Lisa McMonagle, age 12, of Pittsburgh, Penn., for her question:

WHEN DID RHODESIA BECOME INDEPENDENT?

Rhodesia is a self governing country that is located in the southern part of Africa. Ancient paintings and tools found in the area indicate that the country had Stone Age inhabitants. By the 800s the people were engaged in trade.

An empire arose during the 1400s, and Europeans arrived during the 1500s. A British financier named Cecil Rhodes entered the picture during the 1800s.
By 1893 most of the territory called Rhodesia was occupied by the British South African Company. The British government helped crush some tribal uprisings in 1897, and then in 1898 Great Britain recognized Southern and Northern Rhodesia as separate territories.

In 1922 the white settlers of Southern Rhodesia voted for self government, and Southern Rhodesia became a self governing British colony in 1923. In 1953 Britain setup the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, which included Southern Rhodesia, Northern Rhodesia (which is now Zambia) and Nyasaland (which is now Malawi).

In 1961 Britain and Rhodesia approved a new constitution but the leading African party boycotted the first election because it felt too few Africans could qualify to vote. A man named Ian Smith defeated Sir Edgar Whitehead, who supported the 1961 constitution. The new government then banned two African parties that demanded a greater part in government for the Africans.

In 1965, on November 11, Rhodesia declared itself independent. It was the first dependency to break away from Great Britain without consent since the American Colonies declared their independence in 1776. No country officially recognizes Rhodesia's independence, however.

Britain claimed the move for independence from Rhodesia was illegal, and it banned all trade with the country. And then in December, 1966, the United Nations imposed compulsory economic sanctions against Rhodesia.

On March 2, 1970, Rhodesia declared itself a republic and approved a new constitution that would prevent the black African majority from ever gaining control of the government.

In 9971, Britain and Rhodesia reached an agreement that included provisions to gradually increase African representation in the government. A majority of the

Europeans in the country supported the agreement but most of the Africans opposed it. Fighting erupted between government troops and African guerrillas. A cease fire was agreed to in 1974.

When fighting broke out in Rhodesia again in 1976, Mozambique and other black African nations joined in the demand for an end to white rule in Rhodesia.

In September,1976,Rhodesia's white rulers agreed to the formation, within two years,of a government that would have a majority of black leaders. The situation has not been resolved as yet, but talks  continue.