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The Cameroon War

A History of French Neocolonialism in Africa
By Thomas Deltombe and Jacob Tatsitsa and Manuel Domergue
Series: Verso's Southern Questions
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Brief Description
Legend has it that the end of France’s empire in sub-Saharan Africa was a peaceful affair. This book tells a very different story, exposing the shocking violence of a secret war. Its theatre was Cameroon in the 1950s and ’60s, where a mass movement for self-determination... Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
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The shocking history of France's secret war in Cameroon and its neocolonial afterlives.

The shocking history of France's secret war in Cameroon and its neocolonial afterlives.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Legend has it that the end of France’s empire in sub-Saharan Africa was a peaceful affair. This book tells a very different story, exposing the shocking violence of a secret war. Its theatre was Cameroon in the 1950s and ’60s, where a mass movement for self-determination emerged under the leadership of a pro-independence party, the Union of the Peoples of Cameroon (UPC).

In response, the colonial power opted for brutal repression. Employing the same methods as in Algeria, French forces waged a counterinsurgency campaign of extraordinary violence, eventually eradicating the opposition and installing a client dictatorship in Yaoundé.

At the height of the Cold War, with attention focused on the Algerian bloodbath, the conflict in Cameroon received little attention at the time. Subsequently, its devastating consequences — and tens of thousands of victims — would be intentionally obscured by French authorities and their local collaborators.

The Cameroon War uncovers this hidden history for the first time. It illuminates a forgotten struggle for decolonization at the origin of neocolonial rule in Francophone Africa that persists to this day.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781788733762

Publisher: Verso Books

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 29 July 2025

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Verso Books

Contributors:

  • Translated by David Broder
  • Translated by Grey Anderson
  • Translated by David Broder

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 12.0mm

Width: 140.0mm

Height: 210.0mm

Weight: 183g

Pages: 192

Collections

African History History & Archaeology History & Military Jacob Tatsitsa Manuel Domergue Military History Non-Fiction Series: Verso's Southern Questions Thomas Deltombe

About the Author

Thomas Deltombe is an editor and journalist who writes widely for the French press.

Manuel Domergue is Research Director at the Fondation Abbé Pierre and a regular contributor to Alternatives Economiques.

Jacob Tatsitsa is a Cameroonian historian who has taught at the University of Yaoundé.

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