1881 in South Africa
Encyclopedia
January
- 28 January - The Boers defeat the BritishUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
in the Battle of Laing's NekBattle of Laing's NekThe Battle of Laing's Nek was a major battle fought at Laing's Nek during the First Boer War on 28 January 1881.-Background:Following the Boer declaration of independence for the Transvaal in 1880 the British suffered a series of disastrous defeats in attempting to regain the territory.On 20...
during the First Boer WarFirst Boer WarThe First Boer War also known as the First Anglo-Boer War or the Transvaal War, was fought from 16 December 1880 until 23 March 1881-1877 annexation:...
February
- 8 February - The Boers defeat the BritishUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
in the Battle of SchuinshoogteBattle of SchuinshoogteBattle of Schuinshoogte Also known as Ingogo, was a battle fought at on 8 February 1881 during the First Boer War. General Sir George Pomeroy Colley's communications with Newcastle were under constant harassment by mounted Boer patrols under Commander J D Weilbach after the Battle of Laing's Nek ...
during the First Boer WarFirst Boer WarThe First Boer War also known as the First Anglo-Boer War or the Transvaal War, was fought from 16 December 1880 until 23 March 1881-1877 annexation:... - 27 February - The Boers defeat the British in the Battle of Majuba HillBattle of Majuba HillThe Battle of Majuba Hill on 27 February 1881 was the main battle of the First Boer War. It was a resounding victory for the Boers. Major-General Sir George Pomeroy Colley occupied the summit of the hill on the night of February 26–27, 1881. His motive for occupying the hill remains unclear...
during the First Boer War
March
- 21 March - Peace is declared and BritainUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
recognizes the South African RepublicSouth African RepublicThe South African Republic , often informally known as the Transvaal Republic, was an independent Boer-ruled country in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century. Not to be confused with the present-day Republic of South Africa, it occupied the area later known as the South African... - 26 March - Reinhold Gregorowski is appointed a judge in the Orange Free StateOrange Free StateThe Orange Free State was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, and later a British colony and a province of the Union of South Africa. It is the historical precursor to the present-day Free State province...
at the age of 25
August
- 3 August - Pretoria ConventionPretoria ConventionThe Pretoria Convention was the peace treaty that ended the First Boer War between the Transvaal Boers and the United Kingdom. The treaty was signed in Pretoria on 3 August, 1881, but was subject to ratification by the Volksraad within 3 months from the date of signature...
peace treaty signed, officially ending the war between the Boers and the BritainUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Unknown date
- The Tswana-Kora wars break out with white mercenary involvement
- The town of Roburnia is established as the capital of the Republic of New Scotland, it was renamed to Amsterdam in 18821882 in South Africa-May:* 9 May - Paul Kruger becomes President of South African Republic* 28 May - Two ships, the Agnes and the Christina , run ashore at Plettenberg Bay-September:...
- GoldGoldGold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
is discovered in the Barberton area
Births
- 23 April - Claude Pagdett Carter, a South African Test cricketTest cricketTest cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
player is born in DurbanDurbanDurban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest city in South Africa. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism... - 28 May - Danël Francois Malherbe, novelist, poet and dramatist, is born in Dal Josafat, Cape ColonyCape ColonyThe Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652, with the founding of Cape Town. It was subsequently occupied by the British in 1795 when the Netherlands were occupied by revolutionary France, so that the French revolutionaries could not take...
- November - Benjamin Jennings CaddyBenjamin Jennings CaddyBenjamin Jennings Caddy was a militant trade unionist who is regarded as the doyen of the trade union movement in South Africa. Caddy was born in Australia and in 1898 at the age of 17 he emigrated to South Africa. In March 1922, he was arrested during the Rand Revolt....
, a militantMilitantThe word militant, which is both an adjective and a noun, usually is used to mean vigorously active, combative and aggressive, especially in support of a cause, as in 'militant reformers'. It comes from the 15th century Latin "militare" meaning "to serve as a soldier"...
trade unionTrade unionA trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
ist who is regarded as the doyen of the trade union movement in South Africa, is born in AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
Deaths
- 21 April - Jacobus Nicolaas Boshoff, the 2nd president of the Orange Free StateOrange Free StateThe Orange Free State was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, and later a British colony and a province of the Union of South Africa. It is the historical precursor to the present-day Free State province...
, dies in Weston, PietermaritzburgPietermaritzburgPietermaritzburg is the capital and second largest city in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It was founded in 1838, and is currently governed by the Msunduzi Local Municipality. Its "purist" Zulu name is umGungundlovu, and this is the name used for the district municipality...
at the age of 73 - 9 December - Thomas François BurgersThomas Francois Burgers-Literature:...
, the 4th president of the South African RepublicSouth African RepublicThe South African Republic , often informally known as the Transvaal Republic, was an independent Boer-ruled country in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century. Not to be confused with the present-day Republic of South Africa, it occupied the area later known as the South African...
, dies at Richmond, Transvaal at the age of 47