Conflict episode

Rhodesian Bush War begins, 1966

ZANU (led by Robert Mugabe, armed wing ZANLA) and ZAPU (led by Joshua Nkomo, armed wing ZIPRA) waged a guerrilla war against the white-minority Rhodesian government following the 1965 Unilateral Declaration of Independence.

What happened

ZANU, founded in 1963 and led by Robert Mugabe with armed wing ZANLA, and ZAPU, founded in 1961 and led by Joshua Nkomo with armed wing ZIPRA, waged a guerrilla war against the white-minority Rhodesian government beginning in the mid-1960s; the two movements later allied as the "Patriotic Front" for the Lancaster House negotiations.[1] Published casualty estimates for the war vary widely, from roughly 20,000 up to 34,000 total deaths across all sides over its sixteen-year course; no single figure is adopted as fact.[2] ZANU and ZAPU later reunited on 22 December 1987, when Mugabe and Nkomo signed a Unity Accord dissolving ZAPU into a merged ZANU-PF.[3]

Sources for this page

Each number marks a specific claim. Notes give the source, its locator and how it relates to the claim.

  1. 1.

    Claim: The Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), founded in 1963 and led by Robert Mugabe with armed wing ZANLA, and the Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU), founded in 1961 and led by Joshua Nkomo with armed wing ZIPRA, waged a guerrilla war against the white-minority Rhodesian government from the mid-1960s, later allying as the "Patriotic Front" for the Lancaster House negotiations.

    • Rhodesian Bush War (Wikipedia) link, Belligerents and Background sections. Source record
  2. 2.

    Claim: Published estimates for total deaths in the Rhodesian Bush War (c. 1964–1979) vary, with figures cited in the range of roughly 20,000 to 34,000 across all sides; no single consolidated casualty figure is treated as authoritative.

  3. 3.

    Claim: On 22 December 1987, Robert Mugabe (ZANU-PF) and Joshua Nkomo (ZAPU) signed a Unity Accord under which ZAPU was dissolved into a merged ZANU-PF.

Source note

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