Picture exclusive: The tyrant and his bride...a 'liberal' Mugabe at his wedding in 1961

The Evening Standard (U.K.) ^ | July 6, 2008

[Stoat]

Picture exclusive: The tyrant and his bride...a 'liberal' Mugabe at his wedding in 1961

Last updated at 00:26am on 06.07.08

 

In white gloves and smart suit, with a carnation in his buttonhole, this smiling bridegroom is the man who has brought Zimbabwe to its knees.

When Robert Mugabe married his first wife Sally in 1961, he was a 37-year-old liberal nationalist who wanted to make his country - then Southern Rhodesia - a model multiracial democracy.

The man who took this never before published photograph, retired airline manager Kevin Nolan, was a guest at the ceremony.

 

 

Love and politics: Robert Mugabe, President of Zimbabwe, pictured with his first wife Sally Hayfron on their wedding day in 1961

He said he found the groom 'such a well-educated, polite man'. And he added: 'I had no idea of the way he'd turn out.'

The photo was taken at a Catholic mission in the capital Salisbury, now Harare.

When civil war broke out following the decision of Rhodesia's white government to declare independence from Britain four years later, Mr Nolan and his wife Sheila gave the picture to their daughter in case her school was attacked by guerrillas.

 

 

Enlarge 

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe and his wife Grace just before the recent, disputed election run-off

Mrs Nolan wrote on the envelope: 'If Africans are about to do you any harm show them this and tell them Mr Mugabe would be very angry if they hurt his friend's daughter.'

After Mugabe assumed power in 1980, Mr Nolan - who by then had moved to Dublin - sent him a copy of the picture and his best wishes.

The new prime minister's wife wrote back to thank him, and spoke of her husband's desire for peace.

Mrs Mugabe died in 1992 aged 60. Mr Nolan said: 'Maybe she was the moderating influence. All I can say is he's become a different man. It's a tragedy.'

Mugabe, 84, married his second wife Grace in a lavish ceremony in 1996.

 

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, is kissed by his wife Grace at his inauguration ceremony at State House in Harare, on Sunday, June 30

[JewishRighter]

Lois Farrakhan is a transvestite?

I was thinking along similar lines, but came up with spike lee.

[Stoat]

Lois Farrakhan is a transvestite?

LMAO!

That would explain 'a few' things, wouldn't it?  :-)

[Stoat]

In every “liberal” heart, a totalitarian fascist is just aching to get out. Prayers for this hellhole on Earth that Mugabe made, Zimbabwe.

Nicely stated, as per your usual habit.

Thank you  :-)

[Stoat]

Lois Farrakhan is a transvestite?

I was thinking along similar lines, but came up with spike lee.

A striking resemblance..Bravo!

Lois Farrakhan is a transvestite?

I was thinking along similar lines, but came up with spike lee.

[fieldmarshaldj]

There’s a reason I put ‘liberal’ in quotes. There’s nothing classically liberal about them in the least, those are Conservatives today.

[fieldmarshaldj]

Sure, go ahead. ;-)

[TexConfederate1861]

With all due respect, the faith you are referring to is the
“Roman Catholic” faith. The Eastern Catholics have as much claim to the title of “Catholic” as the West. The Church split in TWO halves. Both of those “halves” are trying to find a way to co-exist again.

And yes, I saw the comment about the Theotokos (Virgin Mary), and I took exception to it as well....... :)

[tang-soo]

Later years

Video here.

[Savage Beast]

"There’s a reason I put ‘liberal’ in quotes. There’s nothing classically liberal about them in the least, those are Conservatives today."

Sorry. I lacked the wit to perceive the important subtlety. Yes. You are absolutely right, DJ. My apologies. ~S

[Savage Beast]

"There’s a reason I put ‘liberal’ in quotes. There’s nothing classically liberal about them in the least, those are Conservatives today."

Sorry. I lacked the wit to perceive the important subtlety. Yes. You are absolutely right, DJ. My apologies. ~S

[woollyone]

bath tubs!

wow

[fieldmarshaldj]

I wonder when was the exact moment that the liberals of the prior generation (or would it be two ?) crossed over into the dark side of statist/totalitarianism. Nearly a half-century ago with JFK, that was really the last old-school classical liberal we saw with the Democrat party. Less statist in some ways (economically) than Nixon, an unapologetic anti-Communist Cold Warrior (although he was a bit too green for the job, Nixon had far more experience in that department), someone who still basically had a positive vision for America and was a reformer. Who knows, maybe it was with his assassination ? Somewhere in the 1963-1965 period was clearly the turning point. Ironic that the disciples of this man would not continue on with that same viewpoint, but moved more in the direction of the man who was his alleged assassin, a devout Castroite. It would’ve been as ludicrous had Hinckley been successful with his targeting of Reagan and us Conservatives becoming, say, disciples of Jodie Foster.

I was watching an episode of the original Star Trek from the mid to late ‘60s, created by a Kennedy New Frontier Democrat, Gene Roddenberry. This particular episode was about an alien race with two opposing viewpoints, the Yangs and the Kohms. Somehow, at one point, the Yangs had in their possessions documents relating to the founding of our country, but over a period of hundreds of years, the meanings had been perverted and distorted and only the highest member of the Yang tribe was allowed to even view the documents, such as the Declaration of Independence.

In any event, the episode, written by that liberal Democrat, contained a patriotic message, delivered with that Bill Shatner flare (a Canadian, no less ! Although Kirk was from rural Iowa), instructing them that those documents weren’t just meant for an elite group, but were meant for all — and cut to a final dramatic shot of Shatner looking at the old, tattered American flag off in the corner of the room. This by today’s standards would’ve been denounced by those “liberals” of 2008 as jingoistic, right-wing garbage, heaven forbid what hateful foreigners would say after being fed 40+ years of propaganda by an even more embittered international journalistic corps.

Nope, that Kennedy outlook is virtually gone in today’s Democrat party. His youngest brother embodies not the sentiment and ideals of old Jack, but the hatefulness and bitterness we saw in Lee Harvey Oswald and Castro and basically all those that see this country as something that needs to be brought down. America the Imperialist oppressor. That kind of sick, twisted ideology of “change” Obama wishes to bring to the country. Lord help us all.

[CholeraJoe]

=

[kalee]

http://bathtubmary.blogspot.com/

[Impy]

Indeed, the left canonizes JFK but they’re against what he stood for. Anything to manipulate the populace.

I wonder though if he had lived whether he would have drifted to the left.

[Impy]

He seems to have a thing for black chicks.

[Clemenza]

FYI: Mary on the half-shell or in the bathtub is popular with non and half-assimilated Italian Americans in the northeast. Statues of St. Francis and St. Gennaro are also fairly common.

[woollyone]

MOTHS is a term I first heard from a Catholic friend from the NE. As devout as she is, I was shocked to hear it from her and then hear her laugh hysterically. “Of all people”; I thought.

[kalee]

Thanks for the info, As I said, the first time I ever saw them was last Sept when I went through KY, IN and IL on my way out West.

[fieldmarshaldj]

He might very well have, but it’s hard to tell for sure. He may have settled into the “using government for good, but making sure it works” mantra (rather than just implementing said big gov’t and not bothering about it again, even if it’s a failure, such as LBJ’s Great Society colossal fiasco — and the funny thing is that had LBJ not been sidetracked by Vietnam, he was going to go on to even more sweeping, Socialistic schemes). RFK was somewhere in between, but if you listen to some of his 1968 speeches, that’s not a “liberal” today’s Dem party would be comfortable with.