families who set out from the eastern frontier towns represented a small fraction of the Dutch-speaking inhabitants of the colony. Called Dutch Boers by the British, they called themselves as Afrikaners. Their pioneering courage is remembered as the most important aspect of Afrikaner folk memory.
Represented in later days as a peaceful and God-fearing journey into the unknown, the Great Trek caused tremendous upheaval in the lives of the indigenous people. Messengers made their way to the chiefs of the Sotho clans to report that the white men were coming in their hundreds.
The Voortrekker Monument
The Voortrekkers (pioneers) had to face the uninviting prospect of the barren Kalahari Desert, the tsetse fly belt, and the realm of the deadly malarial mosquito. Yet they trekked onwards, intent on gaining access to ports beyond the sphere of British control, at Delagoa Bay, Inhambane, and Sofala. In order for their new settlement to be viable, it was crucial that they establish independent trading links with Europe.
The British resented any intrusion by other European powers in their colony’s affairs. Whenever ‘foreign’ interference was detected, the British used the expedient of annexing the territory concerned. In the 1840s, the Voortrekkers of the Republic of Natalia endeavoured to open contacts with the Netherlands, so the British annexed Natal, but recognized independent Boer republics in Transvaal and the Orange Free State. In the 1880s Germany annexed South West Africa (modern Namibia) resulting in the British pre-emptive action of annexing Bechuanaland (modern Botswana).
Self Government for the Cape Colony
In 1853, the British Government conferred a representative legislature on the Cape Colony which made a timid move towards political equality among the races. The non-racial franchise was based on economic qualifications, but in practice it excluded the vast majority of black and coloured people. Nevertheless, the promise of full political inclusion existed. In 1872 the Cape Colony was granted self government. Over the following twenty years the expansion of the colony resulted in the inclusion of great numbers of native voters. The government progressively raised the franchise hurdle. Communal land ownership was excluded as a qualification and proof of the ability to write was introduced as a requirement.
The Discovery of Diamonds
An exciting new element entered the economic and political balance: diamonds were discovered in 1867 when two children found a shiny pebble near the Orange River, leading to the development of the town of Kimberley. As a consequence, interested parties now realized that the land opened up by the migration of the Boers had more than just nuisance value. There was wealth for the taking.
The ‘Big Hole’ at Kimberley
I, Bothar
In a totally predictable move the area around Kimberley, known as Griqualand, was incorporated into the Cape Colony in 1880. Thousands of prospectors and diamond diggers were attracted from all over the world to Kimberley. Like so many termites, they attacked the outcrop of diamond-bearing ground with such voracity that it was transformed from a hill into the famous ‘Big Hole’.
The War between the Zulus and the White Colonists
While Kimberley was exploiting its newly discovered wealth, the Colony of Natal was developing along somewhat different lines. Here, the fearsome Zulu nation had grown to menacing proportions. Under African law, black refugees fleeing from Zulu power were given sanctuary in buffer reserves. Outside those reserves, British law held sway. Black Africans in the reserves were under the rule of the chiefs.
The late-nineteenth century was a period of further colonial expansion, a pressure which the Zulus tried to withstand. At the beginning of 1879 a force of 1,800 British troops equipped with modern weapons invaded Zululand. Under King Cetshwayo, the Zulu ‘impi’ (army) of 20,000 warriors, mostly carrying spears and clubs delivered a resounding defeat on the unprepared British at Isandhlwana. Over 1,300 British soldiers were killed.
Cetshwayo, King of the Zulus
The British defeat in what was termed the First Anglo-Zulu War resulted in a much stronger force invading Zululand the following year; and this time the Zulu King Cetshwayo was defeated. One month later he was captured and exiled to Cape Town. In 1882, Cetshwayo visited England where he was granted an audience with Queen Victoria. He was promised reinstatement as king, but in 1883, upon his return to Zululand, Cetshwayo was appointed ‘king’ over a buffer reserve considerably smaller than his original kingdom. Cetshwayo died in February 1884, possibly poisoned.
Natal had the ideal climate for the cultivation of sugar cane, a labour-intensive activity. Indentured labourers were imported from India, many of whom remained in the country at the end of their contracts. They became the forebears of today’s significant and influential Indian population, which remains mainly resident in the coastal area of Natal.
Discovery and exploitation of the alluvial gold deposits of Barberton and Pilgrims Rest attracted hordes of prospectors. In 1877 the British adopted their usual tactic and promulgated the annexation of the territory of the self-proclaimed Boer republic. On 20 December 1880, Lieutenant Colonel Anstruther tried to enforce the annexation by marching elements of his regiment from Lydenburg to Pretoria with the regiment’s band leading the column. At Bronkhorstspruit the force was stopped by Boers, who requested the British to turn back. Armstrong refused. The British column was devastated by rifle fire from the surrounding Boer ambush. The British High Commissioner for South East Africa, Major-General Sir George Pomeroy Colley, instead of waiting for reinforcements, assembled the available troops and rushed forward to relieve the British garrisons in the Transvaal.
Sir George Colley at Laing’s Nek
Colley gathered his force at Newcastle in Natal. His ultimatum to the Boers was rejected and Colley advanced towards the Transvaal border. The British made camp over 6 km short of Laing’s Nek, a ridge that was occupied by a Boer force. On the morning of 28 January 1881 Colley moved out with his troops. The British infantry of the time wore red jackets, blue trousers with red piping, and white pith helmets. The Boers on the other hand were a citizen militia. They had no uniforms but they were expert marksmen. The British soldiers stood out like ready-made targets on the hilly grassland of the Natal-Transvaal border region.
The 58th Regiment was led up the hillside by Lieutenant Baillie carrying the Regimental Colour and Lieutenant Hill carrying the Queen’s Colour. Baillie was mortally wounded while Hill won the Victoria Cross for bringing casualties down from the hillside.
In an endeavour to regain the initiative Colley led five hundred men to the summit of the flat-topped Majuba Hill (Hill of Doves) overlooking Laing’s Nek. Colley, apparently believing the hill was unassailable, made no provision for its defence. On the orders of the Boer commander 200 agile young men climbed Majuba Hill and with well-aimed skill devastated the unprotected British troops. Colley was killed by a Boer bullet in the ensuing action.
