Port city (pop., 1999 est.: metro. area, 479,000), capital of Liberia , located on the Atlantic coast.
It was founded in 1822 by the American Colonization Society as a settlement for freed U.S. slaves and named for Pres. James Monroe . Bushrod Island contains the artificial harbour and free port of Monrovia, the only such port in West Africa. It is Liberia's largest city and its administrative and commercial centre. Many of the city's buildings were damaged during the civil war that began in 1990, and its increased population includes many formerly rural people displaced by the war. It is the seat of the University of Liberia.