History of Uganda (1962–71) History of Uganda (1962–71) The history of Uganda from 1962 through 1971 comprises the history of Uganda from Ugandan independence from the United Kingdom to the rise of the dictator Idi Amin. Early independent Uganda during this period was dominated by the regime of Milton Obote, Uganda's first Prime Minister and subsequently President, who after being deposed by Amin returned to power in the 1980s. Uganda's approach to independence was unlike that of most other colonial territories where political parties had been organized to force self-rule or independence from a reluctant colonial government. In Uganda there had been some demands
Idi Amin school with only a fourth-grade English-language education, and did odd jobs before being recruited to the army by a British colonial army officer. Amin joined the King's African Rifles (KAR) of the British Colonial Army in 1946 as an assistant cook. In later life, he falsely claimed he was forced to join the armies during World War II and that he served in the Burma Campaign. He was transferred to Kenya for infantry service as a private in 1947, and served in the 21st KAR infantry battalion in Gilgil, Kenya until 1949. That year, his unit was deployed to northern