This new biography of one of the most significant figures in post-colonial Africa deals with Lumumba's transition from nationalist to revolutionary and the still-controversial circumstances surrounding his assassination

Patrice Emery Lumumba (1925-61) is perhaps the most famous leader of African independence. After his murder in 1961 he became an icon of anti-imperialist struggle. His picture was brandished on demonstrations in the 1960s across the world along with Che Guevara and Mao Zedong. His life and the independence that he sought for the Congo made him a pivotal figure of the 20th century. Lumumba's life marked out some of the key post-war fault lines in the second half of the 20th century; how the cold war would be fought in Africa and the nature of the independence granted to huge swaths of the globe after 1945. For those fighting in liberation struggles, Lumumba became a figure of resistance to the imperial division of the world.This book also tells the story of the Congo during these years. The country possesses vast resources of gold, copper, diamonds and uranium. Under any consideration, its people should be rich. Yet these assets have been stolen. One of the first actions of Lumumba's premiership was an attempt to wrest control from external powers. Instead a civil war was fomented and Lumumba assassinated.This new biography of one of the most significant figures in post-colonial Africa deals with Lumumba's transition from nationalist to revolutionary and the still-controversial circumstances surrounding his assassination in 1961, the repercussions of which are still felt in the Congo today.