Clifford Dupont | |
|---|---|
 Clifford Dupont as President of Rhodesia | |
| President of Rhodesia | |
| In office 16 April 1970 – 31 December 1975 | |
| Prime Minister | Ian Smith |
| Preceded by | Himself (Acting) |
| Succeeded by | Henry Everard (Acting) |
| President of Rhodesia | |
| In office 2 March 1970 – 16 April 1970 Acting | |
| Prime Minister | Ian Smith |
| Preceded by | Himself as Officer Administering the Government |
| Succeeded by | Himself as President |
| Officer Administrating the Government | |
| In office 16 December 1965 – 2 March 1970 | |
| Prime Minister | Ian Smith |
| Preceded by | Himself (Acting) |
| Succeeded by | Himself as President (Acting) |
| Officer Administrating the Government | |
| In office 17 November 1965 – 16 December 1965 Acting | |
| Prime Minister | Ian Smith |
| Preceded by | Vacant (before 11 November 1965 Sir Humphrey Gibbs as Governor of Rhodesia[a]) |
| Succeeded by | Himself as Officer Administering the Government |
| 2nd Deputy Prime Minister of Southern Rhodesia | |
| In office 21 August 1964 – 17 November 1965 | |
| Prime Minister | Ian Smith |
| Preceded by | Ian Smith |
| Succeeded by | John Wrathall |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 6 December 1905 London, England |
| Died | 28 June 1978 (aged 72) Salisbury, Rhodesia |
| Political party | Rhodesian Front |
| Spouse(s) |
Barbie Dunport
(m. 1933; div. 1942)Betty Wood
(m. 1946; died 1957)Armenell Mary Betty Bennet
(m. 1963) |
| Children | Hilary Graham Stephen |
| Alma mater | Clare College, Cambridge |
| Profession | Solicitor |
| Awards |   |
| |
Clifford Walter Dupont GCLM ID (6 December 1905 – 28 June 1978) was a British-born Rhodesian politician who served in the internationally unrecognised positions of officer administrating the government (from 1965 until 1970) and president (from 1970 to 1975). Born in London and qualifying as a solicitor, Dupont served during the Second World War as an officer of the British Royal Artillery in North Africa before first visiting Southern Rhodesia in 1947. He returned a year later, started a ranch and emigrated full-time during the early 1950s, by which time the country had become a territory of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland.
When Rhodesia's government under Ian Smith issued the Unilateral Declaration of Independence from Britain on 11 November 1965, Dupont, as Deputy Prime Minister, was the second to sign. Smith attempted to have Dupont named as Governor-General in place of the British-appointed Governor, Humphrey Gibbs, but failing this instead made him Officer Administering the Government.[1] He held this post until 1970, when he became President following the declaration of a republic. After suffering from ill health during this last appointment, he retired at 1976 and died in 1978.