ABSTRACT
The Sudan became an independent country in January 1956. Many of the special cultural characteristics of the modern Sudan have roots deep in history, but its specific institutions are the products of twentieth-century developments. The twentieth-century creation of the Sudan involved two major phases. The first extended from the Anglo-Egyptian conquest of the Mahdist state at the end of the nineteenth century until the achievement of independence in 1956. The second was the experience of an independent Sudan. In the first phase the dominant factor was foreign control of the Sudan. In legal theory, it was ruled jointly by the British and the Egyptians, but in terms of actual power and control, the British were in charge. This system of control is frequently called the AngloEgyptian Condominium.
