Cape Province

{{about||the floristic province|Cape floristic region|the marine biogeographic region of Australia|Cape Province (IMCRA region)}} {{infobox historic subdivision| |Name= Province of the Cape of Good Hope
Provinsie Kaap die Goeie Hoop |HQ= [[Cape Town]] |Status= [[Provinces of South Africa|Province]] of [[South Africa]] |Origin= [[Cape Colony]] |Start= 31 May 1910 |End= 31 May 1994 |Replace= [[Western Cape]], [[Eastern Cape]], [[Northern Cape]], [[North West (South African province)|North West]] |Map= [[File:Map of the provinces of South Africa 1976-1994 with the Cape highlighted.svg|200px]] |Image= [[File:Cape Provincial Arms.png|100px]] |Arms= |Civic= |Motto= |Government= [[Cape Provincial Council]] |Divisions= Districts |DivisionsNames= |DivisionsMap= |CodeName= |Code= }} The '''Province of the Cape of Good Hope''' (commonly referred to simply as the '''Cape Province''') was a province in the [[Union of South Africa]] and subsequently the [[Republic of South Africa]]. It encompassed the old [[Cape Colony]], and had [[Cape Town]] as its capital. It was created in 1910 when the Union of South Africa was formed, and included the original Cape Colony and other regions such as [[British Bechuanaland]] (not to be confused with the [[Bechuanaland Protectorate]], now [[Botswana]]), [[Griqualand East]] (the area around [[Kokstad, KwaZulu-Natal|Kokstad]]) and [[Griqualand West]] (area around [[Kimberley, Northern Cape|Kimberley]]). This gave the Cape Province an area similar in size to the U.S. state of [[Texas]]. At the time of the formation of the [[Union of South Africa]] the entire region now called [[South Africa]] was only four provinces: [[Transvaal Province|Transvaal]] ([[South African Republic]]), [[Natal Province|Natal]] ([[Natalia Republic]]), [[Orange Free State]] and the Cape Province. During the [[apartheid|apartheid era]] the country was chopped up into a number of additional pieces which were known as the four [[Provinces of South Africa#Independent Homelands|TBVC States]] and the six [[Provinces of South Africa#Non-Independent Homelands|Non-Independent Homelands]]. After the first fully democratic elections in 1994 all the pieces were put together again and divided into what are now the current nine [[provinces of South Africa]]. [[Walvis Bay]] was handed to [[Namibia]]. Griqualand East was transferred to [[Natal Province]] after the [[Transkei]] was declared independent, since it was cut off from the rest of the province. The Transkei (1976) and [[Ciskei]] (1981) regions were declared independent of South Africa, after they were formerly part of the Cape Province. (They were re-incorporated into South Africa in 1994, both part of the new [[Eastern Cape]] province) It was the only province where [[coloured]]s (mixed-race people) could vote, although this right was removed by the [[apartheid]] government in 1956. The government had to incorporate many extra senators in parliament to force through this change. Since 1994, it has been broken up into three smaller provinces: the [[Western Cape]], [[Eastern Cape]] and [[Northern Cape]]. Parts of the Cape Province were also absorbed into the [[North West (South African province)|North West]]. ==External links== {{Wikisource1911Enc|Cape Colony}} *[http://uk.holidaysguide.yahoo.com/p-travelguide-45871-cape_town_history-i A history of the Cape Province] *[http://www.national.archives.gov.za/sources1.htm Archives kept at Cape Town] {{SA1910Provinces}} {{coord missing|South Africa}}