Zimbabwe Rhodesia
Encyclopedia
Zimbabwe Rhodesia officially the Republic of Zimbabwe Rhodesia, was an unrecognized state that existed from 1 June 1979 to 12 December 1979. Zimbabwe Rhodesia was preceded by the unrecognized Republic of Rhodesia
and was briefly followed by the re-established British colony
of Southern Rhodesia
, which according to British constitutional theory had remained the proper government after UDI
in 1965. About three months later, the re-established colony of Southern Rhodesia was granted independence as the Republic of Zimbabwe
.
An "Internal Settlement
" between the Smith
administration of the Republic of Rhodesia and moderate African nationalist parties not involved in the Rhodesian Bush War
led to the end of white minority government and the birth of majority rule in Zimbabwe Rhodesia.
(UDI
), the Republic of Zimbabwe-Rhodesia was governed by a Prime Minister and Cabinet chosen from the majority party in a one-hundred member House of Assembly. A forty member Senate acted as the upper House, and both together chose a figurehead President in whose name the government was conducted.
, Bishop Abel Muzorewa
's United African National Council
(UANC
) won a majority in the common roll seats while Ian Smith
's Rhodesian Front
(RF
) won all of the white seats. Ndabaningi Sithole
's Zimbabwe African National Union
(ZANU) won twelve seats.
of the United African National Council
(UANC
) and Timothy Ngundu Bateson Ndlovu of the United National Federal Party (UNFP) were nominated. Gumede won by 80 votes to 33, as reported in the Daily Telegraph of 29 May 1979.
of the UANC was appointed as Prime Minister
. He formed a joint government with Ian Smith
, the former Prime Minister of Rhodesia
, who was a Minister without Portfolio
. Muzorewa also attempted to include the other African parties who had lost the election. Rhodesian Front
members served as Muzorewa's Ministers of Justice, Agriculture, and Finance. White control over the country's civil service, judiciary, police and armed forces continued.
Once in office, Muzorewa sought to drop 'Rhodesia' from the country's name, and in fact adopted a new national flag that featured the Zimbabwe soapstone bird
. The national airline, Air Rhodesia
, was also renamed Air Zimbabwe
. The name did manage to appear on some issues of Rhodesia stamps overprinted with "ZimbabweRhodesia" postage stamp
s; issues of 1978 still used "Rhodesia," and the next stamp issues were in 1980, after the change to just "Zimbabwe," and were inscribed accordingly.
The Lancaster House Agreement
stipulated that control over the country be returned to the United Kingdom in preparation for elections to be held in the spring of 1980. On 11 December 1979, the Constitution of Zimbabwe-Rhodesia (Amendment) (No. 4) Act received Presidential Assent and Lord Soames
arrived the next day to take control. The name of the country formally reverted to Southern Rhodesia
at this time, although the name Zimbabwe Rhodesia remained in many of the country's institutions. From 12 December 1979, to 17 April 1980, Zimbabwe Rhodesia was again the British colony
of Southern Rhodesia. On 18 April, Southern Rhodesia became the independent Republic of Zimbabwe
.
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
and was briefly followed by the re-established British colony
Colony
In politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....
of Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia was the name of the British colony situated north of the Limpopo River and the Union of South Africa. From its independence in 1965 until its extinction in 1980, it was known as Rhodesia...
, which according to British constitutional theory had remained the proper government after UDI
Unilateral Declaration of Independence (Rhodesia)
The Unilateral Declaration of Independence of Rhodesia from the United Kingdom was signed on November 11, 1965, by the administration of Ian Smith, whose Rhodesian Front party opposed black majority rule in the then British colony. Although it declared independence from the United Kingdom it...
in 1965. About three months later, the re-established colony of Southern Rhodesia was granted independence as the Republic of Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
.
An "Internal Settlement
Internal Settlement
The Internal Settlement was the agreement between Rhodesian Prime Minister Ian Smith and Abel Muzorewa in 1978.-Negotiations:Fed up with the sanctions leveled against Rhodesia by the international community and outright political pressure from South Africa, Great Britain and the United States, the...
" between the Smith
Ian Smith
Ian Douglas Smith GCLM ID was a politician active in the government of Southern Rhodesia, the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, Rhodesia, Zimbabwe Rhodesia and Zimbabwe from 1948 to 1987, most notably serving as Prime Minister of Rhodesia from 13 April 1964 to 1 June 1979...
administration of the Republic of Rhodesia and moderate African nationalist parties not involved in the Rhodesian Bush War
Rhodesian Bush War
The Rhodesian Bush War – also known as the Second Chimurenga or the Zimbabwe War of Liberation – was a civil war which took place between July 1964 and December 1979 in the unrecognised country of Rhodesia...
led to the end of white minority government and the birth of majority rule in Zimbabwe Rhodesia.
Naming
As early as 1960 African nationalist political organizations in Rhodesia agreed that the country's name should be "Zimbabwe" and used that name as part of the titles of their organizations.Government of Zimbabwe Rhodesia
During its brief existence, the Republic of Zimbabwe Rhodesia had one election which resulted in its short-lived biracial government.Constitution
Adapting the constitution of the Unilateral Declaration of IndependenceUnilateral Declaration of Independence (Rhodesia)
The Unilateral Declaration of Independence of Rhodesia from the United Kingdom was signed on November 11, 1965, by the administration of Ian Smith, whose Rhodesian Front party opposed black majority rule in the then British colony. Although it declared independence from the United Kingdom it...
(UDI
Unilateral Declaration of Independence (Rhodesia)
The Unilateral Declaration of Independence of Rhodesia from the United Kingdom was signed on November 11, 1965, by the administration of Ian Smith, whose Rhodesian Front party opposed black majority rule in the then British colony. Although it declared independence from the United Kingdom it...
), the Republic of Zimbabwe-Rhodesia was governed by a Prime Minister and Cabinet chosen from the majority party in a one-hundred member House of Assembly. A forty member Senate acted as the upper House, and both together chose a figurehead President in whose name the government was conducted.
House of Assembly
Of the one hundred members of the House of Assembly, seventy-two were 'common roll' members for whom the electorate was every adult citizen. All of these members were Africans. Twenty seats were elected by mostly white constituencies using the previous electoral roll of Rhodesia; although this did not actually exclude non-whites, it was very rare for black Africans to meet the qualification requirements. A delimitation commission sat in 1978 to determine how to reduce the previous fifty constituencies to twenty. The remaining eight seats were for white non-constituency members, and were elected by the other 92 members of the House of Assembly once their election was complete. In the only election held by the Republic of Zimbabwe RhodesiaZimbabwe Rhodesia general election, 1979
The Zimbabwe Rhodesia general election of April 1979 was held under the internal settlement negotiated by the Rhodesian Front government of Ian Smith intended to provide a peaceful transition to majority rule on terms not harmful to Rhodesians of European descent...
, Bishop Abel Muzorewa
Abel Muzorewa
Bishop Abel Tendekayi Muzorewa served as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe Rhodesia from the Internal Settlement to the Lancaster House Agreement in 1979...
's United African National Council
United African National Council
The United African National Council is a political party in Zimbabwe.In 1979, led by Bishop Abel Muzorewa, the UANC Party held formal power in Zimbabwe during the short-lived period of the Internal Settlement...
(UANC
United African National Council
The United African National Council is a political party in Zimbabwe.In 1979, led by Bishop Abel Muzorewa, the UANC Party held formal power in Zimbabwe during the short-lived period of the Internal Settlement...
) won a majority in the common roll seats while Ian Smith
Ian Smith
Ian Douglas Smith GCLM ID was a politician active in the government of Southern Rhodesia, the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, Rhodesia, Zimbabwe Rhodesia and Zimbabwe from 1948 to 1987, most notably serving as Prime Minister of Rhodesia from 13 April 1964 to 1 June 1979...
's Rhodesian Front
Rhodesian Front
The Rhodesian Front was a political party in Southern Rhodesia when the country was under white minority rule. Led first by Winston Field, and, from 1964, by Ian Smith, the Rhodesian Front was the successor to the Dominion Party, which was the main opposition party in Southern Rhodesia during the...
(RF
Rhodesian Front
The Rhodesian Front was a political party in Southern Rhodesia when the country was under white minority rule. Led first by Winston Field, and, from 1964, by Ian Smith, the Rhodesian Front was the successor to the Dominion Party, which was the main opposition party in Southern Rhodesia during the...
) won all of the white seats. Ndabaningi Sithole
Ndabaningi Sithole
Ndabaningi Sithole founded the Zimbabwe African National Union, a militant organization that opposed the government of Rhodesia, in July 1963. A member of the Ndau ethnic group, he also worked as a Methodist minister. He spent 10 years in prison after the government banned ZANU...
's Zimbabwe African National Union
Zimbabwe African National Union
The Zimbabwe African National Union was a militant organization that fought against the standing government in Rhodesia, formed as a split from the Zimbabwe African People's Union...
(ZANU) won twelve seats.
Senate
The Senate of Zimbabwe-Rhodesia had 40 members. Ten members each were returned by the white members of the House of Assembly and the common roll members, and five members each by the council of Chiefs of Mashonaland and Matabeleland. The remaining members were directly appointed by the President under the advice of the Prime Minister.President
The President of Zimbabwe Rhodesia was elected by the members of the Parliament, sitting together. At the election on 28 May 1979, Josiah Zion GumedeJosiah Zion Gumede
Josiah Zion Gumede was the only president of the self-proclaimed, and internationally unrecognised, state of Zimbabwe Rhodesia during 1979, before Rhodesia briefly reverted to British rule until the country's independence as Zimbabwe in 1980...
of the United African National Council
United African National Council
The United African National Council is a political party in Zimbabwe.In 1979, led by Bishop Abel Muzorewa, the UANC Party held formal power in Zimbabwe during the short-lived period of the Internal Settlement...
(UANC
United African National Council
The United African National Council is a political party in Zimbabwe.In 1979, led by Bishop Abel Muzorewa, the UANC Party held formal power in Zimbabwe during the short-lived period of the Internal Settlement...
) and Timothy Ngundu Bateson Ndlovu of the United National Federal Party (UNFP) were nominated. Gumede won by 80 votes to 33, as reported in the Daily Telegraph of 29 May 1979.
Prime Minister
Starting with fifty-one seats out of one-hundred, Abel MuzorewaAbel Muzorewa
Bishop Abel Tendekayi Muzorewa served as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe Rhodesia from the Internal Settlement to the Lancaster House Agreement in 1979...
of the UANC was appointed as Prime Minister
Government of Zimbabwe-Rhodesia
The Government of Zimbabwe Rhodesia took office on 1 June 1979 under the internal settlement negotiated between the government of Rhodesia and moderate African nationalists...
. He formed a joint government with Ian Smith
Ian Smith
Ian Douglas Smith GCLM ID was a politician active in the government of Southern Rhodesia, the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, Rhodesia, Zimbabwe Rhodesia and Zimbabwe from 1948 to 1987, most notably serving as Prime Minister of Rhodesia from 13 April 1964 to 1 June 1979...
, the former Prime Minister of Rhodesia
Prime Minister of Rhodesia
The Prime Minister of Rhodesia was the head of government in the colony of Rhodesia. Rhodesia's political system was modelled on the Westminster system and the Prime Minister's role was similar to that of the same position in other countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New...
, who was a Minister without Portfolio
Minister without Portfolio
A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister that does not head a particular ministry...
. Muzorewa also attempted to include the other African parties who had lost the election. Rhodesian Front
Rhodesian Front
The Rhodesian Front was a political party in Southern Rhodesia when the country was under white minority rule. Led first by Winston Field, and, from 1964, by Ian Smith, the Rhodesian Front was the successor to the Dominion Party, which was the main opposition party in Southern Rhodesia during the...
members served as Muzorewa's Ministers of Justice, Agriculture, and Finance. White control over the country's civil service, judiciary, police and armed forces continued.
Once in office, Muzorewa sought to drop 'Rhodesia' from the country's name, and in fact adopted a new national flag that featured the Zimbabwe soapstone bird
Zimbabwe Bird
The stone-carved Zimbabwe Bird is a national emblem of Zimbabwe, appearing on the national flags and coats of arms of both Zimbabwe and Rhodesia, as well as on banknotes and coins...
. The national airline, Air Rhodesia
Air Rhodesia
Air Rhodesia was the national airline of Rhodesia. Its head office was located on the property of Salisbury Airport in Salisbury.It was originally formed as a subsidiary of Central African Airways in June 1964, but became an independent corporation on September 1, 1967. Air Rhodesia flew internal...
, was also renamed Air Zimbabwe
Air Zimbabwe
Air Zimbabwe is the national airline of Zimbabwe, headquartered in Harare. From its hub at Harare International Airport, the carrier operates a network within southern Africa that also includes Asia and London-Gatwick. The company is a member of the International Air Transport Association, and of...
. The name did manage to appear on some issues of Rhodesia stamps overprinted with "ZimbabweRhodesia" postage stamp
Postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
s; issues of 1978 still used "Rhodesia," and the next stamp issues were in 1980, after the change to just "Zimbabwe," and were inscribed accordingly.
End of Zimbabwe Rhodesia
Lancaster House Agreement
The negotiations which led to the Lancaster House Agreement brought independence to Rhodesia following Ian Smith’s Unilateral Declaration of Independence in 1965. The Agreement covered the Independence Constitution, pre-independence arrangements, and a ceasefire...
stipulated that control over the country be returned to the United Kingdom in preparation for elections to be held in the spring of 1980. On 11 December 1979, the Constitution of Zimbabwe-Rhodesia (Amendment) (No. 4) Act received Presidential Assent and Lord Soames
Christopher Soames, Baron Soames
Arthur Christopher John Soames, Baron Soames, GCMG, GCVO, CH, CBE, PC was a British politician belonging to the Conservative Party and the son-in-law of Winston Churchill. A European Commissioner and the last Governor of Southern Rhodesia, he had previously been the longtime Member of Parliament...
arrived the next day to take control. The name of the country formally reverted to Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia was the name of the British colony situated north of the Limpopo River and the Union of South Africa. From its independence in 1965 until its extinction in 1980, it was known as Rhodesia...
at this time, although the name Zimbabwe Rhodesia remained in many of the country's institutions. From 12 December 1979, to 17 April 1980, Zimbabwe Rhodesia was again the British colony
Colony
In politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....
of Southern Rhodesia. On 18 April, Southern Rhodesia became the independent Republic of Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
.
See also
- Colonial history of Southern RhodesiaColonial history of Southern RhodesiaThe territory of 'Southern Rhodesia' was originally referred to as 'South Zambezia' but the name 'Rhodesia' came into use in 1895. The designation 'Southern' was adopted in 1901 and dropped from normal usage in 1964 on the break-up of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, and Rhodesia became...
- Rhodesian Bush WarRhodesian Bush WarThe Rhodesian Bush War – also known as the Second Chimurenga or the Zimbabwe War of Liberation – was a civil war which took place between July 1964 and December 1979 in the unrecognised country of Rhodesia...
- History of the Republic of ZimbabweHistory of ZimbabweAt the end of the Bush War there was a transition to majority rule in 1980. The United Kingdom ceremonially granted Zimbabwe independence on April 18, 1980 in accordance with the Lancaster House Agreement...
- Federation of Rhodesia and NyasalandFederation of Rhodesia and NyasalandThe Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, also known as the Central African Federation , was a semi-independent state in southern Africa that existed from 1953 to the end of 1963, comprising the former self-governing colony of Southern Rhodesia and the British protectorates of Northern Rhodesia,...
- Colony of Southern RhodesiaSouthern RhodesiaSouthern Rhodesia was the name of the British colony situated north of the Limpopo River and the Union of South Africa. From its independence in 1965 until its extinction in 1980, it was known as Rhodesia...
- Republic of RhodesiaRhodesiaRhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
- Republic of ZimbabweZimbabweZimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...