Operation Quartz was a planned

military operation A military operation is the coordinated military actions of a state, or a non-state actor, in response to a developing situation. These actions are designed as a military plan to resolve the situation in the state or actor's favor. Operations ma ...

to be conducted by the

Rhodesian Security Forces The Rhodesian Security Forces were the military forces of the Rhodesian government. The Rhodesian Security Forces consisted of a ground force (the Rhodesian Army), the Rhodesian Air Force, the British South Africa Police, and various personnel a ...

against

Robert Mugabe Robert Gabriel Mugabe (; ; 21 February 1924 – 6 September 2019) was a Zimbabwean revolutionary and politician who served as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe from 1980 to 1987 and then as President from 1987 to 2017. He served as Leader of the ...

and ZANU-PF in the event that party lost the

Southern Rhodesian general election, 1980 General elections were held in Southern Rhodesia in February 1980 to elect a government which would govern the country after it was granted internationally recognised independence as Zimbabwe, in accordance with the conclusions of the Lancaster ...

. The operation was organized on the assumption ZANU-PF would attempt to violently seize the government should it lose the election. ZANU-PF ultimately won the election and Operation Quartz was never executed.

Planning

Operation Quartz had two elements. The first involved strikes against armed units of the

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 ...

(ZANLA, ZANU-PF's military wing) that had concentrated at 11 assembly points prior to the election, to be carried out by Rhodesian infantry and armour units supported by the

Rhodesian Air Force The Rhodesian Air Force (RhAF) was an air force based in Salisbury (now Harare) which represented several entities under various names between 1935 and 1980: originally serving the British self-governing colony of Southern Rhodesia, it was the ...

. The second element was Operation Hectic, which called for the simultaneous assassinations of Robert Mugabe,

Rex Nhongo Solomon Mujuru (born Solomon Tapfumaneyi Mutusva; 5 May 1945 – 15 August 2011), also known by his nom-de-guerre, Rex Nhongo, was a Zimbabwean military officer and politician who led Robert Mugabe's guerrilla forces during the Rhodesian Bush Wa ...

, and

Simon Muzenda Simon Vengai Muzenda (28 October 1922 – 20 September 2003) was a Zimbabwean politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister from 1980 to 1987 and as Vice-President of Zimbabwe from 1987 to 2003 under President Robert Mugabe. Early life and ed ...

by the

Rhodesian SAS The Rhodesian Special Air Service or Rhodesian SAS was a Rhodesian special forces unit. It comprised: *C Squadron, Special Air Service Regiment (Malayan Emergency (1951–1953) *"C" Squadron (Rhodesian) Special Air Service (1961–1978) *1 (Rho ...

. In addition to the Rhodesian Army and Rhodesian Air Force, it is believed that the South African Armed Forces may have planned a supporting role in Operation Quartz. Some accounts of Operation Quartz have described it as a planned

military coup A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

against the extant government of

Abel Muzorewa Abel Tendekayi Muzorewa (14 April 1925 – 8 April 2010), also commonly referred to as Bishop Muzorewa, was a Zimbabwean bishop and politician who served as the first and only Prime Minister of Zimbabwe Rhodesia from the Internal Settlement to ...

to prevent it from handing over power to Mugabe, alleging

Peter Walls Lieutenant General George Peter Walls GLM DCD MBE (1927-201Walls: "We will make it work" Time magazine and CNN – 20 July 2010) was a Rhodesian soldier. He served as the Head of the Armed Forces of Rhodesia during the Rhodesian Bush War from ...

called off the operation three hours before

H-Hour The military designation of days and hours within the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), is specified in AAP-6 (STANAG 3680), ''NATO Glossary of Terms and Definitions'', and marked ''(NATO)'' in what follows. Those entries marked ''(US)' ...

. The allegations may have originated in information leaked by the British government.

Aftermath

The ZANU-PF won a majority of votes in the election and Operation Quartz was never executed. Following the ZANU-PF victory, details of Operation Quartz came to light and Walls, who had initially been retained by Mugabe as head of the armed forces, was accused in parliament of

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

. On the advice of members of the government, Walls fled the country for his own safety.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Quartz, Operation Conflicts in 1980 Aftermath of the Rhodesian Bush War 1980 in Zimbabwe Rhodesia–South Africa military relations Coup d'état attempts in Africa