Facts and Figures, Geography/Environment, Counties/People

History

1. Portuguese explorers established contacts with the land later known as "Liberia" as early as 1461 and named the area the Grain Coast because of the abundance of grains of malegueta pepper. In 1663 the British installed trading posts on the Grain Coast, but the Dutch destroyed these posts a year later. No further known "European" settlements occurred along the Grain Coast until the arrival of freed American slaves after 1817.
2. Liberia, which means "Land of the Free", was founded by freed slaves from the United States under the supervision of the American Colonization Society in 1820. These Americo-Liberians established a settlement in Christopolis, soon renamed Monrovia, after U.S. ex-president James Monroe, president of the Society, on February 6, 1820. This group of 86 immigrants formed the nucleus of the settler population of what became known as the "Republic of Liberia".

3. The idea of resettling free slaves in Africa was nurtured by the American Colonization Society (ACS), an organization that governed the Commonwealth of Liberia until independence. Between 1817 and 1867, 13,000 freed slaves arrived with the help of the Society, leading to the formation of more settlements and culminating on July 26, 1847 in a declaration of independence of the Republic of Liberia. The style of government and constitution was said to be fashioned on that of the United States. The new Republic of Liberia adopted other American styles of life, including southern plantation-style houses with deep verandahs, and established thriving trade links with other West Africans. The Americo-Liberians distinguished themselves from the local people, characterized as 'natives,' by the universal appellation of "Mr." The formation of the Republic of Liberia did not occur altogether without difficulty. Almost from the beginning, the settlers periodically encountered stiff opposition from local tribesmen, usually resulting in bloody battles. On the other hand, colonial expansionists encroached on the newly-independent Liberia and took over much of the original territory of independent Liberia by force.

4. The first Americo-Liberian leader to emerge was Mr. Joseph Jenkins Roberts, who was born and raised in America. He became Liberia's first President and served several terms. The Americo-Liberians have never constituted above five percent of the population of Liberia; however, for over one hundred years, the Americo-Liberians reserved within the group all political and economic leadership. Under the name of the True Whig Party, the Americo-Liberians subdued indigenous tribes in Liberia and permitted no organized political opposition. Liberia's history until 1980 was largely peaceful. For 133 years after independence, the Republic of Liberia was a one-party state ruled by the Americo-Liberian-dominated True Whig Party (TWP). In 1930, a report by the League of Nations implicated many government officials in the selling of contract labor, leading to the resignation of President Charles D.B. King and a threat by the League of Nations to establish a trusteeship over Liberia unless reforms were carried out. King was replaced by Edwin Barclay, who remained President until 1944, when a charismatic politician named William Tubman became president. Tubman ruled for seven terms until he died in 1971, permitting no political parties except the True Whigs, but he maintained a reputation for honesty. He was succeeded by his vice-president, William R. Tolbert, Jr.. By 1979 irrepressible press reports (from outside Liberia) were circulating to the effect that the Tolbert family controlled a monopoly of rice imports, a situation that led to the rice riots of 1979, repressed by the government with a toll of fifty dead. The beginning of the end came in 1978 when a young Liberian, Baachus Matthews announced the formation of an opposition political party in the country. The True Whig Party dominated all sectors of Liberia from independence until April 12, 1980 when indigenous Liberian Master Sergeant Samuel Doe, from the Krahn ethnic group, seized power in a ''coup d'tat''. Doe's forces executed President Tolbert and several officials of his government, mostly of Americo-Liberian descent. As a result, 133 years of Americo-Liberian political domination ended with the formation of the People's Redemption Council (PRC). Doe attempted to legitimize his regime with a new constitution in 1984 and ostensibly free elections in 1985, but opposition to his rule only increased. On December 24, 1989, one of his former allies, Charles Taylor crossed the border from the Cote d'Ivoire and initiated a rebellion. This rebellion was successful in ending Doe's regime in September of 1990, but by then the rebels had already begun to fracture into
warning factions.