RHODES, Cecil

Cecil John Rhodes was a British businessman, mining magnate, and politician who played a dominant role in the colonization and economic development of southern Africa during the late 19th century. Born in England, Rhodes moved to South Africa for health reasons and became one of the wealthiest men in the world through his control of diamond and gold mining operations.

Rhodes founded De Beers Consolidated Mines in 1888, which gained near-monopoly control over the world's diamond production and remains a major force in the diamond industry today. He also established the British South Africa Company, which administered large territories that became Northern and Southern Rhodesia (now Zambia and Zimbabwe), named in his honor.

Beyond his business activities, Rhodes harbored grand political ambitions centered on expanding British imperial power and promoting Anglo-Saxon civilization worldwide. He dreamed of British control extending from "Cape to Cairo" in Africa and ultimately envisioned the reunion of Britain and the United States under a single government or alliance.

Rhodes's will, drafted in 1899 and revised several times before his death, established the Rhodes Scholarship program to bring promising young men from former British colonies, Germany, and the United States to study at Oxford University. The scholarship was designed to create a network of future leaders sympathetic to British values and Anglo-American cooperation.

More controversially, Rhodes's will also provided funding for a secret organization he called "the Society of the Elect," which was intended to work covertly toward the goal of British world domination and eventual Anglo-American reunification. This organization was later developed by Rhodes's associates, including Lord Alfred Milner, into what became known as the Round Table Group.

The Round Table Group, documented by historian Carroll Quigley, played a significant role in establishing influential institutions such as the Royal Institute of International Affairs and the Council on Foreign Relations. While the group's actual activities were more limited and transparent than conspiracy theories suggest, Rhodes's vision did contribute to the creation of networks that promoted Anglo-American cooperation throughout the 20th century.

Rhodes died in 1902 at age 48, leaving behind a complex legacy as both a pioneer of modern mining techniques and international scholarship programs, and as a symbol of British imperial ambition and racial supremacist ideology that characterized the colonial era.