Fall of the Libyan Monarchy

King Idris

Fall of the Libyan Monarchy

Fifty years ago, on 1 September 1969, the first and only King of Libya was deposed. The documents in this collection highlight the bloodless coup by a group of Libyan military officers which removed King Idris I. The group, which called itself the Revolutionary Command Council, was motivated by the ideology of Arab socialism modeled by Egypt's Gamal Abdel Nasser. Within a short time, a young officer named Muammar Qadhafi emerged as a leader of the group, and he would rule Libya for the next 40 years. These documents cover major developments related to the coup, including US reaction. The Nixon administration believed that washington need not be overly distressed by the coup and felt the US could have a working relationship with the new regime. Also discussed in the documents is Libya's intention to honor treaty obligations regarding Wheelus Air Base, a major US Air Force installation in Libya that supported Mediterranean operations.

Documents in this Collection

Documents in PDF format require the Adobe Acrobat ReaderĀ®

Document Number: 06809341
Pages:
4
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PDF icon EXCERPT OF WEEKLY SUMMARY[15708342].pdf123.92 KB

Document Number: 03359320
Pages:
3
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PDF icon MORNING CABLE SUMMARY[15708341].pdf144.87 KB

Document Number: 05140120
Pages:
8
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PDF icon MEMO TO HENRY KISSINGER F[15708390].pdf378.46 KB

Document Number: 01202663
Pages:
11
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PDF icon INTELLIGENCE MEMORANDUM[15708331].pdf506.75 KB

Document Number: 03397852
Pages:
4
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PDF icon MEMORANDUM FOR THE RECORD[15708349].pdf263.71 KB

Document Number: 06809342
Pages:
16
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PDF icon MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRET[15708332].pdf717.76 KB

Document Number: 03162533
Pages:
11
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PDF icon CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE BULL[15708333].pdf327.44 KB

Document Number: 03359206
Pages:
2