Mugabe’s brutal rise and fall
37-year reign of Zimbabwe’s tyrant
1980
Robert Mugabe wins British-supervised elections for his Zanu party following independence. He includes Joshua Nkomo, leader of the opposition party, Zapu, in his cabinet.
1982
Mugabe crushes rebellion by pro-zapu, ex-guerrilla militants using the North Korean-trained Fifth Brigade. Government forces are accused of killing thousands of civilians in the crackdown.
1987
Nkomo surrenders and the two parties integrate, forming Zanu-pf. Mugabe changes the constitution, abolishing the position of prime minister and making himself executive president of Zimbabwe.
1996
Mugabe marries his secretary Grace Marufu after an eight-year affair. She is his second wife and 41 years his junior.
1998
Economic crisis bites, marked by soaring interest rates and inflation prompting widespread riots and strikes.
1999
The opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) is formed. The economic crisis deepens coinciding with Zimbabwe’s military involvement in the Congo’s civil war.
2000
Mugabe’s government loses a referendum on a new constitution giving him more power. He authorises the seizure of white-owned farms and a terror campaign against the MDC
2002
Mugabe and Zanu-pf win elections amid reports of murder. He is suspended from the Commonwealth and EU sanctions imposed. HIV is rife and the country is on the brink of famine.
2008
The opposition MDC wins a majority in elections, triggering a run-off against Mugabe. He wins the second round after intimidating MDC opponents. More sanctions are imposed by EU and US.
2009
The leader of MDC, Morgan Tsvangirai, is made prime minister as part of a coalition between Zanu-pf and MDC.
2013
In the year running up to the election, MDC claim that violence is being used against them and that rallies are shut down. Mugabe wins a seventh term in office. The MDC dismiss the election as rigged.
2014
Grace Mugabe is appointed the new head of the Zanu-pf women’s league, taking a seat on the party’s politburo and fuelling speculation that she intends to succeed her husband.
2017
Opposition leaders form an alliance. In November, Mugabe sacks deputy Emmerson Mnangagwa. The army, thought to be aligned with Mnangagwa, seizes control and arrests the president.