The Frontier in Recent African History

One of the most significant consequences of the Second World War was the acceleration of the anti-colonial and anti-imperialist revolt in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.' This revolt, while frequently armed, was often accompanied by intellectual assaults upon traditional notions, erected over centuries, which bolstered European and white myths of inherent racial and cultural superiority and legitimized political claims. It was a combination of these two forces which climaxed in the attainment of political independence in most Asian and African countries today. In Africa the intellectual assault was waged by Africans as well as Europeans. The writings of such men as Nmamdi Azikiwe, Kwame Nkrumah, and Jomo Kenyatta were political, but they also reflected a particular historical conception.2 Put succinctly, their demands for political independence were a total negation of the assumptions of European rule in Africa and of European perceptions of African history. Forward-looking European scholars conceded that the future in Africa would not follow old expectations. As a result, greater interest in the study of African history developed, not only in places like London and Paris but in American cities like New York, Boston, Chicago, Madison, and Evanston. The proliferation of African

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