The
1820 Settlers were several groups or parties of white British colonists settled by the
BritishThe Kingdom of Great Britain, also known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain, was a sovereign state in northwest Europe, in existence from 1707 to 1801...
government and the
CapeThe 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...
authorities in the South African
Eastern CapeThe Eastern Cape is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho. It was formed in 1994 out of the "independent" homelands of Transkei and Ciskei, as well as the eastern portion of the Cape Province. Landing place and home of the 1820 settlers...
in 1820.
Many of the Settlers were very poor and encouraged to settle in an attempt by the Cape government to close, consolidate and defend the eastern frontier against the neighbouring
XhosaThe Xhosa ) people are speakers of Bantu languages living in south-east South Africa, and in the last two centuries throughout the southern and central-southern parts of the country....
peoples, and to provide a boost to the English-speaking population.
The
1820 Settlers were several groups or parties of white British colonists settled by the
BritishThe Kingdom of Great Britain, also known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain, was a sovereign state in northwest Europe, in existence from 1707 to 1801...
government and the
CapeThe 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...
authorities in the South African
Eastern CapeThe Eastern Cape is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho. It was formed in 1994 out of the "independent" homelands of Transkei and Ciskei, as well as the eastern portion of the Cape Province. Landing place and home of the 1820 settlers...
in 1820.
Many of the Settlers were very poor and encouraged to settle in an attempt by the Cape government to close, consolidate and defend the eastern frontier against the neighbouring
XhosaThe Xhosa ) people are speakers of Bantu languages living in south-east South Africa, and in the last two centuries throughout the southern and central-southern parts of the country....
peoples, and to provide a boost to the English-speaking population. It was one of the largest stages of British settlement in Africa, forming the
Anglo-AfricanAnglo-Africans are people of primarily Sub-Saharan Africa whose first language is English. Most are of British and Irish descent, although they can be of any ancestry including French Huguenot, Jewish, Portuguese, Spanish, and Italian. Most live in South Africa.- Terminology :Ethnicity is a...
cultural hot spot
AlbanyAlbany, South Africa was a district in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. The area was known as the 'Zuurveld' by migrating Boer farmers in the late 18th century...
, and thus a milestone in the forming of the
Anglo-AfricanAnglo-Africans are people of primarily Sub-Saharan Africa whose first language is English. Most are of British and Irish descent, although they can be of any ancestry including French Huguenot, Jewish, Portuguese, Spanish, and Italian. Most live in South Africa.- Terminology :Ethnicity is a...
people.
Approximately 4,000 Settlers arrived in the Cape in around 60 different parties between April and June 1820. The Settlers were granted farms near the village of
BathurstBathurst is about 12 kilometers inland from Port Alfred, on the R67, in the Eastern Cape province. Its chief claim to fame is that it was the administrative centre for the 1820 British Settlers who were established in the district as a buffer between the Cape Colony and the Xhosa pastoralists who...
and supplied equipment and food against their deposits, but their lack of agricultural experience led many of them to abandon agriculture and withdraw to Bathurst and other settlements like
GrahamstownGrahamstown is a city in the Eastern Cape Province of the Republic of South Africa and is the seat of the Makana municipality. The population of greater Grahamstown, as of 2003, was 124,758. The population of the surrounding areas, including the actual city was 41,799 of which 77.4% were black,...
, East London and Port Elizabeth, where they typically reverted to their trades.
A group of the 1820 settlers continued on to Natal, then a part of
ZululandThe Zulu Kingdom, sometimes referred to as the Zulu Empire or, rather imprecisely, Zululand, was a monarchy in Southern Africa that extended along the coast of the Indian Ocean from the Tugela River in the south to Pongola River in the north....
, home of the
ZuluThe Zulu are the largest South African ethnic group of an estimated 10–11 million people who live mainly in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Small numbers also live in Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Mozambique. Their language, Zulu, is a Bantu language; more specifically, part of the Nguni...
people. At the time, King Shaka ruled the territory with highly-trained warriors. Leaders of the Natal settlers requested permission from Shaka to stay on the land. When the king witnessed the settlers' technological advances, permission was granted in return for access to firearm technology.
They are commemorated in Grahamstown by the
1820 Settlers National MonumentThe 1820 Settlers National Monument, which honours the contribution to South African society made by the first big influx of English settlers, overlooks Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape. A living monument, it commemorates the English language as much as the Settlers themselves...
, which opened in 1974. A living monument, it hosts plays, musical performances and cultural events.
Notable 1820 Settlers
- Alexander Biggar
The Biggar family, Alexander Harvey Biggar and his two sons Robert and George , were pioneer traders at Port Natal, in what was to become the Colony of Natal...
- Henry Hare Dugmore
The Reverend Henry Hare Dugmore , a South African missionary, writer and translator, was born in England, son of Isaac and Maria Dugmore. The family emigrated when his father was financially ruined after being forced to pay the debts of a relative for whom he had stood surety...
- Richard Gush
Richard Gush was an 1820 Settler. Originally from Beer, a village in Devon, England, he settled in Salem, near Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. He earned renown by saving Salem from Xhosa warriors. A devout Quaker, he rode to meet them unarmed...
- Dick King
Richard Philip "Dick" King was an English trader and colonist at Port Natal, a British trading station in the region now known as KwaZulu-Natal. He is best known for a historic horseback ride in 1842, where he completed a journey of 960 km / 600 miles in 10 days, in order to request help for the...
- Thomas Pringle
Thomas Pringle was a Scottish writer, poet and abolitionist, known as the father of South African Poetry, being the first successful English language poet and author to describe South Africa's scenery, native peoples, and living conditions.Born at Blaiklaw , four miles south of Kelso in...
- Thomas Shone
Thomas Shone was an 1820 Settler. Born in London to a wealthy merchant family, he joined the Royal Navy at 19 and while on board HMS Nelson, was captured by the French on 14th Aug 1803...
Citations
- Mitford-Barberton, I., 1968. Some Frontier Families, Cape Town: Human & Rousseau
- Rosenthal, E., 1978. Encyclopedia of Southern Africa, Cape Town: Juta & Co.
- Powell, F. Whinchcombe, 1960. Hancock's Drift, Pietermaritzburg: Private Publication
External links