Editing History of Zambia (section)

==Colonial period==
[[Image:CecilRhodes.jpg|thumb|right|[[Cecil Rhodes]]]]

{{main|Northern Rhodesia}}

In 1888, [[Cecil Rhodes]] who was spearheading British commercial and political interests in [[Central Africa]], obtained a mineral rights concessions from local chiefs. In the same year, Northern and Southern [[Rhodesia]], now [[Zambia]] and [[Zimbabwe]], were proclaimed a British [[sphere of influence]]. In the beginning, the territory was administered by Rhodes' [[British South Africa Company]] (BSAC), which showed little interest in the province and used it mainly as a source of labour.<ref>{{Cite web|title=History|url=https://www.szi.gov.zm/epamodzi/?page_id=4114|website=Republic of Zambia e-Pamodzi portal|access-date=2020-05-28|archive-date=2019-06-07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190607000649/http://www.szi.gov.zm/epamodzi/?page_id=4114|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The most important factor in the colony's economy was copper. The discovery of which is due partly to an American scout, [[Frederick Russell Burnham]], who in 1895 led and oversaw the massive Northern Territories (BSA) Exploration Co. expedition which established that major copper deposits existed in Central Africa.<ref name="baxter1970">{{cite book |last=Baxter |first=T.W. |author2=E.E. Burke |title=Guide to the Historical Manuscripts in the National Archives of Rhodesia |page=67 |year=1970}}</ref> Along the [[Kafue River]] in then Northern Rhodesia, Burnham saw many similarities to copper deposits he had worked in the United States, and he encountered natives wearing copper bracelets.<ref name="scouting">{{cite book |last=Burnham |first=Frederick Russell |title=Scouting on Two Continents |publisher=Doubleday, Page & company |year=1926 |pages=2; Chapters 3 & 4 |oclc=407686}}</ref>

In 1923 the British government decided not to renew the company's [[charter]]. As a result, [[Southern Rhodesia]] was annexed formally and granted self-government in 1923. After negotiations, the administration of [[Northern Rhodesia]] was transferred to the British [[Colonial Office]] in 1924 as a [[protectorate]],<ref>{{Cite web|title=Zambia (01/09)|url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2359.htm|last=Department Of State. The Office of Electronic Information|first=Bureau of Public Affairs|date=2005-04-26|website=2001-2009.state.gov|language=en|access-date=2020-05-28}}</ref> with [[Livingstone, Zambia|Livingstone]] as capital. The capital was transferred to the more central [[Lusaka]] in 1935.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Livingstone Town {{!}} Livingstone, Zambia|url=http://www.livingstonetourism.com/livingstone-town/|website=livingstonetourism.com|access-date=2020-05-28}}</ref> A [[Legislative Council]] was established, of which five members were elected by the small European minority (only 4,000 people), but none by the African population.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Walubita|first=Moses|date=September 8, 2015|title=Lusaka has come a long way|work=Zambia dailymail|url=http://www.daily-mail.co.zm/lusaka-come-long-way/|access-date=June 1, 2021}}</ref><ref name="britannica.com">{{Cite web |title=Zambia - Colonial rule {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Zambia/Colonial-rule |access-date=2022-05-26 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref>

[[File:Flag of Northern Rhodesia (1939–1964).svg|thumb|left|Flag of [[Northern Rhodesia]]]]

In 1928, enormous [[copper]] deposits were discovered in the region which then became known as the [[Copperbelt]]. This transformed Northern Rhodesia from a prospective land of colonization for white farmers to a copper exporter. By 1938, the country produced 13% of the world's copper extraction. The sector was developed by two companies: the [[Anglo American plc|Anglo American Corporation]] (AAC) and the South African [[Rhodesian Selection Trust]] (RST), who controlled the sector until independence.

The poor safety record and increased taxes triggered a [[Strike action|strike]] of African mineworkers in 1935,<ref>{{Cite book |jstor=j.ctv6mtdm4.10 |jstor-access=free |chapter=The Politicization of Black Labor |last1=Parpart |first1=Jane L. |last2=Freund |first2=Bill |title=Labor and Capital on the African Copperbelt |year=1983 |pages=54–74 |publisher=Temple University Press|doi=10.2307/j.ctv6mtdm4.10 }}</ref> also known as the [[Copperbelt strike (1935)|Copperbelt strike]]. The strike was crushed by the authorities and six miners were killed.<ref name="britannica.com"/>

During the [[Second World War]], white miners came out on strike in 1940. Realizing the importance of their products for the war, they demanded higher salaries. This strike was followed by another by African mine workers.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Southern Africa - European and African interaction in the 19th century {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Southern-Africa/European-and-African-interaction-in-the-19th-century |access-date=2022-05-26 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref>

[[File:Rodésia e Niassalândia 32.jpg|thumb|Stamp with portrait of [[Queen Elizabeth II]], 1955]]
Even before the war, there had been talks about merging the two Rhodesias, but the process had been halted by the British authorities, and brought to an absolute stop by the war. Finally, in 1953, both Rhodesias were joined with [[Nyasaland]] (now [[Malawi]]) to form the [[Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland|Central African Federation]]. Northern Rhodesia was the centre of much of the turmoil and crises that afflicted the federation in its last years. At the core of the controversy were insistent African demands for greater participation in government and European fears of losing political control.<ref name="britannica.com"/>

A [[Northern Rhodesian general election, 1962|two-stage election]] held in October and December 1962 resulted in an African majority in the legislative council and an uneasy coalition between the two African nationalist parties. The council passed resolutions calling for Northern Rhodesia's secession from the federation and demanding full internal self-b under a new constitution, and a new national assembly based on a broader, more democratic franchise. On 31 December 1963, the federation was dissolved, and [[Northern Rhodesia]] became the [[Republic of Zambia]] on [[Zambia Independence Act 1964|24 October 1964]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=History|url=https://www.nws.gov.zm/?page_id=4385|last=Provincial administration|access-date=2020-05-28|archive-date=2020-09-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200930150655/https://www.nws.gov.zm/?page_id=4385|url-status=dead}}</ref>