Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland: Hilton Young Commission

Africa Unity Square during the Federation

• This commission was headed by Sir Hilton Young
• This commission recommended that the amalgamation be done between Kenya, Uganda and Tanganyika and it excluded central African countries
• It also suggested a second grouping of Southern Rhodesia, Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland
• The settlers in Southern Rhodesia had set up a Responsible Government and were envying the copper found in Zambia and were interested in a closer union
• They began to pressurize the British government to implement the union
• The Hilton Young Commissioner was not able to able to recommend for a federation as there was high divisions between members of the Commissioner
• Ten years later the issue of the Federation came onto the table at a conference held in Victoria Falls in 1936
• The conference was attended by representatives from both Northern and Southern Rhodesia
• The conference resolved that they wanted to combine the two colonies into one and if the resolution was followed through the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia was to be dissolved and Malawi was to be left out

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