Successive British governments have accused Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe of brutal, corrupt and incompetent rule, but new evidence suggests that without British help, he might not have lived long enough to come to power. 

It was widely suspected that the British had somehow got wind of the raid and warned Nkomo's men.

New evidence seen by the BBC's Document programme, suggests they might have been right. 

The British government, which was opposed to Ian Smith's white minority government, was working hard to find a peaceful end to the war.

London believed this could only come about if rebel leaders Joshua Nkomo and Robert Mugabe were part of any solution.

So the Foreign Office was desperate to ensure that both men would make it to the Lancaster House peace talks that were due to take place in London later that year....