Log in for more information. In 1806, the Cape, now nominally controlled by the Batavian Republic, was occupied again by the British after their victory in the Battle of Blaauwberg. From 1820 to 1824, about 4 500 immigrants arrived from Ireland, England and Scotland. Starting in the 17th century, Dutch settlers relied on slaves to build up South Africa. As these farms were labour-intensive, Vryburghers imported slaves from Madagascar, Mozambique and Asia (Dutch East Indies and Dutch Ceylon), which rapidly increased the number of inhabitants. Get an answer. In 1652 the powerful Dutch East India Company built a fort and established a supply station under the command of Jan Van Riebeeck on a site that later became Cape Town. The Dutch East India Company allowed them to claim farms of 2500 hectares (about 1000 acres) or more. Tensions over loss of pastures between 1654 and 1659 resulted in open conflict in the first Khoi-Dutch war from 1659-60. The growth of the Ottoman Empire disrupted overland trade routes to Europe. Nine of the best applicants were selected to use the land for agricultural purposes. In 1797 their populations were:[7]. Bartholomeu Dias explored the continent further southwards and in 1488 unknowingly sailed round the Cape. The peace between Britain and Napoleonic France had broken after one year, while Napoleon had been strengthening his influence on the Batavian Republic (which he would replace with a monarchy later that year). They were called Boers (Dutch for farmer), or Afrikaners – Dutch with a mix of Flemish, German and French Huguenot heritage. selfstudyhistory.com It remained… This changed early in the 17th century when the Dutch and English formed trading companies that sought to challenge the Portuguese and Spanish domination of the European trade with Asia. These were especially poor wretches living in desperate circumstances or mercenaries who had been unemployed since the end of the 30 years war. A punitive expedition of one hundred and fifty men was sent by de Almeida to deal with the Khoikhoi. Leibrandt, P47 - 48, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dutch_Cape_Colony&oldid=1000605569, Former settlements and colonies of the Dutch East India Company, States and territories established in 1652, States and territories disestablished in 1806, 17th-century establishments in the Cape Colony, 1806 disestablishments in the Dutch Empire, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, 31 August 1737 – 19 September 1737 (died after three weeks in office), 1772 – 23 January 1773 (died at sea on his way to the Cape), This page was last edited on 15 January 2021, at 21:17. Thus, the settlement steadily spread from shores of Table Bay to other parts of the Cape. a. Afrikaners. The emergence of Afrikaans reflects this diversity, from its roots as a Khoe-Dutch pidgin, to its subsequent creolisation and use as "Kitchen Dutch" by slaves and serfs of the colonials, and its later use in Cape Islam by them when it first became a written language that used the Arabic letters. Traders of the United East India Company (VOC), under the command of Jan van Riebieeck, were the first people to establish a European colony in South Africa. During the same period the area around Table Bay and Robben Island were increasingly used by the Dutch and British. In 1795, after the Battle of Muizenberg in present-day Cape Town, the British occupied the colony. The region of the Western Cape which includes the Table Bay area (where the modern city of Cape Town is located) was inhabited by Khoikhoi pastoralists who used it seasonally as pastures for their cattle. Kind of. The short answer is that the Boers (who by that generation were mostly born on the continent) didn't agree with British colonial rule. The first school to be built in South Africa by the settlers were for the sake of the slaves who had been rescued from a Portuguese slave ship and arrived at the Cape with the Amersfoort in 1658. As the only permanent settlement of the Dutch United East India Company not serving as a trading post, it proved an ideal retirement place for employees of the company. ... but many other white settlers were landless. In 1652 the Dutch East India Company charged Jan Seven years later in 1510, Francis de Almeida the first viceroy of Portuguese Indies, also sailed into Table Bay with a fleet in search of fresh water. The original colony and its successive states that the colony was incorporated into occupied much of modern South Africa. These immigrants are referred to as the 1820 British Settlers. The first white settlement in South Africa occurred on the Cape under the control of the Dutch East India company. The Boers (Dutch settlers) in South Africa resented British rule. When war between the British and French broke out once more in 1806, the British permanently occupied the Cape Colony. Britain united Boer republics with Cape Colony to form new, independent state (1910). It was the gradual dispossession of local Khoikhoi pastoralists by early Dutch settlers that opened up the area for European settlement. See Article History. So sad that anyone in the world … Asked 2/3/2014 2:09:17 PM. The VOC acted as an agent of the Dutch government in Asia by expanding the Dutch influence by taking possession of land, expanding trade routes and establishing trade outposts. By 1655 some company employees were growing their own vegetable plots near the castle. [2] The Cape came under VOC rule from 1652 to 1795 and again from 1803 to 1806. By the 1660s, the settlement showed growth in the number of buildings and European visitors began to refer to the settlement as a town. The last, Rensselaerswyck, was the only successful patroonship in New Netherlands. Boer, (Dutch: “husbandman,” or “farmer”), a South African of Dutch, German, or Huguenot descent, especially one of the early settlers of the Transvaal and the Orange Free State. In the 17th century, the southernmost point of Africa where the Atlantic and Indian oceans meet became a desirable half-way haven for the Dutch East India Company which was trading with India. When European ships landed on the shores of Table Bay they came into contact with Khoikhoi. During a visit in 1672, the high-ranking Commissioner Arnout van Overbeke made a formal purchase of the Cape territory, although already ceded in 1660, his reason was to "prevent future disputes". In 1615 ten British prisoners were also dumped on Robben Island and in 1648 the Dutch dumped mutineers on the shores of Table Bay. In 1480, Portuguese ships landed on the shores of the West Coast of Africa. With colonialism, which began in South Africa in 1652, came the Slavery and Forced Labour Model. In 1838 the Boers fought and defeated the Zulus at the Battle of Blood River. The original colony and its successive states that the colony was incorporated into occupied much of modern South Africa. A. Heese, Den Herkoms van de Afrikaner 1657 - 1867. [5], Conflicts with the settlers and the effects of smallpox decimated their numbers in 1713 and 1755, until gradually the breakdown of their society led them to work for the colonists, mostly as shepherds and herdsmen. The support station gradually became a settler community, the forebears of the Boers, an ethnic group in South Africa that later appropriated the name "Afrikaners". This group of first settlers was led by Jan van Riebeeck. Between 1652 and 1691 a Commandment, and between 1691 and 1795 a Governorate of the United East India Company (VOC). History of South Africa, 1484 - 1691, G.M. The Cape Colony (Dutch: Kaapkolonie) was a Dutch United East India Company (VOC) Colony in Southern Africa, centered on the Cape of Good Hope, whence it derived its name. The ‘free burgers’ were provided with seeds, tools and loans to start farming. The expansion was so evident that the VOC complained in 1661 that Van Riebeeck was establishing a colony and a town a plan that had been discouraged by the company. Jan van Riebeeck, who founded the first colony at Cape Town in 1652, was an official of the Dutch East India Company. Jan van Riebeeck was aboard one of these ships. The title of the founder of the Cape Colony, Jan van Riebeeck, was installed as "Commander of the Cape", a position he held from 1652 to 1662. The name Afrikaaners came much later and reffered to Boers who had been born in South Africa. These people became known as the Afrikaners. As a result it was looked down on as a kombuistaal (kitchen language) by the wealthier settlers who spoke High Dutch. By the end of 1847, following annexation by Britain of the former Boer republic of Natalia, nearly all the Boers had left their former republic, which the British renamed Natal. However, most of the settlers remained in the colony under new leadership of the British. The Cape society in this period was thus a diverse one. 1856 - The Boers of Transvaal declare their own republic. This prompted Great Britain, at war with France, to occupy the territory in 1795 as a way to better control the seas on the way to India. For example, between 1610 and 1669 the VOC took possession of colonies in Batavia, Indonesia, Colombo in Sri Lanka, Malabar in India, Makassar and the Dutch East Indies. Question. The British established their colony to control the Far East trade routes. CD Colin Pretorius 2013. Also called Afrikaners, who were the Dutch settlers in South Africa repeatedly driven inland by British settlers. The United East India Company transferred its territories and claims to the Batavian Republic (the Revolutionary period Dutch state) in 1798, then ceased to exist in 1799. Indian slaves from the Dutch colonies had been introduced into the Cape area of South Africa by the Dutch settlers in 1654. To supplement their labour, slaves were imported, at first from West Africa and later in larger numbers from Madagascar, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), and the Dutch East Indies. There, they encountered a group called the Khoikhoi who used the land to … These men had been recruited for service with British forces in the Crimean War (1854-6) and were stationed in England. Settlers were leaving Cape Town in their creaking ox drawn wagons and moving into nearby fertile valleys. In the summer months the Khoikhoi moved around between the areas of Table Bay, Swartland and Saldanha Bay in search of fresh grazing pastures with their cattle herds. A. [4] The Khoena ("People") were disgruntled by the disruption of their seasonal visit to the area for which purpose they grazed their cattle at the foot of Table Mountain only to find European settlers occupying and farming the land, leading to the first Khoi-Dutch War as part of a series of Khoekhoe-Dutch Wars. Jan van Riebeeck was engaged on a five year contract by the VOC as the man who was to build the refreshment outpost. The 19th century formally non-racial franchise was retained in the Cape but was not extended elsewhere, where rights of citizenship were confined to whites alone. In Southern Africa, however, the transfer of power to an African majority was greatly complicated by the presence of entrenched white settlers. [3] Much to the dismay of the shareholders of the VOC, who focused primarily on making profits from the Asian trade, the colony rapidly expanded into a Settler Colony in the years after its founding. By the middle of the 17th century the Dutch had replaced the Portuguese and the Spanish trading networks and established their own. The Dutch settlers fought the Khoikhoi for control, carving a permanent European presence into what is now South Africa. Search for an answer or ask Weegy. Large numbers of people from Great Britain settled in South Africa after gold and diamonds were discovered. In 1630 three patroonships were founded: on the South River Swanendael; on the North River at its mouth, Pavonia and at Fort Oranje, Rensselaerswyck. Dutch. They stayed for nearly one year and were rescued by a fleet of 12 ships under the command of W.G. Britain seized Natal in 1843 but the other two territories became Boer republics. This evolved from Dutch but also contained Malay and Portuguese Creole words. 1833 - Slavery is abolished by the British. When slavery was abolished in 18344 they were antagonized still more. Van Riebeeck complained that the land available was insufficient to meet the agricultural demands of the settlement both for farming and grazing company cattle. Modern day South Africa has had contact with Europeans for centuries, and the first group to settle there were the Dutch. Read More on This Topic. On his return Dias erected a cross (on the Gulf between the Mountains later named by sailors as ‘False Bay’). The Dutch were the first to really begin colonizing South Africa, with Dutch settlers called Afrikaners fighting violently against the indigenous Khoikhoi people for control. Rating. After the war, the natives ceded the land to the settlers in 1660. South Africa’s modern history begins with the Dutch East India Company, which established trading posts for sailors along the coast. The two areas which were allocated to the freemen, for agricultural purposes, were named Groeneveld and Dutch Garden. Finally, the Boers began a mass migration away from the British called the Grea… Muslim traders dominated the spice trade in the Indian Ocean in the medieval period. The National Convention drew up a constitution and the four colonies became an independent dominion called the Union of South Africa on 31 May 1910. Boer, (Dutch: “husbandman,” or “farmer”), a South African of Dutch, German, or Huguenot descent, especially one of the early settlers of the Transvaal and the Orange Free State. The outpost was intended to supply VOC ships on their way to Asia with fresh fruits, vegetables, meat and to enable sailors wearied by the sea to recuperate. Finally, the Boers began a mass migration away from the British called the Great Trek. They were called Boers (Dutch for farmer), or Afrikaners – Dutch with a mix of Flemish, German and French Huguenot heritage. The first Europeans to come to South Africa were the Portuguese in 1488. The Dutch East India Company established a toehold in Cape Town on the southwestern tip of modern South Africa. orary documents suggest that the servants were acting under orders. The Boers (Dutch settlers) in South Africa resented British rule. The Dutch language was taught at schools as the main medium for commercial purposes, with the result that the indigenous people and even the French settlers found themselves speaking Dutch more than their native languages. The mapping of the coast of African coast by explorers and the establishment of an alternative trade route by sea between Europe and Asia precipitated the settlement of the Cape. In 1497 Vasco da Gama and later Ferdinard Magellan also sailed round the Cape all the way to India. From here it was intended they should sail to South Africa but the war ended before their departure. Hostility between British and Dutch settlers, known as Boers or Afrikaners, led to the Great Trek of 1835-43, a migration of Boers from the Cape who founded Natal, Orange Free State, and Transvaal. Once again the Khoikhoi fought back and defeated the Portuguese force killing 67 people including de Almeida. Sharpeville Massacre South African police shot non-violent protesters (protesting against pass laws) in Sharpeville township; 69 deaths (1960). He pointed out that three young Black men were shot dead in a car in South Africa in the same week that Mr. Horner was killed. The Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 confirmed the transfer of sovereignty to Great Britain. A mud and wooden structure was erected in the Table Bay area for shelter and defence. In 1670 the French attacked Saldanha Bay, exposing the vulnerability of the settlement. Between 1835 and 1845 around 15,000 Dutch people moved from British Cape Colony to the interior of South Africa. The shipwreck victims built a small fort named "Sand Fort of the Cape of Good Hope". It was many years later, however, in 1652 when the Dutch East India Company established a small settlement at the Cape of Good Hope. In 1651, the VOC issued instructions that a refreshment station should be established at the Cape to provide fresh supplies of vegetables, fruit and meat for VOC ships on their way to the East Indies. Today, descendants of the Boers are commonly referred to as Afrikaners. Updated 2/3/2014 3:30:58 PM. Due to the authoritarian rule of the Company (telling farmers what to grow for what price, controlling immigration, and monopolising trade), some farmers tried to escape the rule of the company by moving further inland. By 1620, the VOC was the largest corporation in Europe trading in cotton and silk from India and China. Theal, London 1888, Precis of the Archives of the Cape of Good Hope, January 1652 - December 1658, Riebeeck's Journal, H.C.V. The Dutch were the first Europeans to colonize the Cape. During this period, missionaries started arriving, at first only from the Morovian Brethren and the London Missionary Society, but later they were joined by German, Dutch, Danish and Flemish missionaries. The slaves that the settlers imported added to the bloodline of the settlers, as did the French Hugenots of 1688 and British settlers of 1820. in 1834 slavery was abolished in the cape . In 1633 a wooden church was erected in Nieuw Amsterdam and in 1642 it was replaced by a stone church inside the Fort. In 1812 the British founded Grahamstown and in 1820 4,000 Britons were granted land by the Great Fish River. They then divided into the Transvaals and Orange Free State. New answers . J. Settler Colonialism and Afrikaner Nationalism. In 1652 a Dutch expedition of 90 Calvinist settlers under the command of Jan Van Riebeeck founded the first permanent settlement near the Cape of Good Hope. 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