The history of the Northern Rhodesia Protectorate, as Zambia was known before 1964, has been depicted as a relatively benevolent process. The region 'had been subjugated', says Mulford, 'not by war but by treaties concluded between white men and the Territory's unsophisticated chiefs'. The struggle of 'Christianity, commerce and civilization versus the slave trade' had, according to A.J. Hanna, distinguished the earlier years. In Gann's view, the establishment of administration, undertaken by 'government officials', coming 'in the missionary's footsteps' promoted the 'birth of a new economy'. Such accounts have implied that the 'protection' of 'northern Zambezia' compared favourably with the situation south of the river, where military subjugation followed the Ndebele and Shona 'risings', and was indeed qualitatively different. Moreover, this view could draw support from the statements of some Zambian nationalists. As late as 1959, Kenneth Kaunda, while under political restriction, described the Protectorate as based on 'treaties freely entered into' between local rulers and Queen Victoria's 'representatives'. This thesis is concerned to modify this assessment radically in the light of extensive research into British South Africa Company records, Colonial Office correspondence, the private papers of some B.S.A.C. agents, the letters and diaries of missionaries and others, coupled with extensive tape-recording of the testimonies of senior Zambians. After outlining the theme of the research (Chapter I), this 'anatomy' of the B.S.A. Company's 'conquest' proceeds to review the relation of 'the rules of the great game of scramble' to Rhodes's action in Central Africa (Chapter II), and to examine 'treaty-making' in 'northern Zambezia' in detail (Chapter III). Chapter IV is devoted to the B.S.A. Company's strategy of military conquest, with special reference to the defeat of the stronger kingdoms. The main body of the thesis (Chapter V) is concerned with what are seen as the major instruments by which the conquered territory was controlled and exploited. This includes an examination of the revenue, drawn from 'hut tax' in relation to the Company's real objectives. In the final chapter (VI) brief surveys are provided of three major consequences of this conquest: the degradation of traditional rulers; the fostering of a comprehensive 'colour bar'; and the awakening of African nationalism. It is submitted that the swift and relatively early triumph of Zambian nationalism cannot be accurately understood without the fuller 'anatomy' of the British 'conquest' which this thesis offers.

Una part significativa de la historiografia sobre l'Àfrica colonial ha defensat la visió d'un Estat fort, coherent en les seves polítiques i dedicat essencialment a impulsar l'explotació econòmica dels diferents territoris, en benefici del capital privat. Davant d'això, les poblacions africanes es trobaven sotmeses i indefenses. Per contra, i en línia amb les tendències d'una part de la historiografia més recent, la nostra tesi pretenia qüestionar certs elements de la visió de l'Àfrica colonial esmentada anteriorment, i fer-ho a través de l'estudi d'una institució estatal dedicada al recolzament d'un sector econòmic dominat pels colons: el Departament d'Agricultura a Zimbabwe, entre els anys 1897 i 1914, quan el país es trobava sota l'administració d'una companyia privada, la British South Africa Company (BSAC).El nostre estudi mostra com, efectivament, la BSAC i l'administració a Zimbabwe van apostar de forma creixent per l'impuls de l'agricultura i la ramaderia en mans de colons blancs, els van oferir terres a preus baixos i ajuts públics de tot tipus, van expropiar i expulsar dels seus terrenys les poblacions africanes, van intentar pressionar els africans per tal que treballessin a les granges europees en condicions salarials i laborals deficients i esperaven incorporar la població africana a l'economia moderna. Però, al mateix temps, s'ha pogut observar como l'Estat colonial mostrava una mancança de recursos econòmics i de personal que l'impedía traslladar a la pràctica determinades decisions teòriques. Com l'autoritat política es trobava dividida en les seves intencions i objetius: els ministeris a Londres desitjaven mantenir l'estabilitat política i, en part per aquesta raó, limitar les pressions i abusos sobre les poblacions africanes; la BSAC i part de l'administració local prioritzaven els interessos miners davant dels grangers; els funcionaris encarregats de l'administració de les poblacions africanes eren reticents a aplicar certes mesures agressives, com ara les expulsions de les granges, el control del bestiar, el treball forçat o la restricció de l'ús dels recursos forestals o faunístics, i defensaven el manteniment, al menys parcial, de les institucions "tradicionals" africanes. Els colons tampoc formaven un grup monolític al qual el govern pogués recolzar de forma genèrica. Per raons de procedència ètnica o social, i per interessos econòmics (miners, grangers, comerciants, propietaris d'empreses, etc), els europeus buscaven i proposaven mesures contradictòries. Tot això, combinat amb la resistència davant les mesures aprovades, va permetre els africans conservar part de la seva autonomia i va provocar que els efectes de les polítiques colonials fossin diversos: junt amb la pèrdua de terres en alguns casos es va produir un augment de les produccions agràries i dels ramats de bestiar, junt amb el treball mal remunerat es donaven casos d'incentius pera la contractació i un augment de l'acumulació i el consum gràcies als salaris, etc.Una anàlisi comparativa d'altres casos i estudis sobre territoris colonials en els mateixos anys ens permet assegurar que Zimbabwe no constitueix una excepció, sinó que més aviat s'inclou dins d'un panorama general d'un Estat colonial amb febleses evidents i dividit en les seves intencions, que s' enfrontava a uns grups de pressió europeus que formulaven peticions conflictives i a unes poblacions africanes amb una capacitat de resistència i d'autonomia en la participació en l'economia i la societat colonials que han estat sovint minimitzades. Sobretot, es posa en evidència una contradicció inherent en la construcció de l'Estat colonial d'aquest període, especialment en els territoris britànics: la recerca d'un objectiu econòmic - l'explotació dels recursos de les colònies - al costat d'un de polític, la perpetuació de l'existència del mateix poder colonial a través del manteniment de l'estabilitat social i de l'assoliment d'una certa legitimitat davant les poblacions africanes. La consciència clara d'aquesta dualitat en els objetius i les polítiques colonials ens permet entendre molt millor les decisions preses i els seus efectes sobre la població africana. / Historiography on Colonial Africa has tended to defend the vision of the Colonial State as a powerful institution, coherent in its policies and basically devoted to the economic exploitation of the different territories on behalf of private capital. Under this kind of rule, African populations were passive and defenceless. Contrary to this view, our thesis aimed at questioning some of these interpretations through the analysis of an institution designed to support an economic sector dominated by white settlers: the Department of Agriculture in Zimbabwe between 1897 and 1914, when the country was under the administration of a private company, the British South Africa Company (BSAC).Our research shows that the BSAC and its administration in Zimbabwe actually wished to encourage European agriculture and ranching. Settlers received cheap land and state subsidies, Africans suffered the expropriation of their lands, the State attempted to coerce Africans into the farm labour market, and officials expected to incorporate them into the modern economy. At the same time, though, we can see that the Colonial State suffered from a lack of funds and personnel, and that political authority was divided in its objectives: London ministries wished to maintain political stability and, partly for this reason, to limit the pressures applied on African populations; the BSAC and part of the local administration supported mining interests in front of the farmers; government officials were reluctant to impose some aggressive policies such as expulsions of tenants from farms, livestock controls, forced labour or restrictions over the African use of forests and wildlife, and defended, at least partially, African "traditional" institutions. White settlers were not a monolithic group either, they were divided according to their social or national origin and to their economic interests (farmers, miners, traders). They wished to achieve objectives that were often conflictive. All this, combined with their resistance to colonial policies, allowed Africans to maintain part of their autonomy.A comparative analysis of other colonial territories in the same period allows us to say that Zimbabwe was not an exception. It was part of a general situation in which the Colonial State was weak and divided in its objectives and was facing European pressure groups with contradictory demands and African populations with a relatively strong capacity to resist colonial policies or to adapt them to their interests. Above all, we can see an inherent contradiction within the State: the search for an economic objective - the exploitation of the colonies' resources - was often in contradiction with the achievement of a political goal: the perpetuation of colonial power itself through the maintenance of political stability and a certain degree of legitimacy in the eyes of the African population.

The theology of empire is a critical theme that dates back many centuries. This research work is inspired by that of Eusebius of Caesarea who was emphatic in his support for the Roman Empire under Constantine during the first part of the fourth century of our common era. It could be said that appealing to such a theme in a colonial context marred by gross injustices yet premised on gospel imperatives as they guide the progress of a given church is not only challenging but interesting as well. By using the Diocese of Mashonaland as our referral case, the idea is to interrogate how the influence of Eusebius’ approach to history could be prevalent even in our time. By putting Anglican missionaries on the spotlight, who worked in the Diocese of Mashonaland, from the early 1890s up to 1979, an attempt is made to analyse their activities and attitudes, the way historians favourable to their venture narrated the Church’s progress and related matters. One major question leading all the analyses made in this context is to what extent could we justify the claim that the spirit of Eusebius is behind the Mashonaland Anglican Church narratives and attitudes? This question naturally leads us to bring in other perspectives that are linked to the socio-economic developments of the country, the political dispensations defining issues of governance, and the overall impact these had on racial matters given the critical reference to Christianity and civilisation. Historians and others who help us to appreciate this context are therefore taken to task as to whether they could be trusted unconditionally. The theology of empire is therefore allowed to dictate the way we could interrogate those who opt to ignore gross injustices that the Church in this context did not challenge in any conclusive manner. The history of the Diocese of Mashonaland from this perspective is therefore an interesting narrative. Our work that looks at the period between 1890 and 1979 leaves us with a lot of curious questions that call for further scholarly investigation within the same Mashonaland Anglican context. / Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / D. Th. (Church History)

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1944. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 635-648).