Eduardo Mondlane

Eduardo Chivambo Mondlane was born on June 20, 1920, in Manjacaze, Gaza Province. Beginning life as a rural goat herder, his exceptional intellect took him to South Africa and the United States, where he earned a PhD in sociology from Northwestern University and Harvard.

Working as a research officer in the United Nations Trusteeship Department, Mondlane travelled worldwide before resigning in 1961 to dedicate himself entirely to liberating Mozambique. On June 25, 1962, in Dar es Salaam, he unified three regional movements into the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO), launching the armed liberation struggle in September 1964. On February 3, 1969, a parcel bomb disguised as a book exploded at his desk in Dar es Salaam; he is commemorated as the supreme Architect of Mozambican Unity.