1 00:00:00,280 --> 00:00:02,000 Speaker 1: The Stay in History Class. It's a production of I 2 00:00:02,080 --> 00:00:06,880 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hi there, Welcome to this Day in History class, 3 00:00:07,440 --> 00:00:10,879 Speaker 1: where we stift through the artifacts of history seven days 4 00:00:10,920 --> 00:00:23,919 Speaker 1: a week. Today is September one, nineteen. The day was 5 00:00:23,960 --> 00:00:28,639 Speaker 1: September one, nineteen sixty nine. In Dress. The first and 6 00:00:28,720 --> 00:00:32,000 Speaker 1: only King of Libya was overthrown in a coup while 7 00:00:32,040 --> 00:00:36,040 Speaker 1: he was in Turkey for medical treatment. More Marek Gaddafi, 8 00:00:36,280 --> 00:00:39,680 Speaker 1: a Libyan army officer, was named Commander in Chief of 9 00:00:39,680 --> 00:00:44,040 Speaker 1: the Armed Forces and the chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council, 10 00:00:44,479 --> 00:00:49,680 Speaker 1: Libya's new governing body. Gaddafi reigned for forty two years 11 00:00:50,080 --> 00:00:54,920 Speaker 1: until he was killed in October of eleven. Gaddafi was 12 00:00:55,000 --> 00:00:58,760 Speaker 1: a controversial figure, with some viewing him as an oppressive 13 00:00:58,840 --> 00:01:02,640 Speaker 1: and eccentric dictate lader, and others a praising his reforms, 14 00:01:02,960 --> 00:01:08,600 Speaker 1: charisma and anti imperialism. Kaddafi was born in Libya when 15 00:01:08,640 --> 00:01:12,480 Speaker 1: it was an Italian colony. Libya gained its independence in 16 00:01:12,600 --> 00:01:17,880 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty one, and it became a constitutional and hereditary 17 00:01:17,920 --> 00:01:23,280 Speaker 1: monarchy under King Idris the first. Early on, Gaddafi was 18 00:01:23,400 --> 00:01:27,760 Speaker 1: politically active. He was a fan of Egyptian president Gamal 19 00:01:27,880 --> 00:01:33,000 Speaker 1: Updale Nasser, who advocated for socialism and Arab nationalism and 20 00:01:33,120 --> 00:01:39,000 Speaker 1: argued against Western colonialism. Gaddafi himself was a devout muslim 21 00:01:39,040 --> 00:01:43,759 Speaker 1: An Arab nationalists and critical of the monarchy under King Idris. 22 00:01:45,000 --> 00:01:50,040 Speaker 1: He read works by revolutionaries and about revolution. In the 23 00:01:50,080 --> 00:01:55,080 Speaker 1: early nineteen sixties, Gaddafi began military training in Benghazi. He 24 00:01:55,120 --> 00:01:59,520 Speaker 1: graduated from the Royal Military Academy in nineteen sixty five, 25 00:02:00,640 --> 00:02:03,040 Speaker 1: but while he was there he became part of the 26 00:02:03,080 --> 00:02:07,480 Speaker 1: Free Unionist Officers movement. Inspired by the Egyptian Free Officers, 27 00:02:08,720 --> 00:02:12,079 Speaker 1: he and some of his friends planned to overthrow King Idris. 28 00:02:13,360 --> 00:02:17,000 Speaker 1: The monarch was falling out of favor with more Libyans, 29 00:02:17,160 --> 00:02:21,240 Speaker 1: as Arab nationalism game support, and people were unhappy with 30 00:02:21,280 --> 00:02:26,919 Speaker 1: the monarchy's corruption and ties to Western nations. After rising 31 00:02:26,919 --> 00:02:29,800 Speaker 1: through the ranks of the military and gaining power within 32 00:02:29,919 --> 00:02:33,919 Speaker 1: the Free Unionist Officers movement, Gaddafi decided to stage a 33 00:02:34,040 --> 00:02:38,679 Speaker 1: coup with his fellow officers to overthrow the Libyan monarchy. 34 00:02:39,360 --> 00:02:43,440 Speaker 1: On September one, nineteen sixty nine, dozens of officers in 35 00:02:43,480 --> 00:02:47,160 Speaker 1: the Free Officers movement overthrew the monarchy in a bloodless 36 00:02:47,200 --> 00:02:51,280 Speaker 1: coup while Indriss was out of the country. After just 37 00:02:51,400 --> 00:02:56,480 Speaker 1: a few days, the Libyan Arab Republic was declared. Experienced 38 00:02:56,520 --> 00:03:01,000 Speaker 1: officers and civilians were appointed to senior government because editions, 39 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:05,160 Speaker 1: but while the Revolutionary Command Council was in theory meant 40 00:03:05,200 --> 00:03:08,840 Speaker 1: to discuss issues until it because sinceus was reached, Gaddafi 41 00:03:08,960 --> 00:03:14,000 Speaker 1: suppressed his opposition and exerted his own will. Gaddafi had 42 00:03:14,080 --> 00:03:18,639 Speaker 1: taken over Libya at just twenty seven years old. Gaddafi 43 00:03:18,760 --> 00:03:23,120 Speaker 1: made changes under what he called Islamic socialism. He closed 44 00:03:23,120 --> 00:03:27,040 Speaker 1: American and British military basis in Libya. He replaced the 45 00:03:27,080 --> 00:03:31,320 Speaker 1: Gregorian calendar with the Islamic one, and people were required 46 00:03:31,400 --> 00:03:38,119 Speaker 1: to use Arabic in official and public communications. Gaddafi nationalized finance, business, 47 00:03:38,160 --> 00:03:43,360 Speaker 1: and industry, including big oil interests. He also banned alcohol 48 00:03:43,520 --> 00:03:47,720 Speaker 1: and nightclubs and declared the Koran the law of the land. 49 00:03:48,920 --> 00:03:53,240 Speaker 1: In nineteen seventy, he expelled all Italians from Libya. He 50 00:03:53,320 --> 00:03:58,000 Speaker 1: also opposed Zionism in Israel and expelled Jewish people from Libya, 51 00:03:59,080 --> 00:04:03,920 Speaker 1: and Gaddafi's supported Pan Arab unity. He criminalized political dissent, 52 00:04:04,400 --> 00:04:07,320 Speaker 1: and he worked to turn Libya away from the West 53 00:04:07,400 --> 00:04:12,320 Speaker 1: and toward the Middle East in Africa. Gaddafi eventually transitioned 54 00:04:12,440 --> 00:04:16,360 Speaker 1: to a style of government that he called Third International Theory, 55 00:04:17,000 --> 00:04:22,560 Speaker 1: under which he further distributed wealth among citizens and funded housing, agriculture, 56 00:04:22,720 --> 00:04:27,680 Speaker 1: and healthcare. He summarized the tenets of his Third International 57 00:04:27,760 --> 00:04:31,599 Speaker 1: Theory and a series called The Green Book. The text 58 00:04:31,720 --> 00:04:36,040 Speaker 1: explained the problems with liberal democracy and capitalism and uplifted 59 00:04:36,080 --> 00:04:41,359 Speaker 1: Gaddafi's policies. Throughout the nineteen seventies, Libya intervened in the 60 00:04:41,400 --> 00:04:47,520 Speaker 1: affairs of neighboring countries and forged agreements with others. Gaddafi's 61 00:04:47,600 --> 00:04:51,760 Speaker 1: rule was divisive. He encouraged groups to kill Libyan dissidents 62 00:04:51,800 --> 00:04:56,840 Speaker 1: in exile abroad. Western nations, especially the United States, took 63 00:04:56,920 --> 00:05:00,560 Speaker 1: issue with Gaddafi and Libya's support of terror risk and 64 00:05:00,960 --> 00:05:05,200 Speaker 1: revolutionary groups around the world, like Palestinian groups, the Irish 65 00:05:05,240 --> 00:05:09,200 Speaker 1: Republican Army, the Black Panthers, and the Japanese Red Army. 66 00:05:10,240 --> 00:05:15,120 Speaker 1: Gaddafi has been accused of sexual abuse. He also instituted 67 00:05:15,200 --> 00:05:18,520 Speaker 1: social programs that improved the standard of living in Libya 68 00:05:18,960 --> 00:05:23,000 Speaker 1: and garnered a cult of personality around his peculiar persona. 69 00:05:24,120 --> 00:05:27,320 Speaker 1: For instance, he traveled with a group of women bodyguards 70 00:05:27,320 --> 00:05:32,200 Speaker 1: and heels, and many supported his vision of pan Africanism 71 00:05:32,200 --> 00:05:37,360 Speaker 1: and African self sufficiency. Tensions between Gaddafi and Western nations 72 00:05:37,440 --> 00:05:41,839 Speaker 1: east in the nineteen nineties, but in eleven Gaddafi was 73 00:05:41,920 --> 00:05:45,720 Speaker 1: captured and killed during the Battle of Search, with an 74 00:05:45,720 --> 00:05:50,520 Speaker 1: autopsy revealing that he was shot in the head. I'm 75 00:05:50,520 --> 00:05:52,960 Speaker 1: eas Jeff Coote and hopefully you know a little more 76 00:05:53,000 --> 00:05:57,240 Speaker 1: about history today than you did yesterday. If you have 77 00:05:57,279 --> 00:06:00,720 Speaker 1: any burning questions or comments to tell us, you can 78 00:06:00,760 --> 00:06:05,320 Speaker 1: find us on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook at t d 79 00:06:05,360 --> 00:06:11,160 Speaker 1: i HC podcast. Thank you so much for listening, and 80 00:06:11,200 --> 00:06:14,240 Speaker 1: I hope to see you again tomorrow for more tidbits 81 00:06:14,279 --> 00:06:25,560 Speaker 1: of history. For more podcasts from I Heart Radio, visit 82 00:06:25,600 --> 00:06:28,240 Speaker 1: the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen 83 00:06:28,279 --> 00:06:29,159 Speaker 1: to your favorite shows.