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EventKwame Nkrumah is released from jail
Kwame Nkrumah was arrested for leading a disturbing ‘positive action’ campaign in Ghana against British rule in 1950. He was released to lead the newly formed…
EventPretoria receives city status
On 14 October 1931, Pretoria achieved official city status. The city was established in 1855 by Marthinus Pretorius, a leader of the Voortrekkers who named it…
EventMoses Kotane, the South African Communist Party and African National Congress stalwart dies in Moscow
Moses Kotane, the South African Communist Party and African National Congress stalwart passed away in Moscow, Russia where he was hospitalised after a long…
EventThe ‘Hospital and Lunatic Asylum’, the first civilian hospital in Cape Town, is opened
In the early 1800s, there was only one hospital for army men in the Cape, as well as a naval hospital in Simonstown. So, in order to set up the first civilian…
EventRhodes asks Charter for British South Africa Company
Cecil John Rhodes applies for a Charter from United Kingdom to establish the British South Africa Company. The Royal Charter was granted in October 1889, with…
EventJosephine Wood, founder of the South African Library for the Blind, is born in Grahamstown
Josephine Ethel (Josie) Wood was born on 22 January 1874 in Grahamstown. She was one of six children of the first mayor of Grahamstown, George Samuel Wood and…
EventDennis Brutus is born
Dennis Vincent Brutus was born on 8 November 1924 in Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia (now Harare, Zimbabwe) to South African parents. His parents moved back to…
Event”Unknown” White man is hanged in Pretoria
For the first time in the South African criminal history a man was hanged with his name known only by authorities. The 37-year-old White male was accused of…
EventWalter Sisulu convicted of inciting protest
Former secretary-general of the African National Congress (ANC), Walter Sisulu, was convicted of having incited a stay-at-home of African workers in protest of…
EventProgressive Reform Party is formed
The Progressive Reform Party (PRP) was formed in the wake of the merger between the Progressive Party and the Reform Party. The decision to merge was made at…
EventEli Weinberg, trade unionist and photographer, is born
On 28 August 1908 Eli Weinberg was born in Libau, Latvia. Weinberg was a trade unionist and communist party member. He co-founded the African Garment Workers'…
EventThe district of Uitenhage is founded in the Eastern Cape and named after Jacob Abraham Uitenhage de Mist
The town of Uitenhage in the Eastern Cape Province was founded when then Commissioner-General Jacob Uitenhage de Mist felt there was a need to improve the…
The Role of the Missionaries in conquest - Chapter III - Dr. Philip - “Defender of the Hottentots”
From the book: The Role of the Missionaries in conquest by Nosipho Majeke Herrenvolk history books present two pictures of Dr. John Philip, Superintendent of…
Say It out Loud - The 1907 Presidential Address, Outdshoorn, Cape, 7 January, 1907
From the book: Say It out Loud by Mohamed Adhikari The 1907 Presidential Address, Outdshoorn, Cape, 7 January, 19071 Dr Abdurahman delivered his…
PlaceFugard Theatre, Cape Town
The Fugard, a theatre based in Cape Town, was built within one of the five interconnected Sacks Futeran buildings in District Six.[1] It opened in early…
PlaceDefence Force HQ, Pretoria- Artillery Barracks
The first annexation of the Zuid Afrikaansche Republiek by Sir Theophilus Shepstone in 1877 led to the establishment of a military camp on the present premises…
The fight against passes continues
From the book: My Spirit Is Not Banned by Frances Baard and Barbie Schreiner All this time there was still this thing of passes for women going on, and the…
PlaceBattle of Muizenburg Monument, Muizenburg
Given the turmoil in Europe and the importance of the Cape sea-route to India the British Government sent a fleet of seven Royal Navy ships under the command…
PlaceStation Building, Point Road, Durban
The Victorian Railway Station dates from the 1890s when the Natal Government Railways experienced a surge in economic development. The wrought-iron verandah…
Chapter 12. The General Strike Of 1931 - Garment Workers in Action by E. S. Sachs
The worldwide depression, which started in 1929, had a serious effect on South African economic life. By 1930, industrial production, which was only in its…
The Military Defeat of the South Africans in Angola by Horace Campbell (Monthly Review), Africa, Angola
In Angola in the spring of 1988 the armed forces of apartheid South Africa and the US-backed mercenaries of Jonas Savimbi were defeated by the combined force…
PlaceHillside House, 14 Bird Street, Port Elizabeth
The property was originally granted to George Daniel Diesel in 1824. The building was presumably erected after that date and is richly decorated with a number…
EventBishop Zulu is born
Alphaeus Hamilton Zulu, Anglican bishop of Zululand and Swaziland was born in Nquthu, Natal. He was the only son of Johannes and Miriam Kolo Zulu and was a…
EventSouth Africa is banned from competing in the Davis Cup, because of its Apartheid policy in sport.
During Apartheid, South Africa was expelled from many international sporting bodies. On 23 March, 1970, South Africa was banned from the Davis Cup - the…
EventRuben Xulu, SA artist, dies in Marian Hill
Ruben Xulu was a sculptor who specialized in wood and stone. He was born deaf on 10 May 1955. His disability was never a hindrance. Throughout his career,…
EventFelix Mounie, the Cameroon opposition leader is assassinated in Geneva.
Felix Mounie was the leader of the political movement Union du Peuple Camerounnais (UPC). The UPC was a major political force demanding the end of UN…
Document 18 - The Pretoria Minute
The South African state saw in the campaign for the Congress of the People and the Freedom Charter an act of treason. Consequently, on the early morning of 5…
PlaceCoornhoop Dovecot, Dixton Road, Mowbray
In 1657-58 land in this area was granted to 14 free burghers, who were expected to devote themselves to the planting of wheat for the new settlement. Their…
EventMedical Association agrees to investigate Biko’s death
After a two week judicial inquest under presiding magistrate Mr. Marthinus Prins, it was found that no particular person could be blamed for the death of Steve…
Nelson Mandela Correspondence around property and land
Introduction Nelson's attachment to property is sentimental rather than material and this is reflected in his attitude to his Orlando home and to land at his…