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Decolonization: the end of empires
c. 1945–1975· Event· Global
Well documentedSolid records, physical evidence or scientific consensus.
The breakup of European overseas empires after 1945, as more than 80 former colonies in Asia, Africa and elsewhere became independent nations.
See it on the History map →What happened
World War II left Britain, France and the Netherlands weakened and in debt, while nationalist movements grew strong. The US and USSR both opposed old-style empires. Independence came in waves: South Asia in 1947–48, Indonesia in 1949, most of Africa around 1957–1966, Portugal's colonies in 1975. Some handovers were negotiated; others came through brutal wars, as in Algeria, Vietnam and Kenya. UN membership grew from 51 in 1945 to 144 by 1975.
Why it matters
It made the nation-state the world's standard unit and created the developing-world bloc, whose borders, conflicts and economies still trace back to colonial rule.
How we know
Independence treaties and constitutions, UN records, independence leaders' memoirs, and colonial archives, some hidden for decades, like Britain's 'migrated archives' revealed in 2011.
Still debated
Historians debate whether empires fell mainly to colonial resistance, exhaustion at home, or superpower pressure, and how much economic control lingered afterward ('neocolonialism').
Inside this (4)
Connections (5)
▸New Imperialism: European empires at their peak was undone by Decolonization: the end of empiresWell documented
The connection
The empires built in 1870–1914 lasted barely a lifetime. Colonial rule created Western-educated elites who turned ideas of nationhood and self-rule against their rulers. Two world wars drained the colonial powers, and from 1945 to 1975 nearly all their colonies became independent, mostly within the borders the empires had drawn.
When and how
Across Asia, Africa, the Middle East and the Caribbean, mostly 1945–1975; leaders included Nehru, Sukarno, Kwame Nkrumah, Ho Chi Minh and Jomo Kenyatta.
How we know
Independence dates and treaties, and colonial archives documenting the negotiations and wars of independence.
Debates and open questions
Whether imperial control truly ended, or continued as economic dependence, sometimes called neocolonialism, is still argued.
▸World War II exhausted the empires, speeding Decolonization: the end of empiresMostly agreed
The connection
The war bankrupted Britain and humbled France and the Netherlands, both occupied by Germany. Japan's conquest of Southeast Asia shattered the myth of European invincibility. Millions of colonial soldiers fought for the Allies, whose 1941 Atlantic Charter promised self-determination. Afterward, the colonial powers lacked the money and will to hold on.
When and how
Asia first: India and Pakistan (1947), Burma and Ceylon (1948), Indonesia (1949) after war with the Dutch; Vietnam's war against France ended at Dien Bien Phu in 1954.
How sure are we?
Britain's postwar debts and US loan records, colonial office files, and nationalist leaders' speeches citing wartime promises and Japan's early victories.
Debates and open questions
Historians debate how much the war itself mattered, versus nationalist movements that were already gaining strength before 1939.
▸Vietnam War grew out of Decolonization: the end of empiresMostly agreed
The connection
Vietnam's war began as a fight to end French colonial rule. Ho Chi Minh declared independence in 1945, and his Viet Minh defeated France at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. The Geneva Accords split the country pending elections that never took place. Many Vietnamese saw the American war as the same independence struggle continued.
When and how
Hanoi, September 2, 1945, declaration of independence; First Indochina War, 1946–1954; Geneva conference, 1954.
How sure are we?
Ho's declaration quoted the US Declaration of Independence; French, American and Vietnamese records trace the colonial war flowing into the American one.
Debates and open questions
Whether the war was mainly anti-colonial, a civil war among Vietnamese, or a Cold War contest is debated; most historians say it was all three.
▸Indian independence and Partition led the wave of Decolonization: the end of empiresMostly agreed
The connection
India was the largest colony to win freedom, and its success showed others that empires could be ended. Prime Minister Nehru championed anti-colonialism at the UN and at the 1955 Bandung Conference of Asian and African states. Within two decades most of Asia and Africa had followed.
When and how
From 1947; the Bandung Conference in Indonesia, April 1955, gathered 29 Asian and African countries; leaders such as Ghana's Kwame Nkrumah cited India's example.
How sure are we?
UN records of India's anti-colonial campaigns, Bandung documents, and African and Asian leaders' own statements crediting India's example.
Debates and open questions
Some colonies, such as the Philippines (1946), became independent earlier, and every movement had local roots; how much India's example drove the rest is debated.
▸Decolonization: the end of empires peaked with the African independence waveWell documented
The connection
After 1945, European empires were weakened by war, pressed by the US and USSR, and challenged by independence movements; India's 1947 independence showed it could be done. Africa saw the biggest surge, with 17 nations independent in 1960 alone, the high point of the worldwide end of empires.
When and how
Across Africa, 1957 to 1975; the UN General Assembly declared against colonialism in December 1960.
How we know
UN membership grew from 51 founders in 1945 to 144 by 1975, with African states the largest group of newcomers.
Debates and open questions
Whether empires fell mainly because of independence movements, European exhaustion or superpower pressure is debated.