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Decolonising African History. Crises and Transitions in African Historiography (1950-1990)

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Decolonising African History. Crises and Transitions in African Historiography (1950-1990) Decolonising African History. Crises and transitions in African historiography (1950-1990) by Esperanza Brizuela-Garcia Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the University of London School of Oriental and African Studies ProQuest N um ber: 11010445 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 11010445 Published by ProQuest LLC(2018). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 2 Abstract. This thesis looks at the development of anglophone African historiography from the 1950s to the 1990s. The main question underlying this work is why, during the last thirty years, has African History been described as being "in crisis". The main argument is that the perception of a crisis has come from the perceived failure of historians to "decolonise" African History and to produce a "usable past." The thesis analyses the different ways in which these expectations have changed over time, and studies them from different perspectives. First, the thesis looks at the way in which African History has been incorporated into universities. It argues that the particular circumstances of different academic environments have influenced historians' priorities and attitudes towards the study of African History. The analysis if these issues focuses on the study of six institutions: University of Cape Town in South Africa, University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, University of Ghana, School of Oriental and African Studies, Northwestern University, and the University of Wisconsin. The second objective is to situate these cases in the context of wider historiographical changes in the study of the African past. This analysis examines the most significant changes in the development of the field. An attempt is also made to understand these changes in connection to wider transformations in the social sciences and the theory of knowledge. It is argued that dramatic changes occurred in the way we understand the production of knowledge during the last forty years are intimately connected with the idea of a crisis in African History. Ultimately, this thesis tries to prove that the objective of producing a "usable past" has been evaluated in different ways over time. And that these forms of evaluation are related to particular institutional environments and to changes in our wider understanding of historical knowledge and its production. Thus, there have been different forms of crisis in the development of African History. 3 Table of Contents. Abstract 2 Table of contents 3 Acknowledgements 5 Abbreviations 8 INTRODUCTION 9 CHAPTER I; Antecedents. 19 Part 1.- African History before the 1950s. 19 Part 2.- The opening of institutions. 31 Part 3.- The Annales school, Marxism and the transformation of History. 48 CHAPTER n: The Pioneers. 54 Part 1.- African History in universities. 55 Part 2.- First works on African History. 88 CHAPTER III: Expansion and Consolidation. 100 Part 1.- The expansion of African History in universities. 101 A) Nationalist history in Legon and Dar es Salaam. 101 B) Liberals, old and new. African History in Cape Town. 117 C) SOAS, the golden years. 125 D) African studies in the United States. 131 E) African History in Northwestern and Wisconsin. 138 Part 2.- Defining African History. 150 A) African History and nationalism. 152 B) Community development. 155 C) The methodology of African History 161 4 CHAPTER IV: Crisis and fragmentation. 177 Part 1.- The crisis of institutions. 177 A) The decline of history in African universities. 177 B) African and South African History in UCT. 189 C) African History at SOAS. 198 D) The United States. 202 Part 2.- African History and the crisis of knowledge. 214 CHAPTER V: African studies and the imperatives of African History. 230 Part 1.- Institutional decline and the relevance of African studies. 230 A) African intellectuals and the defence of African studies. 230 B) Africanisation in South Africa. 241 C) African studies in Great Britain and the United States. 253 Part 2.- Postmodernism and African History. 269 CONCLUSIONS 279 Appendix I. 283 Appendix II. 285 Sources 286 Acknowledgements. The completion of this work would have been impossible without the support I received from a particularly large group of people. I want to thank them all, since this is the only way I can come close to expressing how grateful I am. They all contributed to the strengths of this work, the mistakes are all mine. The Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico gave me the opportunity to become a historian and for that I am grateful. I also want to acknowledge the financial support I received from this institution for the completion of my graduate studies. This thesis would not have been possible without the financial and academic support from that fine University. I am particularly grateful to Dra. Luz Ma. Martinez Montiel for introducing me to Africa, and to Dra. Josefina Macgregor and Dr. Le6n Olive for their unconditional support and friendship. I want to thank all the historians who gave me their time for interviews. This material was invaluable for the thesis. Aside from their academic contributions, these conversations were often a great source of inspiration. Thank you all for giving me such great memories. I am particularly grateful to Prof. John McCracken, John Hiffe, Basil Davidson and John Hargreaves. From the University of Cape Town I should thank Professors Nigel Worden and Christopher Saunders for their help and support. I also want to thank Leslie Hart and Yasmin Mohamed from the Archives and Manuscripts section of the Jagger Library for their friendliness and efficient assistance. In the University of Dar es Salaam I want to thank Drs. Bertrand Mapunda and Nestor Luanda for all their help. I also want to thank Prof. Isaria Kimambo for his kindness. From the University of Ghana my thanks go to Dr. Akosua Perbi and Prof. Robert Addo-Fenning. I am particularly grateful to Prof. Adu Boahen for spending some time talking to me. In Northwestern University I was kindly and efficiently assisted by Dr. Jane Guyer and Dr. Akbar M. Virmani from the Program of African Studies. I also want to thank David L. Easterbrook from the Africana Library, and Patrick M. Quinn and Janet C. Olson from the University Archives. Mary Ebeling was of great help in the logistics of my trip. My stay would have never been so enjoyable without her help. I also want to thank Professors Ivor Wilks, John Rowe and John Hunwick for sharing their memories with me. In the University of Wisconsin-Madison I must thank Profs. Thomas Spear for his help and encouragement. Prof. David Henige provided me with very useful advice. I am also grateful to Elieen McNamara and James Delehanty from the African Studies Program for allowing me to read their records and for giving me all kinds of support. My special thanks go to Prof. Jan Vansina for spending some time with me and for his encouragement. I could not finish this section without giving thanks to my own institution, SOAS, for all the support I have found there. I want to thank Joyce and Carol from the History Department for their friendly smiles and efficient support. At SOAS I have had the opportunity to discuss my work in the African History Seminar, one of the finest forums of discussion. There, I have been fortunate to be surrounded by great scholars who have generously shared their knowledge with me. I am particularly grateful to Dr. Wayne Dooling, Dr. Marie Mir an, Dr. Jonathan Mir an, Dr. John Parker, Dr. David Anderson, Prof. Andrew Roberts, and Prof. Shula Marks for all their time and advice. I also want to thank Prof. Ian Brown and Dr. Daud Ah for their invaluable support. Friends and family have been the cause of me staying sane and focused ah these years. I have been blessed with a wonderful family that has been both supportive and inspiring. To Mom, Dad, Mima, Carlos and Adriana ah I can say is "Thank you" for always being there for me. Grandmother, aunts, uncles and cousins were ah part of that home we ah carry inside and reminds us that we can always fail without being defeated. I have also been fortunate to find a new family that has given me more than any daughter-in-law can expect. To Charlie, Chris, Alec and Liz, thanks always. Many friends have shared and suffered with me while writing this thesis. I was always fortunate to have a friendly hand when the energy, the will or the confidence ran low. Pedro Salmeron and Leonardo Lomeh have always been there to boost my confidence. Joanna Unze, Coral Cot and Angela Janes share the gift of knowing when to call and what to say when times get a bit hard. Maureeen Gallon, Angela O'Connor-Smith, Bill and Joanna Storey, Gigi Bonnici and her wonderful family gave me a home away from home in Cape Town. Thank you all so much. Regina Feindt, Julia Baraniak, and Brigitta Brocker shared with me the ups and downs of Dar es Salaam. Thanks also to Shane Doyle and his lovely wife for taking good care of me there. In Ghana I found the invaluable friendship and support of Jean Allman, Anne Hugon and Katherine Collier.
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