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EventFearon Fallows, first Astronomer Royal at the Cape, is born in England
Fearon Fallows, the first Astronomer Royal at the Cape, was born in Cockermouth, Cumberland on 4 July 1789. The son of a weaver, he was brought up in the…
EventWorld Aids Day
Following the January 1988 meeting of Health Ministers in London, a decision was taken that 1 December would annually be observed as World Aids Day. The step…
EventThe Afrikaner Broederbond is formed
On 5 June 1918 disaffected Afrikaners were brought together in a new organisation called Jong Suid-Afrika (Young South Africa). In 1919 the organisation…
EventSan involvement in the Battle of Chrissiesmeer
The Battle of Chrissiesmeer (Lake Chrissie) during Anglo-Boer War 2 started with an attack by General Louis Botha on the British forces under General Smith…
EventSir John Robinson forms Natal’s first ministry as Prime Minister
On 10 October 1893, Natal's first ministry was formed, with Sir John Robinson as Prime Minister, Minister of Education, and Colonial Secretary. Robinson, who…
EventZulu King Cetshwayo Dies
King Cetshwayo was born to Mpande, who was King Shaka’s half brother in 1826. His father declared him his successor very early on in life, which was unusual…
EventBritain and the Zulu Nation sign a peace treaty
In mid-January 1879 Lt-Gen. Lord Chelmsford invaded Zululand with three columns of British troops, starting the war that ended Zulu independence. After the…
EventElsa, the lioness made famous by Joy Adamson’s book Born Free, dies in Kenya
Elsa the lioness was one of three orphaned lions whose mother was killed in self defence by George Adamson. Adamson was a wildlife conservationist based in…
EventZola Budd, former SA athlete and World Record holder, is born
Zolla Budd was born to an Afrikaans family on 26 May 1966 in Bloemfontein. She was one of five children. Budd was especially close to her older sister Jenny…
EventNine members of the ANC are officially banned in Dakawa, Tanzania
On 28 December 1989, a document officially banning nine members of the African National Congress (ANC) was circulated at Dakawa in Tanzania. The nine members…
EventFormer Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat is born
On 25 December 1918, Anwar al-Sadat was born at Tala District. al-Sadat was a graduate of the Royal Military Academy in Cairo. During the 1952 revolution which…
Draft constitution of the ANC
Report of the working group under paragraph three of the Pretoria Minute 1. The Working Group was established under paragraph 3 of the Pretoria Minute, which…
EventState of Emergency follows Sharpeville massacre
The government proceeded with the introduction of apartheid laws in the 1950s. An example of this was the hated pass law. This forced Black people to carry…
EventAfrikaans Writer Breytenbach is sentenced
On an illegal trip to South Africa with a false passport, a well-known Afrikaans writer Breyten Breytenbach was betrayed, arrested and sentenced to nine years…
EventCOSATU delegates are left at Beitbridge
In spite of being refused to visit, the thirteen delegates of the Congress of South African Trade Union (COSATU), left for Zimbabwe with the intent of meeting…
EventSir Alfred Milner arrives as Governor of the Cape
The British Secretary of State for the Colonies, Joseph Chamberlain, appointed Sir Alfred Milner as Governor of the Cape Colony in 1897. Milner arrived in Cape…
EventSA composer Benjamin Tyamzashe is born
South African composer, choir conductor, organist and teacher, Benjamin Tyamzashe, affectionately known as 'B-ka-T', was born in Kimberley in 1890. B-ka-T…
EventAn earthquake, measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale, hits Cape Town.
On 4 December 1809 Cape Town was hit by an earthquake measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale. It is the biggest recorded earthquake to have hit the area. The quake…
ArchivePolitical Action Committee report
Report of the Political Action Committee to the 62nd Annual Congress of the National Union of South African Students, University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2…
50 years of forced removals under apartheid
Venue: Keisergracht - a walk down Keisergracht will take place with banners depicting District Six communities as well as other communities affected by forced…
ArchiveInternational Childrens Day June 1
A2 silkkscreen blue, yellow, red, green on white; Graphic map of world with pictures of children in continents; text: Ask the children; International…
ArchiveMonth of Compassion 1986
A3 full colour poster; litho; drawing man and woman holding cross, soldiers shooting people; text: Month of Compassion 1986; ...This is true: the hour comes,…
Mayibuye
Mayibuye, published for many years as a small, underground newsletter, was one of three African National Congress publications alongside Sechaba and Dawn …
EventEmperor Menelik II, emperor of Ethiopia dies
Menelik II was emperor of Ethiopia from 1889 to his death on 12 December 1913. Menelik gained great fame and respect for defeating the Italian colonizers. He…
EventBar argues against the Suppression of Communism Bill
The Johannesburg Bar declared that if the Suppression of Communism Bill was passed, the freedom of people in South Africa would be in jeopardy. The Bar made…
EventJudgement is handed down in a landmark case
The Appeal Court handed down a landmark decision in the case Rikhoto v. East Rand Administration Board (ERAB), granting him the right to permanent urban status…
EventGovernment’s final consolidation of ‘homelands’
The Nationalist party government announced its intention to consolidate the total number of separate 'homeland' areas from 113 to 36. The homelands were…
EventThe NCCR is dissolved
The National Coordinating Committee for the Repatriation of South African Exiles (NCCR) was dissolved due to fraud and corruption amounting to substantial…
EventUN Special Envoy visits SA
Following the unanimous adoption of resolution 765 by the UN Security Council, Cyrus Vance was dispatched to South Africa as Special Representative of the UN…
EventSanctions are applied on Libya over Lockerbie bombing
Governments across the world applied United Nations (UN) sanctions against Libya because of its alleged involvement in the destruction of a Pan Am airliner…