Cloud of colonialism hangs over Queen Elizabeth’s legacy in Africa
It’s a long-standing claim that Queen Elizabeth II stands for Western values and policies across the globe.
The assertion is often made that the sovereign’s reign in the Caribbean and Commonwealth is a direct result of her interest in international development, but the assertion is largely built on flimsy speculation.
She visited India, Jamaica and many more. After all, her mother, the Queen Mother, traveled around Africa as a missionary and had made multiple trips to Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia, among others.
She has visited countries that suffered under colonial rule, such as Mozambique and Kenya, and she has visited the African continent on several occasions while campaigning for her husband Robert, who was Prime Minister of Britain from 1971-74.
Nevertheless, she has never visited an African country that has had its own independent government. While she made a point of visiting the country where she had lived as a child, Zimbabwe, her family has never claimed that Elizabeth II’s visit played a role in the independence of that country.
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It seems, however, that as the Commonwealth prepares to celebrate its 100th anniversary next year, Elizabeth II’s legacy of colonial and neo-colonial rule and her focus on international development may still have a powerful presence.
Queen Elizabeth’s Royal African Society
If one looks at the Royal African Society, the society has always focused on African issues and Africans.
This is perhaps because she was crowned Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, which is also when the Royal Society of Canada was launched. The Royal Society of Canada has been associated with many of the prominent figures on Canadian society such as Martin Luther King Jr., Eleanor Roosevelt, Mahatma Gandhi and more.
This is also where many African leaders have been trained. Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu and Bishop Desmond Tutu of the Anglican Church have all had a profound influence on how African leaders have led their countries. The Queen Mother was also a great proponent of the Royal African Society.
The Queen Mother set up the Royal African Society as a vehicle for non-profit organizations