DEAD OR ALIVE

Ian Smith

Ian Smith is known for Ian Smith – Prime Minister of Rhodesia from 1964 to 1979.

Ian Smith is one of 1179 people in the A–Z index, listed under I.

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Who is Ian Smith?

Ian Smith is best known for Ian Smith – Prime Minister of Rhodesia from 1964 to 1979. Dead or Alive is a trivia game: you decide whether a famous person is still alive, then see the answer. The status for Ian Smith is checked against public sources such as Wikidata and is shown only after you answer.

Facts

Known for: Ian Smith – Prime Minister of Rhodesia from 1964 to 1979

About Ian Smith

He led the predominantly white-minority government that unilaterally declared independence from the United Kingdom in November 1965 after rejecting British demands for a transition to majority rule. His premiership was marked by international non-recognition, United Nations sanctions, and the Rhodesian Bush War. During the Second World War, he served as a Royal Air Force fighter pilot and was seriously injured in a crash in Egypt. He later served in Europe, where he was shot down and fought alongside Italian partisans. After the war, he returned to Southern Rhodesia, became a farmer, and was elected to the colony's parliament in 1948. He was initially a member of the Liberal Party, later joined the United Federal Party, and in 1962 co-founded the Rhodesian Front, which opposed immediate majority rule. Smith became prime minister in April 1964. After unsuccessful negotiations with Britain over independence, his government issued the Unilateral Declaration of Independence in 1965. Rhodesia subsequently severed its remaining constitutional ties with Britain and declared itself a republic in 1970. Smith and the Rhodesian Front remained in power through elections in which political representation was dominated by the white minority, while black Rhodesians were underrepresented as most were excluded under the electoral system.

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