Following the occupation of Zimbabwe by the British in 1890, the British South Africa Company Government, and subsequently, the various self-government administrations, cherished the dream of developing Rhodesia as a White man's country. To this end, they canvassed for European settlers, offered assisted passages to, organized various settlement schemes for immigrants and maintained a discriminatory political and economic system which ensured that Whites enjoyed all the best that the country could offer. Despite these efforts, however, the dream of developing Rhodesia as a White man's colony was not realized as fewer European emigrants came to Rhodesia than had been envisaged. This article analyses major trends in White immigration into Rhodesia between 1890 and 1940 and seeks to investigate why it proved difficult for the Rhodesian Administrations to turn their dream into a reality.
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