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African Kingdoms

West Africa

 

Modern Mauritania
AD 1960 - Present Day
Incorporating Heads of State (1960-2025)

The continent of Africa forms a vast collection of varying communities and cultures, with North Africa containing a very different cultural feel from sub-Saharan Africa. The modern state of Mauritania (or Mauretania using an older spelling) sits across the two boundaries, being sited at the western end of the Sahara.

It is bordered by Western Sahara to the north, by Algeria along a short north-eastern strip of territory, by Mali across a great swathe of its eastern and southern border, by Senegal in its south-western corner, and by the North Atlantic to its west.

The region was converted to Islam in the ninth century, probably through contact with the powerful Aghlabids of Ifriqiyya, but the various tribes here were rarely united or powerful. An interlude of about a century in the typical in-fighting was the result of the rise of the native Almoravid empire. This united the entire north-western corner of Africa from AD 1061 onwards but it was overwhelmed by the rival Almohads in the mid-twelfth century.

The regional tribal confederations of Adrar and Trarza came under French control from 1900-1920 while the Taganit tribal confederation may also have been French-dominated from 1905. Mauritania became a French civil territory in 1904, part of French West Africa. The authority of the emir of the Brakna tribal confederation was swiftly cancelled although, in 1912, that authority was nominally restored. Mauritania became a French colony in 1920, switching to a French overseas territory on 27 October 1946.

Independence loomed on 28 November 1958 when Mauritania became the autonomous 'Islamic Republic of Mauritania'. Full independence was achieved in 1960, but the country remained uncomfortable with its blend of Berber, French, and imported Senegalese customs. The 'Mauritania-Senegal Border War' was a culmination of that discomfort, although related conflict has since subsided.

The country suffered a military coup in 2008, after which any elections were somewhat suspect in terms of their fairness until the 2019 attempt produced what many countries applauded as a fairer attempt. By 2025 the still-autocratic government had a poor human rights record, not least because slavery, although illegal, continued to flourish. The country is poor despite having an abundance of natural resources.

Ait Ben Haddou, Morocco

Principal author(s): Page created: Page last updated:

(Information by Peter Kessler and the John De Cleene Archive, with additional information from the BBC documentary series, Lost Kingdoms of Africa, first broadcast on 5 January 2010, from The Cambridge Ancient History, John Boardman, N G L Hammond, D M Lewis, & M Ostwald (Eds), from The History of Islam (Vol 2), Akbar Shah Najeebabadi (Revised Edition), and from External Links: Saharan and trans-Saharan contacts and trade in the Roman era, Dr Caitlin R Green, and Encyclopaedia Britannica, and Encyclopaedia Iranica, and Western Sahara: time for a new track? (Forced Migration Review).)

1958 - 1959

Henri Joseph Marie Bernard

French high commissioner for French West Africa.

1959 - 1960

Pierre Anthonioz

French high commissioner for French West Africa.

1960

Mauritania achieves full independence on 28 November 1960 following two years of autonomy under the purview of French high commissioners as the colonial structure of French West Africa is gradually dismantled.

Djemaa el-Fna in Marrakech
The Djemaa el-Fna marketplace in Marrakech would have been as familiar to the sultans who ruled over the city in later years as it is to tourists today - although the square was actually used for executions, shortly after the city was founded in AD 1070

Mokhtar Ould Daddah is president of the provisional government in 1958-1959, and then prime minister in 1959-1961 while taking on the dual role of acting head of state. Then he becomes a long-serving president of the new republic.

1960 - 1961

Mokhtar Ould Daddah

Acting head of state (Mauritanian Gathering Party).

1961 - 1978

Mokhtar Ould Daddah

President (Mauritanian Progressive Union).

1961

One of President Daddah's first actions is to complete the process of his country joining the United Nations, which it does on 27 October 1961, the same day upon which Mongolia is also accepted.

1975

Having claimed the non-self-governing territory of 'Spanish Sahara' as its 'Southern Provinces', Morocco now annexes the territory as Spain pulls out, despite protests by Algeria, and the region soon becomes known as 'Western Sahara'. This prompts the region's inhabitants to launch a guerrilla war which lasts until a ceasefire is agreed in 1991.

1976 - 1979

Ending a long-running disagreement, Morocco and Mauritania partition Spanish Sahara between them on 26 February 1976. Under the terms of this agreement, Morocco takes the northern two-thirds of the territory, while Mauritania takes the southern third.

Southern Sahara
Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara is also referred to by the Moroccan government as the 'Southern Provinces' and is a disputed territory with its own complex political situation

1978 - 1979

Mokhtar Ould Daddah is deposed in 1978. A 'Military Committee for National Recovery' is established with a chairman at its head who, from March 1979, also bears the title of head of state. The real ruler is Mohamed Khouna Ould Haidalla.

Pressure from the 'Polisario Front', the independence movement for the Sahrawi people, leads to Mauritania abandoning its claim to Western Sahara in 1979. Morocco then occupies that portion as well in order to assert control over the entire territory.

1978 - 1979

Mustafa Ould Salek

Military head of state (March onwards).

1979

The country's 'Military Committee for National Recovery' is relabelled on 6 April 1979 as the 'Military Committee for National Salvation'. The official head of state remains Mustafa Ould Salek, although only until June 1979. Mohamed Khouna Ould Haidalla emerges from the shadows to take direct control in 1980.

Signing the treaty in 1979
Mauritania in 1979 signed an agreement with the so-called 'Polisario Front' regarding its terminated presence in Western Sahara

1979

Mustafa Ould Salek

Military head of state (Apr-Jun only).

1979 - 1980

Mohamed Mahmoud Ould Louly

Military head of state (Jun onwards).

1980 - 1984

Mohamed Khouna Ould Haidalla

Military head of state. Deposed.

1984 - 1992

Maaouye Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya

Military head of state. Became civilian president.

1989 - 1991

The Mauritania–Senegal Border War erupts along the shared border between these two countries. It is triggered by disputes over the joint River Senegal border, along with disagreements about grazing rights. The conflict results in a rupture of diplomatic relations which lasts for several years. Thousands of refugees from both sides find themselves in refugee camps.

1992 - 2005

Maaouye Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya

President (Social & Democratic Republican Party). Deposed.

2005 - 2006

The military overthrows the long-serving Taya in August 2005, replacing him with a seventeen-member junta which is headed by the chairman of the 'Military Council for Justice and Authority', Colonel Ely Ould Mohamed Vall. Voters approve a referendum on 27 June 2006 which limits the length of presidential office.

Ely Ould Mohamed Vall
Colonel Ely Ould Mohamed Vall headed a seventeen-member military council from 2005 to 2007 which steered the country towards freer and fairer elections in 2007

2005 - 2007

Ely Ould Mohamed Vall

Military head of state (Aug onwards). Nominal president.

2007 - 2008

Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdallahi

President (no party).

2008

President Abdallahi on 6 August 2008 fires General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, commander of the presidential guard, and three other generals for supporting legislators who have accused Abdallahi of corruption.

One day later Aziz leads a non-violent military coup which overthrows Abdallahi and sees Prime Minister Yahya Ould Ahmed El Waghef being arrested. The country's military forms an eleven-member high council of state which is headed by Aziz.

2008 - 2009

Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz

Military head of state high council (to Apr 2009).

2009

Ba Mamadou / M'Baré

Interim head of state (Apr-Aug only).

2009 - 2019

Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz

President (Aug onwards).

2017

Yahya Jammeh, the president of Gambia who has lost the December 2016 presidential elections to the exiled Adama Barrow, refuses to step down for his successor. The 'Economic Community of West African States' (abbreviated as 'Ecowas') includes Guinea, Mauritania, Nigeria, and Senegal. Now it prepares to act in reference to Jammeh's refusal.

Yahya Jammeh, former president of Gambia
Gambia's former ruler, Yahya Jammeh, flew out of the country which he had governed for twenty-two years and into exile, bringing an end to a protracted political crisis following presidential elections in December 2016

It plans to use military intervention to install Adama Barrow, the legitimate winner, unless Jammeh agrees to leave office. Ecowas also seeks United Nations endorsement. Senegal sends in troops on 19 January 2017.

Barrow takes the oath of office in exile in Dakar and becomes the internationally-recognised president of Gambia. Ousman Badjie, Gambia's army chief, celebrates with the throng of supporters who welcome Ecowas troops.

The presidents of Guinea and Mauritania proceed to Gambia on 20 January to persuade Jammeh to leave office. He finally agrees one day later, going into exile along with a cargo plane full of motor vehicles and loot, as well as millions of dollars from the national treasury.

2019 - On

Mohamed Cheikh El Ghazouani

President.

2019

The democratic election of Mohamed Cheikh El Ghazouani is hailed as Mauritania's first such election. He oversees a period of relative stability in the country, working to improve social security and combat corruption, the latter including the arrest of his predecessor in office.

Mohamed Cheikh El Ghazouani of Mauritania
President Mohamed Cheikh El Ghazouani of Mauritania, former military officer, managed to lead a stabilisation government in 2019, winning a second term of office in 2024

2024

Mohamed Cheikh El Ghazouani wins a second election on the last day of June 2024. His victory margin is fifty-six percent, a high figure but not necessarily unreasonable. Accusations do follow of voting irregularities, and a protest in the opposition stronghold of Kaédi turns violent.

 
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