Monrovia is the African capital named after U.S. President James Monroe.
The city was founded in 1822 by the American Colonization Society as a settlement for formerly enslaved and freeborn African Americans. Its first name was Christopolis, referring to the settlement established near Providence Island and Cape Mesurado on Liberia’s Atlantic coast. In 1824, it was renamed Monrovia in honour of James Monroe, the fifth president of the United States.
Monroe supported the American Colonization Society and signed legislation that helped fund efforts connected with establishing a colony in West Africa. Liberia later declared independence in 1847, with Monrovia serving as the capital of the new republic. The city grew into Liberia’s political, commercial, and cultural centre, helped by its coastal location and port.
The answer is sometimes confused with Freetown, another West African capital founded for formerly enslaved people. Freetown is in Sierra Leone and was established earlier by British-backed efforts; it was not named after an American president. Monrovia is also one of only two national capitals named for U.S. presidents—the other is Washington, D.C.