CHAPTER FIFTEEN: SOUTH AFRICAN HISTORY.
The
great trek was the large scale Boer penetration of the interior which reached
its peak in 1835. Several events led to this large scale movement but they all
seem to result from the British interference in the affairs of the cape on one
hand and the Boer determination to maintain their political and social
independence on the other.
Since
1652, the Boers had settled at the
In
1806 the British government declared a colony over the Cape because of her
strategic importance in relation to the British commercial interests in
This
Hottentonts relief concided with the 1807 British policy of declaring slave trade
illegal worldwide. The struggle to abolish slave trade was spearheaded by the
missionaries supported by other philanthropists in
This
resulted into the formation of the "Circuit courts" in which Africans
were to forward their complaints about the Boer mistreatment. In 1828, 50th
ordinance was passed by which the Boers and Africans were to enjoy legal
equality in the British Colony.
The
Boers saw these British attempts as unrestricted interference in their affairs
by
They
could not stand the humiliation of being equal to the Hottentots. They began
plans to leave the cape colony for British hence the Great Trek.
It
was great because it witnessed massive white penetration into South African
interior. It was successful because it had expert horsemen, superb military men
and most of them were commandos.
Secondly,
the interior had been depopulated by the Mfecane wave and African unity had
been undermined by the tribal conflicts.
The
would be challenge to the Great trek movement were the settled African
societies such as the Basuto under chief M-oshesh, Dingane chief of the Zulu,
Swazi under Sobuza chief Mzilikazi leader of the Ndebele.
The
major aim of the British was to safeguard the strategic importance of the cape.
1 affairs of the interior were not so much of their concern. In 1852 by the
Sand riconvention, the British recognised the independence of Transvaal Boer
republic. In U the British also signed the
The
establishment of the Boer republics in the interior took away a lot of valuable
from the Africans and marked a temporary withdrawal of the British from the
affairs of interior until the discovery of minerals in the interior which
revived the British interests in the
interior.
THE MFECANE (DIFAQANE IN TSOTHO
TSWANA)
Question
1.
Discuss
the impact of the Mfecane period upon the people of East and
2.
Assess
the significance of the Mfecane in the history of East and
The
term Mfecane has been used to refer to a period of crisis or turmoil by the mid
19th Century South Africa sometimes referred to as the Difaqane in the
Tsotho-Tswana language a period whose historical origin has been controversial
among historians for some do argue that it could have been as a result of
population increase but most importantly, the Mfecane period was largely as a
result of Shaka’s
revolutionary and tyrannical rule characterised by loss of property, death of
people, flight of people to other areas and birth of nation states such that
the influence of the Mfecane period in the mid 19th Century and Central Africa
can rightly be analysed through the emigrant groups that split from Shaka’s
rule and settled in various areas among these include the formation of the
Basuto nation under the able leadership of Moshesh, Ngoni under Zwagendaba,
Ndebele under Mzilikazi who settled in the regions of
Central Africa however. During their
movements they captured tribes such as the Sotho, Xhosa, Swazi and carried them
to
The
impact of the groups on the regimes of East and Central Africa have been
described by some historians such as Robert July as having come in form of wars
and raids as reflected in the revolutionary aggression where the original
inhabitants of these areas lost their lives in their attempt to protect their
independence for example in Tanzania various societies such as the Holoholo,
Bene, Hehe died in their attempt to resist the Ngoni invasions.
In
the same way, various tribes in Central Africa witnessed a similar situation
especially the .Shona who were the most prominent tribe in
There
was gross loss of property such as plantations, houses, farms and other
economic means subsequently leading to famine, hunger and general starvation of
the masses all indirectly coming as a result of the Mfecane period.
Socially, there was
a disruption of social institutions especially the traditional homesteads which
as an end result rendered people destitute or refugees as they attempted to run
away for security.
Closely
related, these flights of people gave birth to gangster groups such as the
Ruga-Ruga and the Mavitti who were later to be used by Mirambo in terrorising and disrupting societies
attacking neighbouring regions as a way of creating a strong kingdom in what
came to be known as the Nyamwezi kingdom.
Economically,
trade was largely disrupted especially during these wars and raids for example
the Tuta-Ngoni clashed with the Nyamwezi and Holoholo people giving birth to
disruption of trade routes especially between Ujiji and Tabora which created
instabilities, enemity between societies many of which decided to flee for
their lives.
Similarly,
the Ndebele people in
The
Mfecane period is credited for having given birth to the emergence of powerful
states among which included the Basuto nation under Moshesho, Nyamwezi kingdom
by Mirambo, Ndebele among others.
Zulu/Nguni
military techniques of war like the bull-horn-formations, age-regiments,
employment of regular armies; the short stabbing spears “Assegai” were
introduced both in East and Central Africa and later used in establishing
centralised systems of leadership but most importantly resisting colonial
intrusion as seen in Nyamwezi land and so were the Shona-Ndebele revolts in Central Africa.
This
period also gave birth to important personalities like Mirambo, Mosheshe,
Nyunguya-Mawe, Lubengula, among others.
It
also led to the introduction of new languages such as the Nguni language and
the Bantu-Khumalo Sindebele languages which became common in the history of
East and
In
all therefore, despite the positive achievements of the influence of the
Mfecane period in the history of East and
“The
Zulu Aftemath” as “A terrible disaster”.
THE MINERAL REVOLUTION IN
Before
the discovery of minerals,
The British: The
British were controllers of the Cape and had annexed
The
cape was relatively prosperous with developed trade and good agriculture. She
yet industralised but she had excellent farms and a wealthy population.
By
the 1852 Sand-River convention and 1854
Before
the mineral discovery, the Boers and British had began to develop good deal
denying Africans accessibility to arms, ammunitions as well as medicine and
clot allowed it to the Boers.
"
The initial policy of the British in
Boers and Africans
Political: The
Boers and Africans were almost at per as some Africans they were not units were
divided by opinions of their leaders.
Although
they were allowed to purchase arms and ammunitions, they were still vulnerable
to African attack for example in 1850 they suffered so many defeats at the
hands of the Zulu and Basuto.
Sometimes
the Boers were so weak to the point of seeking an alliance with some African
tribes against others for example Boers made an alliance with the Swazi against
the Zulu.
The
Pedi under Sekukuni signed an agreement with the Boers in which they both
agreed to respect a common border.
Some
African societies were stronger than the Boers for example the Basuto under
Moshesh threatened the Boers until 1868 when his kingdom was destroyed by
internal conflicts.
The
military set up between the two groups was such that either side was in danger
of losing war in case of conflict. (Boers and Africans)
Africans
had powerful united governments over a large population that accepted their
legitimacy.
Economic: Before
the mineral discovery some African societies were engaged in the international
trade. Among the items exported by Africans included hides, ivory, copper and
slaves.
On
the other hand, the Boers were pastoral farmers who produced little for export.
Much of their land use was wasteful.
The
Boers were bankrupt and economically unstable. They were attempting to live a
European style of life without European style of resources.
They
relied on British aid and they lacked economic independence.
They
lacked capital and they did not have security to secure loans from the British
financial institution at the
They
were entirely dependent on the
They
were largely illiterate because of lack of educational facilities. Thus they
lacked skilled manpower.
They
had a lot of land but due to lack of capital to invest on it, farming was not
better than the African type.
Therefore
before the discovery of minerals, the white settlers and the Africans had a
fair balance of power economically.
Social setting: "
There was no fundamental difference apart from the race. The Boers were a
disunited, arrogant community developed along a baseless belief in racial
superiority.
Boers
regarded Africans as a backward community best only as drawers of water and
hewers of wood.
The
only advantage of the Boers over the Africans was their unity in language and
culture. But this was also offset by political disunity.
In
other aspects of life, the Boers could not claim any social superiority over
the Africans. for example they lacked hospitals and they were
highly'susceptible to diseases unlike the African child.
The
Boer child lacked formal education. The only education was at the fireplace.
The Boers were also illiterate and poor,
It
was unfortunate that they couldn't afford schools and hospitals when a European
style of life regarded these as indispensable.
All
in all, the social, Economic and political balance of power between the Boers
and Africans in the interior was fairly established.
Until
the discovery of minerals, the Boers did not succeed in exerting their
overlordship over the Africans.
However
with the discovery of minerals, the social, economic and political balance of
powers changed in favour of the white population. The Boers were changed from
poverty and the white community advanced to prosperous luxurious life.
Questions
1.
Assess the social, political and
economical consequence of the discovery of diamond and gold in the history of
2.
Discuss the impact of the discovery
and exploitation of minerals in
3.
What effect did the discovery and
exploitation of minerals have on the Africans Boer and the British by 1900?
4.
In what ways did the discovery of
minerals in
The
history of South Africa as far back as 15th Century throughout the 19th Century
was greatly influenced by various revolutions among which includes the Mfecane
revolution of 1820’s, Great Trek of 1830’s, but most important was the Mineral
Revolution of the 1860s - 80s which had far reaching consequences on the
history of South Africa and indeed it’s from this basis that the discovery and
exploitation of minerals has been referred to as a Revolution. The concern of many scholars therefore is to
assess the validity or the extent to which the discovery of minerals
constituted a revolution in the history of
As
for back as 15th Century, South Africa was occupied by a number of races
notably the Bantu, San (Bushmen), Khoi-Khoi (Hotentots) however, 1652 witnessed
the arrival of the Dutch under Riet Retief who because of their agricultural
activities, were referred to as the Boers or Afrikaners and these were later
joined by the British in 1795 such that by the 2nd half of 19th
Century, the Cape colony was a melting pot of different cultures.
The
existence of these different groups created hostile social relations for
example between African communities which had for a long time enjoyed political
independence since their settlement in this region. The worst threat was that the new white
groups had grabbed their land and made them squatters in their own countries of
birth.
Similarly,
the two white groups didn’t share a political smile because the British on
their arrival began to employ oppressive policies and imperialistic tendencies
over the Boers who finally decided to flee from the Cape Colony and establish
for themselves the Northern Boer republic of Orange Free State and Transvaal,
an exodus that has been code named the “Great Trek” of 1835.
Another
salient feature of the pre-revolutionary time was that the Africans were strong
politically, economically and militarily for by 1855, most of the African
communities had already consolidated their political organisations through
centralised systems of administration such as among the Zulu in
Militarily,
African societies had strong regular and standing armies many of which gained
momentum during the Mfecane and could easily defeat or challenge the invading
Whites. A classical example was when the
Zulus inflicted a heavy defeat on the British forces at the battle of Ishandlwana
1879. Similarly, the Tsotho had in 1865
successfully defeated the Boer invasion of their areas and so did Moshesh of
Basuto land always defeat the Whites’ attempts to take over the region. This is a clear manifestation of the military
strength of the Africans at the eve of the discovery of minerals.
Economically,
there existed a great disparity between the African and the two white groups
for instance the economies of the Africans were centralised partly depending on
exports like skins, hides, ivory, slaves, copper etc which they occasionally exchanged with other
valuable commodities and military equipment with some Europeans that played an
important role in the lifestyle of the Africans such that the African economies
have been described as prosperous than those of their counterparts especially
the Boers who were chronically bankrupt, lived in abject poverty with much of
their pastoral and agriculture production purely based on peasant and
subsistence consumption: Neither did
they match with the African lifestyles nor their white contemporaries as one
historian rightly describes.
“The
Boers were bankrupt, economically unstable, they were attempting to live a
European style of living without the European type of resources”.
No
wonder therefore even after they got their independence, they continued to seek
foreign assistance from the
The
advantage of the African was that in addition to export products, their
economies also depended on agriculture both subsistence and commercial,
supplemented by Pastoralism.
Socially,
like the Africans, the Boers were predominantly illiterate, greatly upheld by
the Dutch reformist church and believed in the traditional setting and cultural
structures of their own origin and therefore this put them in different
positions with their contemporary whites.
It was the discovery of minerals that changed the history of
South
Africa begun its greatest transformation with the discovery of diamonds in 1867
at Kimberley in Griqualand West in the Orange Free State Republic and in 1886
large deposits of gold were discovered at the Witwatersrand in the Boer
Republic of Transvaal. This discovery of
minerals and their exploitation ushered in a revolution in the history of
The
discovery and exploitation of minerals transformed the economies of
The
new wealth got as a result of the discovery of minerals led to improvements in
communication systems within the interior and urban areas such that the construction
of railway systems, roads, ports like Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Durban with
terminal centres from Johannesburg, while other major cities were linked by
telegraphic systems, bridges, telephone among others.. This communication improvement led to an
economic boom especially in the mining industries notably
Closely
related, the discovery of minerals led to the mushrooming of towns notably
The
mineral revolution had a great impact on agricultural practices which were
formerly peasantry and subsistence in nature but were transformed into
commercial economies although dominated largely by the white farmers who had
the capacity to invest in extensive farming therefore more land was put under
cultivation with highly mechanized and a lot of scientific methods which led to
an increase in production, incomes which in turn were used to buy more land to
the disadvantage of the Africans for example Natal was sold to the British and
used for sugar plantations and so was the South Cape Colony taken over by the
whites for breeding of ostriches because of their importance in Europe.
Lastly,
the mineral revolution carried along with it African land alienation by the
white migrants a phenomenon that traces it’s way as far back as the times of
the Dutch farmers only to gain momentum after the discovery of minerals in the
African controlled land such as Griqualand and West which was ran by chief
Witboil and was later taken over by the British after the treacherous Keate arbitration award of
1871 which argued in favour of Witboil who was later tricked to seek British
protection which finally resulted in the declaration of Griqualand West as a
British protectorate in 1880 and more of the land was taken on the pretext of agriculture
production. Thus, the new European
occupied areas were to be referred to as “Planterland” and these were later to
be confirmed in the land act of 1913.
The
discovery of minerals led to the emergence and mushrooming of a lot of banking
and financing institutions as many European investors rushed to take a share in
the discovered minerals. Among these
included the Standard Bank, Orient Bank, Bank of Orange Free State institutions
that facilitated trade, mining and extensive farming.
The
discovery of minerals also led to migrant labour for the Africans, who were
predominantly pastoralists and farmers, began to move in large numbers into the
urban areas to participate in mining and industry. Some of these came from outside
EFFECTS OF THE DISCOVERY OF DIAMONDS
IN
The
discovery of minerals started a new era in the history of
Political effects: •
Mineral discovery led to serious conflicts between the Boers and the British.
As the British became more interested in the interior, the Boers also became
more nationalistic and assertive of their independence. This resulted into the
first and second Anglo-Boer wars.
It
led to the Union of South African white republics in 1910, In order to defeat
the Africans and deny them the mineral wealth, the two white communities
decided to unite.
The
mineral discovery led to the loss of independence to both Africans and the
Boers. After 1867 incident; the British thought that there were more minerals
in the area. Indeed later gold, manganese and uranium were discovered. The
British became more interested in the interior leading to the colonisation of
the Boer republics and African societies such as the Sotho, Zulu and Ndebele.
There
was a change in political state of the whites for example the
White
communities became militarily powerful. Africans could no longer risk fighting
off the Boers. For example in 1858 and 1865 the Basuto were able to defeat the
Boers. But this history could not repeat itself. Minerals provided finance to
the Boers to train their soldiers and equip them with advanced weapons. The British
military sector advanced further.
Mineral
discovery added fuel to the already burning scramble and partition exercise of
As
the white interest in the interior increased, the independence of African
states became a "thorn in the eye" of the whites. The British tried
to weaken the Pedi under the Sekukuni and the Zulu under Cetewayo in order to
acquire new lands for the Boers. This was a strategy of reconciliation and
possibly the Boers would accept the British idea of federation.
Economic effects: The
discovery of diamond fields marked the beginning of a fundamental change from
the weak and uncertain pastoral and agricultural economy into a strong, stable
and wealthy industrial state.
The
discovery and exploitation of minerals attracted capital on a large scale and
this made possible the beginning of railway building and other technical
developments.
Kimberly
became an important mining and commercial centre with the growth of population.
Diamond mining and the growth of population stimulated the growth of other
industries.
The
diamond industry stimulated the economy, increased wealth of the country and
attracted more capital for investment, accelerate the pace of modernisation and
opened new opportunities for employment.
Market
for agricultural products increased following the increased population in
mining areas.
There
was development in export trade between the Cape and
There
was increased trade in firearms which forced people to abandon tea and suga
plantations. This led to importation of Indian labour to work in plantations.
The
exploitation of minerals upset the economic balance of power in favour of the
white;
The
Africans provided cheap native labour for all manual work. Africans were
reduced to servant status.
The
pace of modernisation was increased. Railways and roads plus other economic
infrastructures were constructed to connect the mining centres. For example
railway lines were but from
"
There was also an influx of Europeans, Americans and Africans to the
Social: The
discovery of minerals led to social segregation of Africans who were placed at
the bottom of South African social, political and economic setting. Africans
were treated as purely practical and potential low-grade class but vital for
unskilled work.
The
Afrikaner social status got revolutionalised in the positive direction. They
soon found themselves in a life standard similar or even superior to that of
their cousins in
The
process of cultural change in Bantu society were greatly accelerated and as men
of many tribes met at the mining
centres, cultural exchange was widened.
Although
the Africans did not benefit as expected, the discovery and exploitation
minerals improved the standards of living of some Africans as a result of
employment mining areas.
The
discovery of minerals further increased the social welfare of the whites. They
established beautiful settlements and improved their lot through the
construction of social services.
There
was rural urban migration impact which resulted from the discovery of miner
This increased urban unemployment and led to the development of shanty towns
(slums)
People
became conscious of their races and h became difficult to create a community
reasonable homogeneity in
Although
the Africans did not benefit as expected, the discovery and the exploitation of
minerals improved the standards of living of some Africans as a result of
employment in mining areas. The Africans migrated as target workers and
returned home after a certain period with money or European goods.
In
conclusion the mineral discovery in
Question Assess the impact of the mineral revolution on the people of
Closely
related, the migrant labour led to a population explosion in the urban areas of
South Africa for it should be noted that the influence of people wasn’t only a
composition of the people of South Africa only but also increasing investors
across the continent and beyond for example the British, Australians, Russians,
Americans, Belgians and it was this latter group that constituted the
“Uitlanders” a very controversial clan of fortune seekers that later on
affected the history of South Africa.
As
a result of the African migrants labour, some independent African states
collapsed because of emigrant labour was
a composition of the energetic young men who formerly served in armies of the
former African kingdoms like the Zulu kingdom, Tswana kingdom, Tsotho,
Basutoland among others.. subsequently making Sough Africa vulnerable to
European penetration.
The
discovery of minerals worsened the already existing sour relations between the
Boers and the British which traced their way as far back as the 1830’s and
later the discovery of gold and diamond in the Boer controlled territories
which the British wanted to take over as later manifested in the first and
second Anglo-Boer wars.
It
engineered or hastened a new wave of European imperialism in South Africa for
apart from the desire to colonise the route to India, the discovery of minerals
increased the momentum for many European investors began to develop interest in
the interior notably Cecil Rhodes who, in his youthful stage, founded the
De-Beers consolidated companies which later, after receiving a charter turned
into the British South African company which later fostered British imperialism
into South And Central Africa for it was Cecil Rhodes’ historical dream to
“paint Africa Red” i.e from Cape to
Cairo that he later extended into Central Africa becoming a threat to their
European colonialist thus hastening the scramble and partitioning of Africa.
The
discovery of minerals led to widespread urbanisation in the major towns like
Pretoria, Johannesburg, Kimberly and these carried common characteristics
typical of any urban centre like poor accommodation facilities, crime,
prostitution, social squabbles characteristic of slum areas among others..
Lastly,
the most important was that the discovery of minerals transformed the
lifestyles of the Africans the climax was that it created a wide gap between
the whites and blacks in which case the latter were margialised i.e they
supplied forced and cheap labour, were evicted from their lands and pushed into
reserves in what they refer to as the Bantustans like Soweto, Transkei. It was this racial discrimination between the
whites and blacks or the colour-bar conflict that manifested itself into the
new order of apartheid.
Therefore,
the impact of the discovery of minerals on the lifestyles of the peoples of
THE FEDERATION OF
The
discovery of minerals did strengthen the British desire to have a federation of
the South African states divided into four principalities notably the Cape
colony, the Natal province which were run by the British and the Orange Free
State and Transvaal under the jurisdiction of the Afrikaners (the Boers) who,
since their settlement at Cape colony had a great passion for independence as
later evident in the creation of the two Boer states after the exodus of the
Great Trek which was motivated by the British pressures.
However,
as far back as 1858 the idea of the federation of
Furthermore,
Sir George Grey believed that the federation of the four states would lead to
the formation of a common policy for governing
He
also argued that there would be peace, unity and development and a common
policy towards Africans if a federation were formed under a single parliament.
In
this light therefore, it was in Grey’s interest to bring peace, unity and
development in
However,
the calls for a common union fell on deaf ears or hard rock among societies in
FACTORS THAT
HINDERED THE FEDERATION OF
The
failure of the federation scheme has been explained by a number of factors
among which included the different racial policies of either of the states for
although the white community in one way or the other supported apartheid, the
degree differed for the four states had different policies which couldn’t be
compromised in favour of a confederation scheme for example George Grey the
mastermind behind the federation argued that Africans should have a franchise
in all the white states as was the case of the British at the Cape. This was very opposed to the other states
like
Another
factor was the disparity in economic policies for the four White states had
different antagonistic policies which became difficult to harmonise in order to
form a federation for example the Cape Colony was an industrial state which
produced and processed wine, textile products, packed meat or mutton whereas on
the other hand the Boer Republics were peasantly agricultural and pastoral
states which needed more land alienated from the Africans. Therefore, this meant that the
Closely
related, by virtue of the economic independence of the
Following
the discovery of minerals, the relationship between the Boers and the British
worsened because diamonds were discovered in Griqualand West an area legally under
The
conservative British colonial policy for the British colonial policy was
regarded as traditional and static in nature for they always regarded
themselves as a superior race with the best civilisation on earth and therefore
to them, the federation could register them as masters of the other races
including the Boers who would be among their subjects for they regarded them as
an inferior race whom they equaled to Africans.
It was this attitude that greatly undermined the federation scheme
especially when it was under the British dominance during the time of Lord
Caernovon who had been appointed as Colonial Secretary to spearhead the
negotiations for the confederation. This
is what largely undermined the success of the confederation.
The
Boer conservatism since the Great Trek of 1835 and the subsequent formation of
the Boer states, the Boer community and its leaders were never willing to give
in to the idea of the British especially conquering them for example Brand, the leader of the Orange Free State,
championed Boer nationalism against the British and so it was for the Transvaal
leaders like Pretorous, Rev. Thomas Burgers and the greatest of whom was Paul
Kruger, all of whom were determined to resist British imperialism despite their
poverty striken conditions. In other
words, to them, the most important thing was to remain independent and have
different political judicial and social policies and when gold was discovered,
he even called for a different economic policy.
To them therefore, a federation scheme would mean loss of their
independence.
Another
factor was lack of funds to finance the federation scheme by the British and
The
internal divisionism between the English at Cape Colony and those of Natal for
the settlers in the Eastern Cape had long regarded the government of Cape Town
with suspicion and these mainly included the English settlers of Grahams town
and Port Elizabeth who always accused the Cape government of interfering in the
internal policies of Natal such that to them a federation would mean over
dominance especially of the Cape town government. No wonder Governor Molteno of the
Similarly,
there was a divisionism between the English and the Dutch Afrikaners. Despite the few instances of intermarriages
and assimilations into the English cultures, the two didn’t agree on coming
together and being under one government.
Internal
divisionism of the Afrikaners, the two Afrikaners’ Northern Boer states also
had severe divisions amongst themselves.
Although both recognised the common enemy, the British, they never
agreed on a single political policy because the Afrikaner of Orange Free State
regarded themselves as more progressive and therefore with a closer
co-operation with the British at the Cape than those of Transvaal such that these
differences in terms of political attitudes greatly undermined the attempts for
a federation.
It
was therefore a combination of the above factors that the idea of a federation
of South Africa fell on a hard rock because the two white races did not agree
on a common move and little wonder this was never successful until the period
of 1910.
THE FEDERATION QUESTION IN
The
idea of the federation of
It
is important to note that by aroun^ 1850, the sub-region of South Africa had
become a melting pot of different races in South Africa; basically among the
Africans, the British, the coloured and the Boers.
Africans
were opposed to the Boers because the Boers had taken their land and at the
same time considered them as sub-human. The British had also taken the
Sir
George Grey had been a governor in
By
1837, there was only one dominant government in
These
were followed by the establishment of the British Natal and British Kaffraria.
This multiplicity of states necessitated the formation of a federation.
REASONS FOR THE FEDERATION OF SOUTH
AFRICAN WHITE STATES:
·
George Grey came to
·
He also noticed that conflicts between
the white states and the Africans were likely to generate conflicts which would
threaten the security of the whites.
·
He also argued that, a federation
scheme would reduce the costs of administration in both Boer and British white
states.
·
There was also a need to create a
common stand among the white communities against the Africans. Combined efforts
were needed between the British and the Boers if Africans were to be exploited
without any retaliation.
·
Fear for political Intrigue: Grey
argued a worry that the existance of many white states would create conditions
for war possibility to the advantage of Africans. This was detected after
confirming the sour relationship between the Boers and British races in
·
Need for a big legislature that would
build racial unity among the European communities and facilitate efficient
policy making in the region.
·
Federation would create statesmanship
and nationalism in the white communities (a nursery bed for apartheid policy).
Many statesmen and liberals in support of white interests would easily emerge
from a wider geographical area than from smaller ones.
·
Grey argued that the federation of
underdeveloped Boer republics with the nch cape colony would help the former to
develop socially. This is because the cape would spare "surplus"
resources to help the Boers republics.
·
To Grey, small independent states were
incapable of producing well-learned judges who would effectively administer
justice. A joint judicial council involving the Boers and British would help to
solve whites problems in
·
A federation was necessary as it would
enlarge raw material resources and market for finished products. Trade barriers
would be reduced or removed all together.
·
In the discipline of social
development, he argued that a federation would cater foi improved quality and
quantity of education of the people and so would be the health anc religious
institutions,
·
Economic developments: George Grey
argued almost convincingly that, the low levels of economic developments of
separate white communities would endanger their security a they were incapable
of establishing better military institutions. Moreover, the Africans I the area
would attack them taking the advantage of their little numbers.
George
Grey therefore advocated for a federation. Having convincingly argued his case
(above reasons) Grey was too extreme in arguing that no peace and stability
that would prevail in
·
Acquisition of modern weapons by
Africans. This made the Boers and the British to get scared of African
established military strength which conditioned the whites to federate.
REASONS FOR THE FAILURE OF SIR GEORGE
GREY'S FEDERATION SCHEME:
·
George Grey had not considered racial
composition of
·
The Boers could not accept a federation in
which they were to be equal to the Africans for example the
·
They also saw the scheme as a
continued British interference in their affairs and they wanted total
independence of their republics.
·
The
poverty of the South African interior: The interior of
·
The
British policy also did not favour George Grey's scheme
because the British interference in the interior was regarded as a burden to
their taxpayer.
·
The
British forceful annexation of the Boer
·
Presence
of outstanding differences between the culture of the Boers
and the British for example the British used English while the Boers preferred
Dutch language. On matters of religion, the Boers belonged to the Dutch
Reformed Church while the British were Protestants. The 1910 act of union
became a success because the Vereenigning treaty had solved some of the problems such as agreeing to use the
English and Dutch as official languages in
·
Disagreements
on some common goals for example by 1850s and in 1870s
these white groups in South Africa had different interests i.e. the Boers
preferred continued enslavement of the Africans while the British wanted them
to be set Free- In other wards, they were advocating for equality.
·
Impact of Boer Nationalism: By 1850s
and 1870s the Boers had just escaped from the
·
The federation scheme of 1880s and 1870s was seen as a foreign policy of
·
The
selfish interests of the Boers to benefit exclusively from the wealth
of the interior of •
·
The
impact of African British collaborating societies.
The British were still allied to some African societies in the 1850s and 1870s for
example chief Moshesh ofBasutoland was an ally to
·
Lack
of infrastructure facilities. The federation
could not take place easily because there were no viable infrastructures to
support it. Basically the white republics were impoverished. There were no
roads and not even railways. It therefore looked as if the federation could not
succeed because there was nothing to support it.
·
Opposition
from white republics: This cropped up from the fact that
white communities had different interests. The British in the cape colony
opposed the Scheme because more money would be needed to develop the poor
republics. The developed white communities hated the scheme because it would
waste their resources in the interior.
LORD CARNAVON AMD THE FEDERATION
SCHEME.
The
British New Prime Minister Disreal appointed Camavon as a new British colonial
secretary in 1870s who resurrected the idea of white communities federation in
Like
George Grey, Camavon was convinced that the formation of a white state federate
in
CARNAVON'S TACTICS:
He
was of the opinion that, if he was to succeed in his federation scheme, then he
need humanitarian blessings from South African White States, he therefore began
a campaign to increase the number of British parliamentarians in Boer republics
of the
Accordingly,
he increased the number of British nominees in the
REASONS FOR THE FAILURE OF CARNAVON'S
FEDERATION PLAN
·
It was opposed by the Boers who still
wanted to maintain their cultural purity and sovereignity. Boers feared that
this federation would make them mix up with the British a factor that would
jeopardise the strength of the Dutch cultures.
·
The plan met stiff resistance from the
cape colony, which did not want to share the agricultural and mineral wealth
with the poor Boers.
·
On.political grounds, Motenna a new
Prime Minister of Cape colony opposed Camavon's federation plans on the grounds
that, this would interfere with the affairs of his independent States and tilt
the balance of power in favour of Dutch colonies leading to his downfall.
·
Camavon's plans faced stiff resistance
from the
·
Tactical blunder: As the proposed day
for federation conference neared, Camavon blundered by transferring the meeting
from
·
The forceful British annexation of
THE ANGLO - BOER WARS.
The
first Anglo-Boer war (1880-81) came as a result of the increasing hostility
between the Boers and the British and for the British, this was the first
inter-imperialistic war that was fought on the African continent and to the
Boers, it was a manifestation of Boer nationalism which gained momentum as far
back as 1877 when the British manipulated the Boers over the mineral
territories. It was therefore this long
time hatred between the two that gave birth to the outbreak of the first
Anglo-Boer war of 1880-81.
Furthermore,
the attempts by the British to form a federation under the
The
above atmosphere was catalysed by the defeat of the British by the Zulus at the
battle of Isandhlwana in 1879 and given that they were defeated by an African
state, the Boer commanders were connived that they would definitely register
military success against the British. To
them therefore it was only a question of opportunity which rightly came in the
year of 1880 when the British administration confiscated the property of a Boer
farmer who had not paid taxes and annoyed by the British dominance a group of
300 fellow Boer farmers attacked the British to retrieve the property and this
provided the spark for a war between the Boer farmers and the British.
With
the Boer experience in warfare and the unpreparedness of the British, war
entered its first gear at the battle of Majuba hill and it was fought for two
months and attempts by the British to reinforce their forces were let down by
the British Prime Minister, Gladstone, who was prepared to solve the
hostilities between the two not by war but by negotiation. It was therefore in this light that an agreement
was reached in the
THE FIRST ANGLO-BOER WAR OF 1880-1881.
The
Anglo-Boer relations in the last quarter of 19th century were of wars and
conflicts.
The
first Anglo-Boer war began in 1880 and ended in 1881. Its main cause was the
desire by
It
can justifiably be asserted that the relations between the British and the
Boers began to sour as early as when the British occupied the cape in 1806. In
protest of this imperialism, the Boers moved Northwards into South African
interiors massively in a historical movement known as the great trek of 1835-36
into the
It
is important to note that this massive movement into the interior of
Even
when they trekked, the British insisted that they were their subjects arguing
that they had "to protect the indigenous Africans" from the Boer's
wrath in the process of exploiting the African land and labour. Thus by all means,
the British were determined to dominate the Boers.
In
the meantime,
CAUSES OF THE FIRST ANGLO-BOER WAR
1880-81.
By
1880, the Boers could no longer stomach the British imperialism. Open conflict
began in what was known as the first Anglo-Boer war. It was the first of its
kind for a Whiteman's confrontation on the African soil and basically it came
as a product of mineral discovery in
·
The 1877 British annexation of the
·
The federation scheme:- The idea of
federation which came up in 1854 provided the Boers with an opportunity to
demonstrate their hostility against the British, The Boers on both attempts of
Sir George Grey and Camavon considered the federation issue as a domination of
post-Trek British imperialism that was supposed to be opposed. This opposition amidst
British determination even to use force to implement their policy led to war
hence the first Anglo-Boer war.
·
·
The advent of Gladstone, a new British
Prime Minister into office increased the Boer Nationalism.
·
The Boer farmer incident; This
incident that sparked off the first Anglo-Boer war concerned a small farmer who
was sued for non payment of tax. As a punishment, the British administration
confiscated and sold his property. This act provoked a band of Boers who took
it upon themselves to rescue the property. Though the property was rescued and
given back to the former, this attack on British authority was provocative and
therefore it left the British and the Boers on bad terms.
·
Naturally, the Boers of Transvaal had
for so long wanted a strong and independent republic controlled by themselves.
They did not want any foreign rule. This made them mobilise other Boer
republics in a war against the British.
·
The character of Paul Krugar. This was
the president of
·
The British taxation, land alienation,
forced labour and disrespect of the Dutch culture in the
·
The British Presence in
·
Out of protest for the British
domination of the Transvaal republic, the Transvaalers began smuggling in
enough firearms not only from the diamond fields but also from the neighbouring
South West Africa (
·
The Boer memory of British
mistreatment at the
·
Further more, the war was brought
about by the discovery of diamonds at Kimberly in 1867. Both the British and
the Boers wanted to benefit exclusively from the minerals. They also expected
more minerals to be discovered. The first Anglo-Boer war therefore was a fight
between two alien thieves over the minerals of the Africans.
·
The Boers were struggling in an
attempt to attain a representative assembly. They wanted the parliament in
Transvaal and
·
The Boer intentions of dodging the
loan service to the British. Before the war started, the government at the Cape
as well as the individuals had loaned a lot of money to the Boers mainly in
·
COURSE
OF THE WAR.
·
The war was generally brief extending
approximately from December 1880 to August 1881 when the
·
The property of a Boer farmer was
confiscated. But soon a group of 300 Boers forcefully recovered the property.
This attack on British authority convinced the Boers that something more
positive to recover their independence should be done.
·
On 8th December 1880, they
re-established their independence with Paul Kruger as the new president and
Joubert as a commander in chief.
·
When the British decided to re-exert
their power, little did they understand the magnitude of the problem ahead of
them- They overestimated the efficiency of their troops and underrated the
Boers. Therefore, they did not mobilise enough because in all they were 3,500
British troops in
·
In all campaigns the Boers had many
advantages. They were equally well armed and the Boers had a numerical
advantage. On 20th December 1880 in the first engagement it involved 264
British Soldiers and they were seriously defeated. Even a strong British
enforcement from
·
At the battle of Majubi hills 500
British troops were totally defeated and forced to withdraw with heavy
casualties. Following the Boer victory, the British government rushed to find a
quick conclusion of the problem. Gladstone who was the British Prime Minister
initiated the
·
TERMS
OF THE 1881
·
The republican government of the
·
The civil rights of the Utilanders
were to be protected and they could participate in government issues although
they were not granted full citizenship.
·
The British were to have limited
authority in the affairs of Transvaal,
·
The Transvaal foreign affairs were
left in the hands of
·
British goods that were formerly
restricted in
EFFECTS OF 1880-1881 ANGLO-BOER WAR:
·
The war resulted into the defeat of
the British at the battle of Majuba hills. It was a great humiliation which
kept on haunting the
·
The war increased Boer nationalism and
esteem. Having won the war, the Boers started working for another war thinking
that they would win again. The British on the other hand looked forward to
another war for revenge. Ultimately the first Anglo-Boer war led to the second
Anglo-Boer war.
·
By'the
·
The first Anglo-Boer war also
increased the race of territorial acquisition in
It resulted in the signing of the 1881
There was great loss of lives,
destruction of property and general misery. On both sides, officers and men had
to die. The British used scorched earth policy and camps to weaken the Boers.
Many crops and livestock were destroyed or looted. Children and women were made
homeless.
The war was a blessing to Utilanders.
The Utilanders were segregated against by the Dutch who were even named as
underdogs. However, in the
The war created unity of the two Boer
republics of Transvaal and
THE
According
to the convention, it was agreed that the Transvaal self-government was to be
restored but subject to the suzerainty of the queen of
It
was agreed that foreign relations of the republic would still remain under the
supervision of imperial administration although the
The
British goods were to enter into the republic without discrimination or
taxation.
The
civil rights of the Uitlanders were to be protected although the Boers would
maintain superiority.
It
is worth noting that the
Although
the Boers had won the battle, their sovereignity was only partially recognised
in the negotiations that concluded the war.
According
to the terms of this treaty, the Boers were to remain attached to the British
colony than an independent republic, it was therefore this weakness in the
negotiations of the Pretoria convention that laid a fertile ground for the
British intervention in the internal and external affairs of the republic which
later led to the outbreak of the second Anglo-Boer wars.
The
The
conclusion of this war and the successful convention paved way for the
emergence of one of the most conservative Afrikaner leaders, Paul Kruger, who
became president of Transvaal for four consecutive terms and was later to play
a very important role in the outbreak of the second Anglo-Boer war.
THE JAMESON RAID OF 1895:
This
raid was an attempt by the British government at the Cape to raid
CAUSES:
·
Revenge on Boers for the defeat of
1881 and to bring the Boers under their effective rule.
·
Mistreatment of the Utilanders (white
Foreign miners) by the Boers, in as much as the
·
By 1895, Utilanders had become very
many and quite wealthy which caused worries of different sorts of the Boer for
example in case of voting, expected collaboration with
·
Because of numerical and wealthy
status they had attained by 1895, the Utilanders clamoured for political rights
in
It
is against this background that Cecil Rhodes, the then Prime Minister of the
He
advised the Utilanders to rise up in a rebellion for their rights which would
give the British an excuse for intervention. In this way Paul Kruger's regime
would be overthrown.
Cecil
Rhodes imported more arms in preparation for war. He appointed one of his
commanders Dr. Jameson to be in charge for this war. They piled up arms on the
borders of Bechwanaland and
Unfortunately,
the Utilanders did not rebel contrary to Cecil Rhodes' expectations. This was because
the
Instead
of retreating, the careless Jameson moved ahead. On top of this the then
British colonial secretary J. Chamberlain was opposed to this invasion.
Jameson
matched in with 500 men only. The Boers were informed about the invasion much
earlier and a sufficient Boer force was prepared to counter the attack. His men
were killed and himself was captured and taken as a prisoner. This abortive
raid embarrassed the British even more than their defeat in the first
Anglo-Boer war. It was a real fiasco.
Dr.
Jameson and some of his soldiers were taken as prisoners of war and put on
public display. The Boers became more suspicious of the British who later
became more determined to exercise colonial authority in the southern African
sub-region. This anger by
THE SECOND ANGLO-BOER WAR
Following
the discovery of gold in 1886 at Witwatersrand in the Boer territory of
Transvaal, the relationship between the Boers and British only worsened for the
British imperialists began to make moves for the occupation of the Boer
territories the most famous being that of Cecil Rhodes through Dr. Jameson who
organised the Jameson raid conspiracy that was intended to instigate the
Uitlanders to revolt against Paul Kruger’s government. Hence Dr. L.S. Jameson was to instigate the
revolt although this conspiracy was a fiasco because the government had
previously known of Cecil Rhodes’ plan and in any case the Uitlanders had not
revolted hence the raid was suppressed because Jameson’s troops of 500 were
surrounded and defeated by Paul Kruger’s forces and Jameson was forced to
surrender unconditionally.
This
incident worsened the British-Boer relations, Cecil Rhodes the Prime Minister
of the
With
the Jameson fiasco, the Boers began to organise themselves for a future war for
Paul Kruger imported arms partly to curb the political activities of the
Uitlanders but most importantly to curb British imperialism. This existing hostility between the two white
states created a war hysteria i.e increased tension between the Boers and the
British that was later to manifest itself into the outbreak of the second
Anglo-Boer war.
The
second Anglo-Boer war is also explained by the element of the British
nationalism. Following the conclusion of
the Jameson fiasco, Joseph Chamberlain the then colonial secretary was
determined to uphold British imperialistic interests and he had therefore
exaggerated the Pan-African Boer nationalism and had convinced the British
public opinion that the Boers were working hard to overthrow British
imperialism. This therefore stimulated
the British desire to suppress the Boers.
The
climax came with the appointment of Sir. Alfred Milner as a new high
commissioner in
The
second Anglo-Boer war came as a result of Transvaal political and economic
independence especially following the discovery of gold when the Boers
increasingly gained economic and political stability something that wasn’t
recognised by the British at the
Transvaal
increased relations with
The
British revival of the confederation scheme, with the increasing economic value
of Witwatersrand, the British wanted revived George Greys scheme for it would
safeguard British supremacy in
Other
scholars also argue that the republics’ increasing grip on the Vitlanders
especially after Jameson raid angered the British because these were their
collaborators hence it was the intervention against Paul Kruger’s unfair
policies towards the Vitlands that forced the British to declare war on the
Boers.
The
unfair terms of the
The
war of 1899-1902 started on October 11 1899 after Paul Kruger’s ultimatum to
the British to withdraw their forces from the Boer borders within a period of
48 hours which, when they expired, the Boer military leaders notably De Wet
Smurts, Botha, Hertzog and Joubert made first attacks against the British
forces who in the initial stages suffered heavy defeats from the Boers who were
equipped with superior German arms imported by Paul Kruger, had greater morale
for they were fighting for their motherland and were better commanders than the
British.
However,
the Boers never followed up the British to a bitter end for the British
reinforced themselves under the able leadership of Lord Roberts and Kitchner
and equally managed to hit and run but all in vain and indeed for three years
the war continued until 1902 when the two factions agreed to come to an
agreement in what came to be known as the peace treaty of Vereeniging of May
1902.
1.
What were the terms of the Vereeniging
treaty of 1902?
2.
Discuss the significance of the
Vereeniging treaty of 1902.
According
to the Vereeniging treaty, the British were to withdraw their troops
immediately from the Boer republic and end hostilities forthwith.
Vast
sums of money about £3
million was to be provided by
The
Dutch and English languages were recognised as official languages in
Africans
would not be allowed political participation in the future politics of
The
Boers were to keep their guns so as to defend themselves against Africans and
there was to be a police force that would be established under the able
leadership of Baden Powell to disarm any African that was armed. These were the terms that concluded the
disastrous war between the Boers and the British and it was the beginning for a
way of the unification of
The
significance of the Vereeniging treaty was that the treaty did not restore Boer
independence but only limited the British imperialism on the Boer republic for
the republics became British colonies although they were promised responsible
governments later.
The
British and the Boers were placed on equal footing as later evident in the
languages that gained equal status.
The
British and Boers benefited from the peace treaty because
The
treaty consolidated the Boer position in the interior by destroying the basis
of African power.
Closely
related, the Africans were militarily weakened for the Boers were armed and the
Africans disarmed which gave the Boers a military advantage over the Africans.
The
treaty exposed Africans to all sorts of discrimination and indeed it can be
regarded as the climax of the apartheid policy in
It
inaugurated the white co-operation between the whites races for the formation
of the South African union.
Following
the conclusion of the treaty, it was now time for the white races to come to a
proper understanding, live together, heal the wounds and bridge the hostilities
amongst themselves but most important, unite against the Black races. This union was devised in the national convention
of 1908 which drafted a union constitution that was ratified by the British as
an “act of union” of May 1910.
THE ACT OF
The
act of union provisions:
·
The union parliament was given supreme
authority over the four colonies which were in future to be referred to as provinces.
·
The leading executive officer was to
be the governor general appointed by the British crown who would govern with
the assistance of an executive council of ten ministers appointed by him.
·
The union would have a two-chamber
parliament consisting of the senate with a term of ten years and equal
representation of the four provinces and an elected House of Assembly with a
five year term elected by adult Europeans.
·
There would be one Supreme Court for
the whole country with provincial and district courts.
·
Official languages were to be English
and Dutch.
·
Capital was divided into three with
the parliament at
·
Non-Whites/Africans were allowed to
vote only in
·
N.B The
language and frachise clauses could only be changed by 2/3
majority decisions of the senate and the
House of Assembly sitting together.
This
Act of union that was signed on May 31st 1910 between Botha the prime minister
and Smurts his deputy was an attempt by the white races to forge a kind of
closer union between the four colonies whose significance therefore was mainly
to heal the wounds and bridge the gap between the Boers and the British.
It
also led indeed to the British to change their attitude towards the Africans
because all along the Boers had wanted to keep the Africans as an inferior race
unlike the British who wanted them as human beings which they led down i.e they
betrayed them in the eyes of the Boers in order to forge a common understanding
between the while races as Mary Benson in her work. The struggle for birth rights put it
“To the Africans, the act of union became
an act of ultimate betrayal by the British”.
It
should be noted however that both the British and the Boers were by this time
facing threats from the Africans such as the Bambatha rebellion of 1906. The Ndebele Shona revolts in Central Africa, The Nama-Herero
rising in
The
act of union largely benefited the two white races for they were both to
benefit from the mineral regions, but at the expense of the Africans. The British and Boers were put on equal
cultural footing as symbolised by the British and Dutch language.
The
act of union led to the equal sharing of republics because Transvaal and
Africans
lost their independence, were regarded as inferior and didn’t fit to serve the
white interests and indeed this entered the height of racial discrimination.
Closely
related, the Africans were thrown into reserves or camps know as
The
unions economic policy was later to be formed which put the Africans at the
mercy of the whites and African land was taken over plus the mineral regions as
later evident in the 1911 mines act and 1913 native land act.
It
curtailed the Indian and Asian participation in
Lastly,
the union government was officially established and the political drive of the
country went into the hands of the white races but at the expense of the
Africans and indeed this is what sowed the seeds of African nationalism because
of the white dominance in the African politics, segregation of the Africans in
the political, social-economic affairs which kept Africans underdogs, poor,
illiterate and social misfits that provoked African nationalism to start
opposition parties the greatest being the African National Congress that was
founded in 1912 led by Nelson Mandela, Oliver Tambo, Walter Sithulu, Gabon
Mbeki among others who were later to fight for their independence against
apartheid rule which was regained towards the closure of the 20th Century.