Cecil Rhodes

Born in 1853 in the small town of Bishop’s Stortford. When he was 17, he moved to South Africa where he entered the diamond trade, and soon rose to dominate the market by founding De Beers. He joined the Cape Parliament just 10 years after arriving in South Africa, and spent a further 10 years building up his political career. He soon became the 7th Prime Minister of British South Africa in 1881, or as it was known at the time, the ‘Cape Colony,’ and founded the territory of Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe and Zambia).

He was a great proponent of education, and, after studying at Oriel College, he established two scholarships with the University of Oxford. As was his will, the goal of the scholarships was to promote leadership among what he called “young colonists with the moral force of character and instincts to lead for the furtherance of the British Empire.” In the years since, further scholarships have been established using Rhodes’ name, with recipients including women and people of colour.

His legacy is divisive; as an avid imperialist, he was bold in his belief that the Anglo-Saxon race was superior. In his will in 1877, he spoke openly about how it would be “good” for Black Africans to be brought under British rule:

“I contend that we are the first race in the world, and that the more of the world we inhabit the better it is for the human race. Just fancy those parts that are at present inhabited by the most despicable specimen of human being, what an alteration there would be in them if they were brought under Anglo-Saxon influence…if there be a God, I think that what he would like me to do is paint as much of the map of Africa British Red as possible…”

This led to the ‘Rhodes Must Fall’’ movement, beginning in 2015, where student protests launched a campaign to remove his statue at Oriel College.

Reference - Cecil John Rhodes: Five fast facts about the controversial imperialist