Alice, South Africa

Last updated

Alice
Alice, Oos-Kaap.jpg
Buildings of the University of Fort Hare in Alice
Nickname: 
eDikeni
South Africa Eastern Cape location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Alice
South Africa adm location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Alice
Africa location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Alice
Coordinates: 32°47′21″S26°50′06″E / 32.78917°S 26.83500°E / -32.78917; 26.83500
Country Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa
Province Flag of the Eastern Cape Province.png  Eastern Cape
District Amathole
Municipality Raymond Mhlaba
Area
[1]
  Total
9.85 km2 (3.80 sq mi)
Population
 (2011) [1]
  Total
15,143
  Density1,500/km2 (4,000/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)
[1]
   Black African 93.0%
   Coloured 5.6%
   Indian/Asian 0.3%
   White 0.6%
  Other0.5%
First languages (2011)
[1]
   Xhosa 84.0%
   Afrikaans 7.3%
   English 3.5%
  Other5.2%
Time zone UTC+2 (SAST)
Area code 040

Alice is a small town in Eastern Cape, South Africa that is named after Princess Alice, the daughter of the British Queen Victoria. It was settled in 1824 by British colonists. It is adjacent to the Tyhume River. It has a rail and road connection to East London, Qonce and other towns in the province. It forms part of Raymond Mhlaba Local Municipality.

Contents

University of Fort Hare

The University of Fort Hare began in early 1847 as a fort built to house British troops. The same fort was converted in 1916 into a black university institution. Many of the current political leaders in South Africa were educated at the University of Fort Hare. It is also the alma mater of former president Nelson Mandela. The university is also the repository of the archives of the African National Congress and documents and houses one of the most significant collections of African art.

Victoria Hospital

Built in 1898, it is one of the oldest sites in Alice and still graces the town with its old charm of yesterday. Victoria Hospital is a large district hospital on the outskirts of Alice, recently (2006–2011) fully reconstructed and upgraded by the Eastern Cape Provincial Government. [2]

History

Alice railway station, c. 1900 SAR Class 7A 1019 (4-8-0) ex CGR 731.jpg
Alice railway station, c. 1900

The location was named Lovedale by European missionaries who settled there in 1824.It lies on the southwestern bank of the Tyhume River, west-northwest of East London, at an elevation of 1,720(524m).It was named after John Love of the Glasgow Missionary Society. During the Frontier War it was abandoned and the mission resettled on the west bank of the Tyhume River. On the east bank a fort was built, called Fort Hare, after Major-General John Hare, who was lieutenant-governor of the Eastern Cape and acting governor of the Cape Colony. Later the name of the town was changed to Alice. Alice was the administrative and magisterial capital of the old district of Victoria East. In 1847, it was named Alice by Sir Peregrine Maitland after Princess Alice, the second daughter of Queen Victoria. Municipal status was attained in 1852. The town is now a thriving university town and has received major infrastructure upgrades under the current Mayor Bandile Khethelo.

Notable people

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Fort Hare</span> Public university in Alice, South Africa

The University of Fort Hare is a public university in Alice, Eastern Cape, South Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of the Cape Colony from 1806 to 1870</span>

The history of the Cape Colony from 1806 to 1870 spans the period of the history of the Cape Colony during the Cape Frontier Wars, which lasted from 1779 to 1879. The wars were fought between the European colonists and the native Xhosa who, defending their land, fought against European rule.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East London, South Africa</span> City in Eastern Cape, South Africa

East London is a city on the southeastern coast of South Africa, in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality, Eastern Cape Province. The city lies on the Indian Ocean coast, largely between the Buffalo River and the Nahoon River, and hosts the country's only river port. As of 2011, East London had a population of over 267,000 with over 755,000 in the surrounding metropolitan area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bhisho</span> Capital of the Eastern Cape

Bhisho, formerly Bisho, is the capital of the Eastern Cape province in South Africa. The Office of the Premier, Provincial Legislature and many other government departments are headquartered in the town. The town, three kilometres from Qonce and 70 kilometres from East London, is also part of Buffalo City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastern Cape</span> Province in South Africa

The Eastern Cape is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, and its largest city is Gqeberha. Due to its climate and nineteenth-century towns, it is a common location for tourists. It is also known for having been home to many anti-apartheid activists, including Nelson Mandela.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Work (fur trader)</span> Canadian politician

John Work was a Chief Factor of the Hudson's Bay Company and head of one of the original founding families in Victoria, British Columbia. Work joined the Hudson's Bay Company in 1814 and served in many capacities until his death in 1861, ultimately becoming a member of the company's Board of Management for its Western Department. He also served on Vancouver Island's Legislative Council. At the time of his death, Work was the largest private land owner of Vancouver Island. Work left an important legacy in the form of sixteen journals which chronicle his trading expeditions from 1823 to 1851. His journals provide a detailed record of Pacific Northwest land features, native peoples, and the Hudson's Bay Company's fur trading business in the early 19th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Fish River</span> River in the Eastern Cape, South Africa

The Great Fish River is a river running 644 kilometres (400 mi) through the South African province of the Eastern Cape. The coastal area between Port Elizabeth and the Fish River mouth is known as the Sunshine Coast. The Great Fish River was originally named Rio do Infante, after João Infante, the captain of one of the caravels of Bartolomeu Dias. Infante visited the river in the late 1480s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lovedale (South Africa)</span> Former mission station and educational institute in Cape Province, South Africa

Lovedale, also known as the Lovedale Missionary Institute was a mission station and educational institute in the Victoria East division of the Cape Province, South Africa. It lies 520 metres (1,720 ft) above sea level on the banks of the Tyhume River, a tributary of the Keiskamma River, some 3.2 kilometres (2 mi) north of Alice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Qonce</span> Place in Eastern Cape, South Africa

Qonce, formerly known as King William's Town, is a town in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa along the banks of the Buffalo River. The town is about 60 kilometres (37 mi) northwest of the Indian Ocean port of East London. It has a population of around 35,000 inhabitants and forms part of the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1820 Settlers</span> British colonists in South Africa

The 1820 Settlers were several groups of British colonists from England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, settled by the government of the United Kingdom and the Cape Colony authorities in the Eastern Cape of South Africa in 1820.

Fort Hare is an 1835 British-built fort on a rocky outcrop at the foothills of the Amatola Mountains, near the present-day town of Alice, Eastern Cape in South Africa.

Kidd's Beach is a small coastal resort town in the Eastern Cape, South Africa situated on the Mkhanzi River about 28 kilometres from East London, South Africa. The name "Mkhanzi" is derived from the Xhosa word "umkhanzi", which means "bulrush", or Typha capensis. Kidd's Beach was named after Charles Kidd, who was the mayor of nearby King William's Town in the 1860s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wynberg, Cape Town</span> Place in Western Cape, South Africa

Wynberg is a southern suburb of the City of Cape Town in Western Cape, South Africa. It is situated between Plumstead and Kenilworth, and is a main transport hub for the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Beaufort</span> Place in Eastern Cape, South Africa

Fort Beaufort, officially renamed KwaMaqoma in March 2023, is a town in the Amatole District of South Africa's Eastern Cape Province, and had a population of 25,668 in 2011. The town was established in 1837 and became a municipality in 1883. The town lies at the confluence of the Kat River and Brak River between the Keiskamma and Great Fish Rivers. KwaMaqoma serves as a mini-'dormitory' for academic staff and students of Fort Hare University, based in the nearby town of Alice, and is also close to Sulphur Springs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amathole Mountains</span> Mountain range in South Africa

Amatola, Amatole or Amathole are a range of densely forested mountains, situated in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The word Amathole means ‘calves’ in Xhosa, and Amathole District Municipality, which lies to the south, is named after these mountains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diocese of Grahamstown</span>

The Diocese of Grahamstown is a diocese of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa. It is centred on the historic city of Makhanda in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The diocese extends to East London, in the east and Port Alfred to the south.

The Diocese of Mthatha is a diocese of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. Before 2006 it was known as the Diocese of St John's, and earlier still as that of Kaffraria. The diocese currently has 96 parishes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keiskamma River</span> River in the Eastern Cape, South Africa

The Keiskamma River is a river in the Eastern Cape Province in South Africa. The river flows into the Indian Ocean in the Keiskamma Estuary, located by Hamburg Nature Reserve, near Hamburg, midway between East London and Port Alfred. The Keiskamma flows first in a southwestern and then in a southeastern direction after meeting its main tributary, the Tyhume River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tyhume River</span> River in the Eastern Cape, South Africa

The Tyhume River is a river in Amathole District Municipality in the central part of the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It springs in the forested mountains of Hogsback, part of the Amatola Mountains, and runs down the Tyhume River Valley and through the eastern verge of the small town of Alice, Eastern Cape, bordering most of the Fort Hare University grounds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Veronica Sobukwe</span> South African anti-apartheid activist

Zondeni Veronica Sobukwe OLS was a South African nurse who played an integral role in the Defiance Campaign. Her husband, Robert Sobukwe, was a prominent political dissident. Her family was constantly harassed by the police.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Main Place Alice". Census 2011.
  2. ECDoH Victoria Hospital Archived 22 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine