Provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Belgian Congo became an independent country in 1960, named Republic of the Congo. By 1963, the country was organised into 21 provinces (informally called "provincettes") plus the capital city of Léopoldville, similar to the original 22 districts under colonial rule. In 1966, the 21 "provincettes" were grouped into eight provinces, and the capital city was renamed Kinshasa.
Democratic Republic of the Congo–United Kingdom relations
The United Kingdom established its first Diplomatic mission with the Congo Free State in 1902 when a British Consulate was built in the then capital Boma. A vice-consulate later opened in Léopoldville in 1906. In 1923 Léopoldville was proclaimed the capital of the Belgian Congo and in 1930 the British Consulate in Boma closed and the vice-consulate in Léopoldville became the consulate.