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EventGeneral Idi Amin overthrows Ugandan President Milton Obote
On 25 January 1971, General Idi Amin Dada led a military coup that overthrew Ugandan President, Milton Obote while he was at a Commonwealth meeting in…
EventANC member and UDF-leader Christmas Tinto, is born in Mqanduli in the Transkei
Christmas Fihla Tinto was born on Christmas day on 25 December 1925 in the Mqanduli district of the former Transkei, now part of Eastern Cape Province. His…
EventAhmadou Kourouma, Ivorian novelist dies in France
Ahmadou Kourouma was born in 1927 in CÁ´te d'Ivoire. He went to live and attend school in Mali before leaving for France. When CÁ´te d'Ivoire gained…
The New Generation
A significant challenge to state policy as regards the visual arts was undertaken at The State of Art in South Africa Conference held in 1979 at the University…
ArchiveLong live Ruth First by Gavin Williams, 17 August 2019
The great South African writer and activist, Ruth First, was assassinated by a letter bomb sent by the South African Security Police in Maputo, Mozambique on…
EventNjabulo Ndebele was born on this day
On 4 July, 1948 respected academic Professor Njabulo Ndeble was born in Coronation Hospital in Johannesburg, where his mother worked as a nurse. [1] He…
EventJacob Thabo Lengane is murdered in Soweto
On 21 October 1986 Jacob Thabo Lengane, the father of Jefferson Lengane and Kabelo Lengane, who were well known for their involvement in political activities…
EventDiplomatic ties are established between SA and Saudi Arabia
On 29 May 1994 the South African government signed an agreement establishing diplomatic relations with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The diplomatic relations…
EventJan Ernst Abraham Volschenk, landscape painter, is born near Riversdale, Western Cape
Jan Volschenk was a self taught painter who specialised and excelled in the landscape genre. He found inspiration from his local surroundings of Riversdale and…
EventThe Soweto Uprising leaves 174 blacks and two whites dead following 10 days of rioting
The student-led protests in Soweto in 1976 known as the Soweto Uprising claimed many lives and left many injured. The protests began in Soweto schools and…
Lionel Davis, SA artist, is born in Cape Town. He was a political prisoner on Robben Island between 1964 and 1971, where he c
Lionel Davis, SA artist, is born in District 6 in Cape Town. While incarcerated on Robben Island as a political prisoner between 1964 and 1971, he completed…
EventThe launch of the Progressive Women’s Movement of SA
On 8 August 2006, hundreds of women gathered in Bloemfontein to launch a new national women’s movement, a non-profit organisation called the Progressive Women…
EventAlbert Luthuli accepts the Nobel Peace Prize
Albert John Mvumbi Luthuli, president of the then banned African National Congress (ANC), was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1960 for advocating non-violent…
Event13 year-old South African Native mineworker is published in a newspaper
On 7 March 1960, a photograph of a 13 year-old Native boy in a torn vest was published in the front page of the London Labour paper, the Daily Herald, with the…
EventPalaeontologist Mary Leakey discovers one of the oldest hominid skulls in Tanzania
On 17 July 1959, Palaeontologist Mary Leaky discovered on of the oldest hominid skulls in the Olduvai Gorge, in Northern Tanzania. At first she found several…
EventNovelist and historian Bessie Head is born
Novelist, short story writer and social historian Bessie Amelia Head was born in Pietermaritzburg. Being the daughter of a White mother (who was disowned by…
EventUniversity of Pretoria is established
The Transvaal University College, with branches in Johannesburg and Pretoria, took the examinations of the Cape University. The Pretoria branch of the…
EventThe existing ban on marriages between White and Black people (Prohibition of Mixed Marriages Act (1949) is extended to White and Coloured people
On this day in history, the Prohibition of Mixed Marriages Amendment Bill was adopted - despite opposition from the United and Progressive Parties. This…
EventAdam Tas is arrested
Magistrate Starrenburg arrested Adam Tas because of the role he played in drawing up a petition for the Cape burghers against the incumbent Governor W. A. van…
EventEleven people are killed at Donnybrook, Kwazulu
The killing of eleven people at Donnybrook, Kwazulu-Natal on the 21 March 1996 can be considered as part of the ongoing rivalry between supporters of the…
EventPresident Mandela addresses the National assembly of Mali
On the 2 March 1996, President Nelson Mandela paid his first state visit to Mali. While there, he addressed the National Assembly at Bamako where he emphasised…
EventThe railway line between Cape Town and George is opened.
On 25 September 1907, the railway line connecting George to Cape Town was opened. This railway connection was a significant infrastructural development, as it…
EventFormer South African Prime Minister JG Strijdom dies
Johannes Gerhardus (JG) Strijdom was born in 1893 in the Cape Colony. He trained as a lawyer at the Victoria College (now Stellenbosch University). Strijdom…
EventBarry Hough, SA literary critic and successful author of mainly teenage books is found dead
Barry Micheal Hough was a literary critic and author of Afrikaans teenage fiction. He was born in Johannesburg in 1953. He obtained a BA Communications degree…
Event5,580 Egyptian prisoners of war are exchanged for four Israelis held by Egyptian troops
5,580 Egyptian prisoners of war were exchanged for four Israelis held by Egyptian troops following the Tripartite Invasion (Israel, Britain and France). The…
EventChiliboy Ralepelle becomes the first black player to lead the Springboks against a World XV in England
Rugby player, Mahlatse Chiliboy Ralepelle was born in Tzaneen on 11 September 1986. Ralepelle moved to Pretoria and attended Pretoria Boys High School, where…
EventLady Diana Spencer is killed in a car accident in Paris
Lady Diana Spencer, simply known as Princess Diana was born in 1961. She married the Prince of Wales and heir to the throne of England, Charles, and became the…
EventHelen Nontando Jabavu, author and periodical editor in London, is born in Middeldrift, SA
Helen Nontando (Noni) Jabavu was born in 1919 in the Eastern Cape into a literary family. From the age of thirteen, she was schooled in England, and continued…
EventBenjamin Mzimkulu Macala, SA artist, is born
Benjamin Mzimkulu (Ben) Macala was born in Bloemfontein, Orange Free State (now Free State). As a young boy he tended cattle on a farm in the Free State and…
EventPhambili Ka Ntloko, national organiser of AZAPO, is born
Phambili Ka Ntloko was born on 18 April 1960 in Queenstown, Eastern Cape. As a high school student, Ntloko became involved in the South African Students’…