The article analyses the turn in the history of Africa which began in the late 1950s and went on for several decades. 1960 was the year when this turn was particularly sharp. In that one year almost two dozen African colonies gained their independence. That year remained in world history as “The Year of Africa”, the symbol of this turn in the lives of African peoples.

The article looks into the reasons for the rise of anti-colonial movements which led to this turn. The upsurge of the struggle against colonialism showed itself not only in the diversification of forms of anti-colonialism and the emergence of armed struggle, but also in the striving of African peoples to unity, cooperation, in the growth of pan-Africanism and the convening of conferences of independent African countries and of African peoples. The upsurge of anti-colonialism produced such political leaders and public figures as Kwame Nkrumah, Jomo Kenyatta, Hastings Banda, Patrice Lumumba and Nelson Mandela. A certain role in colonial liberation was played by various international organisations and the support of our country.

The author writes about the hopes of African peoples for a better future which were a direct result of independence, but also about the diverse, but real difficulties, which the new states had to face in the situation of social backwardness and the absence of the qualified cadres.

A certain attention was paid to the role of the Soviet Union in the rise of colonial independence and to the changes in its foreign policy as a result.