The biography of t idi amin
Idi Amin
(1925-2003)
Who Was Idi Amin?
Idi Amin was a Ugandan president born circa 1925 in Kokobo, West Nile Province, Uganda. He rose within the military from the 1940s through 1970. Amin overthrew the current leader in 1971 and declared himself president, and he remained in power from 1971-1979. During his tenure, he lived a lavish lifestyle while contributing to the collapse of Uganda’s economy. He sought to stay in power at all costs, resulting in extensive human rights violations via mass killings. Overthrown in 1979, he fled first to Libya and then to Saudi Arabia, where he died on August 16, 2003.
Early Years
Amin was a member of the small Kakwa ethnic group of northwestern Uganda. His birthdate is unconfirmed but estimated to have been in 1925. His mother, an herbalist and diviner, raised him after his father deserted the family. Amin had little formal education before joining the King's African Rifles of the British colonial army in 1946 as an assistant cook.
Military Service
Extremely charismatic and skilled, Amin quickly rose through the ranks. His stature was rather notable. He stood 6 feet, 4 inches tall and was a Ugandan light-heavyweight boxing champion from 1951 to 1960, as well as a swimmer. He soon became notorious among fellow soldiers for his overzealous and cruel military interrogations. Eventually, he made the highest rank possible for a Black African serving in the British army. From 1952 until 1956, he served in the British action against the Mau Mau revolt in Kenya.
Before Uganda's independence in 1962, Amin became closely associated with the new nation's prime minister and president, Milton Obote. The two men worked to smuggle gold, coffee and ivory out of Congo, but conflicts soon arose between them, and on January 25, 1971, while Obote was attending a meeting in Singapore, Amin staged a successful military coup. Amin became president and chief of the armed forces in 1971, field marshal in 1975 and life president in 1976.
R Review
“[T]his sharply written, forensically researched book...succeeds as a meticulous re-examination of Amin’s life, producing a narrative packed with original evidence, and one that strives at all times to be scrupulously well balanced. ”―Paul Kenyon, The Sunday Times
“Sizing up the challenge of separating fact from fiction, Leopold adopts a novel approach, abandoning straightforward biography in favour of a meticulous examination of the reliability of the various accounts written as Amin rose to prominence...Leopold picks off the myths, one by one.”―Michela Wrong, The Times
“A welcome new perspective...The best parts of the book show well how the myth of Amin developed not simply through Amin's actions, but through the consistent tendency of British observers.”―Justin Willis, Times Literary Supplement
‘At last, we have a nuanced and sophisticated examination of one of the most misunderstood, and caricatured, figures in modern African history. At once gripping, empathic, and deeply researched, this book is a hugely important contribution.’―Richard Reid, Professor of African History, University of Oxford
‘Instead of the caricature of a merely evil buffoon, the Idi Amin who emerges from this fascinating book is all too chillingly human.’―Andrew Harding, BBC News Africa Correspondent
‘A wonderfully written, original account of the enigmatic Idi Amin.'―Simukai Chigudu, author of The Political Life of an Epidemic
‘Amin was a much more complex person than most think. And his relationships with Britain were also more complex than it is often safe to admit. Leopold's book restores complexity and detail to the man in a way that instructs us never to look superficially at tragedy.’―Stephen Chan, author of Grasping Africa
About the Author
Mark Leopold is Lecturer in Social Anthropology at the University of Sussex.
Idi Amin
President of Uganda from 1971 to 1979
Idi Amin Dada Oumee (, ; 30 May 1928 – 16 August 2003) was a Ugandan military officer and politician who served as the third president of Uganda from 1971 until his overthrow in 1979. He ruled as a military dictator and is considered one of the most brutal despots in modern world history.
Amin was born to a Kakwa father and Lugbara mother. In 1946, he joined the King's African Rifles (KAR) of the British Colonial Army as a cook. He rose to the rank of lieutenant, taking part in British actions against Somali rebels and then the Mau Mau Uprising in Kenya. Uganda gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1962, and Amin remained in the army, rising to the position of deputy army commander in 1964 and being appointed commander two years later. He became aware that Ugandan President Milton Obote was planning to arrest him for misappropriating army funds, so he launched the 1971 Ugandan coup d'état and declared himself president.
During his years in power, Amin shifted from being a pro-Western ruler enjoying considerable support from Israel to being backed by Libya's Muammar Gaddafi, Zaire's Mobutu Sese Seko, the Soviet Union, and East Germany. In 1972, Amin expelled Asians, a majority of whom were Indian-Ugandans, leading India to sever diplomatic relations with his regime. In 1975, Amin assumed chairmanship of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), an intergovernmental organization designed to promote solidarity among African states (an annually rotating role). Uganda was a member of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights from 1977 to 1979. The United Kingdom broke diplomatic relations with Uganda in 1977, and Amin declared that he had defeated the British and added "CBE" to his title for "Conqueror of the British Empire".
As Amin's rule progressed into the late 1970s, there was
Idi Amin, military officer and Idi Amin Dada Oumee Idi Amin
“[T]his sharply written, forensically researched book...succeeds as a meticulous re-examination of Amin’s life, producing a narrative packed with original evidence, and one that strives at all times to be scrupulously well balanced. ”—Paul Kenyon, The Sunday Times
“Sizing up the challenge of separating fact from fiction, Leopold adopts a novel approach, abandoning straightforward biography in favour of a meticulous examination of the reliability of the various accounts written as Amin rose to prominence...Leopold picks off the myths, one by one.”—Michela Wrong, The Times
“A welcome new perspective...The best parts of the book show well how the myth of Amin developed not simply through Amin's actions, but through the consistent tendency of British observers.”—Justin Willis, Times Literary Supplement
‘At last, we have a nuanced and sophisticated examination of one of the most misunderstood, and caricatured, figures in modern African history. At once gripping, empathic, and deeply researched, this book is a hugely important contribution.’—Richard Reid, Professor of African History, University of Oxford
‘Instead of the caricature of a merely evil buffoon, the Idi Amin who emerges from this fascinating book is all too chillingly human.’—Andrew Harding, BBC News Africa Correspondent
‘A wonderfully written, original account of the enigmatic Idi Amin.'—Simukai Chigudu, author of The Political Life of an Epidemic
‘Amin was a much more complex person than most think. And his relationships with Britain were also more complex than it is often safe to admit. Leopold's book restores complexity and detail to the man in a way that instructs us never to look superficially at tragedy.’—Stephen Chan, author of Grasping Africa
Review
“[T]his sharply written, forensically researched book...succeeds as a meticulous re-examination of Amin’s life, producing a narrative packed with original evidence, and one that strives at all times to be scrupulously well balanced. ”―Paul Kenyon, The Sunday Times
“Sizing up the challenge of separating fact from fiction, Leopold adopts a novel approach, abandoning straightforward biography in favour of a meticulous examination of the reliability of the various accounts written as Amin rose to prominence...Leopold picks off the myths, one by one.”―Michela Wrong, The Times
“A welcome new perspective...The best parts of the book show well how the myth of Amin developed not simply through Amin's actions, but through the consistent tendency of British observers.”―Justin Willis, Times Literary Supplement
‘At last, we have a nuanced and sophisticated examination of one of the most misunderstood, and caricatured, figures in modern African history. At once gripping, empathic, and deeply researched, this book is a hugely important contribution.’―Richard Reid, Professor of African History, University of Oxford
‘Instead of the caricature of a merely evil buffoon, the Idi Amin who emerges from this fascinating book is all too chillingly human.’―Andrew Harding, BBC News Africa Correspondent
‘A wonderfully written, original account of the enigmatic Idi Amin.'―Simukai Chigudu, author of The Political Life of an Epidemic
‘Amin was a much more complex person than most think. And his relationships with Britain were also more complex than it is often safe to admit. Leopold's book restores complexity and detail to the man in a way that instructs us never to look superficially at tragedy.’―Stephen Chan, author of Grasping Africa
About the Author
Mark Leopold is Lecturer in Social Anthropology at the University of Sussex.
Idi Amin
President of Uganda from 1971 to 1979
Idi Amin Dada Oumee (, ; 30 May 1928 – 16 August 2003) was a Ugandan military officer and politician who served as the third president of Uganda from 1971 until his overthrow in 1979. He ruled as a military dictator and is considered one of the most brutal despots in modern world history.
Amin was born to a Kakwa father and Lugbara mother. In 1946, he joined the King's African Rifles (KAR) of the British Colonial Army as a cook. He rose to the rank of lieutenant, taking part in British actions against Somali rebels and then the Mau Mau Uprising in Kenya. Uganda gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1962, and Amin remained in the army, rising to the position of deputy army commander in 1964 and being appointed commander two years later. He became aware that Ugandan President Milton Obote was planning to arrest him for misappropriating army funds, so he launched the 1971 Ugandan coup d'état and declared himself president.
During his years in power, Amin shifted from being a pro-Western ruler enjoying considerable support from Israel to being backed by Libya's Muammar Gaddafi, Zaire's Mobutu Sese Seko, the Soviet Union, and East Germany. In 1972, Amin expelled Asians, a majority of whom were Indian-Ugandans, leading India to sever diplomatic relations with his regime. In 1975, Amin assumed chairmanship of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), an intergovernmental organization designed to promote solidarity among African states (an annually rotating role). Uganda was a member of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights from 1977 to 1979. The United Kingdom broke diplomatic relations with Uganda in 1977, and Amin declared that he had defeated the British and added "CBE" to his title for "Conqueror of the British Empire".
As Amin's rule progressed into the late 1970s, there was
Idi Amin
“[T]his sharply written, forensically researched book...succeeds as a meticulous re-examination of Amin’s life, producing a narrative packed with original evidence, and one that strives at all times to be scrupulously well balanced. ”—Paul Kenyon, The Sunday Times
“Sizing up the challenge of separating fact from fiction, Leopold adopts a novel approach, abandoning straightforward biography in favour of a meticulous examination of the reliability of the various accounts written as Amin rose to prominence...Leopold picks off the myths, one by one.”—Michela Wrong, The Times
“A welcome new perspective...The best parts of the book show well how the myth of Amin developed not simply through Amin's actions, but through the consistent tendency of British observers.”—Justin Willis, Times Literary Supplement
‘At last, we have a nuanced and sophisticated examination of one of the most misunderstood, and caricatured, figures in modern African history. At once gripping, empathic, and deeply researched, this book is a hugely important contribution.’—Richard Reid, Professor of African History, University of Oxford
‘Instead of the caricature of a merely evil buffoon, the Idi Amin who emerges from this fascinating book is all too chillingly human.’—Andrew Harding, BBC News Africa Correspondent
‘A wonderfully written, original account of the enigmatic Idi Amin.'—Simukai Chigudu, author of The Political Life of an Epidemic
‘Amin was a much more complex person than most think. And his relationships with Britain were also more complex than it is often safe to admit. Leopold's book restores complexity and detail to the man in a way that instructs us never to look superficially at tragedy.’—Stephen Chan, author of Grasping Africa