Rev. JUMA RICHARDSON ALBERT ANKHOMA was born at Irehaye, Bandawe, Nyasaland. In 1891 the family moved to Dwambazi, near River Dwasulo. His father, Kassele Ankhoma, who was a warrior in the Atonga section of the tribe, married Chief Kaluluma’s sister. During the time of Dr. Henderson in Nyasaland, Rev. Ankhoma was a boy  attending school at the Training Institution at Bandawe where he spent three years. From 1901 he took part in the building of churches. In 1909 he went to Johannesburg and in 1912 became a minister of the Apostolic Faith Church of which he is now the overseer. In 1918 he was chairman of the Nyasaland National Congress.

Dr. Daniel William Alexander, Doctor of Divinity, Archbishop and Primate of the Province of South Africa and East Africa, in the African Orthodox Church-an independant Episcopal Church with apostolic succession through the Original Patriarchal See of St. Peter at Antioch.

Born 25th December, 1880, at Port Elizabeth, Cape Province. Second eldest child of Henry and Elizabeth Alexander (father a native of the French West Indies, Martinique). Educated at St. Peter’s Primary and Secondary Schools and the Sisters of Mercy (Catholic). Married Elizabeth Koster 28th August, 1901, at Pretoria. Boatbuilder by trade. Joined the British in the Anglo-Boer War, was captured at Colenso and sent to Pretoria.

After the capture of Pretoria joined the Anglican Church and was appointed chaplain at the Old Prison, eventually studying for the ministry under the Fathers Bennet and Fuller of the Community of the Resurrection, and Canons Farmer and Rev. H. Mtobi. Elected secretary of the A.P.O., Pretoria Branch, and the secretary of the committee for the purchasing of the Lady Selborne Township, Pretoria.

Resigned the Anglican Church and went to Johannesburg and joined the African Life Assurance Society as agent on their starting the Industrial Branch, and opened the Pretoria office after two and a half years. Resigned and was elected Grand True Secretary of the I.O.T.T., Northern Grand Lodge, before the separation. Re-elected 1920-21. Refused nomination 1922.
In 1924 organised the African Branch of the African Orthodox Church and was appointed Vicar-Apostolic by Bishop George A. McGuire, M.D., D.D., D.C., and in the following year was elected Bishop for the Province of South Africa. On arrival in New York was given Catholic Orders by Bishop W. E. Robertson and Archbishop McGuire respectively to the Priesthood, and on the 11th September, 1927, was consecrated Archbishop and Primate of the Province of South and East Africa, in the Church of St. Michael and All Angels, Boston, U.S. America. The Degree of Doctor of Divinity was conferred by the Faculty (Honorary)) on the Archbishop.

Editor of the African Orthodox Churchman, a monthly magazine of the Province, and author of An Orthodox Catechism. Dean of the Seminary of St. Augustine for the ministerial students for the Church. Address: 3, Brimton Street, Beaconsfield, Kimberley, South Africa.

Oba Alaiyeluwa Ademiluyi is the traditional High Priest King of the Yoruba Country, which has one of the most ancient dynasties in Africa. In the mediaval times there was much trade in Yoruba States, most of the business being done with Timbuctoo. A lot of the people of this country adopted the Islamic faith about the seventh century. The chief industries were iron works, agriculture, pepper, ivory, cloth weaving, leather making, carving and bead-work. From iron several articles were being manufactured, both for local use and for export purposes, such as agricultural implements, iron ornaments, weapons of war, utensils and such. The two great mining areas were in Nupe territory and in the Kakanda district at Ile Ife in Yorubaland. Another mining field was near Ilorin. Glass industry was chiefly carried on in Nupe.

The art of sculpture seems to have reached its zenith of development at this period. The chief industries at Ashanti and Gold Coast and Dahomey were gold, diamonds, precious stones, ivory, pepper, agriculture, bead making and carving. Corals were obtained from the sea, and of these all West African royal crowns, beaded thrones, beaded staves, and all other works of beads were usually manufactured. The rights of mining belonged to each and every individual inhabitant of West Africa, although it might seem that some portion of any precious metal mined or dug out used to be offered by the owner as a present to the King. Before the advent of Europeans or Arabs the people of West Africa worshipped God whom they called ” Olorun ” meaning ” One Supreme Being.”

The number of Christians in Yoruba is increasing. Many young people are sent to Europe and America for higher education. Like the rest of Africa, Yoruba and, indeed, the whole of West Africa except Liberia, has been made a colony of some European country. The people are no longer masters in their own land; their Kings having sought protection of European Kings. With such laws as the Crown Land Bill of 1894 (Gold Coast), the Land Ordinance of 1897 (Gold Coast), and the Forest Bill of 1911 (Gold Coast), the Foreshore Case of 1911, Lagos, and the Ikoyi Land Ordinance of 1908, Africans like the late Hon. Casely-Hayford, the late Hon. J. Sarbali, the late Hon. Safara Williams, Mr. Herbert Macauley, and others had a severe and unavailing fight in their efforts to retain some of the rights of their people.

Mr. Paul Xiniwe went to Lovedale in 1881 as an advanced student on the recommendation of Rev. Edward Solomon, of Bedford, from whence he came. He had worked previously on the railway as timekeeper and later as telegraph operator. At Lovedale he entered the students’ classes in January, 1881. In the second year he obtained the seventy-fourth certificate of competency at the Elementary Teachers’ Examination. He became teacher in the Edwards Memorial School, Port Elizabeth. His school was said to stand high in the classification of schools of the district in efficiency. After some years he tired of the teaching profession, and having saved some money, resigned in order to become a business man. He bought property at East London, Port Elizabeth and Kingwilliamstown, and opened stores as merchant and hotel proprietor. At Kingwilliamstown his property was conspicuous, being a double storey building and known as the Temperance Hotel. In a very short time the Temperance Hotel was known through the Cape Province. Paul Xiniwe took a very keen interest in the welfare of his people. An upright man, honest gentleman, and a thorough Christian and a staunch temperance apostle.

He married a Miss Ndwanya, sister of Mr. Ndwanya, a law agent who was respected by Europeans and natives at Middle-drift. Mr. Xiniwe was the father of five children. The eldest son, Mr. B. B. Xiniwe, was a law agent at Stutterheim for a number .of years; the second son is in Johannesburg; the third, a daughter, Frances Mabel Maud, is the wife of the editor of this book; the fourth, another daughter, Mercy, is the wife of Mr. Ben. Tyamzashe, a schoolmaster and an author; and the youngest son, Mr. G. Xiniwe, is a clerk in a solicitor’s office, Kingwilliamstown. Mr. Paul Xiniwe died at an early age leaving a widow and five children to look after themselves. Mrs. Xiniwe who, with her husband, had been to Europe as a member of a native choir, was a lady of .experience, tact, character and business acumen. Difficult though it was, she maintained her late husband’s property, and carried on the business and educated her children. This lady indeed commanded the respect of all who knew her, white and black. Paul Xiniwe was a man of his word. He swore he would never touch liquor. When he became very ill his doctor advised him to take a little brandy, but he made up his mind that he would not do so, although it was said brandy was the only thing that would save his life.

Sir APOLO KAGWA, K.C.M.G , M.B.E., was born about 1863. A member of the Nsenene Tribe. His grandfather was Chief Bunya of Bulemezi, Uganda. Young Kagwa was a bright boy and was liked by the missionaries. As a young man he was fond of his people and took great interest in their affairs. In those days there was no end of trouble. Often one tribe made war against another. Often, too, some kings and chiefs were found to be too fierce with their people and this was the case with King Mwanga under whom Kagwa served as a councillor. As time went on Kagwa’s influence with the people grew wonderfully. King Mwanga was not slow to notice this, and he decided to keep Kagwa at his side as his right-hand man; a position of trust and responsibility. Later Kagwa became the leading general of the armies.About 1888 Kagwa held a position equivalent to that of a Prime Minister. It was at this time that his ability as an administrator, a politician, a statesman and a soldier was tested. It was during these troublesome times that he steered the ship of State through very critical periods in spite of the blunders and autocratic attitude of his King. The climax came in 1899 and King Mwanga had to abdicate. Although Kagwa was the opposite of the King, he was as loyal to him as ever, but he made no secret of his convictions and disagreement with the King on certain matters. Everybody, however, agreed that a greater patriot could not be found. When the British flag was unfurled in Uganda in 1893, Kagwa had decided to co-operate with the British officers.

King Mwanga became the father of a son before he abdicated, and this infant son was proclaimed heir to the throne. He was thereafter known as Daudi. Kagwa was one of the three regents who were appointed. In 1902 Kagwa was appointed to represent the tribe at the coronation of King Edward VII. in England. Kagwa made much use of the few monthss he spent in England. He visited many places and made many friends and was admired for his quick intelligence, his dignity and grand physique. The King received him at Buckingham Palace. On his return to his home the British King honoured him by making him a Knight Commander of St. Michael and St. George. The K.C.M.G. is an honour that few Africans have received. As a result of Kagwa’s service to his country, wars ceased and the country prospered. Schools and churches were built in almost every village. Hospitals were opened, and nurses trained; proper roads were made. Indeed, the whole machinery of the nation was brought up to a high standard. Today both the import and export trade have increased most wonderfully.

Kagwa is the author of two very good books. Sir Apolo Kagwa served his people for over 35 years. A great asset to the Church of England in Uganda and did tremendous work for the cathedral at Namirembe. He built a beautiful home not far from that of the present ruler. This great African died in 1927. Through his death the people in Uganda-white and buck, from the Ruler to the lowest individual-have lost a true friend, a leading light and a good councillor.

Sekgoma Kgame was the third child and only son of Kgame the Good. He was the natural ruler of the Bamangwato in Bechuanaland Protectorate. Sekgoma was born at Shoshong, the old capital of the Bamangwato, in 1868. In 1891, Sir H. Brougham, afterwards Lord Loch, sent the late Dr. Thiel to Shoshong to take Sekgoma to Capetown, his object being to. send Sekgoma, who was then 23 years of age, to England for education. At Capetown, however, this intention was changed, and Sekgoma was sent to Lovedale Institution in the Cape Province. He, however, did not remain long at Lovedale. He was next heard of at his father’s side in the Matabele War, when his father assisted the Rhodesian Forces against Lobengula. The following year when Kgame, with the Chiefs Sebile and Bathoen, went to England, Sekgoma was left in charge ‘of the affairs of the country, with Ratshosa as his chief adviser. Soon after the arrival of Kgame from England there was serious disaffection in his household.

It was, however, not until 1898 that a struggle between father and son began. Sekgoma had made a great mistake; he had readily lent his ears to the suggestion put forward by certain persons that Kgame had mentioned his eldest daughter, Bessie, as his successor and ruler of the Bamangwato. But lie would have nothing to do with those who advised him that in .order to establish his right to succession he should declare war against his father, and he most strongly resented the fiendish suggestion of others that Kgame should be assassinated. ”

Assassinate your own father,” he is reported to have said, ” before you dare lay hands on nine.”
In the meantime Kgame, quite aware of what was taking place, and viewing with growing concern these attempts to poison the mind ‘of his son, did his utmost to keep him apart from such malicious and dangerous influences. Yet although averse to taking drastic action,. Sekgoma appears to have remained convinced that his father was not well intentioned towards him. The result of it was that in 1899 Khama, probably actuated by the necessity of removing hill son. from such an environment, sent him to Mogonono, near Shoshong Road. Sekgoma was accompanied to this place by his admirers and followers. ‘ On account of the hardships at Maganana, Chief Maleputu and Chief Modisaotsile and others deserted Sekgoma.

The relations between father and son became very strained, and Kgame refused him permission to return home. Lord Selborne, who. was escorted half-way to Kgame, made an appeal to Kgame on behalf of Sekgoma. Touching though the appeal was, yet the old ruler of Bamangwato did not betray the slightest emotion, His Excellency failing to effect a reconciliation. It was evident that a large number of the Bamangwato sympathised with Sekgoma, and Kgame noticed this. He consequently decided that his son should leave the country altogether. In 1907 Lieut. Hudson was sent to Lopulupe to prepare the way for the removal to the north of the Nata River, and Sekgoma accompanied the officer to select a site for his new village. This site was far in the desert area, halfway to the Zambesi beyond the great Makarkari salt pans. A more remote locality could hardly be selected, and the proposed change, with all it entailed, proved too much for many of those followers who had remained loyal to Sekgoma for eight years. In his absence a great many of them, headed by Gagoitske, returned to Kgame and received a warm. welcome.

The preliminary journey north having been far from reassuring, Sekgoma on his return was almost heartbroken on learning of the latest desertions. There was, however, worse to follow, for on the way to the Nata River he and his reduced band of followers lost many of their cattle, sheep and goats. In 1908 Sekgoma made further attempts in the direction of a reconciliation with his father, through the medium of Colonel Panzera, then commandant of the Bechuanaland Police. The colonel undertook the mission, and, making the long journey to Serowe, addressed Kgame and his people at the Khotla. Evidently, however, the message contained ro expression of contrition, or stipulated conditions, for the appeal proved no more successful than that of Lord Selborne. Two more years passed during which little or nothing was heard of the exile. In 1910, while on a hunting trip at Padamatenku, Lord Selborne once again met Sekgoma, who provided oxen to draw wagons for His Excellency and his staff.

Six more years passed. Doubtless after 17 years the people had abandoned all hope of a reconciliation, as Kgame had grown an old man, and for all they knew to the contrary, his son had become permanently settled in the far country to which he had gone, for there is little communication with the far north of the Protectorate. In 1916 Kgame was kicked on the knee by a horse, an unjust reward for the great affection and care he had bestowed on horses all his life. The kick was, moreover, a most vicious one, and completely shattered the kneebone. Several operations were performed and the shock to which the old man was subjected was sufficient to have killed a much younger man. The news of the accident quickly reached Sekgoma, who immediately departed in a Scotch cart. After seven days’ hard trek he reached Makwe, five miles from Serowe, without apparently any news of his movements having been received at the capital. From Makwe he despatched two runners-Molelekwa and Tamiso-to report his whereabouts, and the message they brought back was, ” Tell Sekgoma to come in.” That was on a Sunday. The following morning he was at Kgame’s bedside where the reconciliation took place to the delight of, not only the father and son, but of those who were of opinion that had the death of the old ruler intervened, the fate of the country he loved would have been in the balance.

Sekgoma remained at Serowe for almost a year, and then returned to Nata to make arrangements for the return of his followers and the removal of his stock to Serowe. On, July 20th, 1920, at a public meeting at the Khotla he stood up and apologised to his father. In the following month, Kgame, accompanied by Sekgoma and J. Ratshosa, a chief councillor, left Serowe for Cape Town to bid “Good-bye” to Lord Buxton, and on the 24th August Sekgoma was introduced to His Excellency by his father, who proclaimed him as his successor. Returning to Serowe after some earnest advice from Lord Buxton, Sekgoma set out in 1921 to bring his people back. In May, 1922, he arrived in Serowe, after having been in exile for 23 years, and his father celebrated the occasion by giving him the power to try civil cases in the Khotla.

In September, 1922, Kgame and his son were received at the Government House, Pretoria, by H.R.H. Prince Arthur of Connaught and the Prime Minister of the Union. Kgame died on 21st February, 1923, ar.d with the remark that he had never known so clear a succession, the Resident Commissioner of Bechuanaland Protectorate installed Sekgoma Kgame ruler of the Bamangwato on the 19th April, 1923.

Sekgoma had many qualities that were identical with those of his father. He was a constitutionalist and very faithful, a man of his word. He had made a few changes after the death of his father, but above all he urged his people to educate their children. He was tall and well built, a smart horseman and a good marksman. With all the hardships which he had borne he did not live long in enjoyment of his high office. He died in 1928, leaving a minor son as heir to succeed him as head of the Bamangwato.

Cetshwayo, son of Mpande - Source: Cape Archives, E3248

What were our ancestors doing in 1882?

Who was making the headlines and What did they talk about around the supper table?

Here is a look at some of the people, places and events that made the news in 1882.

Huguenot Memorial School

The Huguenot Memorial School (Gedenkschool der Hugenoten) was opened on the 1st February 1882 on the farm Kleinbosch in Daljosafat, near Paarl. It was a private Christian school and the first school with Afrikaans as teaching medium.

The school was under the auspices of the Genootskap van Regte Afrikaners. Past pupils included the writers Andries Gerhardus VISSER, Daniël François MALHERBE and Jakob Daniël DU TOIT (Totius). The first classes were given in a small room but soon an old wine cellar was converted into a two-storey building which housed two classrooms downstairs and the boarding school upstairs. The first Afrikaans newspaper, Die Patriot, as well as the first Afrikaans magazine, Ons Klyntji, came from this school.

The Coat of Arms of "Die Genootskap van Regte Afrikaners"

The school was closed down in 1910 as by then Afrikaans was taught in government schools. In 2001 renovation work was started after a fundraising campaign brought in more than R1-million. Most of the money came from readers of the Afrikaans newspapers, Die Burger and the Volksblad. Naspers, the Stigting vir Afrikaans and KWV also made important contributions. The renovated building was opened in March 2002. It has an Afrikaans training centre upstairs and guest rooms downstairs.

The main people behind the renovation project were writer Dr. Willem Abraham DE KLERK (1917 – 1996) and Fanie THERON (chairman of the Simon van der Stel Foundation and the Huguenot Society, deceased 1989). Others who were also very involved included Sr. C.F. ALBERTYN (Naspers director), Van der Spuy UYS and Dr. Eduard BEUKKMAN. In 1985 they launched the Hugenote Gedenkskool Board of Trustees and with a R10 000 donation from the Helpmekaarfonds, a servitude on the building and land was bought. De Klerk’s wife, Finnie, and Theron’s wife, Anna, were at the official opening as their husbands did not live to see their dream come to fruition.

Dutch as official language

After the second British occupation of the Cape in 1806, English became the only official language. In 1856 J.A. KRUGER, the M.L.A. for Albert, asked for permission to address Parliament in Dutch. His requested was denied, and this started a campaign to get Dutch recognised as an official language in Parliament. On the 30th March 1882, Jan Hendrik HOFMEYR (1845 – 1909), also known as Onze Jan, appealed for the use of Dutch as an official language in Parliament alongside English. He was supported by Saul SOLOMON, a Jewish newspaper publisher and printer in Cape Town. On the 9th June the campaign finally got a positive result when an amendement was made to the Constitution allowing the use of Dutch in Parliament.

Official status was granted on the 1st May and the Act was later passed. On the 13th June, Jan Roeland Georg LUTTIG, the Beaufort-West M.L.A., was the first to officially deliver a speech in Dutch. There is no official record of the speech in Dutch, but the English version was published in the 14th June 1882 Cape Argus newspaper. The other version is in the Cape Parliament Hansard.

It was a short speech – “Meneer die Speaker, ons is baie dankbaar dat die opsionele gebruik van die Hollandse taal in albei huise van die parlement toegelaat is. Wanneer ek sê dankbaar, dink ek praat ek namens diegene wat die twee huise met hul petisies vir dié doel genader het. Ek put vreugde daaruit dat my Engelssprekende vriende die voorstel nie teengestaan het nie, my komplimente gaan aan hulle.

Ek hoop om die raad in die toekoms ook in Engels, in my ou Boere styl, toe te spreek. Sodoende kan dié Engelse vriende wat nie Hollands verstaan nie, die geleentheid hê om te verstaan wat ek probeer oordra. Ek vertrou ook dat alle nasionale verskille in die toekoms sal verdwyn en dat mense van alle nasionaliteite en standpunte hand aan hand sal beweeg om die welvaart en vooruitgang van die kolonie te bevorder”. According to the Hansard, the Speaker pointed out that the Act had not yet been proclaimed, so members could not yet make speeches in Dutch, but that the House would accommodate him this time.

On the 15th June, Cape school regulations were amended to allow the use of Dutch alongside English.

On the 26th and 27th June, the town of Burgersdorp celebrated the use of Dutch. The celebrations were organised by Jotham JOUBERT (M.L.A. and later a Cape Rebel ) who also proposed a monument to mark the occassion. A country-wide fundraising campaign was launched. The monument was built by S.R. OGDEN of Aliwal-North for £430. It consisted of a sandstone pedestal on which stood a life-size marble statue of a woman. She points her finger at a tablet held in her other hand on which the main inscription reads “De Overwinning de Hollandsche Taal “. The monument was unveiled on the 18th January 1893 by D.P. VAN DEN HEEVER, with Stephanus Jacobus DU TOIT (1847 – 1911) delivering the main speech.

During the Anglo-Boer war, the monument was vandalised by British soldiers who took parts of it to King William’s Town where they buried it. After the war, Lord Alfred MILNER had the rest of the statue removed from Burgersdorp. After much protesting, the British eventually provided Burgersdorp with a replica in 1907. This one was unveiled at ceremonies on the 24th and 25th May 1907 when former President M.T. STYEN and the author D.F. MALHERBE addressed the crowd. The original monument was found in 1939 and returned to Burgersdorp. In 1957 the damaged original monument was placed next to the replica.

In 1883 knowledge of Dutch was compulsory for some government positions. In 1884, it was permitted in the High Courts and in 1887 it became a compulsory subject for civil service candidates. Afrikaans only gained equal status with Dutch and English as an official language in South Africa via Act 8 of 1925. Dutch remained an official language until the 1961 Constitution stipulated the two official languages in South Africa to be Afrikaans and English.

Goosen and Stellaland republics

In 1882 a group of Boers established the short-lived republics of Stellaland and Het Land Goosen (aka Goshen ) to the north of Griqualand West, in contravention of the Pretoria and London conventions by which the Zuid Afrikaansche Republiek had regained its independence.

On the 1st April the republic of Het Land Goosen was declared. The terms of the Pretoria Convention of August 1881 had cut away part of the Transvaal. This led to problems as local Chiefs disputed the boundaries. Britain did not help matters by acknowledging Mankoroane as Chief of the Batlapin and Montsioa as Chief of the Barolong, both beyond their traditional territories. Supporters of Moshete, under the leadership of Nicolaas Claudius GEY VAN PITTIUS (1837 – 1893), established Het Land Goosen. One of the co-founders was Hermanus Richard (Manie) LEMMER, who later became a General in the Anglo-Boer War. Het Land Goosen later merged with the Stellaland republic to form the United States of Stellaland.

Stellaland was also a short-lived republic established in 1882 by David MASSOUW and about 400 followers, who invaded a Bechuana area west of the Transvaal. They founded the town of Vryburg, making it their capital. The republic was formally created on the 26th July 1882, under the leadership of Gerrit Jacobus VAN NIEKERK (1849 – 1896). In 1885 the British sent in troops under Sir Charles WARREN, abolished the republic, and incorporated it in British Bechuanaland.

Shipping accidents

Shipping accidents (wrecks, groundings, etc…) were common along the South African coast. In 1882 there were quite a few:

January – James Gaddarn, a barque, off Durban

February – Johanna, a barque, off East London

March – Poonah, off Blaauwberg

March – Queen of Ceylon, a barque, off Durban

April – Gleam, a barque, off Port Nolloth

April – Roxburg, off East London

April – Seafield, a barque, off East London

May – Francesca, a barque, off East London

May – Louisa Dorothea, a schooner, ran aground at Mossel Bay

May – Clansman, a schooner, off East London

May 28 – two ships, the Agnes (Capt. NEEDHAM) and the Christin a (Capt. G. LOVE), run ashore at Plettenberg Bay

June – Bridgetown, a barque, off Durban

June – Louisa Schiller, a barque, off Cape Hangklip

June – Ludwig, a schooner, off Algoa Bay

June – Gloria Deo, a barque, off Quoin Point

July – Elvira, a barque, off Durban

July – Erwood, off Durban

December – Adonis, a steamer, off Portst Johns

December – Zambezi, a schooner, off Durban

Smallpox

A smallpox epidemic broke out in District Six in 1882. This led to the closure of inner city cemeteries, and the construction of drains and wash-houses in the city. These improvements didn’t go as planned. The cemetery closures led to riots in 1886. The cemeteries along Somerset Road were not in a good condition, so Maitland cemetery was built. As the Muslim community carried their dead for burial, Maitland was too far for them, and along with the Dutch, they protested against Maitland for two years. Once the inner city cemeteries closed, the Dutch compromised but the Muslim community did not. They buried a child in the Tanu Baru (first Muslim cemetery) in protest. About 3 000 Muslims followed the funeral procession, as police watched. After someone threw stones at the police, a riot started and volunteer regiments were called out. One of the Muslim leaders, Abdol BURNS, a cab driver, was arrested. In the end, neither the Dutch nor the Muslims used Maitland. They found a piece of ground next tost Peter’s cemetery in Mowbray and used it as their cemetery.

The smallpox threat was felt further afield. It was believed that smallpox could be beaten by whitewashing the walls of homes, and for this reason lime and carbolic acid was distributed free to residents in Beaufort West. At Modder River, about 35 km from Kimberley, the settlement was used as a quarantine station to keep smallpox away from Kimberley. Travellers enroute to Kimberley had to produce a valid vaccination certificate or be vaccinated at the station.

Zulu King in London

Cetshwayo reigned as King of the Zulus from 1873 to 1884. He made an alliance with the British in order to keep his long standing enemies, the Boers, away. The alliance collapsed when the British annexed the Transvaal and supported Boer land claims in the border dispute with Zululand. This led to the 1879 Anglo-Zulu War where the British suffered defeat at the Battle of Isandlwana and Zulus at the Battle of Ulundi. Cetshwayo was captured and taken to the Cape. In 1882 he travelled to London where he met Queen Victoria on the 14th August. On his return he was reinstated as King in a much reduced territory and with less autonomy. He died on the 8th February 1884.

Sporting moments

Ottomans Cricket Club was founded in the Bo-Kaap in 1882. The Rovers Rugby Club was founded in Cradock on the 6th September 1882. The first rugby match in Mossel Bay was played on Saturday, 2nd September 1882. Mossel Bay Athletic Club played against George Athletic Club. The first bowling green was laid out in 1882 when a club was established atst George’s Park in Port Elizabeth. In 1882 the Jockey Club was founded by 10 horse-racing members at a meeting held in the Phoenix Hotel in Port Elizabeth. The first South African soccer club was Pietermaritzburg County. On the 17th June 1882, its delegates met at the London Restaurant in Durban ‘s West Street and the Natal Football Association was founded.

Transit of Venus

The transit of Venus was observed from stations in Durban, Touws River, Wellington, Aberdeen Road (a railway stop) and at Cape Town ‘s Royal Observatory.

Banking

District Bank was established in Stellenbosch in 1882. It paid between 5 to 6% on fixed deposits and 2% on current accounts, compared to the Standard Bank which paid an average of 3.5% on fixed deposits and no interest on current accounts. The District Bank did not charge cheque fees or ledger fees. It was later taken over by Boland Bank. The Natal Building Society (NBS) was also established in 1882, in Durban.

New brewery

The Old Cannon Brewery in Newlands was established in 1852. In 1882 it merged with Ohlsson’s Cape Breweries.

Steel industry

South Africa ‘s industrial development has heavy roots in its mining industry. With virtually no steel industry of its own, the country relied on imported steel. The first efforts to introduce steel production dates back to the creation of the South African Coal and Iron Company in 1882. The first successful production of pig iron occurred only in 1901, in Pietermaritzburg.

Mariannhill Monastery

The monastery near Pinetown was founded as a Trappist monastery by Father Francis PFANNER in 1882. It became a renowned missionary institute with schools, a hospital, an art centre and a retreat.

Boswell’s Circus

The BOSWELL family has been involved in the circus business since the 1800s in England. James BOSWELL was born in 1826 and went on to perform in various English circuses as a clown, horseman and equilibrist. He died in the circus ring of Cirque Napoleon in Paris in 1859 while performing a balancing ladder act. He had three 3 children, all of whom performed in circuses. His eldest son, James Clements, opened his own circus, Boswell’s Circus, in 1882 in Yorkshire.

Boswell’s Circus toured England and was very popular until it closed in 1898. James Clements and his five sons – Jim, Alfred, Walter, Sydney and Claude – continued performing in theatres and music halls, and eventually put their own show together called Boswell’s Stage Circus. Madame FILLIS, who owned Fillis’ Circus in South Africa, saw one of their performances and signed them up for a six-month contract. In 1911 James Clements, his sons, Walter and Jim’s wives, six ponies, a donkey and some dogs set sail for South Africa. The family and their animals were stranded when Fillis’ Circus closed down some months later. Fortunately for generations of South African children, this did not stop them and they went on to build a successful business that is still in existence.

Pretoria

A public sale on Church Square, Pretoria, in the 1890's

Church Square was created in 1855, on the orders of M.W. PRETORIUS. The DEVEREAUX brothers, town planners, designed a square for market and church purposes. Pretoria expanded around Church Square. During its early days the square was also used as a sports field and in 1883 the long-jumper Izak PRINSLOO set the first world record by a South African. The first church on the square was completed in 1857, but burnt down in 1882. Burgers Park was established as Pretoria ‘s first park in 1882. On the 14th June 1882, the Transvaalsche Artillerie Corps was formed under the command of Cmdt. H.J.P. PRETORIUS.

Stephanus Johannes Paulus KRUGER, later President of the Zuid-Afrikaanse Republiek, was born on the 10th October 1825. He was so respected by his people that the first Kruger Day was celebrated on the 10th October 1882. The following year it was declared a public holiday. After the Anglo-Boer war it lost official status, until it was again declared a public holiday in 1952. In 1994 the day again lost its official status.

Kimberley

On the 2nd September Kimberley became the first town in the southern hemisphere to install electric street lighting. It was an initiative of the Cape Electric Light Company. Electric lighting was also installed in Parliament in 1882, and an arc-lighting installation was commissioned in the harbour. Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, Christmas 1882 saw the world’s first electrically-lit Christmas tree installed in the New York house of Thomas EDISON’s associate Edward H. JOHNSON.

The Kimberley Club was founded in August 1881 and opened its doors on the 14th August 1882. Cecil John RHODES was one of the men behind the club’s establishment. Amongst the first members were Charles D. RUDD, Dr. Leander Starr JAMESON, Lionel PHILLIPS and J.B. ROBINSON.

Knysna

The farm Melkhoutkraal was laid out in 1770. In 1808 George REX, who arrived at the Cape in 1797, bought the farm. In 1825 Lord Charles SOMERSET decided to establish a town on the lagoon, to make use of the surrounding forests for ship building. George REX donated 16 ha of land for the new village, named Melville for Viscount MELVILLE, First Sea Lord from 1812 – 1827. Knysna was formally founded in 1882 when the two villages, Melville and Newhaven (founded in 1846) amalgamated.

Muizenberg

In 1882 the railway line reached Muizenberg. The area was originally a cattle outpost for the VOC before it became a military post in 1743. It was named Muijs se Berg after the commander Sergeant Willem MUIJS. Muizenberg was a staging post between Cape Town and Simon’s Town. After the railway line was extended, the area developed fast and became a popular holiday destination.

One of Muizenberg’s prominent residents was Professor James GILL. He was born in Cornwall in 1831 and came to the Cape in 1860, where he took the post of professor of Classics at Graaff-Reinet College. In 1871 he moved to Cape Town as Classics professor at the Diocesan College. He was an opininated man who did good things throughout his career but was also involved in many controversies. He was dismissed from the College in 1882. He opened a private school in Muizenberg and became the editor of the Cape Illustrated Magazine. He died in Muizenberg on the 1st February 1904.

Villiers

The town of Villiers, on the Vaal River, was established in 1882 on the farms Pearson Valley and Grootdraai. It was named after the owner, L.B. DE VILLIERS. In 1882 the Volksraad was requested to open a post office there, and this led to Villiers being proclaimed in 1891. In 1917 it acquired municipal status.

Newcastle

The first government school in Newcastle was established in 1882 as a junior primary school with 47 boys and 30 girls.

Okiep

The Cornish Pump House was built in 1882. It was used to pump water from the mine and this pump house is the only remaining one of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere.

East London

A view of East London in the 1880's

The prison in Lock Street was built in 1880, replacing the old one on the West Bank. It was built by James TYRRELL and comprised an officers’ quarters, administration block, hospital, kitchen and two single-storey cell blocks to hold 100 prisoners. The first execution happened in 1882, for which a drop gallows was placed in the hospital yard. St.Andrew’s Lutheran Church was established by German settlers in 1872. It is the second oldest church in East London and was dedicated on the 30th November 1882.

Grahamstown

City Hall was officially opened on the 24th May 1882 by the acting Mayor Samuel CAWOOD. The foundation stone was laid on the 28th August 1877 by Sir Henry Bartle FRERE, Governor of the Cape.

Durban

Durban Girls’ High School was established in 1882. The old theatre Royale was built in 1882 and had seating for 1 000. It was closed in 1937. The Natal Herbarium was started in 1882 by John Medley WOOD, then Curator of the Durban Botanical Gardens. It was initially known as the Colonial Herbarium but changed its name in 1910 when it was donated by the Durban Botanical Society to the Union of South Africa.

Port Elizabeth

South End Cemetery in Port Elizabeth was started. The country’s oldest art school, Port Elizabeth Art School, was founded in 1882. It later became the College for Advanced Technical Education, originally situated in Russell Road, Central. In 1974 it moved to Summerstrand and became the PE Technikon in 1979.

Kaapsehoop

In 1882 gold was discovered in the Kaapsehoop valley. When a larger deposit of gold was found near the present day Barberton, most of the prospectors moved there. The first payable gold was mined at Pioneer Reef by Auguste ROBERTE (aka French Bob) in June 1883. Barber’s Reef was the next big find in 1884. Sheba ‘s Reef, the richest of all, was discovered by Edwin BRAY in May 1885.

Port Shepstone

Port Shepstone came into being when marble was discovered near the Umzimkulu River mouth in 1867. It flourished from 1879 when William BAZLEY, one of the world’s first underwater demolition experts, blasted away rock at the mouth to form the Umzimkulu breakwater. The town was named after a Mr SHEPSTONE, one of the area’s prominent residents. Before 1901 the area depended solely on a port that was developed inside the river’s mouth. Boats were often wrecked and blocked the harbour entrance, but it provided a vital transport link for the tea, coffee and sugar cane grown by farmers along the river’s banks.

Supplies were brought in on the return voyages from Durban. With the arrval in 1882 of 246 Norwegian, 175 Briton and 112 German settlers, this shipping service became more important. The Norwegians arrived on the 29th August aboard the CHMS Lapland. The new settlers were offered 100 acre lots around the town at 7 shillings and 6 pence an acre. Port Shepstone was declared a full fiscal port in 1893 and, after Durban, became the region’s second harbour. Eventually, with the ongoing ship wreckages and the arrival of the railway, the harbour was closed down.

Harding

In 1882 the first hotel was opened in Harding. The village then consisted of three trading stores and four private homes.

Dundee

Dundee was established on the farm Fort Jones belonging to Peter SMITH, who had bought it from a Voortrekker settler, Mr DEKKER. He named the town Dundee, in memory of his original home in Scotland. By 1879, as a result of the Anglo-Zulu War, a tent town had sprung up on a portion of the farm. British soldiers attracted traders, missionaries, craftsmen and hunters but after their departure the tent town ceased to exist. With his son, William Craighead; son-in-law Dugald MACPHAIL; and Charles WILSON, Peter proclaimed the town in 1882.

Dewetsdorp

The Anglican Church was inaugurated on the 17th December 1882 by the Anglican Bishop of Bloemfontein. It was named St. Bartholomew’s. Before this, Anglicans held services in the town hall. The church’s foundation stone was laid on the 18th August. It cost £395 to build and seated 60. Rev. L.A. KIRBY was the first minister. The first baptism was on the 7th January 1883, that of Arthur SKEA. The church was declared a national monument in 1996.

Fort Hare

Fort Hare was built in 1847. It was named after Lt.-Col. John HARE and remained a military post until 1882, when part was given to Lovedale and part to the town of Alice.

Kuruman

The London Missionary Society (LMS) established the Moffat Institute in Kuruman in 1882, as a memorial to Robert and Mary MOFFATT and in the hope that it would revive the mission station.

Upington

Upington’s history starts with Klaas Lukas., a Koranna chief, who asked for missionaries to teach his people to read and write. In 1871 Rev. Christiaan SCHRODER left Namaqualand for Olyvenhoudtsdrift as the Upington area was then known. He built the first church, which today houses the Kalahari-Oranje Museum. In 1879 Sir Thomas UPINGTON visited the area to establish a police post, which was later named after him.

In 1881 SCHRODER, Abraham SEPTEMBER and Japie LUTZ helped build an irrigation canal. Abraham (Holbors) SEPTEMBER, said to be a Baster and the son of a slave from West Africa, was farming in the area in 1860. He was married to Elizabeth GOOIMAN. He devised a way to draw water from the river for irrigation purposes. In 1882 he was granted land facing the river. In 1896 Abraham and Elizabeth drew up a will, bequeathing the land to the survivor and thereafter to their three sons. Abraham died in 1898. In 1909 Elizabeth appeared before the Court in Upington on a charge that squatters where living on the land. It was here that she heard that Willem DORINGS, a smous, was claiming the land as his. This claim was to have repercussions, even in 2000 when the great-great-grandchildren of Abraham were still fighting for the land in the Land Claims Court.

Elizabeth and her sons owed Willem £326, but Willem produced documents that they sold him the land for that sum. The family were under the impression that they had a debt agreement with Willem. They refused to leave the farm and Elizabeth died there in 1918. In 1920 the family were removed from the farm by the new owners who had bought it from Willem. According to Henk WILLEMSE, Abraham’s great-great-grandson, the family started action in 1921 to get their land back. He has documents dating back all these years, which also show that Willem DORINGS was William THORN. Part of their land claim was for the land on which the Prisons Department building stands in Upington’s main road. This belonged to Abraham’s eldest daughter, Elizabeth, who lost it when service fees were not paid. In 1997 Nelson MANDELA unveiled a memorial plaque to Abraham.

The Waterfront

A view of East London in the 1880's

The Victorian Gothic-style Clock Tower, situated near the site of the original Bertie’s Landing restaurant in Cape Town, has always been a feature of the old harbour. It was the original Port Captain’s office and was completed in 1882. On the second floor is a decorative mirror room, which enabled the Port Captain to have a view of all activities in the harbour. On the ground floor is a tide-gauge mechanism used to check the level of the tide. Restoration of the Clock Tower was completed in 1997. The Robinson Graving Dock was also constructed in 1882, as was the Pump House. The Breakwater Convict Station was declared a military prison in 1882. This allowed military offenders from ships and shore stations to be committed for hard labour.

Sources:

Drakenstein Heemkring

Afrikanerbakens; Federasie van Afrikaanse Kultuurvereniginge publication

Burgersdorp: http://www.burgersdorp.za.net/burgersdorp_photos.html

Maritime Casualties: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Ridge/2216/text/MARITIME.TXT

The Will of Abraham and Elizabeth September: The Struggle for Land in Gordonia, 1898-1995; by Martin Legassick; Journal of African History, Vol. 37, No. 3 (1996)

Land Claim Case: http://www.law.wits.ac.za/lcc/wp-content/uploads/jacobs2/jacobs2.pdf

Rapport newspaper, 23 Jan 2000

Boswell’s Circus: http://www.boswell.co.za/

Article researched and written by Anne Lehmkuhl, June 2007

I have been asked by the Author of this Volume to write “something” relative to the recruitment of the Cape Corps. Search our Cape Corps records.

It may be said at once that there are two gentlemen who could have under-taken this task with greater credit. I refer to Colonel Sir Walter Stanford, Chairman of the Cape Corps War Recruiting Committee, and to Colonel T. J. J. Inglesby, one of its valued members. Both were associated with the movement from its commencement, both keenly interested in the possibility of the Coloured man as a fighter able to share with the white man the privilege of taking part in the Great War, and both particularly well qualified to lead such a movement.

The Machine Gun Company at Sidi Bishr

There were times when, as we all know, the Mother Country was almost pathetically calling to her sons to come forward voluntarily in the cause of humanity and Empire. Men were stirred as they never were before, and perhaps never will be again.

The appeal got hold of the Coloured man and gripped him, and with the help of his many friends strong representations were made to the Union Government to give him his chance.

But it was only on General Botha’s return from the German South-West African Campaign that those earnest representations were seriously considered.

The acceptance of the principle that the Coloured man should be allowed to become a soldier took concrete form in the month of September, 1915, when the Imperial Army Council accepted the offer of the Union Government to raise an Infantry Battalion of Cape Coloured men for Service overseas.

A telegraphic despatch was received in Cape Town from the Director of War Recruiting at Pretoria (Sir Charles Crewe) asking Senator Colonel the Hon. Walter Stanford, Sir John Graham, Dr. A. Abdurahman, the Mayor of Cape Town (Mr. Harry Hands), Colonel T. J. J. Inglesby and Mr. Eames-Perkins (Hon. Secretary of the Cape Town War Recruiting Committee), to meet him to discuss the formation of a Cape Coloured Regiment.

The formation of such a Unit was entirely in the nature of an experiment. A section of the people of the Cape Province resented the idea of raising such a force for employment in the fighting line. On the other hand there were many who resented the exclusion of such an organised force from the German South-West Campaign, and saw no valid reason now why the Coloured man should not be given an opportunity to serve his King and Country and follow in the footsteps of the white men and coloured races throughout the Empire then flocking from all its corners to take part in the great struggle for human freedom.

The Empire was calling for men, more men. The Cape Coloured man asked for and was given his chance and a new chapter in the history of the Coloured people of the Cape opened.

Prudence demanded that a very high standard should be aimed at, and it was decided that only men of exceptionally good character, between the age of 20 and 30, minimum height 5 ft. 3 in., chest measurement 33% in., unmarried and without dependents of any description, should be accepted for service in this unit.

On enrolment the Coloured man became an Imperial soldier, under the Army Act, for the period of the War and six months afterwards, or until legally discharged, with Imperial rates of pay, viz. :

and with Pensions and Gratuities as for the British West Indian Imperial Service Contingent.

The foregoing details and instructions having been determined, the Cape Corps War Recruiting Committee was formed, with Headquarters at Cape Town, for the purpose of enrolling Coloured men for active service with the Battalion of the Cape Corps.

Colonel Grey (Commissioner of Police), Major G. A. Morris of the Natal Carbineer’s (Special Service Squadron), Captain J. C. Berrange, and Captain H. G. Wilmot were mentioned in connection with the Command.

The mantle fell upon Major George A. Morris, son of Mr. J. W. Morris, a former Transkeian Magistrate.

Major Morris was duly gazetted as Lieut.-Colonel and Officer Commanding the Cape Corps on October 5th, 1915.

The following gentlemen accepted the responsibility of a seat on the Cape Corps Recruiting Committee, viz. :

Senator Colonel Walter Stanford, C.B., C.M.G., Chairman ; Major G. B. Van Zyl, M.L.A., Vice-Chairman ; Mr. A. Eames-Perkins, Hon. Secretary. Colonel T. J. J. Inglesby, V.D.; Lieut.-Colonel John Hewat, M.L.A.; Lieut.-Colonel F. W. Divine ; Captain W. D. Hare ; Sir John Graham, h.C.M.G.; Sir Frederick W. Smith, Kt., J.P.; Rev. Canon Lavis ; Rev. George Robson ; Advocate Morris Alexander, M.L.A.; Mr. J. W. Jagger, M.L.A.; with the following leaders of the Cape Coloured community, viz. : Dr. Abdurahman, M.P.C.; Mr. H. Hartog ; Mr. P. Ryan ; Mr. M. J. Fredericks ; Mr. J. Currey. NOTE.-Several other gentlemen joined this Committee later and Sir Harry Hands, P.B.E. (Mayor of Cape Town) became Chairman of the Committee-vice Colonel Stanford who went to Pretoria to become Director of War Recruiting-and Canon S. W. Lavis, Vice-Chairman. (Vide Illustration, page 17.)

Lieut-Colonel Morris C.M.G. and Captain H. Edwards with the Regimental Band taken at Mustapha Camp, Alexandra, Egypt in June 1919

The Cape Corps War Recruiting Committee had the good fortune to secure the services of Sergeant-Major Samuel Hanley Reynard as a member of the Staff. No choice could have been better. His cheerfulness and conscientious performance of his work throughout the Recruiting Campaign won the esteem and respect of all who came in contact with him. Though a veteran he never flinched in carrying out of his very arduous duties.

During especially busy times the assistance of the Boy Scouts was asked for, and they never failed to answer the call made on them. Valuable assistance was willingly given, and the boys who were detailed to the Recruiting Committee by the Secretary of the Boy Scouts’ Association well earned the War Certificate that the performance of their duties at the City Hall entitled them to.

A large crowd of Coloured men and women gathered outside the Recruiting Station at the City Hall, Cape Town, in the early morning of 25th October, 1915, aroused into action by announcements in the Press that the Coloured man’s opportunity was now open to him. The crowd surged into the Vestibule when the doors opened at 10 o’clock, and it became necessary to erect barriers and to provide a squad of Police before the men could be handled. To witness the inauguration of this circumstance of significance many prominent personages, Civil and Military, visited the Recruiting Station, including the General Officer Commanding in South Africa (Major-General C. W. Thompson) and his Staff.

Captains W. R. Cowell and C. G. Durham, Officers of the 1st Cape Corps, with Colonel T. J. J. Inglesby and Lieut.-Colonel Divine, members of the Recruiting Committee, had charge of the proceedings. By noon well over a hundred recruits had passed through the hands of the Military Medical Officers, but only a small percentage succeeded in passing the very strenuous test imposed. As a result of the first day’s recruiting twenty-two men were entrained at Cape Town for Simonstown, where the Mobilisation Camp for the reception of the enlisted men had been established, there to receive their first instruction from competent instructors and to have instilled into them habits of discipline, etc., as well as to meet their future comrades who were journeying from such places as Stellenbosch, Worcester, Port Elizabeth, Kimberley, and the Mission Stations of Saron and Mamre, etc.

Considering the strenuous conditions of enlistment laid down the first day’s result was not unsatisfactory, but there were some who had got their “tails up.” “The pay was insufficient “”There was no separation allowance “! To ventilate those views a meeting of Coloured men was held on the Grand Parade, and no blame could be attached to the women who kept a strict watch on the actions of the men who supported them. Though, as a matter of fact no men were accepted for service in cases where there were dependents, and the Officers of the Cape Corps and the members of the Recruiting Committee zealously guarded instructions to that effect from Headquarters. And no wonder! They were not out to pauperise women and children.

There could be no burking the fact that at Cape Town the class of man required was holding back, and this reluctance to come forward was due solely to the question of no separation allowances and the insistence that there should be no dependents. Reports from other recruiting centres for the Cape Corps in this connection were illuminating; for example: -Worcester was asked to supply 6o men; that number was obtained in one day. Port Elizabeth provided 31 men out of 45 required. Johannesburg was only asked to supply 30 recruits, and those left for Simonstown on the clay recruiting for Coloured men opened. Kimberley’s quota was 50 men, and they were secured also in one day and were entrained for Simonstown.

In addition, other country places intimated that they could supply a certain number of men, while districts which had already furnished their quota expressed willingness to add to the number already secured, and the Mission Stations at Saron and Mamre each volunteered to furnish a company.

The Mother City of Cape Town found itself in this peculiar position that while she had taken the lead in expressing the desire for Coloured men to serve in the War, it seemed that the Coloured residents of the Peninsula would be ill represented in the first coloured fighting force to be established, whilst places other than Cape Town collared the honour. One loop hole in this peculiar situation presented itself, viz.:-the Governor-General’s Fund. But all hopes in that regard was quickly dispelled by the definite instructions of the Director of War Recruiting that no man with dependents would be accepted. Indeed, it was hardly a fair request to make that the Governor-General’s Fund should provide for dependents.

The very real grievance 9c pay and allowances was immediately tackled by the Recruiting Committee, and in November, I915, Colonel Inglesby and Mr. Brydone were deputed to go to Pretoria to endeavour to obtain better conditions, whilst Colonel Stanford, the Chairman, and the members of the Recruiting Committee in force waited upon General Smuts in Cape Town in the sane pressing connection. Meanwhile a slight concession was made by the Governor-General’s Fund, viz.: that they would give assistance in special cases, when brought to their notice.

It was about this time that the Cape Corps Gifts and Comforts Committee came into being. Later this committee became affiliated to the South African Gifts and Comforts Committee and did splendid work in supplying comforts for the men of the regiment.

“I have been informed,” said Lord Buxton at the Recruiting Conference held at Pretoria on November 14th, 1915, “that the successful operations in German South-West Africa have had a great moral effect in the European sphere of operations and caused great depression in enemy circles. The successful subjugation of German East Africa will bring about even greater moral effect to the advantage of our side all the world over.”

To take part in that subjugation of the enemy’s outposts Lieut.-Colonel Morris was now busy training his men at the camp at Simonstown, which, notwithstanding the many difficulties encountered, was steadily swelling its population.

” They are as keen as mustard,” said their Commanding Officer, ” and in their spare time are drilling on their own,” so that when His Excellency the Governor-General, accompanied by Major-General Thompson, inspected the Cape Corps at Simonstown on the 3oth November, 1915, they were complimented by him on their smart and soldierly appearance and workmanlike bearing.

That outside forces were in fullest sympathy with the men of the Cape Corps was shown by many thoughtful incidents. Two may be given.

“Tango” was enrolled. He was a smart Airedale terrier presented by Master Jack Ashley of Bellville as a mascot to the 1st Cape Corps. In the proverbial canine fashion he wagged himself into the affections of officers and men alike during his short stay at the camp at Simonstown, and Lieut.-Colonel Morris, in expressing his thanks to the juvenile donor, wrote: “I am sure that he will bring us luck.” “Tango,” when the Battalion embarked for East Africa, was called upon to show the stuff he was made of, for the Commander of the “Armadale Castle” was compelled to refuse to allow him to embark. With the persistence of his kind, however, “Tango” found another way of circumventing official opposition. A flying leap from the quay landed him on deck among his pals and the ship’s Commander had no heart to eject him.

The following letter speaks for itself: -

Wellington. “Dear Sir,

I am a coloured woman. It is a very little money that I send this is the money for the Cape Corps fund which I buy flowers from my own money and sell out again. I think it is very little but it will help too, my husband is gone to the front.”

(Signed)             (Mrs.) D.S.

A postal order for fifteen shillings was enclosed.

During the months of October, November, and December, 1915, very strenuous work was done by the Recruiting Committee to enable the full complement of men (about one thousand and twenty) to be secured. The methods employed varied. Bands, Street Parades, Meetings in outlying Suburban Districts, Speeches at Bioscopes, Stirring Posters, Press Notices (the value of which cannot be overestimated) all had their turn. Ours was, of course, the job to induce those who were hanging back for various reasons to come to the recruiting stations. Once there the conditions were fully explained to the men, and the presence on duty of officers and non-coms in the smart uniform of the Cape Corps swept away all hesitation, if there were any, and made them all long to emulate those who had already joined as soldiers of the King. Having made up their minds they were then invited to interview the selection officers appointed by Lieut.-Colonel Morris.

These had their tables in the vestibule of the City Hall, Cape Town, and with drafts continually arriving from other centres, were kept pretty busy.

The officers in charge were Major Durham (a strict disciplinarian) and Captain Cowell (a kindly and just officer and beloved by his men, who later made the great sacrifice). They accepted or rejected the men. The accepted men were then passed on to the inner room (Reception Hall) for medical examination.

I remember one particularly strenuous morning. The vestibule was a busy hive with the hum of many voices, and, a not particularly savoury odour of old clothes-clothes that reeked with the sweat of hot and honest daily toil. The folding doors from the Reception Hall opened and a waft of sweet music floated through. The City Orchestra in the Main Hall was rehearsing. Instinctively drawn to breathe the music’s divine message, I was met by the Military Medical Officer, stethoscope in hand. He came to invite me to witness between sixty and seventy coloured men stripped for examination. These men had just previously been handed over to him. Then I realised that the clothing makes (or mars) the man. Now, lined up and smiling, naked to the world, they were fine specimens of strong brawny manhood. So splendidly developed were many of them that it might have been a parade of prize fighters, and, ugly in physiognomy as many of them undoubtedly were, their smiles revealed dentures that many a woman would have sacrificed a good deal to call her own. It is perhaps needless to say that every one of those men passed as medically fit for active service. They were attested and sent to the camp right away.

Early in December, 1815, the Cape Corps was nearing its full complement, and recruiting definitely closed on 12th December, 1915.

At that date the Nett result of the recruitment for the Cape Corps was one thousand and sixteen men. Considering the difficulties in regard to pay and allowances, which all the efforts of the Recruiting Committee had so far failed to get altered, it did vast credit to the young coloured man without encumbrances and showed quite clearly the spirit that was in him to assist his country in time of need.

On the world’s day of rejoicing, Christmas Day (1915), the Camp at Simons-town was thrown open to relatives and friends of the men of the Cape Corps, and full advantage was taken of the concession.

Amongst the old time customs, plum puddings and music and bands were provided and dancing and joviality took place as though no red war existed and in spite of the gloomy news that trickled through over the cables. It was just for the day, the work with all its seriousness and earnestness, was for the morrow.

Mr. Harry Hands (the Mayor) in his message to the citizens of Cape Town clearly gave the key note in reference to the position as it was at that time.

“We are on the eve of Christmas,” he said, ” and at the end of another year, a year of war, and, for many hundreds and thousands of human beings, of suffering and sadness, a year in which death has taken a heavy toll of the Empire’s manhood. From many a home in the Peninsula loved ones who have gone forth at the call of duty will be absent this Christmas. There must there-fore, be a note of sadness in our greetings, but we can still find comfort in the old, old message. Seventeen months of war have not shaken our confidence and our conviction that right must prevail, and though we may be sore let and hindered we shall endure to the end, and the end will be victory.”

In January, 1916, with the full complement of recruits secured, courtesies were exchanged between the Senior Officers of the Cape Corps and the members of the Cape Corps War Recruiting Committee in the form of simple luncheons at the Camp at Simonstown and at the Civil Service Club at Cape Town. The main reason for those proceedings was to wish ” God Speed ” and ” Good luck ” on the eve of departure on the one hand, and on the other the expression of thanks (none of course were needed) to the Recruiting Committee for what they had accomplished.

When the Cape Corps’ embarkation date arrived, very naturally the South African Military Command did not take any chances. A smoke-screen was thrown over the movement of all troops. That notwithstanding, a great crowd assembled at the docks at Cape Town, and all the approaches thereto, to witness the departure of the Battalion for East Africa on 9th February, 1916.

It was a true South African summer’s afternoon. Three train loads of men steamed into the Docks, direct from Simonstown to the ship’s side.

H.M.T. “Armadale Castle” was waiting to receive the Officers and men of the Cape Corps. The embarkation was speedily and smartly accomplished. Many a mother strained with tears of pride in her eyes to get a glimpse of her son; many a young Coloured woman, who had a very particular interest in her newly–made soldier friend, moved in the crowd in the hope of a last farewell.

With the Band playing martial airs and the men leaning over the great ship’s side anxious for a last good-bye, and the sun shining upon a sea of helmets and dark skinned faces and flashing upon the trappings of the uniforms, it was difficult to believe that these were the same men, who only a few months before had come to enlist at the City Hall, many- ill-clad and anything but smart.

The transformation was so complete. Straight, and smart and smiling, with boots, buttons, and equipment polished to a turn, they were a fine workmanlike body of healthy men, and for cheerfulness, dignity of hearing, and soldierly appearance the Officers in Charge would not have been easy to beat in any regiment.

Then, God Save the King, every one stood to attention, and the great Troopship steamed majestically away (I fancy “Tango” barked). As evening came she dwindled to a speck on the sea, and finally vanished from sight.

The Cape Corps had gone on the great adventure, taking with them the hearts and the hopes of thousands of their kinsfolk in the Union. The reputation of the Coloured community of South Africa was in their hands.

The Recruiting Committee could rest on its oars until casualties and disease thinned the ranks of the departed warriors and a new recruiting Campaign was ordered to fill the gaps.

C. Ruiters

It became evident soon after the departure of the “Armadale Castle” that a number of the men of the Cape Corps had left women and children dependents unprovided for, notwithstanding the care that had been exercised by the Selection Officers and the Recruiting Committee. It was unthinkable that these should be left to suffer. The situation was taken in hand at once by the Recruiting Committee, and a list of married men with dependents prepared. Commercial establishments who had employed such men before enlistment were approached, and guarantees obtained in most cases that half civil pay would be given to proved dependents, until Military separation allowances were secured.

The New Year (1916) was scarcely one month past w hen General Smuts took charge of the East African Campaign. From that time calls for reinforcements for the Cape Corps were frequent, with the authorisation that married men could be accepted for Service, and that Separation Allowances would be paid upon the following basis, viz.:-is. 1s. per diem to wives, and 2d. per diem for each child under the age of 16, or in cases of widowless and motherless children, 4d. per diem. Proved Dependents of unmarried men were placed on the same scale, always provided that the soldier allotted to the dependent half his pay. This placed recruitment for the Cape Corps upon a better footing, more especially as grants from the Governor-General’s Fund were left entirely in the hands of the local Committees of that Organisation.

The foregoing may, it is hoped, convey some idea of the activities of the Cape Corps War Recruiting Committee in the earlier stages of the Recruiting Campaign as well as of the feeling held by that body relative to the care of the families of the enlisted men, during their period of active service.

Frequent calls came later from the Director of War Recruiting, Pretoria, for men, more men, who, by dint of hard work and the beating up of Suburban and outlying districts, never failed to materialise. For instance, during the period 27th February to 27th April, 1917, 1,457 Coloured men were attested for the Cape Corps, whilst a large number were turned down as unfit for Active Service.

In all, during the Recruiting Campaign, 6,000 men were enrolled for the 1st Cape Corps, and 2,000 for the 2nd Cape Corps.

Other Coloured units were formed, of a different character to the Cape Corps it is true, but all useful in their different spheres, and all dovetailing and harmonising into the great fighting machine of the Empire. For instance, the Cape Corps War Recruiting Committee were requested to find one thousand men for the Cape Coloured Labour Battalion, with reinforcements as required, whilst they were interested in and consulted with reference to the formation of the South African Native Labour Contingent, in which ten thousand men were enrolled.

In addition, the Recruiting Committee were called upon to supply Coloured men to the S.A. Artillery (Drivers and Leaders) and for the Cape Auxiliary Horse Transport Companies, etc., etc.

The exact total figures of Coloured men obtained by the Cape Corps Recruiting Committee are not before me at the present time, but it is certain that they were in the neighbourhood of twenty-five thousand, over rather than under. It is in my opinion a fair calculation to make that 4 to 1 of the men who presented themselves for enrolment were turned down as medically unfit, and if this basis is correct, it shows the handling of one hundred thousand Coloured men.

Amongst the rejected there was genuine disappointment and not a little grumbling. Many such men, especially the younger ones, hung about the recruiting station for weeks hoping by hook or by crook to be allowed to go, while the spectacle of their “pals” in the smart uniform of the Cape Corps heightened their misery at being left behind.

Every post brought letters from men in the country districts, bitterly complaining that the medical officer either did not know his job, or that he had mistaken their case.

Covering some ten closely written pages, smatterings of English and Dutch, a Coloured boy at Clanwilliam, 19 years of age, bemoaned his fate because he was two inches under the regulation height to enable him to join the Cape Corps. He begged to be allowed to join as a bugler; he knew that he could get one cheap if the money was sent to buy it, and, he added, “God would bless the Recruiting Committee.”

Besides the actual recruiting of Coloured men, the Recruiting Committee took upon its shoulders other matters closely connected with the men enrolled. For instance

• The obtaining of maternity grants relative to children born after the soldier’s enlistment.
• The question of free Education for Coloured children during the soldier’s period of active service.
• The remission of the fee for the Marriage Certificate-it being a regulation that this must be produced before Separation Allowance could be claimed or assessed.

Medicine and Comforts for Sick wives and children of soldiers.

The witnessing of the Signature on Military Cheques for monthly allowances in order to satisfy Banking requirements, etc., etc.

A batch of from thirty-five to forty coloured women, some with babies at the breast, others leading ragged and bare-footed children by the hand-little things that the soldier of the Cape Corps had left behind him to be cared for by the country whose freedom he was helping to keep intact-came to the recruiting station one slack morning. Sergeant-Major Reynard was pounced upon in the vestibule of the City Hall. He stood their fury and anger like the good old soldier that he is until explanations were possible.

When order was restored out of the chaos, they were invited to appoint one of their numbers to interview the writer in an inner room.

It was not hard to enter into the feelings of these women. Their separation allowances as has been stated were very small, just enough to provide food to keep them and their children alive and with no hope of putting anything by to meet an unforeseen emergency. However, they were content to suffer the hardships that white and coloured alike were called upon to bear at that time.

But the least delay in the payment of the allowances due created more difficulties than they were prepared to endure. A delay of some days had already taken place in the arrival from the Paymaster of the usual monthly draft, and the children were without food. They had already applied to the Paymaster of the Cape Corps, but he was powerless to assist them in their trouble, and had to explain that there would be a further delay of three or four days-due entirely to the change of office from one centre to another. The Cape Corps Gifts and Comforts Committee found the matter was one that did not come within their scope, and no tangible result accrued as the result of an application to the local Secretary to the Governor-General’s Fund. Finally the Cape Corps War Recruiting Committee was approached as described.

The writer’s own application to the then Secretary of the Governor-General’s Fund shared the same fate as the women’s appeal, and it became necessary to bring the full force of the Recruiting Committee into action. The result was entirely successful, and each family or individual went away with a sufficiency to tide over the awkward period. The women were satisfied and even grateful and dispersed to their various homes in outlying parts of the Cape Peninsula. The same method was adopted in cases where difficulties arose with landlords, who either wished to eject dependents of soldiers on account of the men being on active service, or to increase the rent on threat of ejectment if they did not agree to pay.

In fact there was no genuine grievance connected with the dependents of the enlisted men, which the Recruiting Committee was not compelled to redress.

There were, of course, some strange incidents connected with the recruiting of the coloured units. The following may be cited:

Private John Jacobs of the 1st Cape Corps had, by good fortune-or otherwise-obtained leave of absence from his Regiment during a lull in its activities, and found himself in the Cape Peninsula. Resultant upon his good-or evil-fortune he took it upon himself to form fresh attachments and responsibilities in domestic life.

The sequel to this visit was revealed in a letter, businesslike in its brevity and very much to the point, to the Hon. Secretary Recruiting Committee, as follows : -

“Hon. Sir,

I married John Jacobs a week ago. He has gone back. We have ten Children. Please let me know how I stand.

Yours truly,……..”

On a tour of the Eastern Province of the Cape quite recently the writer had the good luck to have as a companion on the journey an ex-officer of the Cape Corps who had served in the East African campaign and in Palestine. During the journey opportunity was afforded of hearing something of the doings of the Cape Corps in the actual fighting line, some of which no doubt will be set down in this volume. That officer’s praise of his men, of their manly courage and pluck, of their discipline and cheerful endurance in times of hard-ship and difficulties, served to confirm the reports one had heard of the splendid work and behaviour of the men in camp, on the march, or under fire.

At most of the stations at which the train halted, coloured men stepped out from somewhere, and, in their working clothes, stood to attention and saluted-they were so obviously glad to see their old officer, and to have the opportunity to refresh in a few words their memories of the time when they had served under him in the Great War.

It was the same in many of the places we visited during the tour. There was generally some coloured man who halted in his work to salute the officer, notwithstanding that both wore civilian clothes. Indeed, on the train by which we travelled, an ex-member of the Cape Corps brought us our nightly bedding, and the chef’s coloured assistant in the dining-car tendered his respectful greetings and was recognised.

On some of the farms visited at which ex-officers of the Cape Corps had entered into possession, the servants, the farm hands, and those employed in other capacities were all, wherever possible, returned soldiers of the Cape Corps. In some of the town’s ex-officers of the Cape Corps who had embarked upon new ventures since release from service employ men in their offices who have seen service in the Battalion. This continued association in civil life of European officers and Coloured ex-soldiers who served under them during the Great War is of course only natural and may in course of time evaporate and become only a memory. But what seems to be forced upon one is that this sympathetic understanding and respect between the white officer and the coloured man who served with and under him, if fostered in some way, should prove of inestimable value to the State.

South Africa, we are told, is a land that is merely scratched upon the ‘surface. Could not some semi-military body be formed from what is left of the Cape Corps for its greater development?

By Mr. A. Eames Perkins.

Extracted from the publication The Story of the 1^st Cape Corps 1915 – 1919 by Captain I.D. Difford

1897 – 1900 Johan Zulch de Villiers (clerk, farmer, soldier, lawyer)
1901 – 02 Chairman of council W A J O’Meara (storekeeper)
1902 – 03 Chairman of council William St John Carr (director of companies)
1903 – 04 William St John Carr (director of companies)
1904 – 05 G H Goch (mine owner)
1905 – 06 J W Quinn (baker)
1906 – 07 W K Tucker (land surveyor)
1907 – 08 J Thompson (builder)
1908 – 09 C Chudleigh (draper)
1909 – 10 H Graumann (financier)
1910 – 11 H J Hofmeyr (solicitor)
1911 – 12 J D Ellis (engineer)
1912 – 13 W R Boustred (merchant)
1913 – 15 N Anstey (draper)
1915 – 17 J W O’Hara (merchant)
1917 – 19 T F Allen (estate agent)
1919 – 20 G B Steer (fitter)
1920 – 21 J Christie (retail chemist)
1921 – 22 S Hancock (baker)
1922 – 23 L Forsyth Allan (barrister)
1923 – 24 M J Harris (architect)
1924 – 25 C Walters (brickmaker)
1925 – 26 E O Leake (building contractor)
1926 – 27 Alfred Law Palmer (stationer and printer)
1927 – 28 W H Port (wholesale merchant)
1928 – 29 W Fernhead (solicitor)
1929 – 30 D Anderson (builder)
1930 – 31 Geo W Nelson (oculist)
1931 – 32 D F Corlett (building contractor, master builder)
1932 – 33 B C Vickers (chartered accountant)
1933 – 34 D Penry Roberts (draper)
1934 – 35 Maurice Freeman (leather merchant)
1935 – 36 Maldwyn Edmund (chartered accountant)
1936 – 37 Donald W Mackay (music retailer)
1937 – 38 J S Fotheringham (director of companies, baker)
1938 – 39 J J Page (estate agent)
1939 – 40 T A M Huddle (director of companies)
1940 – 41 T P Gray (grocer)
1941 – 42 A R Thorburn (buyer for Anglo-Transvaal Consolidated Investment Co)
1942 – 43 L Leveson (solicitor)
1943 – 44 A S Holland (teacher, lecturer at Normal College)
1944 – 45 A Immink (accountant)
1945 – 46 Jessie McPherson (housewife)
1946 – 47 Jas Gray (analytical chemist)
1947 – 48 G B Gordon (director of companies)
1948 – 49 S P Lee (industrialist)
1949 – 50 J Mincer (director of companies)
1950 – 51 C F Beckett (builder and contractor)
1951 – 52 I E B Attwell (director of companies)
1952 – 53 H Miller (attorney)
1953 – 54 C J H Patmore (chartered accountant, director of companies)
1954 – 55 G J Beckett (builder)
1955 – 56 Leslie Hurd (estate agent and sworn appraiser)
1956 – 57 Max Goodman
1957 – 58 T Glyn Morris
1958 – 59 I Maltz
1959 – 60 Alec Gorshel
1960 – 62 D J Marais
1962 – 63 Keith J Fleming
1963 – 64 J F Oberholzer
1964 – 65 P M Roos
1965 – 66 Aleck Joffe
1966 – 67 B D Eagar
1967 – 68 C J Ross-Spencer
1968 – 69 I Schlapobersky
1969 – 70 P R B Lewis
1970 – 71 S Moss
1971 – 72 A Widman
1972 – 73 J C Lemmer
1973 – 74 A D Bensusan
1974 – 75 Harold Frank Dennis
1975 – 76 Max Neppe
1976 – 77 Monty Sklaar
1977 – 78 Martin Powell
1978 – 79 J S Otto
1979 – 80 J D R Opperman
1980 – 81 Carel Venter
1981 – 82 Cecil Long
1982 – 83 Danie van Zyl
1983 – 84 Alan Gadd
1984 – 85 Eddy Magid
1985 – 86 Ernie Fabel
1986 – 87 Harold Rudolph
1987 – 88 O H Fenn
1988 (March-Oct) J H van Blerk
1988 – 89 D J Neppe
1989 – 90 Koos Roets
1990 – 91 W G Janse van Rensburg
1991 – 92 E Kretmer
1992 – 93 J S Burger
1993 – 94 S Dishy
1994 (March – Nov) Dan Pretorius
1995 – 00 Isaac Mogase
2000 – Amos Masondo

Bibliography – A History of Johannesburg (Nasionale Boekhandhandel, 1964)

Born in Harlingerode, Brunswick, Germany on 7th May 1803 and died in Rosebank, Cape, 28th February 1905), merchant, artist and musician, was the youngest son of Cornelius (von) Landsberg (1765-1843) who emigrated from Brunswick because of political oppression after the fall of Napoleon. With his wife, Elisabeth Knoblanch (1763-1857), and his children he arrived on 8 August 1818, after a voyage of eleven months and settled in Cape Town as a watchmaker. According to family tradition the Landsberg’s originated from royalty and owned a German castle built by Count Hero in 976. From 1415 to 1798 the castle was the seat of the Bernese governors. In 1803 it was awarded to the canton of Aargau and at present belongs to the city of Lenzburg. Family correspondence in the Potchefstroom Museum tends to discredit this tradition.

Soon after his arrival at the Cape L. joined trading ventures to the interior. By the early 1820s he had become a snuff manufacturer (‘Landsberg’s snuff’ is still used) and by 1831 was registered as a retailer in Shortmarket Street, Cape Town, where the firm still exists. His business soon expanded to embrace tobacco and cigars, medicines, and later, wines and spirits. By the end of the century Landsberg travellers were known throughout South Africa.

As a young man he taught drawing and music at the Tot Nut van’t Algemeen school from 1847 to 1851, and at the South African College. In 1870 he still had his studio at 17 Roeland Street. He was a co-founder of the Cape Musical Society, playing first violin in its orchestra. Of his 200 works as an artist, some seventy-five, including sculptured heads of his grandparents, were presented to the Potchefstroom Museum by a grandson, August D’Astre. ‘The Magi’, a large painting, was removed from the Mowbray town hall, Cape Town, after repeated mutilation by vandals and, so far, has not been traced. A lithography of his painting of Brandvlei Baths, near Worcester, is included in Poortermans, while the Potchefstroom Museum has a number of Landsberg’s original paintings.

His European scenes were developed from sketches perhaps made during his visit to Europe in 1864, or, in the case of earlier ones, were painted from memory. Of his Cape scenes (some are in water-colours) good examples are ‘Farmstead at Worcester, 1847′; ‘Storm at the Cape, 1865′; ‘Washerwomen in Platteklip, 1882′; and ‘A rugby match on the Camp Ground, 1888′.

His larger works are either Biblical or historical, being realistic and minutely detailed. Cape characters such as Hottentot women, Bantu and piccanins appear in his ‘Christ addressing the people’ and ‘The last trump’. The large ‘ Battle between Germani and Romans’ is full of action and human expression. His men and women are muscular and often ruggedly Semitic-featured. His ‘Moses with the ten Commandments’ was presented to the Cape Parliament in 1883. The Africana Museum, Johannesburg, possesses a large painting (44½ inches by 66½ inches) of the battle of Amajuba, done in 1881, and Personality contains coloured reproductions of four brilliant pieces: ‘Gibraltar’, ‘Frederick the Great of Prussia’, ‘Arrival of Julius Caesar on the British coast’ (showing the fierce struggle in the water), and the peaceful ‘Camp ground, Rondebosch’. Mrs Thora Botha, a descendant, owns the painting of the Tugela River (1823), in which his sister was drowned.

Hottentot Girl

Otto lived moderately and was a devout Unitarian. He remained an active walker and horse-man, an excellent raconteur, and was in his hundredth year strong enough to play the violin and to start a painting, ‘The Creation’.
His profits were invested in bonds on farms and by 1880 he was able to hand his business over to his grandson, Julius Otto Jeppe, and retire in comfort to Vredenburg, Rosebank.

He died at almost 102 years, possibly the last South African to have seen Napoleon en route for Russia in 1812. After one of the largest funerals seen in Cape Town, he was buried on 2nd March 1905 in St Peter’s Cemetery, Mowbray. His first wife was Maria Jacoba de Jongh (1809 -10 March 1861); his second wife, Catherine Matchell (1840 -30 April 1911), accompanied him, in 1864, on his only visit to Europe. One of Otto’s sons was Ernst Landsberg, M.L.C. for the western divisions in the Cape Parliament (1864 -68). Of the thirteen children of his first marriage only two daughters, Julia Elizabeth D’Astre and Sophia Theresa Henrietta Lithman, survived him; they and the children of a deceased daughter, Maria Jacoba Carolina Jeppo (first wife of Hermann Jeppe), and his widow became the main heirs of his estate, which amounted to over £95 000. Bequests also went to some servants, and to churches of all denominations. There are portraits of Landsberg in the Potchefstroom Museum (they include a photograph of him at the age of 100 years) and (infra) in The Veld and The Cape Argus.

Source: Dictionary of South African Biography

Image Source: SA Standard Encyclopaedia – Hottentot Girl, by Otto Landsberg, in the Potchefstroom Museum