Political Features
Boer war (1899-1902)
1st side: the Boers and the Zulus (native South Africans), formed soon before the first war occurred in 1850
2nd side: there was the British Empire which contained Australian soldiers due to the first fleet in 1788 (brought 16,000 Australians)
At the time a tension between political leaders existed between Paul Kruger, president of the Transvaat (South African Republic) and Cecil Rhodes, premier of Cape Colony. Rhodes was from Britain and had made his fortune in South African diamond mining. He supported British imperial plan to unite South Africa under British rule. Kruger on the other hand supported the Boer independence. These two wee in direct conflict. Such conflicting political ideologies of imperialism and republicanism were a major contributor to the outbreak of war.
The British and Australian soldiers went to war on the 11th October 1899. The British were disadvantaged going into the war; unaware of the terrain whereas the Boers lived on the land. The British were subjected to many diseases and were been bombed by the Boers, restricting opportunities to move in leaving them in unhygienic camps. The Boers were outnumbered 2:1 yet managed to hold their own for a substantial period of time. The British however captured two capital cities of the Boer republic (Bloemfontein and Pretoria). The war ended on the 31st May, 1902 with the British claiming victory over the Boers.
Union of South Africa
It was by the end of the 19th century, South African indigenous people had lost most of their political and economic independence. One of the major protests that occurred was the Bambatha Rebellion of 1906, in which 4000 Zulus perished protesting against tax legislation. Due to the post-war systems the Afrikaners were left in a terrible situation, poor farmers in a country were the mining industry and foreign capital rendered them irrelevant.
It was on the 31st May, 1910 that the South American Act was passed in Britain granting dominion to the White minority over native( South African) and other coloured, mixed races. English and Dutch became the official languages. It was the unification of Cape Colony, Natal Colony, Transvaal Colony and Orange River Colony which gained international respect with the British Dominion status. The union occurred 8 years after the Boer war and remained under the British Crown. Politically it is considered a miracle that the British and the Afrikaners were able to unite to form the union of South Africa.
Although the objective of the British in merging the dependencies was to unite South Africa and consolidate its imperialist interests, the result was a divided South Africa, with blacks excluded from political participation. This development fuelled discontent and racial conflict.
The South Africa Act of 1909
The period 1909 to 1910 covers the independence period and is essentially the origin of the constitutional development of South Africa. This period was characterised by the enactment of the South Africa Act by the British Parliament, establishing an independent Union of South Africa comprising the territories of Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Natal and Transvaal. In reality, this was South Africa’s Independence constitution.
1st side: the Boers and the Zulus (native South Africans), formed soon before the first war occurred in 1850
2nd side: there was the British Empire which contained Australian soldiers due to the first fleet in 1788 (brought 16,000 Australians)
At the time a tension between political leaders existed between Paul Kruger, president of the Transvaat (South African Republic) and Cecil Rhodes, premier of Cape Colony. Rhodes was from Britain and had made his fortune in South African diamond mining. He supported British imperial plan to unite South Africa under British rule. Kruger on the other hand supported the Boer independence. These two wee in direct conflict. Such conflicting political ideologies of imperialism and republicanism were a major contributor to the outbreak of war.
The British and Australian soldiers went to war on the 11th October 1899. The British were disadvantaged going into the war; unaware of the terrain whereas the Boers lived on the land. The British were subjected to many diseases and were been bombed by the Boers, restricting opportunities to move in leaving them in unhygienic camps. The Boers were outnumbered 2:1 yet managed to hold their own for a substantial period of time. The British however captured two capital cities of the Boer republic (Bloemfontein and Pretoria). The war ended on the 31st May, 1902 with the British claiming victory over the Boers.
Union of South Africa
It was by the end of the 19th century, South African indigenous people had lost most of their political and economic independence. One of the major protests that occurred was the Bambatha Rebellion of 1906, in which 4000 Zulus perished protesting against tax legislation. Due to the post-war systems the Afrikaners were left in a terrible situation, poor farmers in a country were the mining industry and foreign capital rendered them irrelevant.
It was on the 31st May, 1910 that the South American Act was passed in Britain granting dominion to the White minority over native( South African) and other coloured, mixed races. English and Dutch became the official languages. It was the unification of Cape Colony, Natal Colony, Transvaal Colony and Orange River Colony which gained international respect with the British Dominion status. The union occurred 8 years after the Boer war and remained under the British Crown. Politically it is considered a miracle that the British and the Afrikaners were able to unite to form the union of South Africa.
Although the objective of the British in merging the dependencies was to unite South Africa and consolidate its imperialist interests, the result was a divided South Africa, with blacks excluded from political participation. This development fuelled discontent and racial conflict.
The South Africa Act of 1909
The period 1909 to 1910 covers the independence period and is essentially the origin of the constitutional development of South Africa. This period was characterised by the enactment of the South Africa Act by the British Parliament, establishing an independent Union of South Africa comprising the territories of Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Natal and Transvaal. In reality, this was South Africa’s Independence constitution.