Arrest of Patrice Lumumba

Date: December 1, 1960 • Location: Rome, Italy

Patrice Lumumba is arrested by Mobutu Sese Seko's men on the banks of the Sankuru River, for inciting the army to rebellion.

Patrice Émery Lumumba was a Congolese politician, independence leader, and revolutionary who served as the first prime minister of the First Congolese Republic from June until September 1960, following his party's success in the May 1960 election. Lumumba was the leader of the Congolese National Movement (MNC) from 1958 until his assassination in 1961. Ideologically an African nationalist and pan-Africanist, he played a significant role in the transformation of the Congo from a colony of Belgium into an independent republic.