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Diamonds Changed Southern Africa

Diamonds turned Kimberley from a dusty frontier into one of the richest places in Southern Africa. The rush brought British money, new settlers, and fierce competition for land and power. It also helped push conquest, war, and racial segregation deeper into the region.

Key Facts

Diamonds were first discovered in 1867 in Griqualand, and the news quickly drew attention from across the world.

Kimberley became the center of the diamond rush after major finds in 1870.

British investment surged, bringing prospectors, entrepreneurs, and even criminals into the region.

Small claims disappeared as powerful businessmen like Alfred Beit, Barney Barnato, and Cecil Rhodes bought up competitors.

De Beers Consolidated Mines came to control about 90% of the world’s diamonds by 1890.

Black workers were forced into compounds, while White miners were not, making Kimberley a key step toward segregation.

Britain took control of Griqualand, and diamond wealth helped drive wider imperial expansion across Southern Africa.

Cheap labor became essential to the mines, reshaping local economies and daily life.

Land disputes were ignored, even when courts recognized Griqua ownership.

Historical Context

In the early 1800s, Southern Africa mattered to Britain mostly as a strategic stop on the way to Asia. That changed when White settlement expanded, Boer republics formed, and mineral wealth was discovered beneath the ground. Diamonds, and later gold, made the region far more valuable and far more contested.

Historical Significance

The diamond boom helped turn Southern Africa into a battleground for empire, money, and land. It also laid the groundwork for a labor system that separated people by race and trapped Black workers at the bottom of the mining economy. The mines did not just dig up diamonds; they helped build a new political order.

Jameson Raid: The Failed British Coup in Transvaal

The Jameson Raid was an unofficial and failed attempt by the British to take over the Boer Republic of Transvaal in Southern Africa in December 1895. Masterminded by the millionaire imperialist Cecil Rhodes, the raid failed to gain support from the immigrant community within Transvaal and was easily quashed. Rhodes was discredited over the fiasco, and the heightened mutual suspicion between the British and Boers eventually led to the Second Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902).

Control of Southern Africa

Great Britain had established a colony in Southern Africa in 1806, the Cape Colony, which included the Cape of Good Hope, an important stopping point for ships sailing to and from Britain and its possessions in Asia, particularly British India. Another British colony was founded in 1843, Natal. The British had competition, not only from indigenous Africans but also from the Boers. The Boers were White settlers in Southern Africa who had Dutch or French ancestry. The name Boer means "farmer." They were also known as Afrikaners because they spoke Afrikaans. Through the 1830s, as the British outlawed slavery and population growth applied too much pressure to land and resources around the Cape, over 14,000 Boers migrated to find land elsewhere. From these new territories, two Boer republics were formed: Transvaal (founded in 1852) and the Orange Free State (founded in 1854).

Largely rural and with only a modest trade related to agriculture, Southern Africa's fortunes were transformed following the discovery of diamonds at Kimberley in Griqualand in 1867 and then by the remarkable discovery of massive gold deposits at Witwatersrand in Transvaal in 1886. In between these two discoveries, the British had been steadily expanding their control of the region. Griqualand, renamed West Griqualand by the British, was made a crown colony in 1871. A British army defeated the Zulu Kingdom in 1879, and Zululand became a crown colony in 1887. The British also acquired the Basutoland Protectorate (modern Lesotho) in 1884 and the Bechuanaland Protectorate (modern Botswana) in 1885. Swaziland and Pondoland were added to Britain's motley collection of Southern African states in 1893 and 1894, respectively.

The dream of British colonialists was to unite the various colonies into a single state of South Africa. The Boers, naturally, valued their independence and saw no reason to become another part of the British Empire. Indeed, they had already had a warning of this ambition between 1877 and 1881 when the British, on the excuse of attacks by African tribes, had temporarily taken over Transvaal. The rivalry for land and resources exploded into conflict again in the First Anglo-Boer War (1880-1). The Boers won this rather small-scale encounter, but a bigger and more decisive conflict now seemed only a matter of time. The men who sought to bring on this crisis sooner rather than later were the millionaire gold magnates.

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Matabeleland (Kingdom): The Ndebele Empire in Southern Africa

The Ndbele, despite their success, were about to face a new challenge to their regional dominance. The discovery of gold in Matabeleland back in 1867 meant that European colonists once again took a keen interest in this area of Southern Africa. It was even rumoured that Matabeleland could be the location of the legendary gold mines of King Solomon, rumours fuelled by explorers noting in their journals that there were certainly ancient mine workings in this region.

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Cómo transformaron los diamantes África del Sur: Sangre, sudor y segregación en Kimberley

El descubrimiento de diamantes en Griqualandia en 1867 acabaría transformando por completo toda la región del sur de África. Este descubrimiento llevó a enormes inversiones financieras europeas y una importante oleada de inmigración. Los diamantes harían que Gran Bretaña se apoderara del control de Griqualandia y de la república bóer de Transvaal, así como que conquistara el reino zulú. Cuando a las riquezas de las minas de diamantes de Kimberley se sumaron los enormes yacimientos de oro descubiertos en Witwatersrand en 1886, Gran Bretaña entró en guerra con los bóers y procedió a anexionar territorios africanos con el fin de asegurar su dominio total sobre la región. Las minas de diamantes y oro, que exigían un suministro insaciable de mano de obra barata, también transformaron las economías y culturas locales, y sentaron las bases de un sistema de segregación racial que no se aboliría hasta finales del siglo XX.

Raid Jameson: Le coup manqué des Britanniques au Transvaal

Le raid Jameson fut une tentative non officielle et ratée des Britanniques pour prendre le contrôle de la République boer du Transvaal en Afrique australe, en décembre 1895. Organisé par le millionnaire impérialiste Cecil Rhodes, le raid n’obtint pas le soutien de la communauté d’immigrés au Transvaal et fut rapidement étouffé. Après ce fiasco, Cecil Rhodes fut discrédité et le regain de méfiance réciproque entre Britanniques et Boers conduisit finalement à la Seconde Guerre des Boers (1899-1902).

Impact des diamants sur l'Afrique australe: Le sang, la sueur et la ségrégation de la ville de Kimberley

La découverte de diamants en 1867 au Griqualand finit par transformer toute la région de l'Afrique australe. Elle entraîna d’énormes investissements financiers européens et une immigration massive. Les diamants conduisirent la Grande-Bretagne à s’emparer du Griqualand et de la république boer du Transvaal, ainsi qu’à la conquête du royaume zoulou. Lorsque les richesses des mines de diamants de Kimberley furent complétées par la découverte d’importants gisements d’or dans le Witwatersrand en 1886, la Grande-Bretagne entra en guerre contre les Boers et procéda à l’annexion de territoires africains afin d’assurer sa domination totale sur la région. Les mines de diamants et d’or, qui exigeaient un approvisionnement insatiable en main-d’œuvre bon marché, ont également transformé les économies et les cultures locales, jetant les bases d’un système de ségrégation raciale qui ne serait aboli qu’à la fin du XXe siècle.

Matabeleland (royaume): L'empire Ndébélé en Afrique australe

Le Matabeleland (1838-1897), également connu sous le nom d’empire Ndébélé ou de Mthwakazi par les Ndébélé eux-mêmes, était un État africain qui couvrait ce qui correspond aujourd’hui à une partie du sud du Zimbabwe et du nord de l’Afrique du Sud. Cette région, qui abritait d'autres peuples africains, notamment les Shona, était convoitée par les colons et la Compagnie britannique d'Afrique du Sud, ce qui entraîna deux guerres, la première et la deuxième guerre Ndébélé, de 1893 à 1897. Le Matabeleland, vaincu et démantelé, fut finalement intégré à la colonie britannique de Rhodésie du Sud (l'actuel Zimbabwe).