History of Sierra Leone

Kingdom of Koya, 1505–1896 Draft, not yet reviewed

The Kingdom of Kquoja or Koya or Koya Temne, or the Temne Kingdom, was a pre-colonial African state in the north of present-day Sierra Leone. The kingdom was founded by the Temne ethnic group in or around 1505 by migrants from the north, seeking trade with the coastal Portuguese in the south. The kingdom was ruled by a king called a Bai or Obai. The kingdom became a British protectorate on 31 August 1896 after which the Koya kings lost virtually all power.

Seat of power: Port Loko

Sierra Leone Colony and Protectorate, 1808–1961 Draft, not yet reviewed

The Colony and Protectorate of Sierra Leone was the British colonial administration in Sierra Leone from 1808 to 1961. The Crown colony, which included the area surrounding Freetown, was established in 1808. The protectorate was established in 1896 and included the interior of what is today known as Sierra Leone. On 27 April 1961 Sierra Leone was granted independence at a large ceremony in Freetown.

Seat of power: Freetown

Rulers

• Stephen John Hill, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1854–1863
• Arthur Kennedy, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1869–1872
• Samuel Rowe, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1875–1881
• Frederic Cardew, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1894–1900
• Charles King-Harman, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1900–1904
• Leslie Probyn, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1904–1910
• Edward Merewether, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1911–1916
• Richard James Wilkinson, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1916–1922
• Ransford Slater, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1922–1927
• Joseph Aloysius Byrne, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1927–1931
• Douglas James Jardine, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1937–1941
• Hubert Craddock Stevenson, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1941–1947
• George Beresford-Stooke, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1947–1952
• Robert de Zouche Hall, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1952–1956
• Maurice Henry Dorman, Governor of Sierra Leone, 1956–1961

Sierra Leone, 1961 to today Draft, not yet reviewed

Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the west coast of West Africa. Sierra Leone attained independence from the United Kingdom in 1961 under the leadership of Prime Minister Sir Milton Margai of the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP). In 1971, under Prime Minister Siaka Stevens of the All People's Congress (APC), the country adopted a new constitution, transforming Sierra Leone into a presidential republic, with Stevens as the inaugural president. In 1991, a protracted civil war broke out between the government and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebel group.

Seat of power: Freetown

Rulers

• Siaka Stevens, President of Sierra Leone, 1971–1985
• Joseph Saidu Momoh, President of Sierra Leone, 1985–1992
• Valentine Strasser, President of Sierra Leone, 1992–1996
• Ahmed Tejan Kabbah, President of Sierra Leone, 1996–2007
• Johnny Paul Koroma, President of Sierra Leone, 1997–1998
• Ernest Bai Koroma, President of Sierra Leone, 2007–2018
• Julius Maada Bio, President of Sierra Leone, 2018 to today