This is the Third Edition of a famous book first published in 1983. Written in the shadow of the many crises that face Africa's institutions and society today, Basil Davidson considers the origins of these problems, the fragility of Africa's nation states, and the emerging solutions she is finding to her present troubles. The book starts in the early years of the 20th century, with Africa still the property of colonial powers; moves on through the processes of decolonization and independence through to the late 1980s, and concludes with an overview, much extended for this new edition, of the fortunes and misfortunes of independent Africa today, and the future that awaits her. For all the problems brought by nature, by the post-colonial inheritance, and by the inequalities of the international economic system, much has been achieved. The new edition has revisions and additions throughout, particularly towards the end - sufficient to mean a complete reset of the text and a completely new final chapter which reviews the latest developments across the continent. Originally written for an introductory readership in Africa itself, it goes out of its way to explain terminology in simple language.