Imperialism in South Africa:

In 1652, a European settlement was established by the Dutch East India Company at the Cape of Good Hope.

At first, it was serving as a refreshment/refueling station for the company’s ships on the way to India

Some Dutch people stayed and set up small farms (The Boers)

As their numbers increased, they expanded northwards

The land in the north was less fertile, and better suited for Cattle Herding.

The Dutch “Cowboys” led a rugged but free life.

Some whites used Slave Labor and developed a superiority complex over Black South Africans who had less technology.

The Dutch Calvinists believed that people were either chosen or damned, and that the Blacks were damned.

As the Whites expanded north, wars with the Black Africans became common

In 1795, the Cape was seized by the British, and the rule of the Dutch East India Company was over

In 1809, the British abolished the slave trade, and in 1833 banned it altogether.

Dutch Boers trekked North to break away from the British

The Dutch felt the Brits. had no right to tell them how to manage their affairs (including slavery)

The Dutch wanted an independent state where there would be “no ungodly equality between the races.”

As the Dutch moved north, they came into contact/conflict with the native Zulus…The Battle of Blood River (1838).

The Dutch prevailed due to superior technology.

The Dutch defeated Shaka Zulu’s ½ Brother at Blood River.

Shaka had died a few years earlier.

Shaka is famous for unifying much of Southern Africa

His superior battle tactics and invention of a new weapon, the iklwa (A short stabbing spear), were his keys to victory.

Eventually, the discovery of Gold and Diamonds in the Dutch lands led to the Boer War between the British and the Dutch (1880-1902).

The British prevailed and now controlled the Cape, Natal, and the Orange Free State.

The Brits. Established the Union of South Africa in 1910