Subscribe
NewsOne Featured Video
CLOSE

On the day of November 11, 1975, the African nation of Angola declared independence from Portugal. The milestone ended nearly 500 years of Portuguese rule.

The leader of one of the country’s rival factions, Dr Agostinho Neto, of the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), has been proclaimed the country’s first president.

In the capital, Luanda, huge crowds cheered and soldiers fired shots into the air as the new country’s flag was raised at midnight.

However, the main groups vying for power held separate independence ceremonies.

The MPLA held a huge ceremony at a stadium in the capital, Luanda, attended by a representative from the Soviet Union.