On This Day

Britain takes over Southern Rhodesia from the British South Africa Company

The British South Africa Company (BSAC or BSACo) was chartered in 1889 following the amalgamation of Cecil Rhodes' Central Search Association and the London-based Exploring Company Ltd, which had...

The British South Africa Company (BSAC or BSACo) was chartered in 1889 following the amalgamation of Cecil Rhodes' Central Search Association and the London-based Exploring Company Ltd, which had originally competed to capitalise on the expected mineral wealth of Mashonaland but united because of common economic interests and to secure British government backing. The company received a Royal Charter modelled on that of the British East India Company. Its first directors included the 2nd Duke of Abercorn, Rhodes himself, and the South African financier Alfred Beit. Rhodes hoped BSAC would promote colonisation and economic exploitation across much of south-central Africa, as part of the "Scramble for Africa".

Events Before

  1. British Columbia, Canada, starts driving on the right-hand side of the road

    British Columbia, Canada, starts driving on the right-hand side of the road

  2. Insulin is first used on humans when Frederick Banting injects 14-year-old Canadian Leonard Thompson to treat his diabet

    Insulin is first used on humans when Frederick Banting injects 14-year-old Canadian Leonard Thompson to treat his diabetes

  3. James Joyce's novel "Ulysses" is first published by Sylvia Beach in Paris (1,000 copies)

    Ulysses is a modernist novel by the Irish writer James Joyce. Partially serialised in the American journal The Little Review from March 1918 to December 1920, the entire work was published in Paris…

  4. American founder of the Chicago Bears football team George Halas (27) weds Minnie Bushing

    American founder of the Chicago Bears football team George Halas (27) weds Minnie Bushing

  5. Great Britain issues the Unilateral Declaration of Egyptian Independence, ending its protectorate over Egypt and grantin

    Great Britain issues the Unilateral Declaration of Egyptian Independence, ending its protectorate over Egypt and granting the country nominal independence while reserving control over military and diplomatic matters

Events After

  1. Charlie Munger is born

    Charlie Munger, American businessman, known for american businessman, was born on 1924-01-01.

  2. Grossdeutsche Volksgemeinschaft and Völkische Block replace the banned NSDAP

    Grossdeutsche Volksgemeinschaft and Völkische Block replace the banned NSDAP

  3. German-Swiss poet and novelist Hermann Hesse (36) weds Swiss soprano and painter Ruth Wenger (26); divorce in 1927

    German-Swiss poet and novelist Hermann Hesse (36) weds Swiss soprano and painter Ruth Wenger (26); divorce in 1927

  4. 1st Winter Olympic Games open in Chamonix, France

    The 1924 Winter Olympics, officially known as the I Olympic Winter Games (French: Iers Jeux olympiques d'hiver) and commonly known as Chamonix 1924 (Arpitan: Chamôni 1924), were a winter multi-sport...

  5. Vladimir Lenin is placed in a Mausoleum in Red Square, Moscow

    On Monday, 21 January 1924, at 18:50 EET, Vladimir Lenin, leader of the October Revolution and the first leader and founder of the Soviet Union, died in Gorki aged 53 after falling into a coma.

More from the 1920s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on September 12, 1923?
The British South Africa Company (BSAC or BSACo) was chartered in 1889 following the amalgamation of Cecil Rhodes' Central Search Association and the London-based Exploring Company Ltd, which had originally competed to capitalise on the expected mineral wealth of Mashonaland but united because of common economic interests and to secure British government backing. The company received a Royal Charter modelled on that of the British East India Company. Its first directors included the 2nd Duke of Abercorn, Rhodes himself, and the South African financier Alfred Beit.
Why is Britain takes over Southern Rhodesia from the British South Africa Company historically important?
Its first directors included the 2nd Duke of Abercorn, Rhodes himself, and the South African financier Alfred Beit. Rhodes hoped BSAC would promote colonisation and economic exploitation across much of south-central Africa, as part of the "Scramble for Africa".

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