-
Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company landed the first European settlers on the Cape of Good Hope -
Period: to
apartheid
-
Apartheid began
Though apartheid officially began in 1948, Africa's history of racial domination and oppression began as early as the mid-17th century when the Dutch East India Company set up a provisioning station on the Cape. -
Period: to
Apartheied
-
independence
Boers, also called Afrikaners, tried to establish an independent republic from the colony created in 1652 -
Napoleonic wars
Britain took permanent possession of the colony at the end of the Napoleonic Wars, bringing in 5,000 settlers. -
colony
The colony established by the Dutch East Indian Company in 1652 numbered about 15,000. -
Great Trek
Anglicization of government and the freeing of slaves drove about 12,000 Afrikaners to make the “great trek” north and east into African tribal territory, where they established the republics of the Transvaal and the Orange Free State. -
Diamonds
The discovery of diamonds and gold brought an influx of “outlanders” into the republics and spurred Cape Colony prime minister Cecil Rhodes to plot annexation. -
Inevitable war
the inevitable war with the Boers broke out -
defeat
The Boers were defeated -
Union of South African
the Union of South Africa, composed of four provinces, the two former republics, and the old Cape and Natal colonies. -
Black voters
Black voters were removed from the voter rolls -
Human Rights
Jan Christiaan Smuts brought the nation into World War II on the Allied side against Nationalist opposition, and South Africa became a charter member of the United Nations, but he still refused to sign the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. -
Group Areas Acts
The Group Areas Acts forced about 1.5 million Africans to move from cities to rural townships -
70 people murdered
70 black protesters were killed during a peaceful demonstration in Sharpesville. -
South Africa
South Africa declared itself a republic and severed its ties with the Commonwealth. -
600 dead
an uprising in the black township of Soweto spread to other black townships and left 600 dead -
new president
Apartheid's grip on South Africa began to give way when F. W. de Klerk replaced P. W. Botha as president -
the end
a multiracial forum led by de Klerk and Mandela began working on a new constitution.
