1.
Union of South Africa
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The Union of South Africa is the historic predecessor to the present-day Republic of South Africa. It came into being on 31 May 1910 with the unification of four previously separate British colonies, Cape Colony, Natal Colony, Transvaal Colony and it included the territories formerly part of the Boer republics annexed in 1902, South African Republic and Orange Free State. The Union of South Africa was a dominion of the British Empire and it was governed under a form of constitutional monarchy, with the Crown represented by a governor-general. The Union came to an end when the 1961 constitution was enacted, on 31 May 1961 the country became a republic and left the Commonwealth, under the new name Republic of South Africa. Unlike Canada and Australia, the Union of South Africa was a state, rather than a federation. A bicameral parliament was created, consisting of a House of Assembly and Senate, during the course of the Union the franchise changed on several occasions always to suit the needs of the government of the day. Bloemfontein and Pietermaritzburg were given financial compensation, the Union initially remained under the British Crown as a self-governing dominion of the British Empire. With the passage of the Statute of Westminster in 1931, the Union and other dominions became equal in status to the United Kingdom, the Monarch was represented in South Africa by a Governor-General, while effective power was exercised by the Executive Council, headed by the Prime Minister. Louis Botha, formerly a Boer general, was appointed first Prime Minister of the Union, heading a coalition representing the white Afrikaner, prosecutions before courts were instituted in the name of the Crown and government officials served in the name of the Crown. Some extremist Nationalist organisations, like the Ossewa Brandwag, openly supported Nazi Germany during the Second World War, the Afrikaner-dominated Government consequently withdrew South Africa from the Commonwealth. Natal, which had an English-speaking majority, voted against, following the referendum result, some whites in Natal even called for secession from the Union. Five years earlier, some 33,000 Natalians had signed the Natal Covenant in opposition to the plans for a republic, subsequently the National Party Government passed a Constitution that repealed the South Africa Act. The features of the Union were carried over with little change to the newly formed Republic. The decision to transform from a Union to Republic was narrowly decided in the referendum, the South Africa Act dealt with race in two specific provisions. Second it made native affairs a matter for the national government, the practice therefore was to establish a Minister of Native Affairs. Several previous unsuccessful attempts to unite the colonies were made, with proposed political models ranging from unitary, Sir George Grey, the Governor of Cape Colony from 1854 to 1861, decided that unifying the states of southern Africa would be mutually beneficial. He believed that a united South African Federation, under British control and his idea was greeted with cautious optimism in southern Africa, the Orange Free State agreed to the idea in principle and the Transvaal may also eventually have agreed. However, he was overruled by the British Colonial Office which ordered him to desist from his plans and his refusal to abandon the idea eventually led to him being recalled
2.
South Africa
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South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa, is the southernmost country in Africa. South Africa is the 25th-largest country in the world by land area and it is the southernmost country on the mainland of the Old World or the Eastern Hemisphere. About 80 percent of South Africans are of Sub-Saharan African ancestry, divided among a variety of ethnic groups speaking different Bantu languages, the remaining population consists of Africas largest communities of European, Asian, and multiracial ancestry. South Africa is a multiethnic society encompassing a variety of cultures, languages. Its pluralistic makeup is reflected in the recognition of 11 official languages. The country is one of the few in Africa never to have had a coup détat, however, the vast majority of black South Africans were not enfranchised until 1994. During the 20th century, the black majority sought to recover its rights from the dominant white minority, with this struggle playing a role in the countrys recent history. The National Party imposed apartheid in 1948, institutionalising previous racial segregation, since 1994, all ethnic and linguistic groups have held political representation in the countrys democracy, which comprises a parliamentary republic and nine provinces. South Africa is often referred to as the Rainbow Nation to describe the multicultural diversity. The World Bank classifies South Africa as an economy. Its economy is the second-largest in Africa, and the 34th-largest in the world, in terms of purchasing power parity, South Africa has the seventh-highest per capita income in Africa. However, poverty and inequality remain widespread, with about a quarter of the population unemployed, nevertheless, South Africa has been identified as a middle power in international affairs, and maintains significant regional influence. The name South Africa is derived from the geographic location at the southern tip of Africa. Upon formation the country was named the Union of South Africa in English, since 1961 the long form name in English has been the Republic of South Africa. In Dutch the country was named Republiek van Zuid-Afrika, replaced in 1983 by the Afrikaans Republiek van Suid-Afrika, since 1994 the Republic has had an official name in each of its 11 official languages. Mzansi, derived from the Xhosa noun umzantsi meaning south, is a name for South Africa. South Africa contains some of the oldest archaeological and human fossil sites in the world, extensive fossil remains have been recovered from a series of caves in Gauteng Province. The area is a UNESCO World Heritage site and has termed the Cradle of Humankind
3.
1911
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As of the start of 1911, the Gregorian calendar was 13 days ahead of the Julian calendar, which remained in localized use until 1923. A highlight was the race for the South Pole, through mid-January – First Industrial Airplane Show held in conjunction with the U. S. International Auto Show at Manhattan’s Grand Central Palace in New York. Charles W. Chappelle, a member of the U. S. Aeronautical Reserve, is the only African-American to invent, january 31911 Kebin earthquake, An earthquake of 7.7 moment magnitude strikes near Almaty in Russian Turkestan, killing 450 or more people. Siege of Sidney Street, Two Latvian anarchists die after a siege against a combined police. Home Secretary, Winston Churchill arrived to oversee events, january 5 – Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity is founded at Indiana University Bloomington. January 18 – Eugene B. Ely lands on the deck of the USS Pennsylvania stationed in San Francisco harbor, january 26 – The United States and Canada announce the successful negotiation of their first reciprocal trade agreement. January 30 – The Cypriot football club Anorthosis Famagusta FC was created, february 5 The Missouri State Capitol building in Jefferson City, Missouri is entirely destroyed by fire after a bolt of lightning strikes the dome. The revolution in Haiti is suppressed after the leader, General Montreuil Guillaume, is captured by government troops, General Millionard is executed two days later. February 11 – The Lincoln Memorial Commission is established to find a site for the proposed Lincoln Memorial. February 13 – HNK Hajduk Split, a Croatian football club is founded, february 17 – The first quasi-official airmail flight occurs when Fred Wiseman carries three letters between Petaluma and Santa Rosa, California. February 18 – The first official air mail flight, second overall, takes place from Allahabad, India to Naini, India, march 8 – International Womens Day is celebrated for the first time in history. March 25 – The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in New York City kills 146, march 29 – The United States Army adopts a new service pistol, the M1911 designed by John Browning. It remains the US service pistol for 74 years, April 3 – Jean Sibelius conducts the première of his Symphony No.4 in Helsinki April 8 – Heike Kamerlingh Onnes discovers superconductivity. He presents his findings on April 28, April 13 – Mexican Revolution, Rebels take Agua Prieta on the Sonora–Arizona border, government troops take the town back April 17 when the rebel leader Red López is drunk. April 18 – SS Lusitania, a 5, 557-ton Portuguese passenger liner en route from Mozambique to Lisbon, strikes Bellows Rock just off Cape Point, April 19 – Mexican Revolution, Francisco I. Maderos troops besiege Ciudad Juárez but General Juan J. Navarro refuses his surrender demand, April 22 – A passenger train from Port Alfred to Grahamstown in South Africa derails on the Blaauwkrantz Bridge and plunges into the ravine 200 feet below, killing 31 and seriously injuring 23. April 26 – HŠK Građanski Zagreb, a Croatian Association football club, is founded in Zagreb, April 27 – Huanghuagang Uprising takes place in China. This is an insurrection where rebels take five villages in an attempt to create a base to fight Imperial rule
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