History
People have inhabited Southern Africa for thousands of years. Members of the Khoisan language groups are the oldest surviving inhabitants of the land; however, only a few are left in South Africa today, and they are located in the western sections. Most of today's black South Africans belong to the Bantu language group, which migrated south from central Africa, settling in the Transvaal region sometime before AD 100. The Nguni, ancestors of the Zulu and Xhosa, occupied most of the eastern coast by 1500.
The Portuguese were the first Europeans to reach the Cape of Good Hope,
arriving in 1488. However, permanent white settlement did not begin
until 1652, when the Dutch East India Company established a provisioning
station on the Cape. In subsequent decades, French Huguenot refugees,
the Dutch, and Germans began to settle in the Cape. Collectively, they
form the Afrikaner segment of today's population.
The establishment of these settlements had far-reaching social and political
effects on the groups already settled in the area, leading to upheaval
in these societies and the subjugation of their people. By 1779, European
settlements extended throughout the southern part of the Cape and east
toward the Great Fish River. It was here that Dutch authorities and
the Xhosa fought the first frontier war.
The British gained control of the Cape of Good Hope at the end of the
18th century. Subsequent British settlement and rule marked the beginning
of a long conflict between the Afrikaners and the English. Beginning
in 1836, partly to escape British rule and cultural hegemony and partly
out of resentment at the recent abolition of slavery, many Afrikaner
farmers (Boers) undertook a northern migration which became known as
the "Great Trek." This movement brought them into contact
and conflict with African groups in the area, the most formidable of
which were the Zulus. Under their powerful leader, Shaka (1787-1828),
the Zulus conquered most of the territory between the Drakensburg Mountains
and the sea (now Kwazulu-Natal). In 1828, Shaka was assassinated and
replaced by his half-brother Dingane. In 1838, Dingane was defeated
and deported by the Voortrekkers (people of the great trek) at the battle
of Blood River. The Zulus, nonetheless, remained a potent force, defeating
the British in the historic battle of Isandhlwana before themselves
being finally conquered in 1879. In 1852 and 1854, the independent Boer
Republics of the Transvaal and Orange Free State were created. Relations
between the republics and the British Government were strained. The
discovery of diamonds at Kimberley in 1870 and the discovery of large
gold deposits in the Witwatersrand region of the Transvaal in 1886 caused
an influx of European (mainly British) immigration and investment. Many
blacks also moved into the area to work in the mines. The construction
by mine owners of hostels to house and control their workers set patterns
that later extend-ed throughout the region. Boer reactions to this influx
and British political intrigues led to the Anglo-Boer Wars of 1880-81
and 1899-1902. British forces prevailed in the conflict and the republics
were incorporated into the British Empire. In May 1910, the two republics
and the British colonies of the Cape and Natal formed the Union of South
Africa, a self- governing dominion of the British Empire. The Union's
constitution kept all political power in the hands of whites.
In 1912, the South Africa Native National Congress was formed in Bloemfontein
and eventually became known as the African National Congress (ANC).
Its goals were the elimination of restrictions based on color and the
enfranchisement of and parliamentary representation for blacks. Despite
these efforts, the government continued to pass laws limiting the rights
and freedoms of blacks. In 1948, the National Party (NP) won the all-white
elections and began passing legislation codifying and enforcing an even
stricter policy of white domination and racial separation known as "apartheid"
(separateness).
In the early 1960s, following a protest in Sharpville in which 69 protestors
were killed by police and 180 injured, the ANC and Pan- African Congress
(PAC) were banned. Nelson Mandela and many other anti- apartheid leaders
were convicted and imprisoned on charges of treason. The ANC and PAC
were forced underground and fought apartheid through guerilla warfare
and sabotage. In May 1961, South Africa relinquished its dominion status
and declared itself a republic. Later that year, it withdrew from the
Commonwealth, in part because of international protests against apartheid.
In 1984, a new constitution came into effect in which whites allowed
coloreds and Asians a limited role in the national government and control
over their own affairs in certain areas. Ultimately, however, all power
remained in white hands. Blacks remained effectively disenfranchised.
Popular uprisings in black and colored townships in 1976 and 1985 helped
to convince some NP members of the need for change. Secret discussions
between those members and Nelson Mandela began in 1986. In February
1990, State President F.W. de Klerk--who had come to power in September
1989--announced the unbanning of the ANC, the PAC, and all other anti-apartheid
groups. Two weeks, later Nelson Mandela was released from prison. In
1991, the Group Areas Act, Land Acts, and the Population Registration
Act--the last of the so-called "pillars of apartheid"--were
abolished. A long series of negotiations ensued, resulting in a new
constitution promulgated into law in December 1993. The country's first
nonracial elections were held on April 26-29, 1994, resulting in the
installation of Nelson Mandela as President on May 10, 1994.