The history of Rhodesia from 1965 to 1979 covers Rhodesia's time as a state unrecognised by the international community following the predominantly white minority government's Unilateral Declaration of Independence on 11 November 1965. Headed by Prime Minister Ian Smith, the Rhodesian Front remained in government until 1 June 1979, when the country was reconstituted as Zimbabwe.

Declaration of independence

After several unsuccessful attempts to persuade Britain to grant independence, the government announced the Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) on 11 November 1965. Smith had sought to retain Rhodesia's link with the British monarchy by keeping Queen Elizabeth II as nominal head of state, but she refused to accept the title of Queen of Rhodesia, and Sir Humphrey Gibbs, still internationally recognised as the only legal authority in Rhodesia, refused to recognise Smith's authority. Smith responded by ignoring Sir Humphrey and appointing the Deputy Prime Minister Dupont, as the Officer Administrating the Government (best described as an interim Governor).

Britain did not respond to the UDI with force. Instead it attempted using economic sanctions. This included ending the link between sterling and the Rhodesian currency, seizing assets and banning the import of Rhodesian tobacco. Smith's government retaliated by defaulting on its (British-guaranteed) debts, leaving the British liable while at the same time balancing its budget. The United Nations imposed economic sanctions in 1968 after having adopted Resolution 216 condemning the declaration of independence as one "made by a racist minority." The economic sanctions though were only partly successful; some strategic minerals, especially chromium, were exported to willing buyers in Europe and North America, which resulted in a strengthening of the economy.

1965 to 1972

The Rhodesian Front held power from 1962 until 1979, forming the majority in a parliament, in which 50 of the 66 seats were reserved for the white minority of the country. It was a broadly populist party with support mainly from the working class and recent immigrants. The main white opposition was the Rhodesia Party which had support from the business elite, the professional class and from second or third generation Rhodesians. There were two areas of political life: that of race, and that of all other policies. Economically, at least, the government's policies were quite liberal. Thus, many state benefits were provided to the white minority. The black opposition conversely wanted an end to racial discrimination within the state and absolute political equality for all races. Outside of the area of race, that is, economically and socially, it was more conservative. It advocated less government interference in the economy and free trade. In May 1965, the Rhodesian Front Party again won the general election.

In 1969, the constitution was modified. The most significant 1969 modification was the formal separation of two electoral rolls by race. The A roll was reserved for Europeans and the B roll for non-Europeans. The Assembly constituencies were reformed so that there were 50 A roll, and 8 B roll seats. In addition, the tribal chiefs were able to elect another 8 members. Effectively, the result was that 270,000 whites had 50 seats and 6 million Africans had 16 seats in the Assembly. These reforms served only to reinforce black rejection of the system.

By the time of the early 1970s, the issue of race began to dominate all others and the regime started to repress its white opponents. By 1975, although officially democratic, the regime had started to lock up even peaceful opponents of white domination. Black Rhodesians regarded their legal situation as morally unjustifiable and wanted full equality. From August 1964 to December 1974, Robert Mugabe was imprisoned without trial. Although legal, it was emblematic of a regime that disregarded human rights as part of its fight against terrorism.

Both ZAPU and ZANU began campaigns of guerrilla warfare around 1966. Initially, it was rather sporadic, limited in its scope and consequences. It increased dramatically after 1972, causing destruction, economic dislocation, casualties, and a slump in white morale. In 1974, the major African nationalists groups, (ZAPU) and (ZANU), were united into the "Patriotic Front" and combined their military forces, at least nominally. These guerrilla raids led to escalation in white emigration from Rhodesia. This violent struggle became known as the Rhodesian Bush War, lasting from 1966 to 1979. The accounts of some of these guerrilla incursions into Rhodesia are described in the Peter Stiff novel, The Rain Goddess.

Atrocities were committed by both sides. The government labelled its opponents terrorists and saw itself as legitimate. ZAPU and ZANU saw themselves as freedom fighters and saw the government as tyrannical. The guerrilla movement had a communist ideology and was partially funded by the Soviet Union and China. Initially, the war was very one-sided since the Rhodesian government was able to deploy an overwhelming superiority in manpower, firepower and mobility. Containing the insurgency required little more than police action.

In April 1970, a general election was held with the Rhodesian Front easily winning. Ian Smith portrayed his government as not being racialist, and sought to postpone the question of what to do about the problems in the farming industry until after the election. Indeed, he was able to do so because more radical and more racist parties had at that time been formed and stood in the election.

1972 to 1979

The Rhodesia general election of 30 July 1974 saw the Rhodesian Front of Ian Smith re-elected, once more winning every one of the 50 seats reserved to white voters. The Rhodesia Party, a white opposition party, had been formed by ex-Rhodesian Front MP Allan Savory in 1972. They were a moderate group which advocated more moves towards including the African population in internal politics. Early in June 1974, Savory made a speech at Hartley in which he was reported as saying that if he had been a black Rhodesian, he would be a terrorist. The uproar was such that Savory was forced from the leadership (replaced by Gibbs) and resigned from the party on 16 June. Despite the turmoil, the Rhodesia Party managed to nominate candidates in 40 out of the 50 seats. 77% of the white minority population voted for the Rhodesian Front, again demonstrating their continued strong opposition to black majority rule.

The situation changed suddenly after the end of Portuguese colonial rule in Mozambique in 1975. Rhodesia now found itself almost entirely surrounded by hostile states and even South Africa, its only real ally, was pressing for a settlement. The Rhodesian Bush War intensified during this period. There were 2,504 vehicle detonations of land mines (mainly Soviet TM46s), killing 632 people and injuring 4,410. The new Mozambican government threw its full weight behind the ZANLA cause and Rhodesia's entire border with Mozambique became a front line across which guerrillas began to operate freely. Zambia became another front which was opened when the Zambian government also gave sanctuary to the guerrillas.

In the early 1970s, informal attempts at settlement were renewed between the United Kingdom and the Rhodesian administration.

The coming of independence in Angola and Mozambique in 1975 also altered the power balance in another way. It forced South Africa and the United States to rethink their attitudes to the area, to protect their economic and political interests. Attempts were made by both countries to pressure Smith into accepting majority rule. With Kenneth Kaunda's Zambian support the nationalist groups were convinced to come together under the united front of Abel Muzorewa's United African National Council. The imprisoned nationalist leaders were released.

Rhodesia began to lose vital economic and military support from South Africa, which, while sympathetic to the white minority government, never accorded it diplomatic recognition. The South Africans placed limits on the fuel and munitions they supplied to the Rhodesian military. They also withdrew the personnel and equipment that they had previously provided to aid the war effort. In 1976 the South African and United States governments worked together to place pressure on Smith to agree to a form of majority rule. The Rhodesians now offered more concessions, but those concessions were insufficient to end the war.

At the time, some Rhodesians said the still embittered history between the British-dominated Rhodesia and the Afrikaner-dominated South Africa partly led South Africa to withdraw its aid to Rhodesia. Ian Smith said in his memoirs that even though many white South Africans supported Rhodesia, South African Prime Minister John Vorster's policy of détente with the Black African states ended up with Rhodesia being offered as the "sacrificial lamb" to buy more time for South Africa. Other observers perceive South Africa's distancing itself from Rhodesia as being an early move in the process that led to majority rule in South Africa itself.APF newsletter, 1976: appraisal of Rhodesia in 1976

In 1976 South Africa saw settlement of the Rhodesian question as vital on several fronts: to cauterise the wound of the psychological blow … caused by her defeat in the Angolan conflict; to pre-empt possible Cuban intervention in Rhodesia and the possibility of South Africa being sucked into another Cold War regional conflict without the support and endorsement of the western powersDr Sue Onslow, South Africa and UDI, LSE conference, UDI – 40 years on abstracts

By early 1978, militant victories put the Rhodesian armed forces on the defensive. The government abandoned its early strategy of trying to defend the borders in favour of trying to defend key economic areas and lines of communication with South Africa, while the rest of the countryside became a patchwork of "no-go areas." Rhodesia's front-line forces never contained more than 25,000 troops, eight tanks (Polish made T-55s) and nine old Hawker Hunter jets. Those forces could still launch raids on enemy bases, but Rhodesia faced diplomatic isolation, economic collapse and military defeat.Time magazine, 7 August 1978: Rhodesia faces collapseTime magazine, 1 August 1978: taking the chicken run

During the closing stages of the conflict, the Rhodesian government resorted to biological warfare. Watercourses at several sites close to the Mozambique border were deliberately contaminated with cholera and the toxin Sodium Coumadin, an anti-coagulant commonly used as the active ingredient in rat poison. Food stocks in the area were contaminated with anthrax spores. These biological attacks had little impact on the fighting capability of ZANLA, but caused considerable distress to the local population. Over 10,000 people contracted anthrax in the period 1978 to 1980, of whom 200 died. The facts about this episode became known during the hearings of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission during the late 1990s.Southern African News Feature:the plague wars

The work of journalists such as Lord Richard Cecil, son of the Marquess of Salisbury, stiffened the morale of Rhodesians and their overseas supporters.The Guardian, 15 July 2003: obituary of sixth Marquess of Salisbury Lord Richard produced regular news reports such as the Thames TV 'Frontline Rhodesia' features. These reports typically contrasted the incompetent insurgents with the "superbly professional" government troops, both black and white.Nick Downie report: caution, partisan comment A group of ZANLA insurgents killed Lord Richard on 20 April 1978 when he parachuted into enemy territory with a Rhodesian airborne unit and landed in the middle of a group of ZANLA fighters.