L6: Increasing Administration in South Africa

Question 1

When did the British first have influence in South Africa?

Answer 1

Since 1806, when the cape colony (modern cape town) was first established

Question 2

In 1867, what attracted fortune seekers to South Africa?

Answer 2

Diamond diggings along the Orange, Vaal and Harts river

Question 3

Why was there a sudden interest in South Africa?

Answer 3

Financial interests as diamonds were first discovered in Kimberly in 1867

Question 4

What was Kimberly?

Answer 4

A sprawling polyglot (multi languages) mining camp

Question 5

By the end of 1871, how many people live in Kimberly?

Answer 5

Over 50,000

Question 6

What did the new class of mining capitalists oversee?

Answer 6

The transition from diamond diggings to mining industry as joint-stock companies bought out diggers

Question 7

What did the mining industry become by 1889?

Answer 7

Became a monopoly when De Beers Consolidated Mines (run by Cecil Rhodes) became the sole producer

Question 8

Who claimed the diamond zone?

Answer 8

The Orange Free State
The South African Republic
Southern Tswana Chiefs

Question 9

What did Robert W Keate do in October 1871?

Answer 9

At a special hearing he was found in favour of Waterboer

Question 10

What did the British persuade Waterboer to do?

Answer 10

Britain persuaded Waterboer to request protection against his Boer rivals, and the area was annexed as Griquialand West

Question 11

What is an annexation?

Answer 11

To take control of smaller area of land and add it to a larger area, country or empire

Question 12

What did the annexation of diamond fields suggest?

Answer 12

That the British should create a more progressive policy for 174’s conservative government but it fell short of the colonial secretary’s goal

Question 13

What was the colonial secretary’s (Lord Carnarvon) goal?

Answer 13

To see a greater unity in the South Africa region and more areas being apart of a self governing federation within the British empire

Question 14

How did regions react to Carnarvon wanting them to become a self governing federation?

Answer 14

Cape colony and free state rejected ideas to join such state

Question 15

Who did Carnarvon convince to join the self governing federation within the British empire?

Answer 15

The Transvaal region

Question 16

Why did the Transvaal region agree to the British self governing federation?

Answer 16

The Transvaal republic was virtually bankrupt and had suffered military humiliation at the hands of the Pedi.
Also support for the president (Thomas Burgers) had declined

Question 17

How did Carnarvon respond to the Transvaal region wanting to join?

Answer 17

He commisioned Sheptstone to annex the Transvaal after encountering resistance at the beginning of 1877, he proclaimed it a British colony a few months later

Question 18

Why was the Transvaal region difficult to administer?

Answer 18

There was almost no money in the region and the British administrator was insensitive to Afrikaner and were serious clashes between tax payments

Question 19

Who were Afrikaners?

Answer 19

White descendants of Dutch farmers living in the area

Question 20

Who were 3 key Transvaal boers?

Answer 20

Paul Kruger
Piet Joubert
Marthinus Wessel Pretorus

Question 21

What did these 3 key Transvaal boers do?

Answer 21

They opted to fight for independence

Question 22

What ended Carnarvons ideas of a federation?

Answer 22

British defeats

Question 23

What did the tension in Transvaal over British control lead to?

Answer 23

A short but intense period of conflict that temporarily shut down British hopes of a federation
This conflict was known as the First Boer war

Question 24

When was the First Boer war?

Answer 24

1880-1881

Question 25

What were the main causes of the First Boer war?

Answer 25

The expansion of the British empire
Problems within the Transvaal government
British annexation of the Transvaal
Boer opposition to the British rule in Transvaal

Question 26

What were the problems within the Transvaal government?

Answer 26

Serious financial trouble because Boers didn’t pay their taxes
Public was disappointed with the leadership of government and president
The president didn’t resist the British annexation

Question 27

How did the British annex the Transvaal?

Answer 27

A proclamation of annexation was read out in the Church square in the Capital of Transvaal
They replaced all flags with the Union Jack
Transvaal Republic didn’t exist; it was now the British colony of the Transvaal colony
Britain asked citizens to not resort to violence as it would create a negative expression

Question 28

What was the nature of Boer opposition to the British annexation?

Answer 28

A petition was created of 6,500 signatures from Boers to London
A large group of Boers gathered in the capital of Transvaal to protest against the annexation
Newspapers were spread amongst Transvaal

Question 29

How did the British underestimate the Boers during the war?

Answer 29

The Boers had 7000 soldiers whilst the British only had 1800 soldiers meaning they were severely outnumbered

Question 30

How did the first Boer war end?

Answer 30

8 August the Boer government took office in Pretoria once again.

Question 31

What did the Pretoria Convention of 1881 decide?

Answer 31

3 August 1881
the Transvaal republic still had to have its foreign relations and policies regarding black people approved by the British government.
The new state was also not allowed to expand towards the West. All these policies meant that the Transvaal was still under British