Sierra Leone: History

1787 British abolitionists and philanthropists establish a settlement for repatriated and rescued slaves in Freetown.

1808 Freetown becomes a crown colony of Britain.

1896

Britain establishes a protectorate over Freetown.

1961 Sierra Leone gains its independence and chooses to have a parliamentary system within the British Commonwealth.

1991 Former army corporal Foday Sankoh and his Revolutionary United Front (RUF) begin a campaign against President Momoh, marking the beginning of a civil war.

2002 The civil war is declared over. The Sierra Leone government and the United Nations agree to set up a war crimes court.

2006

After negotiations with international creditors, the president states that 90% of the nation's $1.6 billion debt has been written off.

2012 Energy companies report finding oil off the coasts of Liberia and Sierra Leone.

2023

In October 2023, the Government of Sierra Leone and the main opposition party, the All People’s Congress, signed the Agreement for National Unity to boost cooperation between political parties and begin the process of reforming the country’s electoral system.