How China helped depose "dozing despot" Robert Mugabe after flooding Zimbabwe with billions to build hospitals, schools and even the £35million Parliament

As he was driven back to his opulent palace in Harare on Tuesday, surrounded by bodyguards in military fatigues and wearing motorcycle helmets, Robert Mugabe had no reason to suspect that his 37-year rule was about to end. Having been in power since 1980, Mugabe — not to mention Grace, his high-handed, grasping second wife — thought he was invincible. Just days earlier, he beamed with satisfaction at a ceremony to change the name of Zimbabwe"s main airport to the Robert Mugabe International Airport.