January · This Day in Africa
January 28
1961 — Rwanda's Monarchy Falls
On January 28, 1961, Hutu politicians gathered in the Rwandan town of Gitarama and proclaimed the end of the Tutsi monarchy, declaring Rwanda a republic. Backed by the Belgian administration, they deposed King Kigeli V and installed a provisional government, remaking the country's order in a single gathering far from the royal court.
A referendum confirmed the republic that September, sealing in law what Gitarama had proclaimed. Rwanda became independent on July 1, 1962, entering freedom as a republic rather than a kingdom. The fall of a centuries-old throne, decided in one town meeting, thus stood at the very threshold of the nation's independence.
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