1945–1950s: (Political Plans — The British Moving Away from Indirect Rule Toward Incorporating the Educated Elite from About 1947, the French Envisaging Patr…

1945–1950s: (Political Plans — The British Moving Away from Indirect Rule Toward Incorporating the Educated Elite from About 1947, the French Envisaging Patron-Client Autonomy Rather Than Unconditional Independence, Special Powers Contemplated for White Settlers in Kenya and Southern Rhodesia, and Decolonization Conceived as a Gradual Transfer Maintaining Metropolitan Influence — Not the Swift Process It Would Become): Changes in European political thinking about the colonies reflected shifts in domestic politics — the war had made mainstream governments more socially conscious. In Britain, the Attlee Labour government represented a rejection of many pre-war social and political values, and from about 1947 the government emphasized moving away from indirect rule toward incorporating the emergent educated elite that had been knocking on the door since the 1930s. The French too began considering a gradual transfer of power, though they envisaged much stronger patron-client links and a more qualified autonomy rather than unconditional independence. Political thought differed for territories of white settlement: the British Colonial Office envisaged special powers for white settlers in Kenya and Southern Rhodesia, guaranteeing privileged positions and continuing economic dominance — one man, one vote was certainly not imagined. Those involved in planning in the late 1940s were in little doubt that former colonies would remain under broad metropolitan influence, and only a very gradual transfer of power was being advocated. Portugal and Belgium envisaged nothing more than the most superficial political reform — their intransigence would render their territories more violently unstable than most. Ultimately, the British and French envisaged that peaceful constitutional change would facilitate the rise of moderate, pliable African leaders who would protect outgoing colonial interests. There was no room for extremists — and certainly not communists. The Cold War’s hardening ideological polarity formed the international backdrop, and in the Horn of Africa Ethiopia positioned itself as a champion of Western interests, resulting in Eritrea being denied independence and becoming the site of a huge US military base.