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PlaceMount Fletcher, Eastern Cape
Mount Fletcher is a Town in Joe Gqabi District Municipality in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, 69 km North-North-East of Maclear. Mount Fletcher is…
Mooi River, a Town of the Midlands Meander- Natal
Mooi River was originally named: 'Lawrenceville'- after the Irish farmer who formalized its settlement during the 1800's. The Village took its enduring name…
EventChief of the Zondi, Bambata is killed
In the Mpanza valley in the Umvoti district, a minor chief of the Zondi, Bambatha ka Mancinza Zondi (also spelt Bambada, Bhambada), flatly refused to collect…
EventThe ANC celebrates its centenary anniversary in Bloemfontein
On 8 January 2012, the African National Congress (ANC) celebrated a centenary anniversary in Bloemfontein. The centenary was celebrated in a year-long…
EventCol. Muammar Gaddafi seizes power in Libya
On 1 September 1969, Muammar Gaddafi seized power in Libya after a coup d'etat. Gaddafi, the leader of the Free Unionist Officers movement, overthrew the…
PlaceMatjiesfontein
A visit to Matjiesfontein is like stepping straight into the Victorian era. Established in the late 1800s, this tiny railway town boasts beautifully preserved…
PlaceKoopmans de Wet House, 35 Strand Street, Cape Town
The land was granted at the turn of the 18th century by Governor Willem Adriaan van de Stel to a rich merchant, Reynier Smedinga. Tradition has it that…
PlaceNewlands
In 1700, Governor Willem van der Stel was granted land some 9km outside Cape Town, which he named 'De Nieuwe Land' or 'Nieuwland' and developed as a country…
PlaceTanzania
The Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama explored the East African coast in 1498 on his voyage to India. By 1506, the Portuguese claimed control over the entire…
EventFlorence Nightingale, British nurse in the Crimean War, is born
Florence Nightingale was born on 12 May 1820 in Florence, Italy. From an early age, she felt it was her calling to become a nurse, but mainly due to class and…
EventPortuguese navigator Bartholomew Dias erects the first stone cross on the South African coast
Portuguese navigator Bartholomew Dias erects his first padrÁƒo, or stone cross, at Kwaaihoek near the mouth of the Bushman's River on the Eastern Cape coast…
EventRenowned Nigerian writer, Chinua Achebe, is born in Ogidi, Nigeria
Chinua Achebe (1930-) is a prominent Igbo (Ibo) writer, famous for his novels describing the effects of Western customs and values on traditional African…
PlaceThe Fourth Raadsaal, Bloemfontein
The Raadsaal building which currently stands in President Brand Street, is the fourth such to have been Built by the old Republic of the Orange Free State…
PlaceWoodstock
The Village of Papendorp lay some 2 km East of Cape Town, on the Main Road to Stellenbosch, later to become known as, Albert Road. The Area was named after…
Goegap Nature Reserve, Springbok
This 7 000 hectare nature reserve, supports 600 different indigenous plant species, 45 mammal species and 94 bird species! This reserve is located 15 km from…
PlaceGraskop, Mpumalanga
Graskop is a small Forestry Town, perched on the edge of the Drakensberg Escarpment, a region of Mpumalanga. Graskop is only a few minutes drive from a number…
Botlierskop, Private Game Reserve
Set on the foothills of the magnificent Outeniqua Mountains near Mossel Bay and George in a Malaria Free area in South Africa's Garden Route, Botlierskop…
ArchiveAll That Glitters - Before the mineral discoveries by Emilia Potenza
From the book: All That Glitters by Emilia PotenzaLife in Southern Africa changed greatly because of the discovery of diamonds (1867) and gold (1886). As with…
Political changes from 1750 to 1820
Britain takes control of the Cape Once revolutionary armies of France invaded Holland in 1795, the British feared that the French would take control of the…
PlaceAgtersrivier and Kou Bokkeveld Pass , Western Cape
River rising in the Koue Bokkeveld Mountains, (meaning Cold Buck Shrub Land Mountain Range) and flowing North West to join Voorsterivier, 15 km South of…
Ubuntu Awards 2018
ABOUT THE AWARDS The Annual Ubuntu Awards have grown exponentially since they were launched in 2015. Now in their fourth year, the Awards are carried live on…
Document 21 - Letter from S. P. Bunting to E. R. Roux, 27 October 1930
From: South Africa's Radical Tradition, a documentary history, Volume One 1907 - 1950, by Allison Drew Document 21 - Letter from S. P. Bunting to E. R. Roux…
EventPenny Heyns, South African swimming star, is born.
Penelope Heyns, was born on the 8th of November 1974 in Springs, Transvaal. Her parents later moved to the Natal South Coast. She attended Doon Heights…
EventThe Bondelswarts surrender to the German forces
Germany's occupation of Namibia was accomplished through military conquest of the numerous groups in the region, with the Khoikhoi being among the last to be…
EventSouth African Defence Force (SADF) attacks a Namibian refugee camp in Cassinga, Angola
On 4 May 1978, the South African air force flew over Cassinga, allegedly a Namibian refugee camp in Southern Angola. It was the South African Defence Force’s …
PlacePhoenix Settlement and Gandhi Trail
The Phoenix Settlement comprised of 100 acres of land and was purchased by Gandhiji in 1904. It was on this Settlement that Gandhi started his journey of…
PlaceTree Garden, President Brand Street, Bloemfontein
Along President Brand Street (Bloemfontein’s ‘historical mile’) you will find classic sandstone buildings that surprise with their grandeur - the 3rd Raadsaal …
PlaceEmpangeni
Empangeni, a town about 160 km from Durban on the R34 just off the N2, is positioned in the hilly countryside of the Uthungulu district. The area around…
The Arrival of the Khoisan
About 2 000 years ago (100 BC), life began to change significantly in the Western part of Southern Africa. Herders, also known as the Khoikhoi, arrived,…
Defining the term 'Bantu'
The following article is based on an essay from Kees van der Waal’s chapter in “Critical Essays on Afrikaans Places of Memory” The term ‘Bantu has gone…