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In several respects, it is at best misleading misleading. Ghanaian leader Kwame Nkrumah's primary interests lay in Pan-Africanism and promoting the continent's freedom, independence and unity. He never had any intention of aligning himself with either the Eastern bloc or the West; rather, he sought to play them off against each other to the benefit of his own country.

In several respects, it is at best misleading. Ghanaian leader Kwame Nkrumah's primary interests lay in Pan-Africanism and promoting the continent's freedom, independence and unity. He never had any intention of aligning himself with either the Eastern bloc or the West; rather, he sought to play them off against each other to the benefit of his own country.

Ghanaian leader Kwame Nkrumah's primary interests lay in Pan-Africanism and promoting the continent's freedom, independence and unity. He never had any intention of aligning himself with either the Eastern bloc or the West; rather, he sought to play them off against each other to the benefit of his own country.

Kwame Nkrumah was, above all else, a Pan-Africanist. From before the time he attained power in 1957 up until his death in 1972, Nkrumah's writings and speeches consistently promoted the cause of Pan-Africanism. Thus, although he was impressed by some aspects of the Soviet Union, Nkrumah's intention was always for Africa to control its own destiny rather than become a satellite of the either of the superpowers.

Nkrumah was greatly influenced by the Pan-Africanist George Padmore. As stated by Ahmad Rahman in The Regime Change of Kwame Nkrumah,

This Memorandum From the President's Special Assistant for National Security Affairs (Bundy) to President Kennedy, dated December 1, 1961, also says:

As further evidence of Nkrumah's intent not to align with either superpower, he was a key figure in the non-aligned movement (along with Tito, Nehru, Sukarno and Nasser), attending the Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries in 1961.

These views are shared by other experts on Ghanaian history, according to the article 'The Crown' Says One Dance Changed History. The Truth Isn't So Simple. This is not to say, though, the Queen's visit did not create a good impression; it clearly did, but to infer that it was pivotal in influencing Nkrumah's attitude towards the Soviet bloc has no basis in fact.

Nor can I find any evidence that the Prime Minster Harold Macmillan was 'shocked' by the Queen's dance with Nkrumah; this is hardly surprising as it was Macmillan's cabinet that had advised the Queen to carry out the visit in the first place. Also, the Duchess of Kent, as the Queen's representative, had danced with the Ghanaian leader in 1957.

In several respects, it is at best misleading misleading. Ghanaian leader Kwame Nkrumah's primary interests lay in Pan-Africanism and promoting the continent's freedom, independence and unity. He never had any intention of aligning himself with either the Eastern bloc or the West; rather, he sought to play them off against each other to the benefit of his own country.

Kwame Nkrumah was, above all else, a Pan-Africanist. From before the time he attained power in 1957 up until his death in 1972, Nkrumah's writings and speeches consistently promoted the cause of Pan-Africanism. Thus, although he was impressed by some aspects of the Soviet Union, Nkrumah's intention was always for Africa to control its own destiny rather than become a satellite of the either of the superpowers.

Nkrumah was greatly influenced by the Pan-Africanist George Padmore. As stated by Ahmad Rahman in The Regime Change of Kwame Nkrumah,

This Memorandum From the President's Special Assistant for National Security Affairs (McGeorge Bundy) to President Kennedy, dated December 1, 1961, also says:

As further evidence of Nkrumah's intent not to align with either superpower, he was a key figure in the non-aligned movement (along with Tito of Yugoslavia, Nehru of India, Sukarno of Indonesia and Nasser of Egypt), attending the Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries in 1961.

These views are shared by other experts on Ghanaian history, according to the article 'The Crown' Says One Dance Changed History. The Truth Isn't So Simple. This is not to say, though, the Queen's visit did not create a good impression; it clearly did, but to infer that it was pivotal in influencing Nkrumah's attitude towards the Soviet bloc has no basis in fact.

Nor can I find any evidence that the Prime Minster Harold Macmillan was 'shocked' by the Queen's dance with Nkrumah; this is hardly surprising as it was Macmillan's cabinet that had advised the Queen to carry out the visit in the first place. Also, the Duchess of Kent (Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark), as the Queen's representative, had danced with the Ghanaian leader in 1957.

Nonetheless, the Soviets would have been well-positioned to increase their influence had John F. Kennedy not gone ahead with the co-financing of the Volta River Project, the details of which had been hammered out during the Eisenhower administration. The building of a dam to supply the electricity needed for the aluminium industry and to make Ghana self-sufficient (not mention to Nkrumah's grandiose plans for industrialization) was seen as the key to Ghana's future development. The State Department recognized the importance of US co-financing (along with the IDBR and the UK), writing in a memo dated 17 Feb 1961

Jawaharlal Nehru (India), Kwame Nkrumah (Ghana), Abdel Nasser (Egypt); Sukarno (Indonesia) and, Josip Tito (Yugoslavia) meet in New York, Sept. 30, 1960 shortly before forming the Non-Aligned Movement. Source: Graphic Online

Nonetheless, the Soviets would have been well-positioned to increase their influence had John F. Kennedy not gone ahead with the co-financing of the Volta River Project, the details of which had been hammered out during the Eisenhower administration. The building of a dam to supply the electricity needed for the aluminium industry and to make Ghana self-sufficient (not mention to Nkrumah's grandiose plans for industrialization) was seen as the key to Ghana's future development. The State Department recognized the importance of US co-financing (along with the IDBR and the UK), writing in a memo dated 17 Feb 1961

The Akosombo Dam, completed in 1965, created the world's largest (by surface area) man-made lake. Source: GhanaNation