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History of Somalia

The easternmost country in continental Africa, with the longest coastline on Africa's mainland. 5 eras, 1878 to today.

Sultanate of Hobyo, 1878–1925 Draft, not yet reviewed

The Sultanate of Hobyo, also known as the Sultanate of Obbia, was a 19th-century Somali Sultanate in present-day central and northeastern Somalia, and eastern Ethiopia. It was established between the 1870s and 1884 by Yusuf Ali Kenadid. In 1889, it became a protectorate of Italy and was eventually integrated into the colony of Italian Somaliland in 1927. As with the Majeerteen Sultanate, the Sultanate of Hobyo exerted a strong centralised authority during its existence.

Seat of power: Hobyow

Rulers

Italian Somaliland, 1880–1936 Draft, not yet reviewed

Italian Somaliland comprised self-ruling protectorates and colonial possessions of the Kingdom of Italy in present-day Somalia. Following two treaties in 1889, Italy established a protectorate over northern Somali territories ruled by the Sultanate of Hobyo and the Majeerteen Sultanate. By the end of 1927, the territories of Hobyo Sultanate and Majeerteen Sultanate, in the northern regions of Somalia, were annexed after the two year long Campaign of the Sultanates. In 1936, the region was integrated into Italian East Africa as the Somalia Governorate, which lasted until Italy's loss of the region in 1941.

Seat of power: Mogadishu

Somali Republic, 1960–1969 Draft, not yet reviewed

The Somali Republic was formed by the union of the Italian territory of Somaliland (formerly Italian Somaliland) and the State of Somaliland (formerly British Somaliland). On 1 July 1960, the State of Somaliland unified with the Trust Territory of Somaliland, forming the Somali Republic. Aden Abdullah Osman Daar became President of the Somali Republic, and on 22 July 1960 appointed Abdirashid Ali Shermarke as the first prime minister. The administration lasted until 1969, when the Supreme Revolutionary Council seized power in a bloodless coup and renamed the country the Somali Democratic Republic.

Seat of power: Mogadishu

Rulers

Somali Democratic Republic, 1969–1991 Draft, not yet reviewed

The Somali Democratic Republic was a communist state with a unitary system of government in Somalia that existed from 1969 to 1991. Established in October 1969, the Somali Democratic Republic emerged following a coup d'état led by Major General Siad Barre and the Somali military. Barre's administration and the Somali Revolutionary Socialist Party governed Somalia for the next 21 years and was characterised by modernisation efforts, the standardisation of the Somali language, and infrastructural projects. In July 1977, the Ogaden War started after Barre's government used national liberation to justify the incorporation of the predominantly Somali Ogaden of Ethiopia into a Greater Somalia.

Seat of power: Mogadishu

Rulers

Federal Republic of Somalia, 1991 to today Draft, not yet reviewed

Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The SRC collapsed in 1991 with the onset of the Somali Civil War. A new provisional constitution was passed in August 2012, reforming Somalia as a federation and began reconstruction under the Federal Government of Somalia. Insurgents still control much of central and southern Somalia and influence government-controlled areas.

Seat of power: Mogadishu

Rulers

Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.