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in opposition to the plans for a republic, subsequently the National Party Government passed a Constitution that repealed the South Africa Act.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.
1915
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As of the start of 1915, the Gregorian calendar was 13 days ahead of the Julian calendar, which remained in localized use until 1923. Below, the events of World War I have the WWI prefix, january 1 WWI, The Royal Navy battleship HMS Formidable is sunk off Lyme Regis, Dorset, England, by an Imperial German Navy U-boat with the loss of 547 crew. The Battle of Broken Hill, an ambush near Broken Hill, New South Wales. Harry Houdini performs a straitjacket escape performance, january 5 – Joseph E. Carberry sets an altitude record of 11,690 feet, carrying Capt. Benjamin Delahauf Foulois as a passenger in a fixed-wing aircraft. January 12 The United States House of Representatives rejects a proposal to give women the right to vote, a Fool There Was premières in the United States starring Theda Bara as a femme fatale, she quickly becomes one of early cinemas most sensational stars. January 13 – The 6.7 Mw Avezzano earthquake shakes the Province of LAquila in Italy with a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI, various agencies estimate the number of people killed to be 29, 978–32,610. January 18 – Twenty-One Demands from Japan to China are made, january 19 Georges Claude patents the neon discharge tube for use in advertising. WWI, German Zeppelins bomb the towns of Great Yarmouth and Kings Lynn in England for the first time. January 21 – Kiwanis is founded in Detroit, as The Supreme Lodge Benevolent Order Brothers, january 24 – WW I, Battle of Dogger Bank, British Grand Fleet defeats the German High Seas Fleet, sinking the armoured cruiser SMS Blücher. Emory College is rechartered as Emory University, and plans to move its campus from Oxford. January 26 – The Rocky Mountain National Park is established by an act of the United States Congress, january 26 – WWI, Ottoman Army begins the Raid on the Suez Canal. January 27 – WWI, Military casualties begin arriving at the Hôpital Temporaire dArc-en-Barrois, january 28 – An act of the United States Congress designates the United States Coast Guard, began in 1790, as a military branch. February – While working as a cook at New Yorks Sloane Hospital for Women under a name, Typhoid Mary infects 25 people. February 4 – The Maritz Rebellion of disaffected Boere against the government of the Union of South Africa ends with the surrender of remaining rebels, february 8 – The controversial film, The Birth of a Nation, directed by D. W. Griffith, premieres in Los Angeles. It will be the film for around 25 years. February 18 – WWI, Germany regards waters around the British Isles to be a war zone from this date, february 20 – In San Francisco the Panama–Pacific International Exposition is opened. March – The 1915 Palestine locust infestation breaks out in Palestine, March 3 – The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, the predecessor of NASA, is founded in the United States. March 11 – WWI, British armed merchantman HMS Bayano is sunk in the North Channel off the coast of Scotland by Imperial German Navy U-boat SM U-27
4.
Monarchy of South Africa
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The monarchs constitutional roles were mostly delegated to the Governor-General of the Union of South Africa. South Africa became a republic and left the Commonwealth on 31 May 1961, on 31 May 1994, South Africa rejoined the Commonwealth as a republic, after the end of apartheid. The monarchy was created by the South Africa Act 1909 which united four British colonies in southern Africa, Cape of Good Hope, Natal, Orange River Colony and Transvaal. The Act also made provisions for admitting Southern Rhodesia as a province of the Union in the future. South-West Africa became a League of Nations mandate of the Union in 1915, following a referendum on the subject, South Africa adopted a new constitution in 1961 which abolished the monarchy. King George VI, his wife Queen Elizabeth, and their daughters Elizabeth and Margaret, Queen Elizabeth II, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, visited South Africa in her capacity as Head of the Commonwealth, in 1995 and 1999. State President of South Africa President of South Africa
5.
George V
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George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. He was the son of Albert Edward, Prince of Wales. From the time of his birth, he was third in the line of succession behind his father and his own brother, Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence. From 1877 to 1891, George served in the Royal Navy, on the death of his grandmother in 1901, Georges father became King-Emperor of the British Empire, and George was created Prince of Wales. He succeeded his father in 1910 and he was the only Emperor of India to be present at his own Delhi Durbar. His reign saw the rise of socialism, communism, fascism, Irish republicanism, the Parliament Act 1911 established the supremacy of the elected British House of Commons over the unelected House of Lords. In 1917, George became the first monarch of the House of Windsor, in 1924 he appointed the first Labour ministry and in 1931 the Statute of Westminster recognised the dominions of the Empire as separate, independent states within the Commonwealth of Nations. He had health problems throughout much of his reign and at his death was succeeded by his eldest son. George was born on 3 June 1865, in Marlborough House and he was the second son of the Prince and Princess of Wales, Albert Edward and Alexandra. His father was the eldest son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and he was baptised at Windsor Castle on 7 July 1865 by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Charles Longley. As a younger son of the Prince of Wales, there was expectation that George would become king. He was third in line to the throne, after his father and elder brother, George was only 17 months younger than Albert Victor, and the two princes were educated together. John Neale Dalton was appointed as their tutor in 1871, neither Albert Victor nor George excelled intellectually. For three years from 1879, the brothers served on HMS Bacchante, accompanied by Dalton. They toured the colonies of the British Empire in the Caribbean, South Africa and Australia, and visited Norfolk, Virginia, as well as South America, the Mediterranean, Egypt, Dalton wrote an account of their journey entitled The Cruise of HMS Bacchante. Between Melbourne and Sydney, Dalton recorded a sighting of the Flying Dutchman, after Lausanne, the brothers were separated, Albert Victor attended Trinity College, Cambridge, while George continued in the Royal Navy. He travelled the world, visiting many areas of the British Empire, during his naval career he commanded Torpedo Boat 79 in home waters then HMS Thrush on the North America station, before his last active service in command of HMS Melampus in 1891–92. From then on, his rank was largely honorary
6.
Governor-General of the Union of South Africa
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The Governor-general of the Union of South Africa was the representative of the British and later South African Crown in the Union of South Africa between 31 May 1910 and 31 May 1961. The Union of South Africa was a Commonwealth realm in which Queen Elizabeth II was given the title Queen of South Africa, as in other Dominions, this would change, and from 1943 onward only South Africans held the office. The office was established by the South Africa Act 1909, although the Governor General was nominally the countrys chief executive, in practice he was bound by convention to act on the advice of the prime minister and the cabinet. In the interim, the National Party used the Governor-Generals post as a sinecure for retired National Party ministers. In 1957, God Save the Queen ceased to have status with Die Stem van Suid-Afrika as a national anthem. However, it was not until 1960 that prime minister Hendrik Verwoerd advised governor-general Swart to hold a referendum on the issue, the result was 52 per cent in favour of the change. Swart, the last governor-general, asked the Queen to relieve him of his duties on 30 April 1961, state President of South Africa President of South Africa Prime Minister of South Africa
7.
Sydney Buxton, 1st Earl Buxton
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Sydney Charles Buxton, 1st Earl Buxton GCMG PC was a radical British Liberal politician of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Buxton was the son of Charles Buxton and grandson of social reformer Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton and his mother was Emily Mary, daughter of the physician and traveller Sir Henry Holland, 1st Baronet. He was born in London and educated at Clifton College and Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1880, Buxton became prominent in political circles by the publication of his Handbook to the Political Questions of the Day, a work which eventually went through 11 editions. That same year, he ran for Parliament for Boston, however, he became an MP in 1883 by winning a by-election in Peterborough. He was defeated in the 1885 general election, but returned to Parliament the very next year and he would represent this constituency in Parliament until 1914. From 1892-95, Buxton served as Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies, in 1905, he earned his first Cabinet post, that of Postmaster-General. In this capacity he introduced such services as penny postage to the United States, the Canadian magazine post, in 1910, Buxton was named President of the Board of Trade, in this position he oversaw the passage or amendment of many trade and commerce laws. Upon the sinking of the RMS Titanic in 1912, he asked Lord Loreburn and this commission eventually came to be headed by Lord Mersey. In February 1914, Buxton was appointed Governor-General of South Africa, thereafter, Buxton and Botha formed an effective partnership, planning and executing South African actions in the war, including the invasion of the neighbouring German colony of South West Africa. Buxton travelled widely throughout South Africa, and endeared himself to the people, upon his retirement in 1920, the people demonstrated their affection for him. He continued his interest in South African affairs after returning to England and he was created Earl Buxton in 1920, and continued to be a member of the Liberal Party, often supporting his close friend and colleague Sir Edward Grey. In his later years, he had to undergo amputation of his leg due to an injury sustained earlier in his life. He died at Newtimber on 15 October 1934, Buxton was twice married, firstly in 1882 to Hon. By his first wife, he had two sons and one daughter, of whom the sons died in his lifetime. By his second wife, he had one son and two daughters, of whom the son and the daughter died in his lifetime. By his first wife Hon. Constance Mary Lubbock, Charles Sydney Buxton, the elder son Charles Sydney Buxton, the only surviving son by his first wife Constance, proposed marriage to Octavia Wilberforce, a descendant of the reformer, but she refused him. Kenneth Sydney Buxton, died in childhood, aged seven, Lady Phyllis Sydney Buxton, later Lady Phyllis Ponsonby OBE, married 23 September 1918 Rev. She died aged 25, shortly after the birth of her third child, after her death, her husband remarried
8.
Prime Minister of South Africa
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The Prime Minister of South Africa was the head of government in South Africa between 1910 and 1984. The position of Prime Minister was established in 1910, when the Union of South Africa was formed and he was appointed by the head of state—the Governor-General until 1961 and the State President after South Africa became a republic in 1961. In practice, he was the leader of the majority party or coalition in the House of Assembly, the first Prime Minister was Louis Botha, a former Boer general and war hero during the Second Boer War. He was the leading political figure and de facto chief executive. The last Prime Minister, Pieter Willem Botha, became the first executive State President after the constitutional reform, parties South African Party United Party National Party State President of South Africa President of South Africa Governor-General of the Union of South Africa
9.
Louis Botha
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Louis Botha was a South African politician who was the first Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa—the forerunner of the modern South African state. A Boer war hero during the Second Boer War, he would fight to have South Africa become a British Dominion. He was born in Greytown, Natal as one of 13 children born to Louis Botha Senior and he briefly attended the school at Hermannsburg before his family relocated to the Orange Free State. The name Louis runs throughout the family, with every generation since General Louis Botha having the eldest son named Louis, Botha led Dinuzulus Volunteers, a group of Boers that had supported Dinuzulu against Zibhebhu in 1884. He later became a member of the parliament of Transvaal in 1897, in 1899, Botha fought in the Second Boer War, initially under Lucas Meyer in Northern Natal, and later as a general commanding and fighting impressively at Colenso and Spion Kop. On the death of P. J. Joubert, he was made commander-in-chief of the Transvaal Boers, after the battle at the Tugela, Botha granted a twenty-four-hour armistice to General Buller to enable him to bury his dead. Winston Churchill revealed that General Botha was the man who captured him at the ambush of a British armoured train on 15 November 1899, coetzer 1996, p.30 also claims that Botha captured Churchill at train ambush 15 November 1899. Churchill was not aware of the mans identity until 1902, when Botha travelled to London seeking loans to assist his countrys reconstruction, the incident is also mentioned in Arthur Conan Doyles book, The Great Boer War, published in 1902. But more recent sources claim that Field-Cornet Sarel Oosthuizen was in fact the Boer-soldier who, at gunpoint, another version claims that the unit to capture Churchill was the Italian Volunteer Legion and its commander, Camillo Ricchiardi. After the fall of Pretoria in June 1900, Botha led a guerrilla campaign against the British together with Koos de la Rey. The success of his measures was seen in the resistance offered by the Boers to the very close of the three-year war. Botha was a representative of his countrymen in the negotiations of 1902. He later worked towards peace with the British, representing the Boers at the negotiations in 1902. In the period of reconstruction under British rule, Botha went to Europe with de Wet and his war record made him prominent in the politics of Transvaal and he was a major player in the postwar reconstruction of that country, becoming Prime Minister of Transvaal on 4 March 1907. In 1911, together with another Boer war hero, Jan Smuts, he formed the South African Party, widely viewed as too conciliatory with Britain, Botha faced revolts from within his own party and opposition from James Barry Munnik Hertzogs National Party. When South Africa obtained dominion status in 1910, Botha became the first Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa, after the First World War started, he sent troops to take German South-West Africa, a move unpopular among Boers, which provoked the Boer Revolt. At the end of the War he briefly led a British Empire military mission to Poland during the Polish-Soviet War and he argued that the terms of the Versailles Treaty were too harsh on the Central Powers, but signed the treaty. Botha was unwell for most of 1919 and he was plagued by fatigue and ill-health that arose from his robust waist-line. ”General Louis Botha died of heart failure following an attack of Spanish influenza on 27 August 1919 in the early hours of the morning
10.
James Rose Innes
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Sir James Rose Innes, KCMG PC was the Chief Justice of South Africa from 1914 to 1927 and, in the view of many, its greatest ever judge. Before becoming a judge he was a member of the Cape Parliament, the Cape Colonys Attorney-General, Innes was born in Grahamstown in 1855. I have neither Voortrekker nor Huguenot blood in my veins, but I am proud to be a South African, and I claim to stand on the same national footing as if my forebears had landed with Van Riebeeck or followed Piet Retief over the Drakensberg. Innes did not stay long in Grahamstown, in the year after his birth, and his fathers job caused the family to relocate three more times over the next few years, first to Uitenhage, then to Bedford, and from there to Somerset East. Innes consequently attended a variety of schools, all influenced by his grandfathers Presbyterian. W. Leonard, who likewise became Attorney-General, W. P. Schreiner, the future Prime Minister, in Somerset East Innes attended Gill College. His fondest childhood memories were of his days on the veld and of holiday trips by ox-wagon to East London and to Lynedoch, when Innes left school he began working to support himself and his tertiary studies. He worked briefly in a bank and, later, the Native Affairs Department in Cape Town in the government of the Capes first Prime Minister, John Molteno. Innes passed his BA examinations in 1874, the year after the University of the Cape of Good Hope was founded, in 1878, Innes was admitted to the Cape bar and began legal practice. His practice and reputation grew steadily and he fondly recalled his time riding circuit, which allowed him to return by ox-wagon to the countryside of his childhood. In 1884, Innes stood for election for Victoria East, a district around Alice. He won a seat in the Cape House of Assembly, partly thanks to support from the regions Xhosa voters, mobilised by his political ally, Innes stood for election on an uncompromisingly liberal Native policy, he policy of repression has been tried, and it has failed. Innes spent his years in Parliament resisting the forced removals of Xhosas across the Kei River. Together with John X. Merriman and J. W. Sauer he formed part of a trio of powerful liberal MPs who were prominent actors for the rest of the Cape Parliaments history, usually in opposition. Innes served as Attorney-General in Cecil Rhodess government from 1890, Rhodess right-hand man James Sivewright had given a lucrative government railway contract to his friend and business associate James Logan without going to tender. Innes refused to work with Sivewright, with the effect that Rhodes had to dissolve his government, the nadir was Rhodess involvement in the Jameson Raid, an event which, Innes said, no one. Concerned for the interests of South Africa can recall without regret. The Raid inflamed racial tension between the English and Afrikaners, and President Krugers suspicions, and thus led to the Second Boer War, Rhodess attitude after the Raid had not helped
11.
Boer
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Boer is the Dutch and Afrikaans word for farmer. As used in South Africa, it was used to denote the descendants of the Dutch-speaking settlers of the eastern Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 18th century. For a long time the Dutch East India Company controlled this area, in addition the term was applied to those who left the Cape Colony during the 19th century to settle in the Orange Free State, Transvaal, and to a lesser extent Natal. They left the Cape primarily to escape British rule and get away from the constant border wars between the British imperial government and the tribes on the eastern frontier. The Dutch East India Company had been formed in the Dutch Republic in 1602, in 1648 one of their ships was stranded in Table Bay, and the shipwrecked crew had to forage for themselves on shore for several months. The result was that in 1652, a Dutch expedition led by surgeon Jan van Riebeek constructed a fort, landing at Table Bay, Van Riebeek took control over Cape Town, the settlement developed during the previous 10 years. In 1671 the Dutch first purchased land from the native Khoikhoi beyond the limits of the built by Van Riebeek. They formed a class of a class of vrijlieden, also known as vrijburgers, a large number of vrijburgers became independent farmers and applied for grants of land, as well as loans of seed and tools, from the Company administration. Political refugees from the wars in France, following the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, they were settled at Stellenbosch, Drakenstein, Franschhoek. The influence of small body of immigrants on the character of the Dutch settlers was marked. The Company in 1701 directed that only Dutch should be taught in the schools and this resulted in the Huguenots assimilating by the middle of the 18th century, with a loss to the community in the use and knowledge of French. The little settlement gradually spread eastwards, and in 1754 the country as far as Algoa Bay was included in the colony, at this time the European colonists numbered eight to ten thousand. They possessed numerous slaves, grew wheat in sufficient quantity to make it a commodity crop for export, but their chief wealth was in cattle. Through the latter half of the 17th and the whole of the 18th century, the administration of the Dutch East India Company was extremely despotic. Its policies were not directed at development of the colony, the effect of this tyranny was inevitable, it drove men to desperation. They fled from oppression, and even before 1700 trekking began, in 1789, so strong had feeling amongst the burghers become that delegates were sent from the Cape to interview the authorities at Amsterdam. After this deputation, some reforms were granted. It was largely to escape oppression that the farmers trekked farther and farther from the seat of government, the company, to control the emigrants, established a magistracy at Swellendam in 1745 and another at Graaff Reinet in 1786
12.
German South West Africa
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German South West Africa was a colony of the German Empire from 1884 until 1915. With an area of 835,100 km², it was one, the colony had a population of around 2,600 Germans. In 1915, during the First World War, German South West Africa was invaded by the Western Allies in the form of South African and British forces. After the war its administration was taken over by the Union of South Africa and it became independent as Namibia in 1990. However, for centuries, European settlement would remain limited. In February 1805 the London Missionary Society established a mission in Blydeverwacht. In 1840 the London Missionary Society transferred all of its activities to the German Rhenish Missionary Society, some of the first representatives of this organisation were Franz Heinrich Kleinschmidt and Carl Hugo Hahn. They began founding churches throughout the territory, the Rhenish missionaries had a significant impact initially on culture and dress, and then later on politics. During the same time that the Rhenish missionaries were active, merchants, on 16 November 1882 a German merchant from Bremen, Adolf Lüderitz, requested protection for a station that he planned to build in South West Africa, from Chancellor Bismarck. Once this was granted, his employee Heinrich Vogelsang purchased land from a native chief, on 24 April 1884, he placed the area under the protection of Imperial Germany to deter British encroachment. In early 1884, the gunboat SMS Nautilus visited to review the situation, a favourable report from the government, and acquiescence from the British, resulted in a visit from the SMS Leipzig and SMS Elisabeth. The German flag was raised in South West Africa on 7 August 1884. The German claims on land were confirmed during the Conference of Berlin. In October, the newly appointed Commissioner for West Africa, Gustav Nachtigal, in April 1885, the Deutsche Kolonialgesellschaft für Südwest-Afrika was founded with the support of German bankers, industrialists and politicians. DKGSWA was granted rights to exploit mineral deposits. The new Society soon bought the assets of Lüderitzs failing enterprises, later, in 1908, diamonds were discovered. Thus along with gold, copper, platinum, and other minerals, earlier, the colonial aim was to dispossess the indigenous peoples of their land, for use of German settlers, as well as be a source of raw materials and a market of German industrial products. Lüderitz drowned in 1886 while on an expedition to the Orange River, the company bought all of Lüderitz land and mining rights, following Bismarcks policy that private rather than public money should be used to develop the colonies
13.
Tsumeb
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Tsumeb is a city of 15,000 inhabitants and the largest town in Oshikoto region in northern Namibia. Tsumeb is the gateway to the north of Namibia and it is the closest town to the Etosha National Park. Tsumeb used to be the capital of Oshikoto until 2008 when Omuthiya was proclaimed a town. The area around Tsumeb forms its own constituency and has a population of 44,113. The town is the site of a mine, that in its heyday was known simply as The Tsumeb Mine but has since been renamed the Ongopolo Mine. The name Tsumeb is generally pronounced SOO-meb, the name is not a derivative of German, Afrikaans, or English. It has been suggested that it comes from Nama and means either Place of the moss or Place of the frog, perhaps this old name had something to do with the huge natural hill of green, oxidized copper ore that existed there before it was mined out. The town was founded in 1905 by the German colonial power, Tsumeb is notable for the huge mineralized pipe that led to its foundation. The origin of the pipe has been hotly debated, the pipe penetrates more or less vertically through the Precambrian Otavi dolomite for at least 1300 m. One possibility is that the pipe was actually an ancient cave system. If the pipe is volcanic, as some have suggested, then the rock filling it is peculiar in the extreme, the pipe was mined in prehistoric times but those ancient workers barely scratched the surface. Most of the ore was removed in the 20th century by cut-and-fill methods, the ore was polymetallic and from it copper, lead, silver, gold, arsenic and germanium were won. There was also an amount of zinc present but the recovery of this metal was always difficult for technical reasons. The pipe was famous for its richness, many millions of tonnes of ore of spectacular grade were removed. A good percentage of the ore was so rich that it was sent straight to the smelter situated near the town without first having to be processed through the enrichment plant. The Tsumeb mine is renowned amongst mineral collectors. Between 1905 and 1996, the mine produced about 30 million tons of ore yielding 1.7 Mt copper,2.8 Mt lead 0.9 Mt zinc, as well as 80 t germanium. The average ore grade was 10% Pb,4. 3% Cu,3. 5% Zn,100 ppm Ag,50 ppm Ge and it is noted for 243 valid minerals and is the type location for 56 types of mineral
14.
International Socialist League (South Africa)
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The International Socialist League of South Africa was a syndicalist group, influenced by the Industrial Workers of the World and Daniel De Leon. Formed in September 1915, it would establish branches across much of South Africa, and form the first black African trade union in the country and it also formed a number of other unions amongst people of color. While its founders were drawn from the radical wing of the white working class. A notable feature of the International Socialist League was that it insisted on the need for a political organisation with clear and unified policies. The International Socialist League merged into the Communist Party of South Africa at the founding in June/July 1921. The Industrial Workers of Africa, meanwhile, merged into the Industrial and Commercial Workers Union or ICU, in 1920, the ICU would play a major role in rural South Africa, as well as spread into several neighbouring countries. Books Bradford, Helen, A Taste of Freedom, the ICU in rural South Africa, drew, Allison, Discordant Comrades, Identities and Loyalties on the South African Left. University of South Africa Press, Pretoria,2002, lucien van der Walt and Michael Schmidt, Black Flame, The Revolutionary Class Politics of Anarchism and Syndicalism, AK Press,2009
15.
Johannesburg
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Johannesburg is the largest city in South Africa and is one of the 50 largest urban areas in the world. It is the capital of Gauteng, which is the wealthiest province in South Africa. While Johannesburg is not one of South Africas three capital cities, it is the seat of the Constitutional Court, the city is located in the mineral-rich Witwatersrand range of hills and is the centre of large-scale gold and diamond trade. In 2011, the population of the city of Johannesburg was 4,434,827, in the same year, the population of Greater Johannesburg Metropolitan Area was 7,860,781. Some view the surrounding the city of Johannesburg yet more broadly than the metropolitan area, adding Ekurhuleni, West Rand and Lenasia. The land area of the city is large in comparison with those of other major cities, resulting in a moderate population density of 2. The city was established in 1886 following the discovery of gold on what had been a farm, the city is commonly interpreted as the modern day El Dorado due to the extremely large gold deposit found along the Witwatersrand. The name is attributed to one or all of three men involved in the establishment of the city, in ten years, the population was 100,000 inhabitants. A separate city from the late 1970s until the 1990s, Soweto is now part of Johannesburg, Soweto, although eventually incorporated into Johannesburg, had been separated as a residential area for blacks, who were not permitted to live in Johannesburg proper. Lenasia is predominantly populated by English-speaking South Africans of Indian descent, controversy surrounds the origin of the name. There were quite a number of people with the name Johannes who were involved in the history of the city. Among them are the principal clerk attached to the office of the surveyor-general Johannes Rissik, Christiaan Johannes Joubert, another was Stephanus Johannes Paulus Paul Kruger, president of the South African Republic 1883-1900. Johannes Meyer, the first government official in the area is another possibility, precise records for the choice of name were lost. Rissik and Joubert were members of a delegation sent to England to attain mining rights for the area. Joubert had a park in the city named after him and Rissik Street is today a street where the historically important and dilapidated Post Office, since burnt out. The region surrounding Johannesburg was originally inhabited by San people, the Sotho–Tswana practised farming and extensively mined and smelted metals that were available in the area. The most prominent site within Johannesburg is Melville Koppies, which contains an iron smelting furnace, the main Witwatersrand gold reef was discovered in June 1884 on the farm Vogelstruisfontein by Jan Gerritse Bantjes that triggered the Witwatersrand Gold Rush and the start of Johannesburg in 1886. The discovery of gold rapidly attracted people to the area, making necessary a name, Johannes Meyer, the first government official in the area is another possibility
16.
Abba Eban
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Abba Eban was an Israeli diplomat and politician, and a scholar of the Arabic and Hebrew languages. In his career, he was Israeli Foreign Affairs Minister, Education Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and he was also Vice President of the United Nations General Assembly and President of the Weizmann Institute of Science. Born in Cape Town, South Africa, on 2 February 1915 to Lithuanian Jewish parents, as a child, he recalled being sent to his grandfathers house every weekend to study the Hebrew language, Talmud, and Biblical literature. He lived for a period of time in Belfast and he was educated at St Olaves Grammar School, then in Southwark, before studying Classics and Oriental languages at Queens College, Cambridge, where he achieved a triple first. During his time at University and afterwards, Eban was highly involved in the Federation of Zionist Youth and was editor of its ideological journal, after graduating with high honours, he researched Arabic and Hebrew as a Fellow of Pembroke College from 1938–39. At the outbreak of World War II, he went to work for Chaim Weizmann at the World Zionist Organization in London from December 1939. In 1947, he translated from the original Arabic, Maze of Justice, Diary of a Country Prosecutor, at this stage, he changed his name to the Hebrew word Abba, meaning Father, as he could foresee himself as the father of the nation of Israel. Eban continued at the United Nations over the next decade, from 1950 to 1959 he also served as his countrys ambassador to the United States. He was renowned for his oratorical skills, in the words of Henry Kissinger, I have never encountered anyone who matched his command of the English language. Sentences poured forth in mellifluous constructions complicated enough to test the listener’s intelligence and his grasp of history and fluency in ten languages enhanced his speech-making in the United Nations, even to skeptical or hostile audiences. In 1952, Eban was elected Vice President of the UN General Assembly, Eban left the United States in 1959 and returned to Israel, where he was elected to the Knesset as a member of Mapai. He served under David Ben-Gurion as Minister of Education and Culture from 1960 to 1963, through this period, he also served as president of the Weizmann Institute in Rehovot. From 1966 to 1974, Eban served as Israels foreign minister, nonetheless, he was a strong supporter of trading parts of the territories occupied in the war in exchange for peace. He played an important part in the shaping of UN Security Council Resolution 242 in 1967, among his other high level contacts, Eban was received by Pope Paul VI in 1969. Eban was at times criticized for not voicing his opinions in Israels internal debate, however, he was generally known to be on the dovish side of Israeli politics and was increasingly outspoken after leaving the cabinet. In 1977 and 1981, it was understood that Shimon Peres intended to name Eban Foreign Minister, had the Labor Party won those elections. His comment that Palestinians never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity, in 1988, after three decades in the Knesset, he lost his seat over internal splits in the Labour Party. He devoted the rest of his life to writing and teaching, including serving as an academic at Princeton University, Columbia University
17.
Elisabeth Eybers
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Elisabeth Françoise Eybers was a South African poet. Her poetry was mainly in Afrikaans, although she has translated some of her own work into English, Eybers was born in Klerksdorp, Transvaal. She grew up in the town of Schweizer-Reneke, where her father was a Nederduits-Hervormde minister, after completing her high school studies there at the age of 16, she enrolled at the University of the Witwatersrand for a Bachelor of Arts degree, which she achieved cum laude. After her graduation she became a journalist, in 1937 Eybers married the businessman Albert Wessels, with whom she had three daughters and a son. Counted among the so-called Dertigers, she became the first Afrikaans woman to win the Hertzog Prize for poetry in 1943 and she won the prize again in 1971. Her work has received other awards in both South Africa and the Netherlands, including the Constantijn Huygens Prize in 1978 and the P. C. Eybers first collection of poems, Belydenis in die Skemering, was published in 1936 and her second collection, Die Stil Avontuur, was published in 1939 and was mainly about being a mother. Die Vrou en ander verse was published in 1945 while her poetry collection. Translations of her poems have also published in German, French, Italian. The South African composer Cromwell Everson composed a song using Eybers poem Die Vreemde Dae, after her divorce in 1961 she met Pieter Hennipman, with whom she stayed until his death in 1994. She lived in Amsterdam, Netherlands, and she was buried at Zorgvlied cemetery, media related to Elisabeth Eybers at Wikimedia Commons Bibliography & texts on Elisabeth Eybers in the Digital Library for Dutch Literature
18.
Marais Viljoen
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Marais Viljoen was the last ceremonial State President of South Africa from 4 June 1979 until 3 September 1984. Viljoen became the last of the presidents of South Africa when he was succeeded in 1984 by Prime Minister P. W. Botha. Viljoen was the youngest of six children of Magdalena Debora Lenie and he was married on 20 April 1940 to Dorothea Maria Brink, with whom he had one daughter Elizabeth Magdalena Viljoen. Viljoen was seen as a moderate member of the National Party that instituted apartheid. After Vorsters resignation in 1979, Viljoen held the post of non-executive State President from 4 June 1979 until 3 September 1984, the State Presidency during this time was a ceremonial post, like that of the Governor-General, which it replaced in 1961. Under the 1983 Constitution, the last of Apartheid, the position of the State President was changed to a powerful executive position. Viljoen retired and was replaced by P. W. Botha, after Viljoen retired from public life he maintained an interest in politics thereafter. He remains the third-longest serving President of South Africa after Jacobus Johannes Fouché, Viljoen died on 4 January 2007 due to heart failure. He received a funeral on 13 January 2007
19.
B. J. Vorster
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Balthazar Johannes Vorster, better known as John Vorster, served as the Prime Minister of South Africa from 1966 to 1978 and as the fourth State President of South Africa from 1978 to 1979. Vorster was born in 1915 Jamestown, Western Cape, Union of South Africa, Vorster entered Stellenbosch University, known as the cradle of Afrikaner nationalism to study law. With six out of the seven prime ministers South Africa between 1910 and 1971 having being students there, its influence on the development of Afrikaner culture has been profound. Vorster involved himself in student politics becoming the chairman of the society, deputy chairman of the student council. In 1938, Vorster graduated to become a registrar to the president of the Cape Provincial Division of the South African Supreme Court. But he did not remain in this post for long, setting up his first law practice in Port Elizabeth, from 1939, Vorster attracted notoriety by strongly opposing South Africas intervention on the side of the Allies and, their former foe, Great Britain in World War II. More out of a feeling than a positively pro-Nazi spirit. Vorster dedicated himself to an anti-British, pro-Nazi organisation called the Ossewabrandwag, under the leadership of J. F. van Rensburg, the Ossewabrandwag conducted many acts of sabotage against South Africa during World War II to limit its war effort. Vorster claimed not to have participated in the acts of war attributed to the group and he described himself as anti-British, and not pro-Nazi and noted that his internment was for anti-British agitation. Vorster rose rapidly through the ranks of the Ossewabrandwag becoming a general in its paramilitary wing and his involvement with this group led to his detention at Koffiefontein in 1942. Following his release in 1944 from that camp, Vorster became active in the National Party. Although racial discrimination in favour of whites had long been a fact of South African politics and society. In 1953, Vorster was elected to the House of Assembly representing the seat of Nigel in the Transvaal and he was appointed as Deputy Minister in 1958. He was an MP during the terms of prime ministers D. F, vorsters past as a draft-dodger and Nazi sympathiser came back to haunt him. Vorster answered his critics by saying that he had now come to believe in the parliamentary system, upon Verwoerds assassination in 1966, Vorster was elected by the National Party to replace him. He continued Verwoerds implementation of Apartheid legislation, and in 1968 abolished the last four seats that had been reserved for white representatives of Coloured voters. Due to the protests of numerous African nations, however, the team was rejected from competing. As a personal figure Vorster was described as flesh and blood by Progressive MP Helen Suzman in contrast to the diabolical and his supporters held him in great affection for his eccentric and sometimes humorous manner
20.
South African Class NG9 4-6-0
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The South African Railways Class NG9 4-6-0 of 1915 was a narrow gauge steam locomotive. During 1915 and 1916, the South African Railways placed six locomotives with a 4-6-0 Tenwheeler type wheel arrangement in service on the Langkloof narrow gauge railway. When a system of grouping narrow gauge locomotives into classes was introduced somewhere between 1928 and 1930, they were classified as Class NG9. Due to the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, the six engines were all built by August 1915 and were delivered to the SAR in 1915 and 1916, numbered in the range from NG42 to NG47. The locomotives were similar to the Bagnall-built Type B locomotives which had been delivered to the Cape Government Railways in 1903. They were erected at the Uitenhage workshops and placed in service on the Walmer branchline of the Langkloof railway between Port Elizabeth and Avontuur. They all remained in there until 1929, although some were at one time also employed to help out on the line from Kalbaskraal to Saldanha in the Western Cape. The system of grouping narrow gauge locomotives into classes was adopted by the SAR somewhere between 1928 and 1930 and, at that point, these locomotives were designated Class NG9. The Walmer branch succumbed to bus competition and was closed on 26 November 1928, numbers NG42 and NG43 were withdrawn from service in 1929. In that same year, numbers NG44 and NG46 were transferred to Upington to work on the branchline to Kakamas, the last remaining one of these locomotives on the Avontuur railway, no. NG45, was relieved from work and retained at Humewood Road in Port Elizabeth for yard duties until 1939. The three locomotives at Upington, numbers NG44, NG45 and NG46, survived in SAR service until April 1951 when they were sold to the Caminhos de Ferro de Moçâmedes of Angola and this branch was opened in two stages in 1949 and 1953. It is believed the three also worked on the mainline from Moçâmedes to Sá da Bandeira, until that line was regauged to Cape gauge in the mid-1950s. They were possibly retired at about time, being replaced on the branchline by 60-Series 0-8-2T locomotives which were released by the regauging of the mainline. In later years, these 0-8-2T locomotives were equipped with the NG9 tenders to increase their wood, the Class NG9 locomotives were observed dumped at the Sá da Bandeira shops by 1969, without their tenders. At the time it appeared as if they had been in that condition for some time, the branchline itself was closed in 1970
21.
South African Class 14B 4-8-2
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The South African Railways Class 14B 4-8-2 of 1915 was a steam locomotive. In 1915, the South African Railways placed fifteen Class 14B saturated steam locomotives with a 4-8-2 Mountain type wheel arrangement in service, when they were subsequently converted to superheating, they were reclassified to Class 14. In the 1930s all but one were reboilered with Watson Standard no.2 boilers, the third version of the Class 14 locomotive was ordered from Beyer, Peacock and Company in 1914. Fifteen locomotives were delivered in 1915, numbered in the range from 1746 to 1760 and these saturated steam versions of the Class 14 were designated Class 14B. Like the Class 14, the Class 14B had Walschaerts valve gear, once in service, the omission of superheating soon became a bone of contention. Given that eight years later, in 1929, the price of a new Class 19A locomotive would be £6,387. This report caused a flutter in the Railways Administration, the officer who made it, left the service to do very well elsewhere. Conversion of the Class 14B to superheating began soon afterwards, between 1922 and 1925, all fifteen Class 14B locomotives were converted. Their cylinders were reamed from 21 to 22 inches bore and the pressure reduced from 200 to 190 pounds per square inch. Since their being non-superheated with smaller cylinders had been the reasons for their separate Class 14B classification. Of all the locomotives introduced during Hendries term as CME, the Class 14B was the one to fall short of expectations. This reduced much of the effectiveness on undulating track and where frequent stops are required. In view of the added cost and weight of the superheating equipment, during the 1930s, many serving locomotives were reboilered with a standard boiler type designed by then CME A. G. Watson as part of his standardisation policy. Such Watson Standard reboilered locomotives were reclassified by adding an R suffix to their classification, from 1935, all the ex Class 14B locomotives except no.1750 were reboilered with Watson Standard no.2 boilers and reclassified to Class 14R. Only slight modifications were necessary to take the new boilers. In the process, the engines were equipped with Watson cabs with their distinctive slanted fronts. The flangeless leading coupled wheels were flanged and Type MR tenders were attached to the reboilered engines, No.1750 was sold to ISCOR without being reboilered. Their original Belpaire boilers were fitted with Ramsbottom safety valves, while the Watson Standard boiler was fitted with Pop safety valves
22.
South African Class 16A 4-6-2
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The South African Railways Class 16A 4-6-2 of 1915 was a steam locomotive. In 1915, the South African Railways placed two experimental four-cylinder simple expansion locomotives with a 4-6-2 Pacific type wheel arrangement in passenger train service. Two locomotives were delivered in November 1915, numbered 851 and 852, except that they had four cylinders instead of the usual two, they were identical in most respects to their predecessors, the Class 16, which were delivered by NBL a year earlier. With the Class 16A, Hendrie experimented with simple expansion steam power. All four cylinders were arranged in line below the smokebox, the Walschaerts valve gear had rocker arms attached to the tail ends of the outer piston valves which passed through the frames and then actuated the adjacent inner pistons valves. It operated in the configuration, whereby steam is fed directly to all four cylinders and spent steam is exhausted by all cylinders directly through the smokebox. The outer cylinders drove the pair of coupled wheels, while the inner cylinders operated on a cranked leading coupled wheel axle. Each inside crank was arranged at an angle of 180 degrees with its adjacent outside crank, the arrangement made for a very smooth-running locomotive capable of very fast running since the shouldering effect which occurs on two-cylinder locomotives was completely absent. They were very popular with their crews because of their smooth and they did, however, have less tractive effort than the two-cylinder Class 16. The two locomotives were placed in service on the Reef where they operated with reasonable success and their biggest disadvantage was the difficult access to the inner cylinders. The last of these locomotives was withdrawn from service and scrapped during 1944, the main picture shows no.852 on train no.75 departing Braamfontein in June 1936, while a side view is shown in the builders picture below
23.
South African Class MH 2-6-6-2
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The South African Railways Class MH 2-6-6-2 of 1915 was a steam locomotive. In 1915, the South African Railways placed five Class MH Mallet articulated compound steam locomotives with a 2-6-6-2 wheel arrangement in coal hauling service, the draughtsman, specially detached for the work, was J. R. Boyer who was later to become the Chief Locomotive Draughtsman of the SAR, five of these very large locomotives were ordered from North British Locomotive Company and delivered in 1915, numbered in the range from 1661 to 1665. They were erected in the Salvokop shops in Pretoria and were placed in service in September 1915, the main bar frames,4 1⁄2 inches thick, were machined from a 2 ft 2 1⁄2 in wide solid. The hind part of frame was rigidly secured to the boiler through the high-pressure cylinder saddle castings. From this point rearwards, the frame was of the type and arranged to carry the spring gear. The locomotives were superheated and had Walschaerts valve gear, controlled by steam reversing gear, the cylinders and steam chests were formed in three separate castings. The high-pressure cylinders were arranged with piston valves, while the cylinders were arranged with Richardson balanced type slide valves. The steam chest covers of the cylinders were designed with inclined joint faces to facilitate the handling of the valve. As built, the pressure was set to blow off at 200 pounds per square inch. The setting was reduced to 180 pounds per square inch. At the time of their introduction, the Class MH was the largest and most powerful locomotive in the world on Cape gauge and it attracted the attention of locomotive engineers throughout the world as an outstanding achievement for locomotive power on 3 feet 6 inches gauge. They were placed in service on the line between Witbank and Germiston which they were intended for, to supplement the other Mallets already working on that line. In the 1930s they were transferred to Natal to work on the line between Vryheid and Glencoe, also hauling coal and they were outstanding in their performance and remained in Natal for the rest of their service lives until they were all retired and scrapped by 1940
24.
South African Class J 4-6-4T
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The South African Railways Class J 4-6-4T of 1915 was a steam locomotive. In 1915, the South African Railways placed six Class J tank steam locomotives with a 4-6-4 Baltic type wheel arrangement in service. Six of these locomotives were built by Nasmyth, Wilson and Company of Patricroft in Salford, England and they were designated Class J and were the first side-tank engines to be acquired by the SAR since Union. The engines used saturated steam and had Walschaerts valve gear, piston valves and they were designed to work as double-enders on the Natal South Coast line where there was limited engine turning facilities. It was soon found, however, that due to their small proportions and they were therefore taken off the South Coast run and employed as shunting engines in the Durban harbour. Four of them were allocated to Mossel Bay and the Cape Midland for similar duties. They remained there until they were withdrawn by 1957 after more than forty years in service, the remaining two locomotives, numbers 341 and 342, were sold to gold mines on the Reef. By the early 1970s, no.341 was still at work on the East Daggafontein Mine as their no.2 and it was later acquired by the South African National Railway And Steam Museum for preservation. It had to be scrapped in 2011, however, after being vandalised by scavenging scrap metal thieves at the SANRASM storage site in Chamdor, no.341 was plinthed at SANRASM with a tender. The picture shows it as gate guard, prior to being vandalised into destruction c
25.
Fauresmith
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Fauresmith is located 130 km south west of Bloemfontein, South Africa. The town, named after Rev Phillip Faure and Sir Harry Smith, is the second oldest town in the Free State. Fauresmith is the town in South Africa, and one of only three in the world, where the railway line runs down the centre of the main road. Winters are extremely cold with temperatures often below freezing, with the settlement of whites in the region, there was a need for a church. They wanted a farm for this purpose, after much negotiation with the British Government, a temporary church was built on the farm Sannahspoort - currently Fauresmith. The church council later bought Sannahspoort for 14000 rixdollars, immediately stands were sold to get the funds necessary to build a permanent church. An interesting condition of sale was that no spirits or other strong liquor may have sold on any of the plots. The selling of plots was the biggest income of the church at the time, the current congregations of the surrounding towns of Philippolis, Trompsburg, Edenburg, Petrusburg, Koffiefontein, Luckhoff and a great deal of Jacobsdal were part of the congregation. On August 30,1851, a meeting was held at Sannahspoort, the heading of the minutes, states Fauresmith. After Bloemfontein, Fauresmith was the most important town in the Free State, the first House of Assembly had to choose between the two to determine which would be the capital of the Free State. The vote went to Bloemfontein with a two-vote majority, the Fauresmith is found at a number of other archaeological sites such as Wonderwerk Cave and Kathu Pan where it is potentially dated to at least 420,000 years ago. The Fauresmith consists of MSA technology such as blades, points, the type sites are Brakfontien 321 and Riverview Estates Site VI. A chronological perspective on the Acheulian and its transition to the Middle Stone Age in southern Africa, international Journal of Evolutionary Biology,961401, doi,10. 4061/2011/961401. The Archaeology of the Vaal River Basin, the Geology and Archaeology of the Vaal River Basin
26.
Prieska
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Prieska is a town on the south bank of the Orange River, in the province of the Northern Cape, in western South Africa. It is located on the bank of the Orange River,130 km north-west of Britstown and 75 km south-east of Marydale. It developed from a place to which farmers migrated when the pans were full and it was administered by a village management board from 1882 and attained municipal status in 1892. The name is derived from Korana and means ‘place of the lost she-goat’, the town is 240 km south of Kimberley and lies on the R357 road. It was originally named Prieschap, a Khoisan word meaning ‘place of the lost she-goat’, the town was founded in 1882, and in 2011 the town had a population of 14,246. Elaine Vivier – Mensa IQ result score of 194 Prieskas website
27.
Walvis Bay
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Walvis Bay is a city in Namibia and the name of the bay on which it lies. The town has 100,000 inhabitants and covers a area of 29 square kilometres of land. The bay is a haven for sea vessels because of its natural deepwater harbour, protected by the Pelican Point sand spit. Being rich in plankton and marine life, these also drew large numbers of southern right whales, attracting whalers. The Dutch referred to it as Walvisch Baye and the English as Whale Bay, in its eventual formal incorporation, it was named Walfish Bay, which was changed to Walvish Bay, and ultimately to Walvis Bay. It has also referred to as Walwich Bay or Walwisch Bay. The Herero people of the area called it Ezorongondo, a succession of colonists developed the location and resources of this strategic harbour settlement. The harbours value in relation to the sea route around the Cape of Good Hope had caught the attention of world powers since it was discovered by the world in 1485. This explains the political status of Walvis Bay down the years. The town is situated just north of the Tropic of Capricorn in the Kuiseb River delta and lies at the end of the TransNamib Railway to Windhoek, Walvis Bay, with its large bay and sand dunes, is an important centre of tourism activity in Namibia. Attractions include the artificial Bird Island, centre of a guano collection industry, the Dune 7 sand dune, the works, the abundant birdlife. Kuisebmund Stadium, home to two clubs in the Namibia Premier League, is located in the city. The beach resort of Langstrand lies just a few kilometres north, the Walvis Bay Export Processing Zone is an important facet of the local economy. Portuguese navigator Diogo Cão reached Cape Cross, north of the bay, in 1485. There followed Bartolomeu Dias, who anchored his flagship São Cristóvão in what is now Walvis Bay on 8 December 1487 and he named the bay O Golfo de Santa Maria da Conceição. However, the Portuguese did not formally stake a claim to Walvis Bay, little commercial development occurred on the site until the late 19th century. During the scramble for Africa, the British Empire occupied Walvis Bay with an area surrounding the territory. They permitted the Cape Colony to complete the annexation of the territory in 1884, in 1910, Walvis Bay, as part of the Cape Colony, became part of the newly formed Union of South Africa
28.
Swakop River
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The Swakop River is a major river in the western part of Namibia, reaching the sea at the southern edge of the city of Swakopmund. The Swakop is a river, its run-off is roughly 40 million cubic metres per annum. The Swakop River, along with its main tributary Khan, is one of the largest temporary water-bearing rivers in the dry part of Namibia. It is 460 km long and has a 30,100 km ² large catchment area, in Swakopmund, it flows into the South Atlantic. The name comes from the Khoekhoe languages of the Nama and Damara Tsoa-xaub, groundwater levels in the area have also dropped about 0.3 m further due to the presence of two big dams built on the Swakop River. Notwithstanding the river’s irregular flow, some agriculture is undertaken in the Swakop River valley, thus the region is known for its fresh produce, especially tomatoes, asparagus. There are some fears of salt and uranium endangering this farming industry, the highest point of the watershed is located at 2480 m. Annual rainfall varies from 0 mm in the lower reaches up to 475 mm in the eastern Khomas Highlands, 39% of the catchment area experiences rainfall that exceeds 300 mm per year, and up to 80% of the catchment experiences annual rainfall above 100 mm. The Von Bach Dam near Okahandja and Swakoppoort Dam west of Gross Barmen in the reaches of the Swakop are of great importance for the water supply of Central Namibia. Like all rivers, the Swakop also has a number of major sources, existing groundwater, however, is often salty due to soil salinity. On the lower reaches of the river, flooding has become ever more increasing and this contributes to a stronger and more rapid runoff and increased erosion of the Swakop Marshlands. Because of its size and scope, the Swakop has a diverse catchment area. 29% of the area is in highveld savanna, 28% in thornveld savanna, 34% in semidesert and savanna transition zone, in the Highlands a more or less dense bush vegetation prevails. Wildlife in the Swakop is found only in sparsely populated lower reaches and is limited to antelope, smaller predators. Big game such as elephants, rhinos, lions and other big cats are no longer to be found, in the rest of the catchment area, there are, however, a number of tourist and game farms, and the big cats are kept there. The extensive use of the groundwater in agriculture and the water consumption in cities result in the lowering of the water table. This leads, particularly in the reaches, to the drying up of many springs as well as to the death of the gallery vegetation. Due to agricultural practices, erosion has increased, so that more and more valuable ground is lost
29.
Swakopmund
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Swakopmund is a city on the coast of western Namibia,280 km west of Windhoek, Namibias capital. It is the capital of the Erongo administrative district, the town has 44,725 inhabitants and covers 193 square kilometres of land. The city is situated in the Namib Desert and is the fourth largest population centre in Namibia, Swakopmund is a beach resort and an example of German colonial architecture. It was founded in 1892 as the harbour for German South West Africa. Buildings in the city include the Altes Gefängnis prison, designed by Heinrich Bause in 1909, the Woermannhaus, built in 1906 with a prominent tower, is now a public library. Attractions in Swakopmund include a Swakopmund Museum, the National Marine Aquarium, outside of the city, the Rossmund Desert Golf Course is one of only five all-grass desert golf courses in the world. Nearby is a farm that offers rides to tourists and the Martin Luther steam locomotive, dating from 1896. Swakopmund lies on the B2 road and the Trans-Namib Railway from Windhoek to Walvis Bay and it is served by Swakopmund Airport and Swakopmund Railway Station. The Herero called the place Otjozondjii, the name of the town is derived from the Nama word Tsoakhaub describing the Swakop River in flood carrying items in its riverbed, including dead animals, into the Atlantic Ocean. However, Prof. Peter Raper, Honorary Professor, Linguistics, at the University of the Free State points out that the name for Swakopmund is based on the San language, namely from “xwaka” and “ob”. The German settlers changed it to Swachaub, and when in 1896 the district was officially proclaimed, captain Curt von François founded Swakopmund in 1892 as the main harbour for the Imperial German colony—The deep sea harbour at Walvis Bay belonged to the British. The founding date was on August 8 when the crew of gunboat Hyäne erected two beacons on the shore, Swakopmund was chosen for its availability of fresh water, and because other sites further north such as Cape Cross were found unsuitable. The site did, however, not offer any protection to ships lying off the coast. When the first 120 Schutztruppe soldiers and 40 settlers were offloaded at Swakopmund, the offloading was done by Kru tribesmen from Liberia who used special boats. Woermann-Linie, the operator of the route to Germany, employed 600 Kru at that time. Swakopmund quickly became the port for imports and exports for the whole territory. Many government offices for German South West Africa had offices in Swakopmund, during the Herero Wars a concentration camp for Herero people was operated in town. Inmates were forced into labour, approximately 2,000 Herero died
30.
Carnarvon, Northern Cape
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Carnarvon is a small town in the Northern Cape Province of South Africa. Carnarvon was established in 1853 on a route between Cape Town and Botswana that was followed by early explorers and traders and it was originally established as a Rhenish mission station under the name of Harmsfontein, which later developed into a village. It was renamed Carnarvon in honour of the British Colonial Secretary, the town is known for its corbelled houses - domed-roof houses constructed from flat stones - which were built between 1811 and 1815. The Afrikaans poet A. G. Visser had strong associations with Carnarvon, Carnarvon Museum contains exhibits on the regions cultural history. The building was constructed in 1907, and was originally the community hall for the Dutch Reformed Church before being donated to the municipality when a new community centre was constructed in 1973. The museum holds a number of related to the area. A corbelled house is preserved outside the museum, which was relocated from a nearby farm, an English-built fort was constructed on top of the hill that overlooks Carnarvon during the Second Boer War. The hill, now named Koeëlkop, is now used for a water reservoir, Carnarvon is a busy farming centre. Its main agricultural activity is sheep farming, the town centre has a Spar store. The MeerKAT radio telescope array is under construction at a site around 90 km from Carnarvon, the core of the Square Kilometre Array will also be constructed on the same site. Carnarvon Nature Reserve is home to 11 species of game, Carnarvon also has a private tortoise reserve, containing 60 leopard tortoises. There are three tarred roads out of Carnarvon, the road west to Calvinia and the road south and then east to Victoria West are numbered as part of the R63 provincial route, while the road east to Britstown is numbered as the R384 regional route. Carnarvon Airport accommodates light and ultra-light aircraft, Carnarvon was also served by a station on the branch railway line from Hutchinson to Calvinia, which was closed in 2001. The modern public library meets the needs of all readers and the high school is capable of preparing pupils to virtually follow any career path. With a hostel, the school offers accommodation to pupils whose families do not live close to town, in 1875, the NG Church was established and the first pastor was Rev. WP de Villiers, pastor of NG Beaufort West. For 30 Years Rev. de Villiers was head of the NG Church, as there were no schools, the pastor, when his duties allowed, and his wife started a teaching school. The first church was built using stone, at a total cost of £12,000 the first church was inaugurated in February 1882. But interestingly enough the cornerstone reads, Deze steen werd gelegd in de naam van die Vader, stating 23 September 1880 as the inaugurated date
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