Saturday, 24 October 1964 Northern Rhodesia (now known as Zambia) gained independence from Britain. Kenneth Kaunda , the countryโs first president, proclaimed one-party rule at independence. . Their independence came four years after the famous speech โThe winds of changeโ by British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan. The countryโs independence came ten months after the collapse of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, with Northern Rhodesia becoming the Republic of Zambia.