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EventHelen Nontando Jabavu, author and periodical editor in London, is born in Middeldrift, SA
Helen Nontando (Noni) Jabavu was born in 1919 in the Eastern Cape into a literary family. From the age of thirteen, she was schooled in England, and continued…
EventPhambili Ka Ntloko, national organiser of AZAPO, is born
Phambili Ka Ntloko was born on 18 April 1960 in Queenstown, Eastern Cape. As a high school student, Ntloko became involved in the South African Students’…
PlaceSharpeville, Gauteng
Sharpeville Township holds many sad memories and is Home to the Memorial at the 'Human Rights Precinct'. Sharpeville is situated +/-14 km from Vereeniging.In…
PlaceGugulethu Township
Gugulethu is a township 15 km away from Cape Town. The name is a contraction of igugu lethu, which is Xhosa for 'Our Pride'. This township was established…
PlaceTogo
Togo is a country of western Africa. Lomé, the capital, is situated in the south-west of the Country and is the largest city and port. Until 1884, what is…
EventTanganyika becomes a member of the UN
On 14 December 1961, Tanganyika became a member of the United Nations(UN) and two years later, in 1963 it merged with the island of Zanzibar. Following the…
EventDutch Foreign Minister Luns is asked by the Johannesburg
On 16 February 1960, the Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs J.M.A.H Luns was asked by Johannesburg-based Dutch Immigration Committee to cease what they call …
EventLaurie Bloomfield takes picture of rioting in Cato Manor, Durban
On 24 January 1960, Laurie Bloomfield, a photographer for the Daily News took a picture of rioting in Cato Manor, Durban which was immediately published around…
EventLuc Montagnier, virologist who discovered the human immunodeficiency virus, is born
On 18 August 1932, Luc Montagnier was born in Chabris, France. He studied natural sciences at the University of Poitiers and received his license of sciences…
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…
EventHarold Macmillan begins his “winds of change” tour of Africa
British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan began his "winds of change" tour of Africa in Ghana. Ghana became the first country in Sub-Sahara to gain independence…
EventJudith Mason, SA artist, is born in Pretoria.
Born Judith Seelander Menge on 10 October 1938, Judith Mason is one of the most prolific artists in South Africa. She obtained a degree in Fine Arts at the…
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…
EventNine policemen are killed in Cato Manor riots in Durban, shortly before the infamous Sharpville Massacre
On 24 January 1960, nine policemen were killed by an angry mob at Cato Manor in Durban. The incident happened after a raid by police searching for illicit…
ArticleSouth African Congress of Trade Unions Timeline 1919-1997
1919 Formation of the Industrial and Commercial Workers Union of Africa (ICU). 1924 Introduction of Industrial Conciliation Act. 1941 Formation of…
EventSandra Smith is the last woman to be executed in South Africa
On 2 June, 24 year old Coloured woman, Sandra Smith, was executed by hanging at Pretoria Central Prison. She was the last woman to be executed in South Africa…
PlaceVenda
In 1962, the South African Government created Venda as a Homeland for the Venda-speaking people. The area set aside for the bantustan, or homeland, was in the…
EventSimon Petros Matseke, prominent in African social and political life, dies in Pretoria
Peter Matseke was born in 1878 in Pretoria. When the Anglo-Boer War broke out, he was drafted as driver for Boer Commandos. Through that experience, he learnt…
Known as Black Tuesday’, the New York Stock exchange collapsed sending economic shockwaves throughout the world and throwing the global economy into depression
Tuesday, 29th October 1929, saw the world's economy go into recession as the New York Stock Exchange collapsed and saw shocked investors withdraw their…
EventWiehahn Commission Report tabled in parliament
On 1 May 1979, the first interim report of the Wiehahn Commission is tabled in Parliament. The Wiehahn Commission was set up by the government after the Durban…
EventEgyptian President Anwar Sadat, Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and President Carter begin a Middle East peace conference at Camp David, Maryland
The three heads of state met for 13 days of secret meetings at Camp Devid, the Presidential Retreat in the Catoctin Mountains of Maryland, about 100 kilometers…
EventIvory Coast’s new prime minister, Daniel Kablan Duncan, takes office
After emerging as an independent country following French colonization, Ivory Coast came under the leadership of Félix Houphouët-Boigny. Known as the father of…
EventThe first museum is opened in Soweto, and is named after Hector Pieterson, one of the first casualties of the 16 June 1976 Soweto uprising.
The Hector Pieterson Museum, the first museum in Soweto, was opened on 16 June 2002. The Museum is situated on Kumalo Street in Orlando West, and is named…
EventFirst air flight from London to South Africa
By the 1920s, the development of heavier than air flight had progressed considerably, partly due to the outbreak of World War One. Britain, having emerged…
EventKing Moshoeshoe II is reinstated as King of Lesotho
On 25 January 1995, King Moshoeshoe II was formally reinstated as King of Lesotho. Moshoeshoe had a turbulent reign over Lesotho as he was twice dethroned,…
EventHaile Selassie, deposed Ethiopian emperor, dies
Haile Selassie was born Lij Tafari Makonnen, in the village of Ejersa Gor, in the Harar Province of Ethiopia. Heir to a 13th century dynasty, he ascended to…
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…
ArticleFietas: Pageview timeline 1880-1988
This timeline is NOT complete. Any omissions are unintentional as this timeline is a work in progress that will be added to over time. Please click on the…
Dr Mamphela Ramphele interviewed by Rupert Taylor, 16 April 1998, Cape Town
Dr Mamphela Ramphele 16/4/98, Cape Town interviewed by Rupert Taylor Taylor: What is the nature of the conflict? Ramphele: I’ll take issue with the…
ArticleThe Roots of Segregation: 1860-1910
By the 1860s, subjugation of African people in the immediate vicinity of the Cape had been achieved. Other than a small, enfranchised minority who owned land,…