Miss Rhodesia was the national beauty pageant of

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 S ...

and its antecedents. It debuted in

Miss World Miss World is the oldest existing international beauty pageant. It was created in the United Kingdom by Eric Morley in 1951. Since his death in 2000, Morley's widow, Julia Morley, has co-chaired the pageant. Along with Miss Universe, Miss Int ...

in 1959, but was not allowed to participate after

Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) was a statement adopted by the Cabinet of Rhodesia on 11 November 1965, announcing that Southern Rhodesia or simply Rhodesia, a British territory in southern Africa that had governed it ...

in 1965. When Rhodesia transitioned to a majority democracy and became

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 Mozam ...

in 1980, Miss Rhodesia became

Miss Zimbabwe The Miss Zimbabwe or (Miss Universe Zimbabwe) is a national Beauty pageant in Zimbabwe. Began in 2023 the organization was branded as Miss Universe Zimbabwe Organization by Tendai Hunda's directorship. The winner is expected to represent the coun ...

History

Miss Rhodesia was established as Miss

Rhodesia and Nyasaland The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, also known as the Central African Federation or CAF, was a colonial federation that consisted of three southern African territories: the self-governing British colony of Southern Rhodesia and the B ...

in 1959. The winner debuted at

Miss World 1959 Miss World 1959, the 9th edition of the Miss World pageant, was held on 10 November 1959 at the Lyceum Ballroom in London, United Kingdom and was the first to be televised by the BBC. 37 contestants competed for the Miss World. The winner was C ...

, with Vivien Lentin placing as a semifinalist. In 1960, Jenny Lee Scott appeared at

. In 1961, there were two "Miss Rhodesias," when Angela Moorcroft competed at

representing Rhodesia and Nyasaland, and Jonee Sierra representing

Southern Rhodesia 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 kn ...

Miss Universe Miss Universe is an annual international beauty pageant that is run by a United States and Thailand based Miss Universe Organization.Natalie Tadena (July 2, 2015"Donald Trump's Miss USA Pageant Lands on Reelz Cable Channel". ''The Wall Stre ...

. In 1965, Lesley Bunting represented

Miss World 1965 Miss World 1965, the 15th edition of the Miss World pageant, was held on 19 November 1965 at the Lyceum Ballroom in London, UK. The winner was Lesley Langley of the United Kingdom. She was crowned by Miss World 1964, Ann Sidney of United Kin ...

, just days after the country declared independence from the United Kingdom. Despite this, Bunting was still able to participate, and she was a Top 7 Finalist that year. After 1965, Miss Rhodesia was no longer allowed to participate in Miss World, due to Rhodesia's political situation. Despite this, in 1972 the English-born Miss Rhodesia attempted to travel to Britain to compete in

, but was barred entry, despite her British citizenship. Four years later, when Miss Rhodesia Jane Bird flew to London and attempted to participate in

Miss World 1976 Miss World 1976, the 26th edition of the Miss World pageant, was held on 18 November 1976 at the Royal Albert Hall in London, United Kingdom. The winner was Cindy Breakspeare from Jamaica. She was crowned by Miss World 1975, Wilnelia Merced ...

, she was prevented by the organization. In 1980, when Rhodesia reverted to a British colony and was renamed

, Miss Rhodesia ended and was succeeded by

List of titleholders

Helen Elliott and Myra Fowler held the Miss Rhodesia title, but the sources do not include the year. {, class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size: 95%; text-align:center" ! width="30" , Year ! width="200" , Miss Rhodesia ! width="80" , Hometown ! width="400" , Notes and references , - , style="background:#FFFACD;" , 1959 , style="background:#FFFACD;" , Vivien Lentin , style="background:#FFFACD;" , - , style="background:#FFFACD;" , Semifinalist at

, - , 1960 , Jenny Lee Scott , - , Competed at

Miss World 1960 Miss World 1960, the 10th anniversary of the Miss World pageant, was held on 8 November 1960 at the Lyceum Ballroom in London, United Kingdom. 39 candidates competed for the Miss World. The winner was Norma Cappagli, representing Argentina. S ...

, - , rowspan="2" , 1961 , Angela Moorcroft , - , Competed at Miss World 1961 , - , Jonee Sierra , - , Competed at

Miss Universe 1961 Miss Universe 1961, the 10th anniversary of the Miss Universe pageant, was held on 15 July 1961 at the Miami Beach Auditorium in Miami Beach, Florida, United States. Marlene Schmidt of West Germany, Germany was crowned the winner by outgoing title ...

, - , 1962 , - , - , , - , 1963 , - , - , , - , 1964 , - , - , , - , style="background:#FFFF66;" , 1965 , style="background:#FFFF66;" , Lesley Bunting , style="background:#FFFF66;" , Salisbury , style="background:#FFFF66;" , Top 7 Finalist at

, - , 1966 , - , - , , - , 1967 , - , - , , - , 1968 , - , - , , - , 1969 , - , - , , - , 1970 , - , - , , - , 1971 ,

Corinne Prinsloo __NOTOC__ Corinne may refer to: Places * Corinne, Saskatchewan, Canada, an unincorporated community * Corinne, Oklahoma, United States, an unincorporated community * Corinne, Utah, United States, a town * Corinne, West Virginia, United States, ...

, - , , - , 1972 , Helga Vera Johns , - , Was not allowed to compete in

Miss World 1972 Miss World 1972, the 22nd edition of the Miss World pageant, was held at the Royal Albert Hall in London, UK on 1 December 1972 on BBC. Fifty-three delegates vied for the crown won by Belinda Green of Australia. Green became the second Austr ...

despite having dual citizenship with the UK. Johns later moved to South Africa and won the 1975

Miss South Africa Miss South Africa is a national beauty pageant in South Africa that selects South African representatives to compete in two of the Big Four international beauty pageants, Miss World and Miss Universe, and also selects another representative t ...

contest and tried to compete again at Miss World 1975, but was barred entry due to not living in South Africa for 5 years as per the requirements of the Miss World Organization. Johns, to this day, remains the only person barred from entering the contest at least twice. , - , 1973 ,

Beverley Donald Beverley is a market and minster town and a civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, of which it is the county town. The town centre is located south-east of York's centre and north-west of City of Hull. The town is known for ...

, - , Mother of

Chelsy Davy Chelsy Yvonne Davy (born 13 October 1985) is a Zimbabwean businesswoman who is the owner and founder of the jewellery brand "Aya" and the travel agency "Aya Africa". Early life Davy was born in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, to Charles Davy, a South Afr ...

, - , 1974 , - , - , - , - , 1975 ,

Trudy Cliffe Trudy is a diminutive of Gertrude. Notable people with the name include: People * Trudy Adams (born 1964), American actress * Trudy Anderson (born 1959), New Zealand cricketer * Trudy Bellinger, British music video director * Trudy Benson (bor ...

, - , , - , 1976 , Jane Bird , - , Bird attempted to participate in

, but was barred because of Rhodesia's political and diplomatic situation , - , 1977 , Connie Makaya , - , First black Miss Rhodesia , - , 1978 , Blessed Unami Sikhosana , Bulawayo{{Cite magazine, url=http://sumagazine.syr.edu/2013spring/supeople/, title=SU People:Blessed Unami Sikhosana , magazine=

Syracuse University Magazine Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

, access-date=2018-08-28 , , - , 1979 , - , - , - , - , 1980 , colspan="3" , Miss Rhodesia became

in 1980

References

1959 establishments in Southern Rhodesia 1980 disestablishments in Zimbabwe Beauty pageants in Zimbabwe

Recurring events established in 1959 Recurring events disestablished in 1980 Women in Rhodesia Rhodesian culture