Transkei, officially the Republic of Transkei, was an unrecognised state in the southeastern region of South Africa from 1976 to 1994. It was, along with Ciskei, a Bantustan for the Xhosa people, and operated as a nominally independent parliamentary democracy. Its capital was Umtata.
Ciskei, officially the Republic of Ciskei, was a Bantustan for the Xhosa people, located in the southeast of South Africa. It covered an area of 7,700 square kilometres (3,000 sq mi), almost entirely surrounded by what was then the Cape Province, and possessed a small coastline along the shore of the Indian Ocean.
Lennox Leslie Wongama Ngweyesizwe Sebe was the chief minister of the Xhosa bantustan of Ciskei after its self-rule in 1972, and the nominally independent country's first president from 1983.He was the Chief of the AmaKhambashe Tribal Authority and his praise name (isikhahlelo) was Ngweyesizwe.
Chief Kaiser Daliwonga Matanzima, often misspelled as Mathanzima, was the long-term leader of Transkei. In 1950, when South Africa was offered to establish the Bantu Authorities Act, Matanzima convinced the Bhunga to accept the Act. The Bhunga were the council of Transkei chiefs, who at first rejected the act until 1955 when Matanzima persuaded them.
Joshua Oupa Gqozo was the military ruler of the former homeland of Ciskei in South Africa.
Bantubonke Harrington Holomisa is a South African politician. He is a member of parliament for and president of the United Democratic Movement. and the current Deputy Minister of Defence.
Stella Nomzamo Sigcau was a South African politician. Sigcau was also the first female Prime Minister of the bantustan of Transkei before being deposed in a military coup in 1987. After Transkei was merged into South Africa following the end of apartheid, Sigcau became a minister in the cabinets of Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki until her death.
The Military Rule Medal was instituted by the State President of the Republic of Transkei to commemorate the bloodless 1987 military coup d'état which overthrew the Transkei government on 30 November 1987.
The Ciskei Defence Force (CDF) was established during March 1981 from the 141 Battalion of the South African Defence Force (SADF). It was the defence force of Ciskei, a bantustan that was controlled by the apartheid regime of South Africa. The CDF functioned as part of the 21 Battalion based near Lenasia, outside Johannesburg.
The Transkei National Independence Party (TNIP) was a political party in the nominally independent South African Xhosa bantustan of Transkei. It was founded by the Matanzima brothers, Kaiser and George. The party advocated cooperation with the South African government. As of 1985, the leader of the party was George Matanzima. The party governed Transkei from 1976 until the 1987 coup d'état by Bantu Holomisa.
Chief Botha Sigcau was a King in Eastern Pondoland, Transkei, South Africa (1939–1976) and later the figurehead President of Transkei from 1976 to 1978. A graduate of the University of Fort Hare, Sigcau was an early supporter of the Bantu Authorities in Transkei and was rewarded by the South African government when he was appointed chairman of the Transkei Territorial Authority, the parliament before independence.
Chief George Mzimvubu Mathanzima was a leader of the Transkei bantustan in South Africa, a young brother of Kaiser and a nephew of Nelson Mandela. He and his brother, Kaiser co-founded and led the Transkei National Independence Party. Mathanzima was appointed as Prime Minister of Transkei after his brother became President. He served as Prime Minister from 20 February 1979 to 24 September 1987. Bantu Holomisa forced his resignation and exile in October 1987. Stella Sigcau succeeded him as Prime Minister, but Holomisa forced her out of office in a coup d'état and took power himself in December 1987.
Qaqambile Matanzima was a South Africa politician and tribal leader. Matanzima had served as a colonel in the former Transkei Defence Force (TDF), the military force the Republic of Transkei, a de facto independent Bantustan which existed from 1976 to 1994. After Transkei was reincorporated into South Africa, Matanzima joined the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), leaving the military as a colonel in 1996. He was nicknamed "Big Q."
Rank comparison charts of armies/land forces of apartheid states and territories in Southern Africa.
Lt. General Xhanti Charles Sebe was leader of the Ciskei Defence Force- the military of the Bantustan of Ciskei, and its Director of State Security. A former Security Branch policeman, he later joined the South African Bureau of State Security (B.O.S.S.) before founding the Ciskei state security apparatus. Described as having created a police state in Ciskei, and being perceived as its de facto ruler, he is the young brother of Lennox Sebe. He was subsequently arrested by his brother's government, and sentenced to prison by the Ciskei government for incitement, but was rescued from jail by white mercenaries, and escaped to the nearby Bantustan of Transkei, where he began an organisation that aimed to overthrow his brother's government.
The 1987 Transkei coup d'état was a bloodless military coup in Transkei, an unrecognised state and a nominally independent South African homeland for the Xhosa people, which took place on 30 December 1987. The coup was led by the then 32-year-old Major General Bantu Holomisa, the Chief of the Transkei Defence Force, against the government of Prime Minister Stella Sigcau (TNIP). Holomisa suspended the civilian constitution and refused South Africa's repeated demands for a return to civilian rule on the grounds that a civilian government would be a puppet controlled by Pretoria.
The 1990 Ciskei coup d'état was a bloodless military coup in Ciskei, an unrecognised state and a nominally independent South African homeland for the Xhosa people, which took place on 4 March 1990. The coup was led by the then 37-year-old Brigadier Oupa Gqozo, the Chief of Staff Intelligence of the Ciskei Defence Force, against the government of President for Life Lennox Sebe (CNIP), who was on a state visit to Hong Kong at the time. The coup was followed by widespread rioting and looting, prompting Gqozo to request that the South African government send SADF troops to help restore order.
The 1990 Venda coup d'état was a bloodless military coup in Venda, an unrecognised state and a nominally independent South African homeland for the Venda people, which took place on 5 April 1990. The coup was led by the then 48-year-old Colonel Gabriel Ramushwana, the Chief of Staff of the Venda Defence Force, against the government of President Frank Ravele (NPV).
