French 'Official Mind': the 1944 Brazzaville Conference and the legacy of the Popular Front". In Chafer, T.; Sackur, A. (eds.). French Colonial Empire and the Popular Front: Hope and Disillusion. New York: St. Martin's Press. pp. 131–151. ISBN 9780333729731.

• Speech made by General de Gaulle at the opening of the Brazzaville Conference on January 30th 1944