Person

Seretse Khama

1921–1980 · 20th century

Seretse Khama was the hereditary chief of the Bangwato and the first President of Botswana, from 1966 until his death in 1980. His marriage to an Englishwoman, Ruth Williams, led Britain to exile him from the Bechuanaland Protectorate in the 1950s. He founded the Botswana Democratic Party and led the country to independence and stable democratic government.

Seretse Khama
Image: European Communities Director: Allan Watson Architect: Jean Polak,Jean Gilson,Lucien De Vestel,André Polak · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 2 state histories

Bangwato KingdomBechuanaland Protectorate

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Seretse Khama. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/seretse-khama
MLA
“Seretse Khama.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/seretse-khama. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Seretse Khama.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/seretse-khama.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Seretse Khama’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/seretse-khama (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻