The flag of Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) changed with political developments in the country. At independence in 1965 the recently adopted flag of Southern Rhodesia was used, until a new flag (the green and white tricolour) was adopted in 1968. The 1968 flag remained the flag when the republic was declared in 1970. History Between the late 1920s and 1953, the then Colony of Southern Rhodesia followed British colonial practice, by using a Blue Ensign with the Union Flag in the canton and the shield from the colony's coat of arms in the fly. In 1953, Southern Rhodesia federated with Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland to form the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. The federal flag was used between September 1953 until 31 December 1963 when the federation was dissolved. Less than a year after the break-up of the Federation, Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland became the independent states of Zambia and Malawi respectively. Southern Rhodesia became known simply as Rhodesia, although its legal name remained the Colony of Southern Rhodesia. In April 1964 Rhodesia adopted a light Royal Air Force blue ensign with the shield from the coat of arms of Rhodesia in the fly. This was the first time the lighter shade of blue ensign was used by a British colony, although Fiji and Tuvalu both subsequently adopted national flags based on the light blue ensign. Following the Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) on 11 November 1965, the flag was retained, but three years later on the anniversary of UDI it was replaced by a green and white flag (similar to that of Nigeria) with the full coat of arms in the centre. On 2 March 1970, the country declared itself a republic but there was no change to the flag. Prior to its closure, the Rhodesian mission in London flew the newly adopted flag in a provocative gesture, as the Commonwealth Prime Ministers arrived for their Conference. This was considered illegal by the Foreign Office, and prompted calls by Labour MP Willie Hamilton, who condemned it as "the flag of an illegal Government in rebellion against the Crown", for its removal. Throughout this time, the UK refused to recognise Rhodesia's independence and maintained that the light-blue ensign remained the official flag of the country, but in 1972, the Rhodesian Olympic team raised the earlier pre-1953 dark Blue Ensign at the Olympic Village in Munich, while "God Save The Queen" was