Decolonization revolutionized the international order in the 20th century. However, the standard narratives that depict the end of colonialism as an inevitable transition from a world of empires to one of nation-states obscure how radical this change was. Through the political thought of anti-colonial intellectuals and statesmen such as Nnamdi Azikiwe, W. E. B. Du Bois, George Padmore, and Julius Nyerere, Adom Getachew demonstrates the immense explosive power of the decolonial movement. Drawing on numerous archival sources, she presents the history of the decolonial movement, including its failures, and offers a new perspective on the debates surrounding today's world order.