Charles Cecil Dennis Jr (February 21, 1931 – April 22, 1980) was a Liberian political figure who served as

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...

under President

William Tolbert William Richard Tolbert Jr. (13 May 1913 – 12 April 1980) was a Liberian politician who served as the 20th president of Liberia from 1971 until 1980. Tolbert was an Americo-Liberian and trained as a civil servant before entering the House of ...

from 1973 until the

1980 Liberian coup d'état The 1980 Liberian coup d'état happened on April 12, 1980, when President William Tolbert was overthrown and murdered in a violent coup. The coup was staged by an indigenous Liberian faction of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) under the comman ...

led by Samuel Doe. Along with 11 other current and former members of the Liberian government, he was tried by a military tribunal and executed by firing squad ten days after the coup .

Biography

Charles Cecil Dennis, Jr, was born in

Montserrado County Montserrado County is a county in the northwestern portion of the West African nation of Liberia containing its national capital, Monrovia. One of 15 counties that comprise the first-level of administrative division in the nation, it has 17 sub ...

,John Weghorst, "The Beach and the Pole – The Execution of C. Cecil Dennis, Jr."
Wonderland 1981. Liberia, on February 21, 1931. He attended the

College of West Africa The College of West Africa is a Methodist high school in Monrovia, Liberia. The school was opened in 1839 (as the "Monrovia Seminary"), making it one of the oldest European-style schools in Africa. It has produced many of Liberia's leaders. Alumn ...

in Liberia, before going to the United States, where he entered Lincoln University,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, graduating in 1954 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science. In the fall of 1951, Dennis joined the Beta chapter of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity at Lincoln."The Lincoln University posthumously awards long-overdue honorary degree"
''The Baltimore Times'', October 28, 2013. He then completed his education at Georgetown University School of Law in

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...

. He was subsequently called to the bar in Liberia."Dennis, C. C. (1931–80)", in ''Makers of Modern Africa'', London: Africa Journal Ltd, 1981, pp. 152–53. In 1960, Dennis was appointed director of the Legislative Drafting Service of the Liberian Senate. In 1965 he set up a private legal business, C. Cecil Dennis Jr. Law, in

Monrovia Monrovia () is the capital city of the West African country of Liberia. Founded in 1822, it is located on Cape Mesurado on the Atlantic coast and as of the 2008 census had 1,010,970 residents, home to 29% of Liberia’s total population. As th ...

. That same year he was made professor at the Louis Arthur Grimes School of Law,

University of Liberia The University of Liberia (UL or LU in older versions of abbreviation) is a publicly funded institution of higher learning located in Monrovia, Liberia. Authorized by the national government in 1851, the university opened in 1862 as Liberia Coll ...

. In 1973, Dennis was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs, the post he held until his death. Dennis was executed by soldiers on April 22, 1980, at Barclay Beach, Monrovia, alongside 12 other former leading government officials: Frank E. Tolbert (brother of President William Tolbert and President Pro-Tem of the Liberian Senate);

E. Reginald Townsend Edison Reginald Townsend (July 23, 1917 – April 22, 1980) was a Liberian journalist and statesman known for the establishment of Liberia's Information Services. He served as Secretary of Information and Cultural Affairs under President William ...

, National Chairman of the True Whig Party; Cyril Bright, former Minister of Planning and Economic Affairs; Chief Justice

James A. A. Pierre James Alexander Adolphus Pierre (July 18, 1908 – April 22, 1980) was the Chief Justice of Liberia#List of Chief Justices, 13th Chief Justice of Liberia, Chief Justice of Liberia, serving from 1971 until his death in 1980. He had previously serve ...

; Richard Abrom Henries, Speaker of the House of Representatives; Frank J. Stewart, Sr, Director of the Budget; John W. Sherman, Assistant Minister of Commerce and Trade; P. Clarence Parker II, Chairman of the National Investment Council and Treasurer of the True Whig Party; James T. Phillips, former Minister of Finance, former Minister of Agriculture; David Franklin Neal, former Minister of Planning and Economic Affairs; Joseph J. Chesson, Sr, Minister of Justice; and Charles T. O. King, Deputy Minister for Agriculture. According to journalist Larry C. Price, Dennis was the last man to be shot and defiantly stared his killers down whilst uttering a prayer before his execution at the hands of Samuel Doe's regime.

Legacy

The C. Cecil Dennis Jr Auditorium, part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in Monrovia, Liberia, is so-named in his honour. On October 28, 2013, Lincoln University posthumously awarded Cecil Dennis an honorary degree, which was accepted by his widow Agnes Cooper Dennis.

References

External links

containing a picture of Dennis {{DEFAULTSORT:Dennis, Cecil Americo-Liberian people Dennis, Charles Cecil Dennis, Charles Cecil Dennis, Charles Cecil Dennis, Charles Cecil Executed Liberian people People executed by Liberia by firing squad Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) alumni True Whig Party politicians 20th-century Liberian politicians

Biography

Legacy

Further reading

References

External links