Subject | Northern Rhodesia |
---|---|
Language | English |
Publication details | |
History | 1950–1965 |
Publisher | Northern Rhodesian Government Printer (Northern Rhodesia) |
Standard abbreviations | |
ISO 4 | North. Rhod. J. |
The Northern Rhodesia Journal, often referred to simply as "NRJ", was produced between 1950 and 1965, by the Northern Rhodesian Government Printer, to record some of the early history of Northern Rhodesia. [1] [2] It is one of the most important sources of historical information on Zambia before and during its colonial era, up to its independence from the United Kingdom.
The Journal is quarto in size.
The first two volumes comprised six "Numbers" each, and the page numbering started with 1 for each Number. For the remaining four volumes (the first three of which also had six Numbers) the pages in each volume were numbered continuously, started with page 1 in Number 1 of each volume. The final volume (VI) had but three Numbers, the pages numbered continuously, started with page 1 in Number 1, and, as it was produced after Independence, was titled The Zambia Northern Rhodesia Journal. [1] [3]
From the "Editorial" of the first issue:-
The difficulty is to state in a succinct fashion what our policy really is. It is easy to classify journals with restricted outlooks such as those concerned only with anthropological or agricultural or natural history interests. We too shall deal with all those topics but generally speaking we hope to draw into our net a catch of such variety that it cannot be easily classified.
We hope to bring to the general reader glimpses of the past history of this country and to place on record the events that have made recent history ; we shall relate the memoirs of men who have helped to mould the shape of our lives here or of men who have interesting tales to tell ; we shall open our columns to those who want to discuss facets of the wealth of animal and plant life of the Territory ; we shall write on the vast and variegated native culture that impinges on us at all times ; and, in fact, we shall be glad to publish anything of Northern Rhodesian interest that we believe to be of permanent or of literary value.
The Journal had no cut-off dates; it covered ancient history right through to its "present day" (1965). One period of significant history which is covered is often called the period of welfare colonialism because of the impact of the Colonial Development and Welfare Acts of 1940 and 1945. These Acts were products of the same impulses which drove the Beveridge Report and the creation of the Welfare State in Britain after the Second World War. The NRJ documents the remarkable results of the investments made under the provisions of the Acts in Northern Rhodesia, which added enhanced educational, health and agricultural development services to the settled peace and impartial rule of law that the Colonial Service provided and which was a fundamental reason for the popular support documented by historians among the African populations. It was the loss of that impartiality which was most bitterly regretted after independence, especially in Barotseland, which became the Western Province of Zambia, and which felt itself to be systematically discriminated against by the independent government. The resentment still smoulders. [4]
The current retreat from ideological 'development', not least because of the evidence of unintended bad consequences of 'development' aid, [5] and the rediscovery of the importance of practical, grass-roots, value for money help, makes the case-evidence of contemporary journals like the NRJ especially valuable sources for organisations like Oxfam or the Department for International Development.[ citation needed ]
Rhodesia, officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979. During this fourteen-year period, Rhodesia served as the de facto successor state to the British colony of Southern Rhodesia, and in 1980 it became modern day Zimbabwe.
Northern Rhodesia was a British protectorate in Southern Africa, now the independent country of Zambia. It was formed in 1911 by amalgamating the two earlier protectorates of Barotziland-North-Western Rhodesia and North-Eastern Rhodesia. It was initially administered, as were the two earlier protectorates, by the British South Africa Company (BSAC), a chartered company, on behalf of the British Government. From 1924, it was administered by the British Government as a protectorate, under similar conditions to other British-administered protectorates, and the special provisions required when it was administered by BSAC were terminated.
Southern Rhodesia was a landlocked, self-governing British Crown colony in Southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally known as South Zambesia until annexation by Britain, at the behest of Cecil Rhodes's British South Africa Company. The bounding territories were Bechuanaland (Botswana), Northern Rhodesia (Zambia), Portuguese Mozambique (Mozambique) and the Transvaal Republic.
Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) was a statement adopted by the Cabinet of Rhodesia on 11 November 1965, announcing that Rhodesia a British territory in southern Africa that had governed itself since 1923, now regarded itself as an independent sovereign state. The culmination of a protracted dispute between the British and Rhodesian governments regarding the terms under which the latter could become fully independent, it was the first unilateral break from the United Kingdom by one of its colonies since the United States Declaration of Independence in 1776. The UK, the Commonwealth, and the United Nations all deemed Rhodesia's UDI illegal, and economic sanctions, the first in the UN's history, were imposed on the breakaway colony. Amid near-complete international isolation, Rhodesia continued as an unrecognised state with the assistance of South Africa and Portugal.
The prime minister of Rhodesia was the head of government of Rhodesia. Rhodesia, which had become a self-governing colony of the United Kingdom in 1923, unilaterally declared independence on 11 November 1965, and was thereafter an unrecognized state until 1979. In December 1979, the country came under temporary British control, and in April 1980 the country gained recognized independence as Zimbabwe.
The British South Africa Company was chartered in 1889 following the amalgamation of Cecil Rhodes' Central Search Association and the London-based Exploring Company Ltd, which had originally competed to capitalize on the expected mineral wealth of Mashonaland but united because of common economic interests and to secure British government backing. The company received a Royal Charter modelled on that of the British East India Company. Its first directors included The 2nd Duke of Abercorn, Rhodes himself, and the South African financier Alfred Beit. Rhodes hoped BSAC would promote colonisation and economic exploitation across much of south-central Africa, as part of the "Scramble for Africa". However, his main focus was south of the Zambezi, in Mashonaland and the coastal areas to its east, from which he believed the Portuguese could be removed by payment or force, and in the Transvaal, which he hoped would return to British control.
Livingstone is a city in Zambia. Until 1935, it served as the capital of Northern Rhodesia. Lying 10 km (6 mi) to the north of the Zambezi River, it is a tourism attraction center for the Victoria Falls and a border town with road and rail connections to Zimbabwe on the other side of the Victoria Falls. A historic British colonial city, its present population was enumerated at 177,393 inhabitants at the 2022 census. It is named after David Livingstone, the Scottish explorer and missionary who was the first European to explore the area. Until 2011, Livingstone was the provincial capital of Zambia's Southern Province.
A major strike broke out among African mineworkers in the Copperbelt Province of Northern Rhodesia on 29 May 1935 in protest against taxes levied by the British colonial administration. The strike involved three of the province's four major copper mines: those in Mufulira, Nkana and Roan Antelope. Near the latter, six protesters were killed by police and the strike ended. Although it failed, the strike was the first organized industrial agitation in Northern Rhodesia and is viewed by some as the first overt action against colonial rule. It caught the attention of a number of African townsmen, leading to the creation of trade unions and African nationalist politics, and is seen as the birth of African nationalism.
Goffals or Coloured Zimbabweans are persons of mixed race, predominately those claiming both European and African descent, in Malawi, Zambia, and, particularly Zimbabwe. They are generally known as Coloureds, though the term Goffal is used by some in the Coloured community to refer to themselves, though this does not refer to the mixed-race community in nearby South Africa. The community includes many diverse constituents of Shona, Northern Ndebele, Bemba, Fengu, British, Afrikaner, Cape Coloured, Cape Malay and less commonly Portuguese, Greek, Goan, and Indian descent. Similar mixed-race communities exist throughout Southern Africa, notably the Cape Coloureds of South Africa.
Simon Mwansa Kapwepwe was a prominent Zambian politician, anti-colonialist, and author, born on April 12, 1922. Kapwepwe made significant contributions towards Zambia's struggle for independence, working tirelessly towards achieving the country's liberation from colonial rule.
A double referendum was held in Rhodesia on 20 June 1969, in which voters were asked whether they were in favour of or against a) the adoption of a republican form of government, and b) the proposals for a new Constitution, as set out in a white paper and published in a Gazette Extraordinary on 21 May 1969. Both proposals were approved. The country was subsequently declared a republic on 2 March 1970.
The Livingstone Museum, formerly the David Livingstone Memorial Museum and after that, the Rhodes-Livingstone Museum, is the largest and the oldest museum in Zambia, located in Livingstone near Victoria Falls. The museum has exhibits of artifacts related to local history and prehistory, including photographs and musical instruments, and also holds possessions and memorabilia - including letters and journals - of David Livingstone, the explorer and missionary.
The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, also known as the Central African Federation (CAF), was a colonial federation that consisted of three southern African territories: the self-governing British colony of Southern Rhodesia and the British protectorates of Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland. It existed between 1953 and 1963.
Public holidays in Rhodesia, a historical region in southern Africa equivalent to today's Zimbabwe and Zambia—formerly Southern and Northern Rhodesia, respectively—were largely based around milestones in the region's short history. Annual holidays marked various aspects of the arrival of white people during the 1880s and 1890s, as well as the respective unilateral declarations of independence (1965) and of republican government (1970). On these days, most businesses and non-essential services closed. A number of Christian holidays were also observed according to custom, in the traditional British manner, and referred to in official documents by name—Christmas Day, for example, or Easter Monday.
The flag of Southern Rhodesia was a blue ensign, later changed to a sky-blue ensign, with the coat of arms of Southern Rhodesia on it. The flag was in use in Southern Rhodesia from 1924 to 1953 and from 1963 to 1965. It was also used by the unrecognised Rhodesia from 1965 to 1968. The flag was initially used unofficially internally before being approved for use outside of the colony by the Colonial Office in 1937. The colour was changed to sky blue in 1964 to protest the treatment of Southern Rhodesia after its inclusion in the failed Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland.
The Bledisloe Commission, also known as the Rhodesia-Nyasaland Royal Commission, was a Royal Commission, appointed in 1937 and undertaking its enquiries between 1937 and 1939. to examine the possible closer union of the three British territories in Central Africa, Southern Rhodesia, Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland. These territories were to some degree economically inter-dependent, and it was suggested that an association would promote their rapid development. Its chairman was Lord Bledisloe.
The history of the Jews in Zambia goes back to the early 1900s. Jews were always a small community with a notable role in Zambian history. The history of the Jews in Zambia dates to 1901 when it was still under British Colonial rule. Northern Rhodesia was colonized in the 1890s by the British South Africa Company, otherwise known as BSAC. Initially, Northern Rhodesia was split into North-eastern and North-western Rhodesia. However, the BSAC united them in 1911 to form Northern Rhodesia, which has its capital in Livingstone, near Victoria Falls. Among the population of 1 million people, there were 1,500 white residents in Northern Rhodesia, of whom many were the Jewish settlers. Northern Rhodesia became under British Colonial Rule partially so that the British Government could increase the number of white individuals and settlers in the country, which would contribute to a wider strategy to increase the influence that the British has between Kenya and South Africa. The Jewish settlers were one of the dominant ethnic groups and became highly involved in local politics, with prominent Jewish figures driving the push for Zambian independence and African nationalist rhetoric. Northern Rhodesia’s fertile land, World War II, and independence from the British Colonial rule all had a profound impact on both immigration and emigration of Jewish refugees. The Jewish diaspora introduced trade and commerce into the region in both regional and urban areas through cattle trading, ranching, mining, communication networks, storefronts, transport, and butchery, amongst others. The Jewish settlers, whether they are Jewish through origin, birth, marriage, or confession, all formed a small, yet strong community. The Jews in Zambia were a Jewish diaspora cultural and religious settler minority group, which raises concerns about the notion of who is the coloniser, who is the colonised, who is the victim and who is the oppressor. This deems that it can be studied through a postcolonial framework. Following Zambia's independence in 1964, there was a large exodus of Jews and white individuals from the country. In 2022, there remains less than fifty Jews in Zambia.After existence for 130 years as of 15 June 2024 the total of Jews in Zambia numbers 11
The Central Africa Party was a multi-racial political party in the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. The party organised separately in the three constituent part of the federation, Northern Rhodesia, Nyasaland and Southern Rhodesia.
Timeline of Zambia (Northern Rhodesia)