Ian Douglas Smith was a Rhodesian and Zimbabwean politician, farmer, and former fighter pilot who served as Prime Minister of Rhodesia from 1964 to 1979. He led the predominantly white-minority government that unilaterally declared independence from the United Kingdom in November 1965 after rejecting British demands for a transition to majority rule. His premiership was marked by international non-recognition, United Nations sanctions, and the Rhodesian Bush War.