Herbert Wiltshire Pfumaindini Chitepo (15 June 1923 – 18 March 1975) led the

Zimbabwe African National Union The Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU) was a militant organisation that fought against white minority rule in Rhodesia, formed as a split from the Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU). ZANU split in 1975 into wings loyal to Robert Mugab ...

(ZANU) until he was assassinated in March 1975. Although his murderer remains unidentified, the

Rhodesia Rhodesia (, ), officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the ''de facto'' successor state to the British colony of So ...

n author Peter Stiff says that a former soldier of the British

Special Air Service The Special Air Service (SAS) is a special forces unit of the British Army. It was founded as a regiment in 1941 by David Stirling and in 1950, it was reconstituted as a corps. The unit specialises in a number of roles including counter-te ...

(SAS), Hugh Hind, was responsible.Mugabe still fears Chitepo's legacy
Institute for War and Peace Reporting Chitepo became the first black citizen of Rhodesia to become a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and givin ...

.Preston, Matthew. ''Ending Civil War: Rhodesia and Lebanon in Perspective'', 2004. Page 98.

Early years

Chitepo was born in Watsomba village in the Mutasa District of

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a landlocked self-governing colony, 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 reg ...

, now

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...

on 15 June 1923. His family came from the Manyika clan (Samanyika) of the

Shona people The Shona people () are part of the Bantu ethnic group native to Southern Africa, primarily living in Zimbabwe where they form the majority of the population, as well as Mozambique, South Africa, and a worldwide diaspora including global celebriti ...

. He was educated at St David's Mission School, Bonda, St Augustine's School, Penhalonga and then at Adams College, Natal, South Africa, where he qualified as a teacher in 1945. This was where he met Victoria Mahamba-Sithole, a South African whom he married in 1955.Luise White, 'Chitepo, Herbert Wiltshire Tfumaindini (1923–1975)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, May 200
accessed 7 Aug 2013
/ref>

Early career

After teaching for a year, he resumed his studies to graduate with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

from Fort Hare University College in 1949. He qualified as a Barrister-at-Law, and was called to the bar by

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and W ...

, whose alumni included

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

. He was a research assistant at the

School of Oriental and African Studies SOAS University of London (; the School of Oriental and African Studies) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury ...

. He was the first African in Southern Rhodesia to qualify as a Barrister. In 1954, Chitepo became Rhodesia's second black lawyer after Prince Nguboyenja Khumalo son of King Lobengula (a special law was required to allow him to occupy chambers with white colleagues).Time Magazine, 31 March 1975 On returning to Rhodesia in 1954, he practised as a lawyer and defended African nationalists such as

Ndabaningi Sithole Ndabaningi Sithole (21 July 1920 – 12 December 2000) founded the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), a militant organisation that opposed the government of Rhodesia, in July 1963.Veenhoven, Willem Adriaan, Ewing, and Winifred Crum. ''Cas ...

in court. In February 1960, he traveled to the US with support from the African-American Institute.

langa Lasa Natal Ngomgqibelo (Saturday), 27 February 1960. Langa may refer to: Places South Africa *Langa, Cape Town, the oldest township in Cape Town, South Africa *Langa, a township in Uitenhage Northern Europe * Langa, Estonia, a village in Padise Commune, Harju County, Estonia * Langa, a small riv ...

In 1961, he served as legal adviser to

Joshua Nkomo Joshua Mqabuko Nyongolo Nkomo (19 June 1917 – 1 July 1999) was a Zimbabwean revolutionary and Matabeleland politician who served as Vice-President of Zimbabwe from 1990 until his death in 1999. He founded and led the Zimbabwe African People's ...

, founder of the

Zimbabwe African Peoples Union The Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU) is a Zimbabwean political party. It is a militant organization and political party that campaigned for majority rule in Rhodesia, from its founding in 1961 until 1980. In 1987, it merged with the Zimb ...

(ZAPU), at the Southern Rhodesia Constitutional Conference in London. In the same year, he was also appointed to the Board of Governors of Bernard Mizeki College along with Sir. W. C .R. Honey and Sir

Robert Tredgold The Rt Hon. Sir Robert Clarkson Tredgold, KCMG, PC (2 June 1899 – 8 April 1977), was a Rhodesian barrister, judge and politician. Early life He was born in Bulawayo to Clarkson Henry Tredgold, the Attorney-General of Southern Rhodesia, ...

. The Southern Rhodesian government did not detain him, as he did not come out in the open as an official of the nationalist movement, and the regime also feared that he was too internationally well known to be locked up.

ZANU

In May 1962 ZAPU was banned because of

militarism Militarism is the belief or the desire of a government or a people that a state should maintain a strong military capability and to use it aggressively to expand national interests and/or values. It may also imply the glorification of the mili ...

and Chitepo was persuaded to go into voluntary exile to escape possible detention. He became

Tanganyika Tanganyika may refer to: Places * Tanganyika Territory (1916–1961), a former British territory which preceded the sovereign state * Tanganyika (1961–1964), a sovereign state, comprising the mainland part of present-day Tanzania * Tanzania Main ...

's first African Director of Public Prosecutions. The

and

factions of ZAPU split apart in July 1963. Nkomo's supporters founded the PCC-ZAPU (later just called ZAPU again) and favoured a more militaristic approach. As the more moderate faction, Chitepo sided with Sithole and was elected Chairman of ZANU (having defeated Nathan Shamuyarira) from its foundation. He held this post until 7 December 1974, when the Lusaka Accord was signed. Both parties vied for domination but in 1964 both were banned and the leaders were all arrested. Both parties chose to leave the country and reorganise and form armies from outside Rhodesian borders, although they chose different countries to make their base. ZAPU based itself in the West and

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...

where it organised ZIPRA (the

Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army (ZIPRA) was the military wing of the Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU), a Marxist–Leninist political party in Rhodesia. It participated in the Rhodesian Bush War against white minority rule of Rhod ...

.) They allied with the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

and organised a vanguard of highly trained soldiers. ZANU, however, moved into

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...

and then to

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

and set up ZANLA (

Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army (ZANLA) was the military wing of the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), a militant African nationalist organisation that participated in the Rhodesian Bush War against white minority rule of Rhode ...

) which concentrated more on mobilising the masses in the countryside in a method pioneered by the Chinese. In January 1966 Chitepo resigned as Director of Public Prosecutions and moved to

to concentrate on the armed struggle. He toured world capitals canvassing support for ZANU and for the enforcement of total economic sanctions against Rhodesia. With his friendly disposition, he was very effective and earned for ZANU international recognition and respect. Sithole and others prepared a comprehensive document giving powers to Chitepo to lead ZANU while Rev. Sithole was in detention and specifically authorising him to carry out the armed struggle. Accordingly, Herbert Chitepo with the military supremo

Josiah Tongogara Josiah Magama Tongogara (4 February 1938 – 26 December 1979) was a commander of the ZANLA guerrilla army in Rhodesia. He was the brother of current Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa's second wife, Jayne. He attended the Lancaster House co ...

from the Karanga ethnic community, organised and planned successful military guerilla attacks and underground activities in Rhodesia from 1966 onwards. In 1972, he co-ordinated war operations with FRELIMO and opened up the north eastern region of Zimbabwe as a new and effective war front.

Assassination

Chitepo died on 18 March 1975 in

Lusaka Lusaka (; ) is the capital and largest city of Zambia. It is one of the fastest-developing cities in southern Africa. Lusaka is in the southern part of the central plateau at an elevation of about . , the city's population was about 3.3 millio ...

when a car bomb, placed in his Volkswagen Beetle the night before, exploded. He and Silas Shamiso, one of his bodyguards, were killed instantly. Sadat Kufamadzuba, his other bodyguard, was injured. The explosion sent part of the car onto the roof of his house and uprooted a tree next door. Hours later one of his neighbours died of injuries he sustained in the explosion.White, Luise. ''The Assassination of Herbert Chitepo: Texts and Politics in Zimbabwe.'' Page 1. ZANU at the time blamed the Rhodesian Security Forces. Zambian president

Kenneth Kaunda Kenneth David Kaunda (28 April 1924 – 17 June 2021), also known as KK, was a Zambian politician who served as the first President of Zambia from 1964 to 1991. He was at the forefront of the struggle for independence from British rule. Diss ...

commissioned an inquiry into Chitepo's death. Documents released in October 2001, placed the blame on ZANU infighting. However, in his biographical account, ''The Legend of The Selous Scouts'', Lt Col Ronald Reid-Daly, Officer Commanding, Selous Scouts Regiment, Rhodesian Security Forces, clearly states that the Rhodesian

Central Intelligence Organization The Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) is the national intelligence agency of Zimbabwe. It was conceived as the external intelligence-gathering arm of the British South Africa Police Special Branch in the early 1960s, under the Southern Rh ...

(CIO) under the leadership of Director General

Ken Flower Kenneth Flower, GLM (1914 - 2 September 1987) was a Rhodesian police officer and intelligence chief. Biography Flower was born in Cornwall, England. After war service in British Somaliland and Ethiopia he returned to Rhodesia in 1948, rapidly r ...

, masterminded the assassination of Herbert Chitepo, subsequently planting documentary evidence blaming ZANU members. "The decision by Ken Flower...to assassinate Herbert Chitepo, head of the ZANU War Council, now showed how badly Flower has misread the ZANU/ZANLA situation. The death of Chitepo purged ZANU of its many dissenting factions and a new and highly successful leader emerged. Robert Mugabe gave ZANLA the means to consolidate its efforts by providing ZANLA with an indispensable factor – unity." g. 173 ''The Legend of The Selous Scouts''

References

External links

Zimbabwesituation.comThe Assassination of Herbert Chitepo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chitepo, Herbert 1923 births 1975 deaths Alumni of SOAS University of London Assassinated Rhodesian politicians Deaths by car bomb Male murder victims People from Manicaland Province People murdered in Zambia Rhodesian lawyers Rhodesian people murdered abroad Southern Rhodesian expatriates in the United Kingdom University of Fort Hare alumni Unsolved murders in Africa 20th-century Zambian lawyers Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army personnel Zimbabwe African National Union – Ndonga politicians 1975 murders in Africa