Robert Mugabe was born on 21 February 1924 in Kutama. A Zimbabwean politician, Mugabe was a teacher who became a leader of the guerrilla war against white minority rule in Rhodesia. After independence in 1980 he served as prime minister, and from 1987 as president, ruling for nearly four decades. Early on he was praised for improvements in education and health, but his government's violent suppression of opponents in Matabeleland in the 1980s caused thousands of deaths. From 2000 land seizures from white farmers helped to bring about economic collapse and hyperinflation, while disputed elections and repression drew sanctions from Western countries. The army and his own party forced him from power in November 2017, and he died in Singapore in 2019.
Before and after
- 21 January 1924Death of Vladimir Lenin
- from 25 January 1924 to 5 February 1924The first Winter Olympic Games open at Chamonix
- 2 February 1924Founding of International Ski and Snowboard Federation
- 3 February 1924Death of Woodrow Wilson
- 21 February 1924Birth of Robert Mugabe
- 3 April 1924Birth of Marlon Brando
- 3 June 1924Death of Franz Kafka
- 12 June 1924Birth of George H. W. Bush
- 24 June 1924Founding of Hungarian National Bank
More in Wars, politics & history
- from 25 April 1915 to 9 January 1916Gallipoli Campaign
- 4 June 1917Pulitzer Prize
- 1919Paris Peace Conference
- 30 September 1938Munich agreement
- from 1 September 1939 to 6 October 19391939 Invasion of Poland
- from 7 December 1941 to 2 September 1945Pacific War
The era
This moment belongs to the Modern era (1914 CE to 1945 CE), world wars and a changing world. You can also browse everything in the 20th century.