o the more impressive Shona civilizations that would dominate the region. Towers of Great Zimbabwe Pre-Colonial era (1000–1887) Proto-Shona speaking societies first emerged in the middle Limpopo valley in the 9th century before moving on to the Zimbabwean highlands. The Zimbabwean plateau eventually became the center of subsequent Shona states. The Kingdom of Mapungubwe was the first in a series of sophisticated trade states developed in Zimbabwe by the time of the first European explorers from Portugal. They traded in gold, ivory and copper for cloth and glass. From about 1250 until 1450, Mapungubwe was eclipsed by the Kingdom of Zimbabwe. This Shona state further refined and expanded upon Mapungubwe's stone architecture, which survives to this day at the ruins of the kingdom's capital of Great Zimbabwe. From circa 1450–1760, Zimbabwe gave way to the Kingdom of Mutapa. This Shona state ruled much of the area that is known as Zimbabwe today, and parts of central Mozambique. It is known by many names including the Mutapa Empire, also known as Mwene Mutapa or Monomotapa as well as "Munhumutapa," and was renowned for its gold trade routes with Arabs and the Portuguese. However, Portuguese settlers destroyed the trade and began a series of wars which left the empire in near collapse in the early 17th century.[8] As a direct response to Portuguese aggression in the interior, a new Shona state emerged called the Rozwi Empire. Relying on centuries of military, political and religious development, the Rozwi (which means "destroyers") removed the Portuguese from the Zimbabwe plateau by force of arms. The Rozwi continued the stone building traditions of the Zimbabwe and Mapungubwe kingdoms while adding guns to its arsenal and developing a professional army to protect its trade routes and conquests. Around 1821, a lieutenant of King Shaka, Mzilikazi (meaning The Great Road) successfully rebelled from the Zulu and fled northwards into the Transvaal with his newly founded tribe: the Ndebele, beginning an era of widespread killings and devastation known as the Mfecane. When the Boer settlers arrived in the Transvaal in 1836 during the great trek they attacked the Ndebele and drove the tribe even further northward. In 1837–38, the Rozwi Empire along with other Shona states were conquered by the Ndebele and forced to pay tribute and concentrate in the northeast of present-day Zimbabwe, thus causing a tribal resentment that continues to rankle Zimbabwe to this day. After loosing the Transvaal in 1840, Mzilikazi and his tribe settled the southwest of present-day Zimbabwe in what became known as Matabeleland and established Bulawayo as their capital. Mzilikazi then organized his followers into a military system with regimental kraals, similar to those of Shaka, which became strong enough to repel the Boer attacks of 1847 - 1851 and persuade the government of the South African Republic to sign a peace treaty with him in 1852. Mzilikazi died in 1868 and after a brief, violent power struggle was succeed by his son, Lobengula. Colonial era (1888–1965) Main articles: Southern Rhodesia and Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland Matabeleland in the 1800s. In the 1880s, the British arrived with Cecil Rhodes's British South Africa Company. In 1898, the name Southern Rhodesia was adopted.[9] In 1888, British colonialist Cecil Rhodes obtained a concession for mining rights from King Lobengula of the Ndebele peoples.[10] Cecil Rhodes presented this concession to persuade the government of the United Kingdom to grant a royal charter to his British South Africa Company (BSAC) over Matabeleland, and its subject states such as Mashonaland. Rhodes used this document in 1890 to justify sending the Pioneer Column, a group of white settlers protected by well-armed British South Africa Police (BSAP) through Matabeleland and into Shona territory to establish Fort Salisbury (now Harare). In 1893-94, with the help of their new maxim guns the BSAP would go on to defeat the Ndebele in the First Matabele War, a war which also resulted in the death of King Lobengula. Rhodes sought permission to negotiate similar concessions covering all territory between the Limpopo River and Lake Tanganyika, then known as 'Zambesia'. In accordance with the terms of aforementioned concessions and treaties,[11] Cecil Rhodes promoted the colonisation of the region's land, with British control over labour as well as precious metals and other mineral resources.[12] In 1895 the BSAC adopted the name 'Rhodesia' for the territory of Zambesia, in honour of Cecil Rhodes. In 1898 'Southern Rhodesia' became the official denotation for the region south of the Zambezi,[13] which later became Zimbabwe. The region to the north was administered separately by the BSAC and later named Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia). Shortly after the disastrous Jameson Raid of the BSAP into the South African Republic, the Ndebele were led by their spiritual leader Mlimo against the white colonials and thus began the Second Matabele War (1896-97). The Shona also staged unsuccessful revolts (known as Chimurenga) against encroachment upon their lands, by clients of BSAC and Cecil Rhodes in 1896 and 1897.[14] Following the failed insurrections of 1896–97 the Ndebele and Shona groups became subject to Rhodes's administration thus precipitating European settlement en masse which led to land distribution disproportionately favouring Europeans, displacing the Shona, Ndebele, and other indigenous peoples. Southern Rhodesia became a self-governing British colony in October 1923, subsequent to a 1922 referendum. Rhodesians served on behalf of the United Kingdom during World War II, mainly in the East African Campaign against Axis forces in Italian East Africa. In 1953, in the face of African opposition,[15] Britain consolidated the two colonies of Rhodesia with Nyasaland in the ill-fated Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland which was dominated by Southern Rhodesia. Growing African nationalism and general dissent, particularly in Nyasaland, persuaded Britain to dissolve the Union in 1963, forming three colonies. As colonial rule was ending throughout the continent and as African-majority governments assumed control in neighbouring Northern Rhodesia (Zambia) and in Nyasaland (Malawi), the white-minority Rhodesian government led by Ian Smith dropped the designation "Southern" and made a Unilateral Declaration of Independence (commonly abbreviated to "UDI") from the United Kingdom on November 11, 1965, effectively repudiating the British plan that the country should become a multi-racial democracy. UDI and civil war (1965–1979) Main articles: Rhodesia, Rhodesian Bush War, Zimbabwe Rhodesia, and Lancaster House Agreement Ian Smith signing the Unilateral Declaration of Independence on 11 November 1965 with his cabinet watching. After UDI, the British government requested United Nations economic sanctions against Rhodesia as negotiations with the Smith administration in 1966 and 1968 ended in stalemate. The United Kingdom deemed the Rhodesian declaration an act of rebellion, but did not re-establish control by force. A civil war ensued, with Joshua Nkomo's Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU) and Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU) using assistance from the governments of Zambia and Mozambique (the latter following its independence from Portugal in 1975). Smith's declaration of a republic in 1970 was recognised only by South Africa,[16][17] then governed by its apartheid administration.[18][19] Over the years, the guerrilla fighting against Ian Smith's UDI government intensified. As a result, the Smith government opened negotiations with the leaders of ZAPU and ZANU. Bishop Abel Muzorewa signs the Lancaster House Agreement seated next to British Foreign Minister Lord Carrington. In March 1978, with his regime near the brink of collapse, Smith signed an accord with three African leaders, led by Bishop Abel Muzorewa, who offered safeguards for white civilians. As a result of the Internal Settlement, elections were held in April 1979. The United African National Council (UANC) party won a majority in this election. On 1 June 1979, the leader of UANC, Abel Muzorewa, became the country's prime minister and the country's name was changed to Zimbabwe Rhodesia. The internal settlement left control of the country's police, security forces, civil service and judiciary in white hands. It assured whites of about one-third of the seats in parliament.[20] However, on June 12, the United States Senate voted to end economic sanctions against Zimbabwe Rhodesia. Following the fifth Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), held in Lusaka, Zambia from August 1st to August 7t in 1979, the British government invited Muzorewa and the leaders of the Patriotic Front to participate in a constitutional conference at Lancaster House. The purpose of the conference was to discuss and reach an agreement on the terms of an independence constitution and that elections should be supervised under British authority to enable Rhodesia to proceed to legal independence and the parties to settle their differences by political means. Lord Carrington, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the United Kingdom, chaired the conference.[21] The conference took place from September 10th to December 15th in 1979 with 47 plenary sessions. On December 1, 1979, delegations from the British and Rhodesian governments and the Patriotic Front signed the Lancaster House Agreement, ending the civil war.[22] Abel Muzorewa served briefly as prime minister in 1979. Independence (1980–1999) Main article: Gukurahundi See also: History of Zimbabwe Britain's Lord Soames was appointed governor to oversee the disarming of revolutionary guerrillas, the holding of elections and the granting of independence to an uneasy coalition government with Joshua Nkomo, head of ZAPU. In the elections of February 1980, Mugabe and his ZANU won a landslide victory.[23] There was however opposition to a Shona win in Matabeleland. In November 1980 Enos Nkala made remarks at a rally in Bulawayo, in which he warned ZAPU that ZANU would deliver a few blows against them. This started the first Entumbane uprising, in which ZIPRA and ZANLA fought for two days.[24] In February 1981 there was a second uprising, which spread to Glenville and also to Connemara in the Midlands. ZIPRA troops in other parts of Matabeleland headed for Bulawayo to join the battle, and ex-Rhodesian units had to come in to stop the fighting. Over 300 people were killed. These uprisings led to what has become known as Gukurahundi (Shona: "the early rain which washes away the chaff before the spring rains"[25]) or the Matabeleland Massacres, which ran from 1982 until 1985. Mugabe used his North Korean trained Fifth Brigade to crush any resistance in Matabeleland. It has been estimated that 20,000 Matabele were murdered and buried in mass graves which they were forced to dig themselves and hundreds of others were allegedly tortured.[26] The violence ended after ZANU and ZAPU reached a unity agreement in 1988 that merged the two parties, creating ZANU-PF.[27][28] Elections in March 1990 resulted in another victory for Mugabe and his party, which won 117 of the 120 election seats. Election observers estimated voter turnout at only 54% and found the campaign neither free nor fair.[29][30] During the 1990s students, trade unionists and workers often demonstrated to express their discontent with the government. Students protested in 1990 against proposals for an increase in government control of universities and again in 1991 and 1992 when they clashed with police. Trade unionists and workers also criticised the government during this time. In 1992 police prevented trade unionists from holding anti-government demonstrations. In 1994 widespread industrial unrest weakened the economy. In 1996 civil servants, nurses, and junior doctors went on strike over salary issues.[31][32] The general health of the civilian population also began to significantly flounder and by 1997, as 25% of the population of Zimbabwe had been infected by HIV, the AIDS virus.[33] Decline (1999–present) Land issues, which the liberation movement had promised to solve, re-emerged as the main issue for the ruling party around 1997. Despite majority rule and the existence of a "willing-buyer-willing-seller" land reform programme since the 1980s, whites made up less than 1% of the population but held about 70% of the most arable land.[34] Mugabe began to redistribute land to blacks in 2000 with a compulsory land redistribution. The legality and constitutionality of the process has regularly been challenged in the Zimbabwean High and Supreme Courts; however, the policing agencies have rarely acted in accordance with court rulings on these matters. The confiscation of the farmland was affected by continuous droughts and lack of inputs and finance led to a sharp decline in agricultural exports, which was traditionally the country's leading export producing sector.[35] Mining and tourism have surpassed agriculture. As a result, Zimbabwe is experiencing a severe hard-currency shortage that has led to hyperinflation and chronic shortages in imported fuel and consumer goods. In 2002, Zimbabwe was suspended from the Commonwealth of Nations on charges of human rights abuses during the land redistribution and of election tampering.[36] Following elections in 2005, the government initiated "Operation Murambatsvina", a purported effort to crack down on illegal markets and homes that had seen slums emerge in towns and cities. This action has been widely condemned by opposition and international figures, who charge that it has left a substantial section of urban poor homeless.[37] The Zimbabwe government has described the operation as an attempt to provide decent housing to the population although they have yet to deliver any new housing for the forcibly removed people.[38] A map showing the food insecurity in Zimbabwe in June 2008. Zimbabwe's current economic and food crisis, described by some observers as the country's worst humanitarian crisis since independence, has been attributed in varying degrees to the government's price controls and land confiscations, the HIV/AIDS epidemic, and a drought affecting the entire region.[39] Life expectancy at birth for males in Zimbabwe has dramatically declined since 1990 from 60 to 44 years, among the lowest in the world. Life expectancy for females is even lower at 43 years. The amount of time a Zimbabwean citizen is expected to live healthily at birth is 34 for males and just 33 for females.[40] Concurrently, the infant mortality rate has climbed from 53 to 81 deaths per 1,000 live births in the same period. As of 2009[update], 1.2 million Zimbabweans live with HIV.[41] On March 29, 2008, Zimbabwe held a presidential election along with a parliamentary election. The three major candidates were Robert Mugabe of the Zimbabwe African National Union - Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF), Morgan Tsvangirai of the Movement for Democratic Change – Tsvangirai (MDC-T), and Simba Makoni, an independent. The results of this election were withheld for four weeks, following which it was generally acknowledged that the MDC had achieved a significant majority of seats. However, Mugabe retained control because Tsvangirai did not win by the margin required by Zimbabwean law. Hence, the election results that would otherwise put Mugabe out of power, failed the opposition. In late 2008, problems in Zimbabwe reached crisis proportions in the areas of living standards, public health (with a major cholera outbreak in December) and various public considerations.[42] Mining of diamonds at Marange in Chiadzwa became the subject of international attention as the World Diamond Council called for a clampdown on smuggling[43] and more than 80 illegal miners were killed by the military.[44] In September 2008, a power-sharing agreement was reached between Mugabe and Tsvangirai, in which Mugabe remained president and Tsvangirai became prime minister. However, due to ministerial differences between their respective political parties, the agreement was not fully implemented until February 13, 2009, two days after the swearing in of Tsvangirai as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe. Administrative divisions Administrative divisions of Zimbabwe Main articles: Provinces of Zimbabwe, Districts of Zimbabwe, and Municipalities of Zimbabwe Zimbabwe has a centralised government and is divided into eight provinces and two cities with provincial status, for administrative purposes. Each province has a provincial capital from where official business is usually carried out.[45] Province Capital Bulawayo Bulawayo Harare Harare Manicaland Mutare Mashonaland Central Bindura Mashonaland East Marondera Mashonaland West Chinhoyi Masvingo Masvingo city Matabeleland North Lupane District Matabeleland South Gwanda Midlands Gweru The names of most of the provinces were generated from the Mashonaland and Matabeleland divide at the time of colonisation: Mashonaland was the territory occupied first by the British South Africa Company Pioneer Column and Matabeleland the territory conquered during the First Matabele War. This corresponds roughly to the precolonial territory of the Shona people and the Matabele people, although there are significant ethnic minorities in most provinces. Each province is headed by a Provincial Governor, appointed by the President.[46] The provincial government is run by a Provincial Administrator, appointed by the Public Service Commission. Other government functions at provincial level are carried out by provincial offices of national government departments.[47] The provinces are subdivided into 59 districts and 1,200 wards (sometimes referred to as municipalities). Each district is headed by a District Administrator, appointed by the Public Service Commission. There is also a Rural District Council, which appoints a Chief Executive Officer. The Rural District Council is comprised of elected ward councillors, the District Administrator and one representative of the chiefs (traditional leaders appointed under customary law) in the district. Other government functions at district level are carried out by district offices of national government departments.[48] At the ward level there is a Ward Development Committee, comprising the elected ward councillor, the kraalheads (traditional leaders subordinate to chiefs) and representatives of Village Development Committees. Wards are subdivided into villages, each of which has an elected Village Development Committee and a Headman (traditional leader subordinate to the kraalhead).[49] Government and politics Main articles: Politics of Zimbabwe and Elections in Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe heading to the opening of Parliament Zimbabwe is a semi-presidential system republic, which has a parliamentary government. Under the constitutional changes in 2005, an upper chamber, the Senate, was reinstated.[50] The House of Assembly is the lower chamber of Parliament. President Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front (commonly abbreviated ZANU-PF) has been the dominant political party in Zimbabwe since independence.[51] In 1987 then-prime minister Mugabe revised the constitution and made himself president. His ZANU party has won every election since independence. In particular, the elections of 1990 were nationally and internationally condemned as being rigged, with the second-placed party, Edgar Tekere's Zimbabwe Unity Movement, winning only 20% of the vote.[52] Presidential elections were again held in 2002 amid allegations of vote-rigging, intimidation and fraud.[53] The 2005 Zimbabwe parliamentary elections were held on March 31 and multiple claims of vote rigging, election fraud and intimidation were made by the MDC and Jonathan Moyo, ca