The flag of the British South Africa Company was the flag used by the

British South Africa Company The British South Africa Company (BSAC or BSACo) 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 expecte ...

(BSAC) and Rhodesia under company rule. It was adopted in 1892 and was used until 1923 when the south of Rhodesia voted to become

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 ...

and the north was surrendered to the

Colonial Office The Colonial Office was a government department of the Kingdom of Great Britain and later of the United Kingdom, first created to deal with the colonial affairs of British North America but required also to oversee the increasing number of col ...

to become

Northern Rhodesia Northern Rhodesia was a British protectorate in southern Africa, south central Africa, now the independent country of Zambia. It was formed in 1911 by Amalgamation (politics), amalgamating the two earlier protectorates of Barotziland-North-West ...

. The flag remained as the company's commercial flag until 1965. The flag consisted of a British

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. ...

with the company's logo of a lion and tusk on a white circle in the centre with "B.S.A.C." underneath it.

History

The British South Africa Company headed by

Cecil Rhodes Cecil John Rhodes (5 July 1853 – 26 March 1902) was a British mining magnate and politician in southern Africa who served as Prime Minister of the Cape Colony from 1890 to 1896. An ardent believer in British imperialism, Rhodes and his Br ...

received a

royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, bu ...

from

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

to create a new British colony in Africa. The

Pioneer Column The Pioneer Column was a force raised by Cecil Rhodes and his British South Africa Company in 1890 and used in his efforts to annex the territory of Mashonaland, later part of Zimbabwe (once Southern Rhodesia). Background Rhodes was anxious t ...

of the BSAC set out and founded

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...

in 1890. The BSAC flag they had ordered to be made did not reach South Africa from England in time before the column set off. As a result, the Union Flag was raised instead, although it had been suggested that they use a white flag with the letters "BSACo" on it. The BSAC flag eventually arrived in the newly established Rhodesia in 1892 and was first raised over Fort Salisbury. In 1893, it was raised over

Bulawayo Bulawayo (, ; Ndebele: ''Bulawayo'') is the second largest city in Zimbabwe, and the largest city in the country's Matabeleland region. The city's population is disputed; the 2022 census listed it at 665,940, while the Bulawayo City Council cl ...

, following the company's conquest of the

Matabeleland Matabeleland is a region located in southwestern Zimbabwe that is divided into three provinces: Matabeleland North, Bulawayo, and Matabeleland South. These provinces are in the west and south-west of Zimbabwe, between the Limpopo and Zambezi r ...

. In 1922, Rhodesian voters voted in the

Southern Rhodesian government referendum, 1922 A referendum on the status of Southern Rhodesia was held in the colony on 27 October 1922. Voters, almost all of them White, were given the options of establishing responsible government or joining the Union of South Africa.

for

responsible government Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability, the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy. Governments (the equivalent of the executive bran ...

independent of the BSAC ahead of joining the

Union of South Africa The Union of South Africa ( nl, Unie van Zuid-Afrika; af, Unie van Suid-Afrika; ) was the historical predecessor to the present-day Republic of South Africa. It came into existence on 31 May 1910 with the unification of the Cape, Natal, Trans ...

. Remaining under BSAC control was considered but was eventually not included in the final ballot. As such, the BSAC flag was lowered on 29 September 1923 by the

British South Africa Police The British South Africa Police (BSAP) was, for most of its existence, the police force of Rhodesia (renamed Zimbabwe in 1980). It was formed as a paramilitary force of mounted infantrymen in 1889 by Cecil Rhodes' British South Africa Company, from ...

when the colony's new status as

came into being with the Union Flag becoming the only official flag. However, it is speculated that it was retained by the

Governor of Southern Rhodesia The Governor of Southern Rhodesia was the representative of the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British monarch in the self-governing colony of Southern Rhodesia from 1923 to 1980. The Governor was appointed by The Crown and acted as the local h ...

as the governor's flag until around 1931. The same happened in what would become

where the BSAC surrendered its role in the colony to the

via an

order in council An Order-in-Council is a type of legislation in many countries, especially the Commonwealth realms. In the United Kingdom this legislation is formally made in the name of the monarch by and with the advice and consent of the Privy Council ('' Ki ...

from His Majesty's Privy Council.Northern Rhodesia Order in Council, 1924, S.R.O. 1924 No. 324, S.RO. & S.I. Rev VIII, 154 Despite the flag losing its status as a colonial flag, the BSAC flag continued to be used by the British South Africa Company as their private company flag and they would fly it over their offices in London and in the Rhodesias. This situation continued until 1965 when the British South Africa Company merged with the

Anglo-American Corporation Anglo American plc is a British listed multinational mining company with headquarters in London, England. It is the world's largest producer of platinum, with around 40% of world output, as well as being a major producer of diamonds, copper, n ...

Anomalies

As the British South Africa Company flag had no formal description or definition in the Royal charter, the design of the flag is not standardised. The most common discussion was if there was a red ring around the white disk. Versions of the flag held by the

National Archives of Zimbabwe The National Archives of Zimbabwe are the national archives of Zimbabwe. They are located in Harare. The National Archives were established by an Act of Parliament in 1935, now known as the National Archives Act 1896. The Archives are the st ...

(including the final flag that flew over the

Magistrates Court A magistrates' court is a lower court where, in several jurisdictions, all criminal proceedings start. Also some civil matters may be dealt with here, such as family proceedings. Courts * Magistrates' court (England and Wales) * Magistrate's Cou ...

in Bulawayo) do not have the ring on it. But versions held by the British

National Army Museum The National Army Museum is the British Army's central museum. It is located in the Chelsea district of central London, adjacent to the Royal Hospital Chelsea, the home of the "Chelsea Pensioners". The museum is a non-departmental public body. ...

and

Livingstone Museum 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 artifact ...

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

do. It was reported the version with red ring was used since 1889, and the version without ring began to use in 1893. There were also discussions as to if the flag had

red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondar ...

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 Defacement (flag), defaced with a Heraldic badge, ...

s based upon it. Though ensigns based on the flag do appear on flag charts, it is speculated they were never used as Rhodesia did not border the sea.

References

{{Reflist Flags of the British Empire 1892 establishments in Africa Southern Rhodesia Northern Rhodesia British South Africa Company Flags of Africa

Rhodesia Flags displaying animals