Nyasaland

13°30′S 34°00′E / 13.500°S 34.000°E / -13.500; 34.000

Nyasaland Protectorate
1907–1964
Flag (1925–1964) Coat of arms (1925–1964)
Royal anthem:  God Save the King (1907–1952) God Save the Queen (1952–1964)
Status	British protectorate
Capital	Zomba
Languages	English (official) Chewa, Yao, Tumbuka, Lomwe
Government	Constitutional monarchy
Monarch
• 1907–1910	Edward VII
• 1910–1936	George V
• 1936	Edward VIII
• 1936–1952	George VI
• 1952–1964	Elizabeth II
Governor
• 1907–1908 (first)	William Manning
• 1961–1964 (last)	Glyn Smallwood Jones
Legislature	Legislative Council
Establishment
• Establishment	6 July 1907
• Federation	1 August 1953
• Dissolution	31 December 1963
• Independence	6 July 1964
Area
• Total	102,564 km2 (39,600 sq mi)
Population
• 1924 census	6,930,000[1]
Currency	SR pound CAF pound
Time zone	UTC+2 (CAT)
Preceded by Succeeded by 1907: Central Africa Protectorate 1963: Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland 1953: Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland 1964: Malawi
Today part of	Malawi

Nyasaland (/nɪˈæsəlænd, naɪˈæsə-/^[2]) was a British protectorate located in Africa that was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name. Between 1953 and 1963, Nyasaland was part of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. After the Federation was dissolved, Nyasaland became independent from Britain on 6 July 1964 and was renamed Malawi.

Nyasaland's history was marked by the massive loss of African communal lands in the early colonial period. In January 1915, the Reverend John Chilembwe staged an attempted rebellion to protest colonial forced labour and discrimination against Africans, among other grievances. Although the rebellion was unsuccessful, colonial authorities responded by reassessing some of their policies. Throughout the 1930s, a growing class of educated African elite, many educated in the United Kingdom, became increasingly politically active and vocal about gaining independence. They established associations and, after 1944, the Nyasaland African Congress (NAC).^{[citation needed]}

When Nyasaland became part of a federation with Southern and Northern Rhodesia in 1953, there was a rise in civic unrest, as this was deeply unpopular among the people of the territory.^[3] The failure of the NAC to prevent this caused its collapse. Soon, a younger and more militant generation revived the NAC. They invited Hastings Banda to return to the country and lead it to independence as Malawi in 1964.^{[citation needed]}