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EventSouth Africa’s new constitution is approved
The adoption of the South African Constitution on 8 May 1996 was one of the turning points in the history of the struggle for democracy in South Africa. The…
EventSelf government is granted to the Transvaal
The Transvaal Colony, former Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek (ZAR) or Transvaal Republic, was granted self-government status by Britain, according to the terms of…
EventThe Battle of Ulundi begins
The Battle of Ulundi was the decisive battle during the Anglo-Zulu War. It took place on the 4th July 1879 and marked the end of the Anglo-Zulu War, as well as…
EventSamora Machel pledges solidarity with the people of South Africa
President Samora Machel of Mozambique pledged solidarity with the South African people, in reaction to the massacre on 30 January 1981, where more than 14…
EventTwenty die in an armed assault in a mosque in Khartoum, Sudan
In a massacre on 4 February 1994 Abbas al-Bager Abbas opened fire killing 20 praying muslims and wounding 33 others in a mosque in Khartoum, Sudan. Abbas was…
EventZimbabwean politician and trade unionist Morgan Tsvangirai is born
Morgan Richard Tsvangirai was born in the Bahure area of Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). He is the eldest of nine children. Tsavangirai joined the Zimbabwe…
EventHelen Zille, former leader of the Democratic Alliance, is born in Johannesburg
Helen Zille studied at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Transvaal (now Gauteng) where she obtained a BA Degree. She went on to become a…
EventTranskei Constitution Act No 48 commences
On 30 May 1963 the Transkei Constitution Act No 48 commenced. The history of this Act could be traced back to April 1961 when the Transkei Regional Authority…
EventJudge Edwin Cameron of SA reveals that he has been HIV positive since 1987
Justice of the Constitutional Court, Edwin Cameron made headlines in 1999 when he announced that he had been living with HIV for twelve years. Cameron was a…
EventThe Pretoria Show is opened for all races
The Pretoria show is an annual event that began as an agricultural show and grew to include arts, entertainment, education and exhibitions over the years. The…
EventMiss Namibia, Michelle Mclean, model and masseuse, is crowned Miss Universe in Bangkok, Thailand
Namibian born model Michelle Mclean was crowned miss Universe in Bangkok, Thailand in 1992. Mclean had won the 1991 Miss Namibia pageant as well as making it…
EventDr JT van der Kemp, controversial missionary and physician, dies
Dutch missionary Johannes Theodorus van der Kemp was the first missionary to work among the Xhosa. He became involved with the Khoi Khoi of the Cape Colony and…
Fighting Talk
Fighting Talk was initially a publication of the Springbok Legion of ex-servicemen and women, until in February 1954 when the "Fighting Talk Committee", in…
EventYusuf Dadoo, political activist, is born
On 5 September 1909, a tireless fighter for national and social liberation, Dr. Yusuf Mohamed Dadoo was born in Krugersdorp, Johannesburg. According to Essop…
EventWillie Smith, South Africa’s bantamweight champion boxer is born
William “Willie” Alexander Smith was born in Johannesburg on 4 July 1904.[i] Smith’s boxing debut took place on 20 June 1925.[ii] Willie Smith was South Africa…
PlaceGroote Schuur High School
English-medium school Groote Schuur High School was founded in 1959 as a co-educational Afrikaans High School in the Vredenhof residence, presently the Frank…
EventFIFA World Cup is staged in Africa for the first time
For the first time in the history of the Federation of International Football Association (FIFA), the World Cup was staged in Africa. Five African nations vied…
PlaceOld Lutheran Church, Kroondal
The Kroondal congregation was founded by a group of German speaking farmers, artisans and entrepreneurs living in and around the village of Kroondal, on 2…
PlaceOnderstepoort Veterinary Research Institute
The building was designed by the Department of Public Works and was completed in 1908 as the centre for the then bacteriological laboratory on the farm site,…
EventThe Aula, auditorium of the University of Pretoria, is opened by the Governor
The University of Pretoria (UP), previously known as the Transvaal University College (TUKS) was founded in 1908, and recently celebrated its centenary year in…
EventAfrican National Congress Youth League is founded
The African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) is the youth wing of the African National Congress. It was formed in 1944 by members of the ANC who believed…
EventAmy Johnson, a female aviator, lands in Cape Town in record time
Amy Johnson obtained her pilot's license from the London Aeroplane Club in 1929. After purchasing a second-hand aircraft, she made history by becoming the…
EventForces of the White Rhodesian regime (UDI) attack a nationalist guerrilla base in Mozambique
Rhodesia, now known as Zimbabwe, became a British colony in 1890. A number of civil unrests occurred during this time. By the 1960's, nationalist sentiment had…
EventThe new ochre-red, white and green tri-colour of the Transkei is adopted
Within the old South Africa, 10 homelands were created. The 'separate development' policies (Apartheid) of H.F. Verwoerd resulted in the 'awarding' of 'self…
EventAs part of a defiance campaign against the apartheid Government, SA is hit by a nationwide wave of protests
On 6 September 1989, the majority of South Africans witnessed the election of a national government in which it had no say; this was to be the last all-white…
EventDr. Federik Van Zyl Slabbert leads delegation to meet ANC
On 6 July 1987, Dr. Federik van Zyl Slabbert led a group of fifty-two mainly Afrikaans-speaking intellectuals, to meet with the then-banned African National…
EventYoweri Kaguta Moseveni becomes president of Uganda
Uganda experienced a number of changes of government since it attained its independence from British rule in 1962. In December 1980 Apollo Milton Obote, from…
EventA German gunboat, the Panther, reaches Morocco, increasing tensions between European powers
On 1 July 1911, the deployment of the German gunboat, the Panther to Agadir, Morocco, contributed significantly to the tension between the European powers in…
PlaceGraaff-Reinet Division
The district of Graaff-Reinet was constituted on 26 August 1785 and its boundaries were proclaimed on 17 July 1786. However, over the next century these…
PlaceWorld War Cenotaph
The Cenotaph on Du Toitspan Road, is a Memorial to 400 of Kimberley’s Men who died in the Great War (World War I) between 1914 and 1918. Designed by the local…