republic · Central and Southern Africa

Rhodesia

1965 CE – 1979 CE · capital Salisbury

The unrecognised white-minority state declared by Ian Smith in 1965, which fought a long guerrilla war before giving way to Zimbabwe.

Origins

After the end of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, Britain insisted on progress towards majority rule before independence. Rather than accept this, Ian Smith's Rhodesian Front government of Southern Rhodesia issued a Unilateral Declaration of Independence on 11 November 1965, keeping Salisbury as the capital.

Rule and society

No state recognised Rhodesia, and the United Nations imposed sanctions, though trade continued through South Africa and Portuguese Mozambique. A republic was declared in 1970 with Clifford Dupont as president. From the late 1960s and especially after 1972, ZANU and ZAPU guerrillas fought the Bush War, known to nationalists as the second Chimurenga; tens of thousands died and white emigration grew.

Decline and legacy

Under military and economic pressure, Smith signed an Internal Settlement in March 1978 with moderate African leaders including Abel Muzorewa, and the state was renamed Zimbabwe Rhodesia in June 1979.

Lineage

Southern Rhodesia 1923 CE – 1965 CERhodesiaZimbabwe Rhodesia 1979 CE – 1979 CE

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Rhodesia. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/rhodesia
MLA
“Rhodesia.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/rhodesia. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Rhodesia.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/rhodesia.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Rhodesia’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/rhodesia (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻