The flag of Rhodesia (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 ...

) changed with political developments in the country. At

independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...

in 1965 the recently adopted

flag of Southern Rhodesia The flag of Southern Rhodesia was a blue ensign, later changed to a sky-blue ensign, with the Coat of arms of Zimbabwe#Rhodesia, coat of arms of Southern Rhodesia on it. The flag was in use in Southern Rhodesia (later Zimbabwe) from 1924 to 1953 ...

was used, until a new flag (the green and white tricolour) was adopted in 1968. The 1968 flag remained the flag when the republic was declared in 1970.

History

Between the late 1920s and 1953, the then Colony of Southern Rhodesia followed British colonial practice, by using a

Blue Ensign The Blue Ensign is a flag, one of several British ensigns, used by certain organisations or territories associated or formerly associated with the United Kingdom. It is used either plain or defaced with a badge or other emblem. The ev ...

with the

Union Flag The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Flag the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. ...

in the canton and the shield from the colony's

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

in the fly. In 1953, Southern Rhodesia federated with Northern Rhodesia and

Nyasaland Nyasaland () was a British protectorate located in Africa that was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name. Between 1953 and 1963, Nyasaland was part of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasala ...

to form the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. The federal flag was used between September 1953 until 31 December 1963 when the federation was dissolved. Less than a year after the break-up of the Federation, Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland became the independent states of

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 ...

and

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeas ...

respectively. Southern Rhodesia became known simply as Rhodesia, although its legal name remained the Colony of Southern Rhodesia. In April 1964 Rhodesia adopted a light

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

blue ensign with the shield from the

coat of arms of Rhodesia The current coat of arms of Zimbabwe was adopted on 21 September 1981, one year and five months after the Flag of Zimbabwe, national flag was adopted. Previously the coat of arms of Zimbabwe was identical to the former #Coat of arms of Rhodesia (1 ...

in the fly. This was the first time the lighter shade of blue ensign was used by a British colony, although Fiji and

Tuvalu Tuvalu ( or ; formerly known as the Ellice Islands) is an island country and microstate in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. Its islands are situated about midway between Hawaii and Australia. They lie east-nor ...

both subsequently adopted national flags based on the light blue ensign. Following the

Unilateral Declaration of Independence A unilateral declaration of independence (UDI) is a formal process leading to the establishment of a new state by a subnational entity which declares itself independent and sovereign without a formal agreement with the state which it is secedin ...

(UDI) on 11 November 1965, the flag was retained, but three years later on the anniversary of UDI it was replaced by a green and white flag (similar to that of

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

) with the full

in the centre. On 2 March 1970, the country declared itself a republic but there was no change to the flag. Prior to its closure, the Rhodesian mission in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

flew the newly adopted flag in a provocative gesture, as the Commonwealth Prime Ministers arrived for their Conference. This was considered illegal by the Foreign Office, and prompted calls by

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

Willie Hamilton William Winter Hamilton (26 June 1917 – 23 January 2000) was a British politician who served as a Labour Member of Parliament for constituencies in Fife, Scotland for 37 years, between 1950 and 1987. He was known for his strong republican ...

, who condemned it as "the flag of an illegal Government in rebellion against the Crown", for its removal.M.P. calls for removal of Rhodesian flag in Strand
''

The Glasgow Herald ''The Herald'' is a Scottish broadsheet newspaper founded in 1783. ''The Herald'' is the longest running national newspaper in the world and is the eighth oldest daily paper in the world. The title was simplified from ''The Glasgow Herald'' in ...

'', 4 January 1969, page 1 Throughout this time, the UK refused to recognise Rhodesia's independence and maintained that the light-blue ensign remained the official flag of the country, but in 1972, the Rhodesian Olympic team raised the earlier pre-1953 dark Blue Ensign at the Olympic Village in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

, while "

God Save The Queen "God Save the King" is the national and/or royal anthem of the United Kingdom, most of the Commonwealth realms, their territories, and the British Crown Dependencies. The author of the tune is unknown and it may originate in plainchant, bu ...

" was played. This was before its expulsion from the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...

, four days before the opening of the

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ...

. In 1979, the country became known as Zimbabwe-Rhodesia and a new flag was adopted on 4 September that year featuring the pan-African colours of red, black, yellow and green, and the

Zimbabwe Bird The stone-carved Zimbabwe Bird is the national emblem of Zimbabwe, appearing on the national flags and coats of arms of both Zimbabwe and Rhodesia, as well as on Rhodesian dollar, banknotes and coins (first on the Coins of the Rhodesian pound, Rho ...

.NEW FLAG RAISING CEREMONY IN SALISBURY
Associated Press Archive, 4 September 1979 However, under the terms of the

Lancaster House Agreement The Lancaster House Agreement, signed on 21 December 1979, declared a ceasefire, ending the Rhodesian Bush War; and directly led to Rhodesia achieving internationally recognised independence as Zimbabwe. It required the full resumption of di ...

, the country briefly returned to British rule under the Union Jack from 12 December 1979 although the Zimbabwe Rhodesia flag remained ''

de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

'' in use. Thus it was the British Union Flag that was lowered during the ceremony on 17/18 April 1980 marking the country's attainment of independence as the Republic of

when the new flag of Zimbabwe was adopted.

Official description

The following was published as a supplement to the Government Gazette issued on Friday 9 August 1968. 1968 Flag of Rhodesia No. 40 / p. 285
Rhodesia Act
To provide for the adoption of a national flag for Rhodesia; to provide for the making of regulations to restrict or control the application to any goods of a reproduction of such flag; to amend section 16 of the Merchandise Marks Act, 1957, and to provide for matters incidental to the foregoing.
BE IT ENACTED by His Excellency the Officer Administering Government as representative of the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the

Parliament of Rhodesia The Parliament of Rhodesia was the bicameral legislature in Rhodesia from 1970 to 1979. Several elections were held, last in 1977. Senate The upper chamber was called the Senate, and it had 23 members: ten White Rhodesians, ten African chiefs, ...

, as follows: -
1. This Act may be cited as the Flag of Rhodesia Act, 1968.
2. The Flag of Rhodesia shall be a flag consisting of three vertical stripes of equal width, green, white and green, on which there appears in the centre of the white stripe the coat of arms of Rhodesia, with -
(a) the length of the flag equal to twice the width of the flag; and
(b) the coat of arms of Rhodesia equal in height to three-fifths of the heights of the flag.
3. The Minister of Justice shall cause a copy of the Flag of Rhodesia to be prepared and deposited in the National Archives of Rhodesia established in terms of the National Archives Act, 1963 (No. 76 of 1963).
4. (1) Where, in the opinion of the Officer Administering the Government, it is necessary to regulate and control the use of the Flag of Rhodesia in order that it is not used for purposes which, in his opinion, are improper he may make such regulations restricting, regulating or controlling the application to any goods or the importation into Rhodesia of any goods to which there has been applied a reproduction of the Flag of Rhodesia or of a flag which resembles or is intended to resemble the Flag of Rhodesia as he may consider to be necessary or expedient for the purpose.
(2) Regulations made in terms of subsection (1) may provide for penalties for any contravention thereof, including provision for the forfeiture of any goods to which a reproduction of the Flag of Rhodesia or of a flag which resembles or is intended to resemble the Flag of Rhodesia has been applied or which have been imported in contravention of such regulations: Provided that no such penalty shall exceed a fine of five hundred pounds or imprisonment for period of two years, excluding the value of any goods forfeited.
5. Any person who burns, mutilates or otherwise insults the Flag of Rhodesia or a flag which resembles or is intended to resemble the Flag of Rhodesia or any reproduction thereof in circumstances which are calculated or likely to show disrespect for the Flag of Rhodesia or to bring the Flag of Rhodesia into disrepute shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding five hundred pounds or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years.
6. Section 16 of the Merchandise Marks Act, 1957 is amended, in subsection (1), by repeal of subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (b).
Coloured sheet

Flag of the governor of Southern Rhodesia

The flag used by the governor of Southern Rhodesia followed the usual pattern for representatives of the British Crown. It consisted of a defaced

(Union Jack) with a white disc in the center of the flag. Within the center of the disc was the shield from the

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 kno ...

n Coat of Arms. This flag was not used during the

(UDI) years and became obsolete when the post of Governor disappeared after the independent Republic of

came into being in 1980. In common with most other British colonies, the flag used by the governor, as the Sovereign's representative in Southern Rhodesia, initially flew a Union Flag with a white roundel in the centre, charged with the shield from the colony's arms granted on 11 August 1924. Unique among the flags of the governors of British Colonies, this shield of Arms was not surrounded by the customary wreath. Southern Rhodesia became a British Colony on 12 September 1923. This flag was put into use on 1 October 1924 and was flown until 30 July 1951. On 31 July 1951, a new flag was put into use for the governor of Southern Rhodesia. This was dark blue and charged in the centre with a Royal Crown, its height being four-sevenths of the hoist. Initially the

Tudor Crown The Tudor Crown, also known as Henry VIII's Crown, was the imperial crown, imperial and state crown of Kingdom of England, English monarchs from around the time of Henry VIII until it was destroyed during the English Civil War, Civil War in 16 ...

would have been used, but after her accession to the throne in 1952, Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

indicated her preference for the

St Edward's Crown St Edward's Crown is the centrepiece of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom. Named after Saint Edward the Confessor, versions of it have traditionally been used to crown English and British monarchs at their coronations since the 13th cen ...

and this version would have been used thereafter. Although the colony had attained 'Responsible Government' in 1923, it was never a fully fledged Dominion, and so did not have a Governor-General, whose flag in other Dominions would be dark blue, charged in the centre with the Royal Crest above a Crown, with the name of the Dominion written in a yellow scroll below.

Flag of Zimbabwe Rhodesia

When Rhodesia became

Zimbabwe Rhodesia Zimbabwe Rhodesia (), alternatively known as Zimbabwe-Rhodesia, also informally known as Zimbabwe or Rhodesia, and sometimes as Rhobabwe, was a short-lived sovereign state that existed from 1 June to 12 December 1979. Zimbabwe Rhodesia was p ...

in 1979, a new flag was adopted with more African elements on 2 September of that year. This flag was, however, short-lived, as the self-declared state soon reverted to British rule before gaining independence as

in 1980.

Modern use

The Rhodesian flag has been used since the 2010s by various racist, alt-right and

white supremacist White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White s ...

groups.

Dylann Roof Dylann Storm Roof (born April 3, 1994) is an American white supremacist, neo-Nazi, and mass murderer convicted of perpetrating the Charleston church shooting on June 17, 2015, in the U.S. state of South Carolina. During a Bible study at Ema ...

posted a manifesto onto a website named "The Last Rhodesian", before carrying out mass-murder of nine

African-Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of enslav ...

in the 2015 Charleston church shooting; he also wore a jacket with a Rhodesian flag patch on it, as well as the flag of

Apartheid South Africa Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

. According to a ''Vox'' article, Roof and others see Rhodesia as "proof that countries are better off when white people run them. ��The lesson of Rhodesia, for

s, is that black people are a threat to a healthy white-run society. And they need to be kept down." An American company named Fireforce Ventures sells Rhodesian flags and other memorabilia. Some commenters have noted the flag is being used by some on the alt-right, because, unlike the

Nazi flag The flag of Nazi Germany, officially the flag of the German Reich, featured a red background with a black swastika on a white disc. This flag came into use initially as the banner of the Nazi Party (NSDAP) after its foundation. Following the ap ...

Confederate battle flag The flags of the Confederate States of America have a history of three successive designs during the American Civil War. The flags were known as the "Stars and Bars", used from 1861 to 1863; the "Stainless Banner", used from 1863 to 1865; and ...

, the Rhodesian flag is unlikely to be recognised by " normies."

Gallery

Image:Flag of the Governor of Southern Rhodesia (1951–1952).svg, Flag of the governor of

(1951–1952) Image:Flag of the Governor of Southern Rhodesia (1952–1970).svg, Flag of the governor of

(1952–1970) Image:Household flag of the Governor of Southern Rhodesia (1940–1952).svg, Household flag of the governor of

(1940–1952) Image:Household flag of the Governor of Southern Rhodesia (1952–1970).svg, Government House car flag for distinguished visitors of the governor of

(1952–1963) Image:Flag of the President of Rhodesia (1970–1979).svg, Flag of the president of Rhodesia (1970–1979) Image:Flag of the Prime Minister of Rhodesia (1970–1979).svg, Car pennant of the prime minister of Rhodesia (1970–1979) Image:Flag of the Prime Minister of Zimbabwe Rhodesia.svg, Car flag of the prime minister of

(1979) Image:Air Force Ensign of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland (1953–1963).svg, Royal Rhodesia Air Force ensign (1953–1963) Image:Air Force Ensign of Rhodesia (1964–1968).svg, Royal Rhodesia Air Force ensign (1964–1970) Image:Air Force Ensign of Rhodesia (1970–1979).svg, Rhodesian Air Force ensign (1970–1979) Image:Air Force Ensign of Zimbabwe Rhodesia (1979).svg, Zimbabwe Rhodesia Air Force ensign (1979)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Flag of Rhodesia Flags of the British Empire National symbols of Rhodesia Rhodesia Rhodesia Rhodesia Rhodesia Rhodesia 1968 establishments in Rhodesia 1979 disestablishments in Rhodesia Rhodesia