File:Charles_Taylor_1984_mugshot_(cropped).jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
Charles Taylor was the 22nd president of Liberia who ruled from 1997 to 2003. He matters historically because his presidency was marked by civil conflict and he was later convicted of war crimes by an international tribunal, making him a significant figure in the study of African conflicts and international justice.
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Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- human
- Given name
- Charles
- Family name
- Taylor
- Gender
- male
- Citizenship
- Liberia
- Place of birth
- Arthington
- Spouse
- Jewel Taylor
- Child
- Chuckie Taylor
- Occupation
- politician
- Position held
- President of Liberia
- Political party
- National Patriotic Party
- Languages spoken
- English language
- Religion
- Protestantism
- Conflict
- Second Liberian Civil War
- Military branch
- Armed Forces of Liberia
- Military rank
- commanding officer
- Image
- Charles Taylor 1984 mugshot (cropped).jpg
- Number of children
- 45
- Convicted of
- slavery
Show 4 more facts
- date of birth
- 1948-01-28
- name in native language
- Charles McArthur Ghankay Taylor
- significant person
- Peter Sutcliffe
- Commons category
- Charles Taylor (Liberian politician)
via Wikidata · CC0
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Encyclopedic overview
Charles McArthur Ghankay Taylor (born 28 January 1948) is a Liberian former politician. He served as the 22nd president of Liberia from 2 August 1997 until his resignation on 11 August 2003 as a result of the Second Liberian Civil War and growing international pressure. After leaving office, he was found guilty of war crimes committed in the Sierra Leone Civil War, and was sentenced to 50 years in prison.
Born in Arthington, Montserrado County, Liberia, Taylor earned a degree at Bentley College in the United States before returning to Liberia to work in the government of Samuel Doe. After being removed for embezzlement and imprisoned by President Doe, Taylor escaped prison in 1989. He eventually arrived in Libya, where he was trained as a guerrilla fighter. He returned to Liberia in 1989 as the head of a Libyan-backed rebel group, the National Patriotic Front of Liberia, to overthrow the Doe government, initiating the First Liberian Civil War (1989–1996). Following Doe's execution, Taylor gained control of a large portion of the country and became one of the most prominent warlords in Africa. His forces, along with those of other rival warlords such as ULIMO, were notorious for committing widespread human rights abuses and atrocities during the civil war. Following a peace deal that ended the war, Taylor was elected president in the 1997 general election as a member of the National Patriotic Party (NPP).
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Charles Taylor” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.