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EventNatal is formally separated from the Cape Colony
On 15 July 1856, Natal Colony (now known as Kwazulu Natal) was formally separated from the Cape Colony by means of the Charter of Natal. The Cape Governor…
EventViolence erupts in Paarl
Violence erupted when Poqo members from Mbekweni, Paarl, met and resolved to attack the White town of Paarl. Over 200 men armed with axes, pangas, sticks,…
EventGeraldine Fraser is born
Geraldine Fraser was born on 24 August 1960, in Lansdowne, Cape Town, the daughter of a teacher and factory worker. She became politically active at…
EventDetectives testify against members of the ANC and the Congress Alliance in the infamous Treason Trial
On 18 February 1960, South African Police (SAP) detectives continue to give evidence at the Treason trial against the accused. The 156 accused in the trial…
EventThe first Non-White South African Table Tennis team participates at the World Championship
On 6 March 1957, the first South African Non-White sporting team participated at the World Table Tennis Board Championship in Stockholm, Sweden. They were…
EventThe Algerian War of Independence begins
On the 1 November 1954, small units of Algerians organized by Front de Liberation National (FLN) attacked government buildings. These attacks were fuelled by a…
EventWW2: A German bomb fired off Algeria’s coast sinks British transport ship (HMT Rohna) carrying US soldiers.
Built in 1926, the aging steam ship was pressed into service as a troop transport by the Royal Navy and had already carried thousands allied of troops to…
EventJacob Zuma, Former President of South Africa and of the ANC, is born.
Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma was born on the 12 April 1942, at Inkandla, in KwaZulu Natal. At the age of 17, he joined the African National Congress (ANC),…
EventSA Corps of Military Police is reorganised
On 10 November 1939, shortly after the outbreak of the Second World War (WW2), Proclamation 276 of Government Gazette 2699 was published. This proclamation…
EventPresident F. W. de Klerk rings in cabinet changes
In what was widely regarded as move to prepare the ground for the country's first multiracial elections, President F.W. de Klerk reshuffled the cabinet. This…
EventRebels overrun the Somalian capital of Mogadishu
In 1969 Somalian president Abd-i-rashid Ali Shermarke was assassinated in a military Coup. Major General Mohammad Siyad Barre took control of the country's…
EventAndries Hendrik Potgieter establishes the town of Potchefstroom
Andries Hendrik Potgieter establishes the town of Potchefstroom after moving away from Natal and heading inland and eventually settling in the northern Free…
EventSir Benjamin D’Urban, for whom the city Durban was named, assumes office as Governor of the Cape of Good Hope
Benjamin D'Urban was born in Suffolk, England and joined the British Army in 1793. He soon rose to prominence, serving in most major battles, including…
EventGrant Baker, SA surfer, wins the Mavericks Surf Contest at Santa Cruz
An accomplished short board surfer with a fondness for tube-riding, Grant Baker from Durban, KwaZulu-Natal became the first surfer from outside Santa Cruz,…
Event15 000 applications for gold mining permits received per week in Johannesburg
The discovery of diamonds (1867) and gold (1886) transformed South African from an agrarian society at the edge of world trade into a globally integrated…
EventThe 104mm field-gun known as ‘Long Cecil’ is test fired for the first time
The 104mm field-gun designed by American George Labram and manufactured in the De Beers workshop in Kimberley, known as 'Long Cecil' after Cecil John Rhodes,…
EventFirst postage stamp in Africa is issued in the Cape Colony
On 1 September 1853, the first adhesive postage stamp in Africa was issued in the Cape of Good Hope, a British colony at the time. The triangular shaped stamp…
EventInitial experiments on the body of Egyptian King,Tutankhamen, conclude he is a fifteen year old boy
Tutankhamen (also spelled Tutankhamun/Tutankhamon) was an Egyptian Pharoah who ruled in the period known as the 18th Dynasty, the years between 1332 and 1323…
EventZuid-Afrikaansche Republiek decides that December 16 will be a public holiday called Dingaan’s Day
The decision to make December 16 a holiday named Dingaan’s Day was in celebration for what Voortrekkers viewed as a 'victory' over Zulu warriors near the Ncome…
PlaceOld Court House, Victoria Embankment, Durban
The building was designed by architect Stanley Hudson and was erected in 1911 as the Old Court House, and is the oldest public building in the central business…
EventState of emergency declared after Sharpeville Massacre
This was the first such declaration of a State of Emergency by the Apartheid state. During these periods, the government had free reign to suspend civil…
FAVT: Future Africa Visions in Time – Group Show (until 28 April 2017)
Image: Zohra Opoku & Emeka Alams, Fallen, 2015, Picture by: Lara Buchmann The Bayreuth Academy of Advanced African Studies, Iwalewahaus (University of…
EventJoint call for June 16 Stay away
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), United Democratic Front (UDF) and National Education Crisis Committee (NECC) gathered to issue a call for…
EventMandela meets Taiwanese Foreign Minister
Taiwanese Foreign Minister John Chang Hsiao Yen President met with President Nelson Mandela. While South Africa had maintained a friendly official relationship…
ArchiveRenewed fighting in April
On April 1 1989, the start of the implementation of Resolution 435, clashes between Swapo guerillas and South African security forces broke out in northern…
ArchiveIn Verwoerd's South Africa: a tale of per
The article describes the experiences of various members of the Unity Movement and those directly involved with the liberation struggle, and illustrates the…
EventThe Johannesburg International Airport is officially renamed OR Tambo International Airport by President Mbeki.
OR Tambo Airport is South Africa’s main airport for domestic and international flights. It is Located in Kempton Park, Ekurhuleni, just outside Johannesburg…
EventSA withdraws from the International Labour Organisation
In February 1964 the International Labour Organisation (ILO) voted in favour of the suspension of South Africa from its Annual General Conferences. The ILO…
EventSolly Sachs leaves South Africa
Socialist and labour activist Emil Solomon (Solly) Sachs left South Africa to settle in England on this date. He stated that his position in South Africa had…
EventTrader and philanthropist Mohamed Joosub dies
On 27 August 1944, a pioneer wholesaler, trader, philanthropist and devout Muslim, Mohamed Hajee Joosub, died in Pretoria. Joosub left his birth place Ranavav,…