Spanish West Africa facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Spanish West Africa
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| 1946–1958 | |||||||||||||||||||
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Spanish Northwestern African possessions in 1912.
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| Status | Federation of Spanish colonial possessions | ||||||||||||||||||
| Capital | Sidi Ifni | ||||||||||||||||||
| Common languages | Spanish Arabic |
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| Religion | Catholicism Islam |
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| Government | Colonial administration | ||||||||||||||||||
| Head of State | |||||||||||||||||||
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• 1946–1958
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Francisco Franco | ||||||||||||||||||
| Governor | |||||||||||||||||||
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• 1946–1949 (first)
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José Bermejo López | ||||||||||||||||||
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• 1957–1958 (last)
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Mariano Gómez-Zamalloa | ||||||||||||||||||
| Historical era | Cold War | ||||||||||||||||||
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• Established
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20 July 1946 | ||||||||||||||||||
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• Disestablished
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10 January 1958 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Currency | Spanish peseta | ||||||||||||||||||
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Spanish West Africa (Spanish: África Occidental Española, AOE) was a group of lands controlled by Spain on the Atlantic coast of northwest Africa. It was created in 1946. Spain brought together several areas to form this single administrative unit. These areas included the southern part of the Spanish protectorate in Morocco, along with the colonies of Ifni, Saguia el-Hamra, and Río de Oro.
Spanish West Africa existed from 1946 to 1958. After a conflict called the Ifni War (1957–1958), Spain gave the southern part of the Moroccan protectorate to Morocco. Then, in 1958, Ifni and the other areas became separate Spanish provinces.
Spanish West Africa was officially formed by a special order on July 20, 1946. The main leader, called the governor, was based in Ifni. This governor also acted as a representative for the Spanish high commissioner in Morocco. This helped manage the southern zone of the protectorate in a similar way to other Spanish lands nearby.
Later, on July 12, 1947, Ifni and the Sahara region were made into separate parts. However, they were still under the main authority of the governor in Ifni. Finally, in January 1958, the Sahara and Ifni became regular Spanish overseas provinces. This meant they were completely independent of each other.
Leaders of Spanish West Africa
Spanish West Africa had several governors during its short history. These governors were in charge of managing the different areas that made up Spanish West Africa.
Here are some of the key governors:
- José Bermejo López served as the first Governor from July 24, 1946, to August 17, 1949.
- Francisco Rosaleny Burguet was Governor from August 17, 1949, to March 29, 1952.
- Venancio Tutor Gil served as Governor from March 29, 1952, to February 26, 1954.
- Ramón Pardo de Santayana y Suárez was Governor from February 26, 1954, to May 23, 1957. During his time, a special religious area called the Apostolic Prefecture of Spanish Sahara and Ifni was set up.
- Mariano Gómez-Zamalloa y Quirce was the last Governor, serving from May 23, 1957, to January 10, 1958. He was in charge when the Ifni War began.
See also
In Spanish: África Occidental Española para niños
