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.
Fort Hare was originally constructed by the British during the wars between the British troops and the Xhosa of the 19th century.
In 1837, the British also built Fort Glamorgan on the West Bank of East London, which was annexed to the Cape Colony that same year. It is part of a series of forts established by the British, including Fort Murray, Fort White, [1] Fort Cox, Fort Hare, and Fort Willshire, in the region known as British Kaffraria.
On 29 December 1850, during the Eighth Frontier War with the Xhosas, approximately 220 British troops were forced to retreat to Fort Hare following an unsuccessful attempt to relieve Sir Harry Smith, who was besieged at Fort Cox. [2]
Some of the ruins of fort Hare are still visible, including the graves of some of the British soldiers who died in service there. [3] Missionary activity (James Stewart) led to the establishment of a school for missionaries, in the early 20th century. This school gave rise to the University of Fort Hare. The university, guided by the Christian principles, offered low and heavily subsidised fees.
Boers are the descendants of the proto Afrikaans-speaking Free Burghers of the eastern Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. From 1652 to 1795, the Dutch East India Company controlled Dutch Cape Colony, but the United Kingdom incorporated it into the British Empire in 1806. The name of the group is derived from Trekboer then later "boer", which means "farmer" in Dutch and Afrikaans.
The University of Fort Hare is a public university in Alice, Eastern Cape, South Africa.
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.
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.
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 being home to many anti-apartheid activists, including Nelson Mandela.
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.
The amaMfengu were a group of Xhosa clans whose ancestors were refugees that fled from the Mfecane in the early-mid 19th century to seek land and protection from the Xhosa. These refugees were assimilated into the Xhosa nation and were officially recognized by the then king, Hintsa.
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.
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.
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.
Hogsback is a village in the Amathole Mountains in the Eastern Cape Province, 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.
The Xhosa Wars were a series of nine wars between the Xhosa Kingdom and the British Empire as well as Trekboers in what is now the Eastern Cape in South Africa. These events were the longest-running military resistance against European colonialism in Africa.
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.
King Sandile kaNgqika 'Aa! Mgolombane!' was a ruler of the Right Hand House of the Xhosa Kingdom. A dynamic leader, he led the Xhosa armies in several of the Xhosa-British Wars.
Makhanda, also spelled Makana and also known as Nxele, was a Xhosa indigenous doctor. He served as a top advisor to Chief Ndlambe. During the Xhosa Wars, on 22 April 1819, he initiated an abortive assault on the town of Grahamstown, in what was then the Cape Colony.
Fort Cox near Middledrift in the Eastern Cape, South Africa was a frontier fort in the Amatola Mountains on a loop of the Keiskamma River.
Jongumsobomvu Maqoma was a Xhosa chief and a commander of the Xhosa forces during the Cape Frontier Wars. Born in the Right Hand House of the Xhosa Kingdom, he was the older brother of Chief Sandile kaNgqika and nephew to King Hintsa. In 1818, he commanded the forces of his father, Ngqika, who seemingly was trying to overthrow the government and become the king of the Xhosa nation. In 1822, he moved to the so-called neutral zone to take land but was expelled by the British troops.
In the Colonies and former Boer Republics which became the Union of South Africa in 1910, several unofficial military decorations and medals were instituted and awarded during the nineteenth and early twentieth century. Sir Harry Smith's Medal for Gallantry is an unofficial military decoration for bravery, awarded for actions following the siege of Fort Cox in December 1850, at the beginning of the 8th Cape Frontier War. The medal was privately instituted in 1851 by Major General Sir Henry George Wakelyn Smith Bt GCB, at the time the Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Cape of Good Hope.
The Eighth Xhosa War was a war between the British Empire and Xhosa as well as Khoikhoi forces, between 1850 and 1853. It was the eighth of nine Xhosa Wars.
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