List of ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Zimbabwe
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{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2014}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2014}}
The Ambassador of the United Kingdom to the Republic of Zimbabwe is the United Kingdom's foremost diplomatic representative in Zimbabwe, and head of the UK's diplomatic mission in Harare.
The embassy dates back to the establishment of a High Commission in Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia, to the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland from 1955 to 1963, and to Southern Rhodesia again following the end of the Federation from 1963. The High Commission was withdrawn on 12 November 1965, following the Unilateral Declaration of Independence of Rhodesia the previous day. Zimbabwe became an independent nation in 1980 following the Lancaster House Agreement on 21 December 1979. Initially Zimbabwe was a member of the Commonwealth of Nations so the UK's diplomatic representatives were High Commissioners. Zimbabwe withdrew from the Commonwealth in 2003 and since then the UK's representatives have been Ambassadors.
Emmerson Mnagagwa, the President of Zimbabwe has stated that Zimbabwe will seek a return to its membership of the Commonwealth during 2018, following in the footsteps of The Gambia, which returned to its status as a republic in the Commonwealth of Nations on 8 February 2018. If this does occur, then the UK's head of mission in Zimbabwe will again be a High Commissioner.
List of Heads of Mission
=High Commissioners to the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland=
- 1955–1961: Maurice Rupert Metcalf{{cite book |last1=Mackie |first1=Colin |title=A Directory of British Diplomats |date=2014 |publisher=Foreign and Commonwealth Office |location=London |page=342 |url=https://issuu.com/fcohistorians/docs/bdd_part_2_with_covers |access-date=21 March 2021}}
- 1961–1963: Lord Alport{{Who's Who | title=Alport | id = U248770 | type = was | volume = 2018 | edition = online}}
- 1963–1963: John Baines Johnston
=High Commissioners to Southern Rhodesia=
- 1963–1965: John Baines Johnston[http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whowaswho/U22187 JOHNSTON, Sir John (Baines)], Who Was Who, A & C Black, 1920–2016 (online edition, Oxford University Press, 2014){{cite news|url= https://www.theguardian.com/news/2005/nov/15/guardianobituaries.obituaries|title=Obituary: Sir John Johnston |work=The Guardian|access-date=2009-03-04|location=London|date=15 November 2005}}
=High Commissioners=
- 1980–1983: Robin Byatt{{cite web |url=http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U9748 |title=BYATT, Ronald Archer Campbell, (Robin) |work=Who's Who 2013 |publisher=A & C Black |date=2013 | access-date=2013-01-05}}
- 1983–1985: Sir Martin Ewans{{cite web |url=http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whowaswho/U15306 |title=EWANS, Sir Martin Kenneth |work=Who's Who 2013 |publisher=A & C Black |date=2013 | access-date=2013-01-05}}
- 1985–1989: Sir Ramsay Melhuish{{cite web |url=http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U27211 |title=MELHUISH, Sir (Michael) Ramsay |work=Who's Who 2013 |publisher=A & C Black |date=2013 | access-date=2013-01-05}}
- 1989–1992: Sir Keiran Prendergast{{cite web |url=http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U31349 |title=PRENDERGAST, Sir (Walter) Kieran |work=Who's Who 2013 |publisher=A & C Black |date=2013 | access-date=2013-01-05}}
- 1992–1995: Sir Richard Dales{{cite web |url=http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U12736 |title=DALES, Sir Richard (Nigel) |work=Who's Who 2013 |publisher=A & C Black |date=2013 | access-date=2013-01-05}}
- 1995–1998: Martin Williams{{cite web |url=http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U40025 |title=WILLIAMS, Martin John |work=Who's Who 2013 |publisher=A & C Black |date=2013 | access-date=2013-01-05}}
- 1998–2001: Peter Longworth{{cite web |url=http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U24920 |title=LONGWORTH, Peter |work=Who's Who 2013 |publisher=A & C Black |date=2013 | access-date=2013-01-05}}
- 2001–2003: Sir Brian Donnelly
=Ambassadors=
- 2003–2004: Sir Brian Donnelly
- 2004–2006: Roderick Pullen{{cite web |url=http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U31609 |title=PULLEN, Dr Roderick Allen |work=Who's Who 2013 |publisher=A & C Black |date=2013 | access-date=2013-01-05}}
- 2006–2009: Andrew Pocock{{cite web |url=http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U31052 |title=POCOCK, Dr Andrew John |work=Who's Who 2013 |publisher=A & C Black |date=2013 | access-date=2013-01-05}}
- 2009–2011: Mark Canning{{cite web |url=http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U42633 |title=CANNING, Mark |work=Who's Who 2013 |publisher=A & C Black |date=2013 | access-date=2013-01-05}}
- 2011–2014: Deborah Bronnert{{cite web |url=http://ukinzimbabwe.fco.gov.uk/en/about-us/our-embassy/ambassador/ |title=UK in Zimbabwe – Our Ambassador |publisher=British Embassy Harare |access-date=2013-01-05}}
- 2014–2018: Catriona Laing{{cite web |url=http://www.gov.uk/government/news/change-of-her-majestys-ambassador-to-zimbabwe |title=Change of Her Majesty's Ambassador to Zimbabwe |publisher=Foreign & Commonwealth Office |date=23 July 2014}}
- 2019–2023: Melanie Robinson{{cite news |url=https://bulawayo24.com/news/press+release/152756 |title=New UK Ambassador to Zimbabwe presents her credentials at State House |newspaper=Bulawayo 24 News |date=3 January 2019}}
Controversy
Ambassador Pocock, along with other foreign diplomats, was seized and threatened by Zimbabwe police briefly on 13 May 2008 while they tried to investigate violence against Zimbabwe's rural population since the March 2008 elections.[https://web.archive.org/web/20080906202935/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article3927730.ece Ambassador Andrew Pocock seized as he investigates violence in Zimbabwe - Times Online]
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.gov.uk/government/world/zimbabwe UK and Zimbabwe], gov.uk
{{Lists of heads of UK diplomatic missions}}