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Launch of the ANC Volunteer Corps and Visit of the President, 19 June 2013
The President of the African National Congress Comrade President Zuma will be visiting Upington as part of the launch of the Luthuli Volunteer Corps on the…
ArticleWorld War I Timeline 1914
The outbreak of the First World War was precipitated by the assassination of the Austro-Hungarian Crown Prince Franz Ferdinand and his wife, by Serbian…
BiographyZuleikha Mayat
Zuleikha Mayat was born in 1926 in Potchefstroom, Transvaal (now North West Province). Her father, Mohamed Bismilla, was a prominent business person who first…
BiographyLouis Botha
Louis Botha was born near Greytown in Natal in 1862. He was the son of Voortrekker parents and was brought up on a farm in the Free State, and was educated at…
ArticleAftermath of the Bhambatha Rebellion 1906
The Bambatha Rebellion claimed the lives of 4000 Zulu and 30 white people and cost the colonial government £740,000. Some of the Zulu died fighting on the side…
ArticleThe Namibian struggle for independence – 1966 – 1990 – a historical background
During the 1960s most of Africa’s countries had gained independence except for Namibia. Geographically, Namibia is made up of savannah, dry scrub land, as well…
ArticleCouncil of Non-European trade unions (CNETU)
During the 1930s there were attempts by African workers to organise and reconstruct all fragmented African trade unions into a large federation of non-racial…
BiographyDr Alfred Bitini Xuma
Alfred Bitini Xuma was born on 8 March 1893, in Manzana, Ngcobo District, in the Eastern Province (now Eastern Cape). Xuma was the seventh child of Abraham…
A growing urban African population
As Johannesburg expanded, so did its need for African labour. After the First World War, a large number of factories were being established and were growing in…
ArticleSS Mendi
The sinking of the SS Mendi was caused by the reckless action of the captain of the SS Darro. It remains the greatest wartime maritime disaster ever suffered…
![B J Vorster [John Vorster] portrait](/sites/default/files/styles/saho_medium/public/bio_pics/vorster_bj.jpg?itok=ySN_t7b3)
BiographyB J Vorster [John Vorster]
Overview Balthazar Johannes Vorster (also known as BJ Vorster or John Vorster) was the Prime Minister of South Africa from 1966 to 1978, after having served…
The adoption of the Freedom Charter
The Freedom Charter was not adopted immediately by the ANC. The executives of the four organisations of the Congress Alliance met at the beginning of August…
ArticleThe aftermath of the Battle of Blood River 1838
The fate of Natalia After the defeat of Dingane, the Kingdom of the AmaZulu was hurled into political strife. Mpande was open to the demands for land by the…
ArticleThe San
The San, the first people in South Africa The earliest hunter-gatherers in southern Africa were the San people. The San were also known as 'Bushmen', a term…
BiographyOliver Tambo
Early years Oliver Reginald Kaizana Tambo (more popularly known as Oliver Tambo or OR) was born in the village of Kantilla, Bizana, in the Mpondoland …
BiographyKasturba Gandhi
Kasturba Kapadia was born on April 11 1869 in Porbandar, in present day Gujarat. She was the daughter of Gokuldas Makanji Kapadia, a wealthy merchant. Kasturba…
Archaeology: A Way of Rediscovering the Past
How do we find out about the past? For recent events where there was personal involvement, memory can be relied on. To know about events earlier than this,…
ArticleThe Influenza epidemic
In March 1918 an international influenza pandemic broke out, that led to the deaths of 50 million people worldwide. The pandemic spread simultaneously in…
Discovery of the Gold in 1884
The first recorded discovery of gold on the Witwatersrand was made by Jan Gerrit Bantjes in June 1884, on the farm Vogelstruisfontein, and was followed soon…
ArticleGreater St. Lucia Wetland
The Greater St. Lucia Wetlands Park is South Africa's first Natural World Heritage Site. It was declared on 1 December 1999 by Unesco and is South Africa's…
Article1946 Mine Workers Strike timeline 1867-1987
1867 Diamonds discovered in Orange Free State and Kimberley. 1867 Diamond mining begins in Griqualand West. 1872 Introduction of pass laws to control…
ArticleHIV/Aids in South Africa
HIV/Aids is a deadly disease, which is currently not curable. The United Nations AIDS agency (UNAIDS) says the evidence that HIV is the underlying cause of…
Township Uprising, 1984-1985
On 3 September the Tricameral Parliament opened in Cape Town while protest demonstrations began in the Transvaal, marking the start of the longest and most…
ArticleJune 16 Soweto Youth Uprising timeline: 1976-1986
1976 According to the government-appointed Cillie Commission of Enquiry 575 people died. Police action resulted in 451 deaths. 3 907 people were injured…
ArticlePrehistory of the Bloemfontein area
The origin of South Africa’s judicial capital goes back to the mid 19th century when Major H.D. Warden established a British outpost in the then Transorangia…
ArticleA History of the South African Film Industry timeline 1895-2003
1895 The Kinetescope (invented by Thomas Edison) was a box in which people could see a moving image. The first Kinetescopes in South Africa were opened…
BiographyDimitri Tsafendas
Dimitri Tsafendas was the parliamentary messenger who assassinated Prime Minister Hendrik Verwoerd on 06 September 1966 by stabbing him four times with a…
ArticleCapitalism in the USA 1900 to 1940
How did the Great Depression in the USA bring about a crisis of capitalism? Background and focus It is important to understand that the focus of THIS section…
First Matabele War
In 1890 Cecil John Rhodes became premier of South Africa with the support of the Afrikaner Bond. Rhodes' grand imperial vision for a British Africa included…
EventHashim Amla retires from international cricket
On 8 August 2019, Hashim Amla retired from all formats of international cricket. Amla, a versatile batsman, made his international debut on 28 November 2004…