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Dr Matthew Graham

Lecturer in History and Politics

Contact Details

m.v.graham@dundee.ac.uk

Tel: +44 (0) 1382 3 88628

Profile

I joined the University of Dundee in 2012 as a lecturer, having completed my PhD at the University of Sheffield (2008-2011).

I am a historian of modern, sub-Saharan Africa, and I am interested in national liberation movements and post-colonial governance. My current research focuses on South Africa and examines the evolution of the African National Congress’s (ANC) foreign policy towards Southern Africa between 1960 and 2007. It investigates the continuities and the discontinuities of the ANC’s policies over this period from exiled liberation movement to governing political party. I am particularly interested in the events of  South Africa’s transition from apartheid to democracy (1990-1994), investigating how decisions came about, and the long-term influences they had upon the democratic government.

My teaching focuses on Twentieth Century Africa and the political developments on the continent after World War II. I currently offer an introductory course on Africa and a specific case study of South Africa. I ensure that important primary sources from the archives are incorporated into teaching to enhance the student experience.  

Current Teaching

Modern South Africa: Apartheid, African Liberation and Democracy (Level 4)

Contemporary African Politics (Level 3)

Making History (Level 3)

Research

Publications

‘Foreign Policy in Transition: The ANC’s search for a foreign policy direction during South Africa’s transition, 1990-1994’, The Round Table Journal, (2012) pp. 1-19. (awarded the Hodson Memorial Prize for 2011)

‘Coming in from the cold: The Transitional Executive Council and South Africa’s reintegration into the international community’, Journal of Commonwealth and Comparative Politics, 49, 3 (2011), 359-378.

‘Covert Collusion? American and South African relations during the Angolan Civil War, 1974-1976’, African Historical Review, 43, 1 (2011), 28-47.

‘Finding Foreign Policy: Researching in Five South African Archives’, History in Africa: A Journal of Method, 37 (2010), 379-387.

‘Cold War in Southern Africa’, Africa Spectrum, 45, 1, (2010), 131-139. 

Research statement

My research interests encompass several different aspects of Southern African history and politics, from 1945 to the present day. My main focus is on African liberation movements, decolonisation, and post-colonial governance. I have conducted research in a number of areas including: the activities of national liberation movements such as the ANC and MPLA (Angola); the start of the Angolan Civil War (1974-1976); the influence of the Cold War and the interventions of the superpowers in the region; apartheid South Africa’s projection of military and political power in Southern Africa; the process of decolonisation and the transition to democracy, particularly in South Africa; and the global foreign policy interactions of South Africa led by the ANC government.

Suggested areas for postgraduate supervision

I would welcome enquiries from potential research students interested in late colonial and post-colonial sub-Saharan Africa, in particular the Southern African region. Suggested themes might include:

  • African politics and society
  • White minority rule
  • Regional liberation struggles
  • Post-colonial governance 

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