Archeologists believe that the northern area of Chad was settled as long ago as 6000 BC. There are archaeological sites in the Borkou, Ennedi, and Tibesti areas that date back to 2000 BC. The earliest civilization was the Sao. The Sao were overtaken later by the Kanem Empire. The Kanem was the strongest of the empires formed in Chad.
Europeans arrived in Chad in the late 1800's and the French began to take control in the early 1900's. In 1920 the French took full control and made Chad part of the French Equatorial Africa, also called the AEF. Chad remained a territory for some years until it gained independence on August 11, 1960. The first president of Chad was Francois Tombalvaye, who was lead of the main political party, the PPT.
Unfortunately, the history of Chad has since been marred by constant civil war and rebellion.
The Geography of Chad
Total Size: 1,284,000 square km
Size Comparison: slightly more than three times the size of California
