* Born a farmer's son in the Southern Rhodesian mining town Selukwe in April 1919, Ian Douglas Smith was educated locally and at Rhodes University in South Africa, gaining a bachelor of commerce degree.
* A fighter pilot in Britain's Royal Air Force in World War Two, he was shot down twice and underwent plastic surgery.
* In 1962, the farmer/politician co-founded the right-wing Rhodesian Front, which won white elections in Southern Rhodesia, part of the British-ruled Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland.
* In April 1964, Smith became prime minister of Rhodesia and opposed moves to majority rule by 5 million black Rhodesians.
* In November 1965 he made a unilateral declaration of independence from Britain, defied international trade sanctions and fought an intermittent 14-year war against black guerrillas trying to overthrow his regime.
* Under mounting pressure from the West and from guerrilla forces, Smith accepted negotiations which led to a ceasefire, elections in 1980 and independence for Zimbabwe under Robert Mugabe and his ZANU party.
* Smith remained a harsh critic of Mugabe's government, first as an opposition MP and later in retirement on his farm.
(Writing by Tim Pearce, Editing by Michael Winfrey)
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