Suid-Afrikaanse Legioen | |
| Formation | 1921 |
|---|---|
| Type | Ex-service organisation |
| Headquarters | National Museum of Military History, 22 Erlswold Way, Saxonwold, Johannesburg, 2196 |
| Affiliations | Royal Commonwealth Ex-Services League |
| Website | www |
The South African Legion is the oldest military veterans organisation in South Africa. It is referred to simply as the SA Legion or even 'The Legion' and is one of the largest independent military veterans charities in South Africa.
After suffering the horrors of war in France and Flanders, thousands of men who fought on the British side in World War One underwent incredible hardship once they had been discharged from the armed services and returned to civilian life.
Realising the serious plight in which men found themselves, three prominent soldiers - Field Marshall Earl Haig, General the Rt. Hon. J C Smuts and General Sir H T Lukin - founded the British Empire Service League (BESL) at an inaugural meeting held in the City Hall, Cape Town on 21 February 1921. [1] This is also the date of South African Armed Forces Day, following the proclamation by the former President of the Republic of South Africa and Commander-in-Chief of the South African National Defence Force, President, J.G. Zuma that 21 February every year be observed and commemorated as Armed Forces Day (AFD), where honour is paid to those that lost their lives in the fateful 1917 sinking of the SS Mendi. [2]
At the Empire Conference a week later the SA Legion was formalised (28 February to March 4, 1921) in Cape Town, South Africa [3] as the British Empire Services League (BESL, South Africa) by joining the Returned Soldiers and Sailors Association and the Comrades of the Great War, after which the Comrades Marathon is also named, [4] making SA Legion the oldest military veterans organisation in South Africa [5] and one of the founding organisations of the international Royal Commonwealth Ex-Services League (RCEL). On 8 April 1941, it was decided to call the organisation the South African Legion of the BESL as national feelings were increasing and members wanted to emphasise their South Africanness. [3] : Page 75
The Legion is an active member organisation of the RCEL [6] and HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, is the High Patron of the Legion. [7] The headquarters of the Legion were originally in Bloemfontein in the centre of the country, but moved to Johannesburg in 1942, where it still is, housed in the South African National Museum of Military History. [8] The name was altered again in 1958, to suit the changing times, to the SA Legion of the British Commonwealth Ex-Services League (BESL). [3] : Page 115 The BESL has since changed its name to the Royal Commonwealth Ex-Services League. [9] The South African Legion's national website [10] states "The Legion is a national, non-sectarian and strictly non-partisan in relation to politics."
The Legion is often mentioned in television news bulletins and websites, [11] not only in connection with its remembrance activities, [12] but also warning military veterans of scams aimed at them. [13] As a non-racial military veterans organisation, the SA Legion has long remembered the tragic loss of the SS Mendi [14] in which more than 600 Black South African soldiers died. [15] The Legion's UK Branch, made up of former South African servicemen and women, has also held a memorial service near the site of the sinking. [16] The commemoration is held in Atteridgeville, Pretoria [17] and Soweto, [18] as well as in Port Elizabeth, which linked with British historians to find missing headstones, and other major centres including Cape Town. South Africa instituted a new Armed Forces Day in 2013, which commemorates the loss of the Mendi. [19]
Remembrance Day is commemorated in Cape Town at the Cenotaph in Heerengracht Street, in Johannesburg at the Cenotaph in Harrison Street and in Pretoria at the Union Buildings. The Legion holds commemorations throughout the country, including Pietermartitzburg, capital of Kwa-Zulu Natal Province. [20]
Remembrance Day is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth member states since the end of the First World War to honour armed forces members who have died in the line of duty. The day is also marked by war remembrances in several other non-Commonwealth countries. In most countries, Remembrance Day is observed on 11 November to recall the end of First World War hostilities. Hostilities ended "at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month" of 1918, in accordance with the armistice signed by representatives of Germany and the Entente between 5:12 and 5:20 that morning. The First World War formally ended with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles on 28 June 1919.
Armistice Day, later known as Remembrance Day in the Commonwealth and Veterans Day in the United States, is commemorated every year on 11 November to mark the armistice signed between the Allies of World War I and Germany at Compiègne, France, at 5:45 am for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front of World War I, which took effect at 11:00 am—the "eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month" of 1918 although, according to Thomas R. Gowenlock, an intelligence officer with the U.S. First Division, shelling from both sides continued for the rest of the day, ending only at nightfall. The armistice initially expired after a period of 36 days and had to be extended several times. A formal peace agreement was reached only when the Treaty of Versailles was signed the following year.
Remembrance Sunday is held in the United Kingdom as a day to commemorate the contribution of British and Commonwealth military and civilian servicemen and women in the two World Wars and later conflicts. It is held on the second Sunday in November. Remembrance Sunday, within the Church of England, falls in the liturgical period of Allsaintstide.
The Returned and Services League of Australia, known as RSL, RSL Australia and RSLA, is an independent support organisation for people who have served or are serving in the Australian Defence Force.
The South African Navy (SA Navy) is the naval warfare branch of the South African National Defence Force.
SSMendi was a British 4,230 GRT passenger steamship that was built in 1905 and, as a troopship, sank after collision with great loss of life in 1917.
The South African Army is the principal land warfare force of South Africa, a part of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), along with the South African Air Force, South African Navy and South African Military Health Service. The Army is commanded by the Chief of the Army, who is subordinate to the Chief of the SANDF.
The Royal Canadian Legion is a non-profit Canadian veterans' organization founded in 1925. Members include people who served in the military, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, provincial or municipal police, Royal Canadian Air, Army and Sea Cadets and direct relatives.
The South African Special Forces Brigade, colloquially known as the Recces, is South Africa's principal special operations unit, specialising in various types of operations, including counter-insurgency, long-range-reconnaissance, unconventional-warfare, special operations, hostage-rescue, and direct-action operations. The brigade operates with two active-duty groups, with 4 Special Forces Regiment focusing on maritime operations, and 5 Special Forces Regiment focusing on land and airborne operations. Only about 8% of recruits who undergo South African special forces training pass the course.
The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants.
SAS Mendi (F148) is the last of four Valour-class frigates built for the South African Navy by the European South African Corvette Consortium and entered service in March 2007. SAS Mendi was named by Mrs Helena Retief, wife of the (then) Chief of the Navy Vice Admiral Johan Retief.
The following lists events that happened during 1917 in South Africa.
The South African Army Infantry Formation supervises all infantry within the South African Army.
A remembrance poppy is an artificial flower worn in some countries to commemorate their military personnel who died in war. Remembrance poppies are produced by veterans' associations, which exchange the poppies for charitable donations used to give financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the armed forces.
The South African Army Engineer Formation is the controlling entity of all South African Army military engineering units. The Formation is currently commanded by the General Officer Commanding (GOC); Brigadier General C. Buyse
The Autshumato Anti-Aircraft Regiment is a reserve air defence artillery regiment of the South African Army.
General Solly Zacharia Shoke, is a South African military commander. He joined uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK), the military wing of the African National Congress, in the 1970s, and served as a field commander fighting against the South African government in the 1980s. He transferred to the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) when MK was incorporated into it in 1994, and served as Chief of the South African National Defence Force 2011 to 30 May 2021.
In the United Kingdom and other countries within the Commonwealth, a two-minute silence is observed as part of Remembrance Day to remember those who died in conflict. Held each year at 11:00 am on 11 November, the silence coincides with the time in 1918 at which the First World War came to an end with the cessation of hostilities, and is generally observed at war memorials and in public places throughout the UK and Commonwealth. A two-minute silence is also observed on Remembrance Sunday, also at 11:00 am.
South Africa's participation in the First World War occurred automatically when the British Government declared war on Germany in August 1914. Due to her status as a Dominion within the British Empire, South Africa, whilst having significant levels of self-autonomy, did not have the legal power to exercise an independent foreign policy and was tied to the British declaration.
