Boer republics
Background
The
The
Boer migrants were referred to as the Voortrekkers during the time of the Great Trek, several mass movements which occurred during the 1830s–40s.[4] On the 22nd of January 1837 Piet Retief addressed a letter to the British Colonial Administration in which he concluded "We quit this colony under the full assurance that the English Government has nothing more to require of us, and will allow us to govern ourselves without its interference in future".[5]
Republic of Swellendam
By 1795 the dissatisfaction towards the Dutch East India Company caused the burghers of Swellendam to revolt, and on 17 June 1795 they declared themselves a Republic. Hermanus Steyn was appointed as President of the Republic of Swellendam. The burghers of Swellendam started to call themselves "national burghers" – after the style of the French Revolution. However, the Republic was short-lived and was ended on 4 November 1795 when the Cape was occupied by the Kingdom of Great Britain.[6]
Republic of the Graaff-Reinet
Public farmers and the government authorities could not agree on policies with regards to the frontier resulting in the 'Cape Frontier Rebellion' of 1795 where after the Boers declared Graaff-Reinet an independent republic, the Republic of Graaff-Reinet. Following the Invasion of the Cape Colony in 1795, the British took possession of the area which led to another revolt in 1799, the uprising were suppressed by British troops that same year.[7]
South African Republic
Louis Tregardt and Jan van Rensburg split off from Hendrik Potgieter's group, and continued on to establish Zoutpansberg. Potgieter's group remained at the Vet river and founded a town called Winburg.[2]: 222
The establishment of the South African Republic had its origins in 1837 when the commandos of Potgieter and
In 1848 the British Governor of the Cape,
The Boer Republics were predominately Calvinist Protestant due to their Dutch heritage, and this played a significant role in their culture. The ZAR national constitution did not provide separation between church and state,[8] disallowing the franchise (citizenship) to anyone not a member of the Dutch Reformed Church. In 1858, these clauses were altered in the constitution to allow for the Volksraad to approve other Dutch Calvinist churches that separated from the Dutch Reformed Church in the wake of a number of splits. Members of the Roman Catholic Church and other Christian churches were not allowed to become citizens of the ZAR.[8]: 358–59
Zoutpansberg
The Zoutpansberg Boers came in 1835, settling along the Limpopo River, where they learnt gold working from the natives. The white settlers in Zoutpansberg had a long reputation of lawlessness, often being called typical "Back-veldt Boers". In 1864, they were inevitably incorporated into the South African Republic (Transvaal) after the Transvaal Civil War. As a district in the Republic, they had the largest native population in the South African Republic.
Natalia Republic
In April 1837, a party under leadership of
After Pretorius was recruited to fill the leadership vacuum created by the deaths of Piet Retief and Maritz, he offered to negotiate for peace with Dingane if he were to restore the land he had offered to Retief.[9] Dingane responded by attacking the Voortrekkers; on 16 December 1838 the battle of Ncome River (later named the Battle of Blood River) occurred, during which 300 Voortrekkers survived and won a decisive battle against thousands of Dingane's impis.
The Natalia Republic was established in 1839 by the local Boers after Pretorius entered into an alliance with Mpande, the new Zulu king.
Orange Free State
In June 1852 a public meeting was held in Bloemfontein where all the European people voted on a resolution whether to pursue independence or remain under British rule. The vast majority of people voted to remain under British rule. Sir Harry Smith, however, had instructions to hand the country over to the Boers. In 1853, Sir George Clerk was sent as special commissioner to give up the land and to establish self-rule.[2]: 232 16,000 people sent a delegation of representatives to inform Clerk that the people wished to remain governed by Britain. Clerk however had clear instructions to establish self-rule, and with a minority Boers represented by J.H. Hofmann, agreed to a convention of independence.[2]: 233
Goosen (Goshen)
The State of Goosen was founded by a group of
Stellaland
West of the
New Republic
The New Republic (comprising the town of
Griqualand
States were also established by other population groups, most notably the
International recognition
The people north of the Vaal River in the South African Republic were recognised as an independent country by the United Kingdom with the signing of the Sand River Convention on 17 January 1852.[8]: 357–59
The Orange Free State was recognised by the UK on 17 February 1854. The Orange Free State became independent on 23 February 1854 with the signing of the Bloemfontein or Orange River Convention. The Orange Free State was nicknamed "the model republic".
The Transvaal and the Orange Free State developed into successful independent countries which were recognized by the Netherlands, France, Germany, Belgium, the United States, and Britain.[15] These two countries continued to exist for several decades, despite the First Boer War with Britain. However, later developments, including the discovery of diamonds and gold in these states, led to the Second Boer War. In this war, the Transvaal and Orange Free State were defeated and annexed by the overwhelmingly larger British forces, ceasing to exist on 31 May 1902, with the signing of the Treaty of Vereeniging. A new British dominion, the Union of South Africa, was established under the South Africa Act 1909, in which the Transvaal and the Orange Free State became provinces along with the Cape and Natal.
2014 land claim
On 24 April 2014, political party
List of states and republics
Boer republics
- Freeburgher Colonies(1656–1795)
- Republic of Swellendam (1795)
- Republic of Graaff-Reinet (1795–1796)
- Republic of Zoutpansberg (1835–1864)
- Winburg (1836–1844)
- Potchefstroom (1837–1844)
- Natalia Republic (1839–1843)
- Winburg-Potchefstroom (1844–1848)
- Republic of Klip River (1847–1848)
- Republic of Lydenburg (1849–1860)
- Utrecht Republic(1852–1858)
- South African Republic (1852–1877, 1881–1902)
- Orange Free State (1854–1902)
- Klein Vrystaat (1886–1891)
- State of Goshen (1882–1883)
- Republic of Stellaland (1882–1883)
- United States of Stellaland (1883–1885)
- New Republic (1884–1888)
- Republic of Upingtonia/Lijdensrust (1885–1887)
Griqua states
- Griqualand East (1862–1879)
- Griqualand West (1870–1871)
- Philippolis/Adam Kok's Land (1826–1861)
- Waterboer's Land (1813–1871)
See also
References
- ^ Precis of the Archives of the Cape of Good Hope, January 1656 – December 1658, Riebeeck's Journal &c, H.C.V Leibrandt, Part II, Cape Town 1897.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i D. Fairbridge (1918). History of South Africa. pp. 220–21.
- ISBN 978-1405188319.
- ^ "Voortrekkers van Suid Afrika genealogy project".
- ^ History of the Emigrant Boers in South Africa, 2nd ed, G.M. Theal, London 1888.
- ^ "The Swellendam Republic accepts British rule". South African History Online. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
- ^ A short chronicle of warfare in South Africa, Compiled by the Military Information Bureau, Published: Scientia Militaria: South African Journal of Military Studies Vol 16 Nr 13, 1986
- ^ OL 24129017M.
- ^ The Great Boer Trek. Stephen Crane.Archived February 10, 2003, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "South Africa". www.worldstatesmen.org. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
- ^ "Flag of The United States of Stellaland". Volkstaat. 24 May 2010. Archived from the original on 2013-05-02. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Stellaland (South Africa)". www.crwflags.com. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
- ^ Dietz, Ton (January 2017). "African Postal Heritage: Stellaland and British Bechuanaland" (PDF). Retrieved 3 February 2020.
- ^ "The United States of…Belgium?". Portable Press. 2015-06-10. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
- ^ The Story of the Boers. C. W. Van Der Hoogt. Chapter: A Century of Injustice. p. 96.
- ^ "Land claim submission for old Boer Republic land-rights 24 April 2014". Archived from the original on 2016-03-11. Retrieved 2014-05-16.
- ^ Largest Land Claim in South Africa: old Boer Republic
- ^ "Land restitution bill passed after heated debate". News24. 25 February 2014. Archived from the original on February 26, 2014. Retrieved 16 June 2014.
- ^ "Front Nasionaal hands in massive land claim". SABC Digital News. 25 April 2014. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 16 June 2014.
- ^ Vermaak, Narda (15 May 2014). "Party is upfront about its land claim". Steelburger. Archived from the original on 16 June 2014. Retrieved 16 June 2014.