Archival Significance
The official report of the 1971 to 1972 Pearce Commission, the British-appointed body that tested Rhodesian public opinion on the proposed Anglo-Rhodesian constitutional settlement and found the African population rejected it, a finding that effectively ended that settlement effort.
Institutional Context
Chaired by Edward Pearce, Baron Pearce, with Lord Harlech, Sir Maurice H. Dorman and Sir Glyn Jones as Deputy Chairmen, and published by Her Majesty’s Stationery Office on behalf of the British government.
Content Summary
Presents the Commission’s findings on the acceptability of the 1971 Proposals for Settlement across Rhodesia’s different communities, reporting that European, Coloured and Asian Rhodesians broadly supported the proposals while the African population rejected them.
Research Utility
A primary source of central importance for researchers of Rhodesia’s constitutional history and the Anglo-Rhodesian negotiations of the UDI period.
Abantu Archives Note
Held in-house.