South Africa

country in southern Africa

41 dated entries naming South Africa, drawn from 37 separate years between 1075 CE and 2025 CE. Nothing here is written by us: each line is the sentence a Wikipedia year article used, and the link beside it opens the exact revision.

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11th century

1075The Kingdom of Mapungubwe is established, in modern-day South Africa.source

16th century

1509November 4 – Afonso de Albuquerque becomes the Viceroy of Portuguese India, replacing Francisco de Almeida, who departs five days later from Diu. Almeida never makes it home, getting killed along with his 64 men in a battle on March 1 with the local Khoekhoe people at South Africa's Cape of Good Hope.source

17th century

1652April 6 – Dutch sailor Jan van Riebeeck establishes a resupply camp for the Dutch East India Company at the Cape of Good Hope in modern-day South Africa, thus founding Cape Town.source
1694April 2 – Sheikh Yusuf, exiled by the administrators of the Dutch East Indies (modern-day Indonesia), arrives at the Dutch Cape Colony on the ship De Voetboog, at what later becomes Cape Town, South Africa, along with two wives, two concubines and twelve children. Resettled by the colonial government at a farm in Zandvliet, the Sheikh introduces Islam to South Africa.source

18th century

1704June 2 – Annular solar eclipse is visible from a region of the Southern Ocean between South Africa and Antarctica.source
1722November 20 – The Dutch East India Company cargo ship Schoonenberg runs aground in South Africa's Struis Bay and is looted by most of its 110 crew, beginning a legend and questions of whether the wreck was part of a conspiracy or simply an accident. Almost 300 years later, the event is reconstructed in detail by investigators.source
1784A huge locust swarm hits South Africa.source

19th century

1829South African College founded in Cape Town, South Africa; later to separate into the South African College Schools and the University of Cape Town.source
185226 February – the Birkenhead founders off the coast of South Africa. The soldiers stand to attention while women and children are placed in the lifeboats.source
1857The Union Steam Ship Company wins the first mail contract for regular mail service between Great Britain and South Africa.source
18598 September – A small 0-4-0 tank steam locomotive is landed in Cape Town, to be used during construction of the first railway in South Africa.source
1873July 5 – New Rush in Griqualand West, South Africa, is renamed Kimberley.source
1884November 3 – Imvo Zabantsundu (Xhosa: The Native People's Opinion of South Africa), South Africa's first newspaper by and for Black people, is founded by John Tengo Jabavu in King William's Town.source
189928 September: Prime Minister Richard Seddon asks Parliament to approve the offer to the imperial government of a contingent of mounted rifles and the raising of such a force if the offer were accepted and thus becoming the first British Colony to send troops to the Boer war. The first New Zealand Army contingent leaves for South Africa before the end of the year.source

20th century

19136 November – Mohandas Gandhi is arrested while leading a march of Indian miners in South Africa.source
19159 July – German forces in German South-West Africa (Deutsch-Südwestafrika) capitulate and the territory is occupied by South Africa.source
1923March 1 – Eskom, the largest electricity producer in Africa, is established in South Africa.source
1926March 6 – The first commercial air route from the United Kingdom to South Africa is established by Alan Cobham.source
1928June 9 – Ellis Park Stadium, a well-known sport venue of South Africa, officially opens in Johannesburg.source
1955June 26 – The Freedom Charter of the anti-apartheid South African Congress Alliance is adopted, at a Congress of the People in Kliptown.source
1964The Welsh national side makes its first overseas tour, to South Africa.source
1970November 20 – The Miss World 1970 beauty pageant, hosted by Bob Hope at the Royal Albert Hall, London is disrupted by Women's Liberation protesters. Earlier on the same evening a bomb is placed under a BBC outside broadcast vehicle by The Angry Brigade, in protest at the entry of separate black and white contestants by South Africa.source
1978July 24 – In Acapulco, Mexico, Margaret Gardiner of South Africa is crowned Miss Universe.source
1979September 22 – Vela incident: The "South Atlantic Flash" is observed near the Prince Edward Islands in the Indian Ocean, thought to be a nuclear weapons test conducted by South Africa and Israel.source
1983August 24 – South Africa announces "all outstanding issues" preventing independence for South West Africa (present-day Namibia) have been resolved, except for the continuing presence of 23,000 Cuban troops in neighboring Angola.source
1986June 12 – South Africa declares a nationwide state of emergency.source
19901 November – South Africa's anti-apartheid leader, Nelson Mandela began a four-day visit to Malaysia.source
1991January 29 – In South Africa, Nelson Mandela of the African National Congress and Mangosuthu Buthelezi of the Inkatha Freedom Party agree to end violence between the two organizations.source
1991April 15 – End of Apartheid: The European Economic Community lifts economic sanctions on South Africa.source
1998Bill Clinton makes the first visit to South Africa by a U.S. president.source
1998September 3 - South Africa now says it supports the intervention of the Democratic Republic of the Congo by Namibia, Zimbabwe and Angola, supporting Kabila.source
1998September 3 - South Africa now says it supports the intervention of DRC by Namibia, Zimbabwe and Angola, supporting Kabila.source

21st century

2002In October, Bangladesh toured South Africa for another bi-lateral series of 3 ODIs and 2 test matches. Bangladesh could not win any of these matches either.source
2010June 11–July 11 – The 2010 FIFA World Cup was held in South Africa and was won by Spain.source
2010December 5 - Former South African President Thabo Mbeki begins mediation efforts in Ivory Coast following the disputed presidential election.source
2014January 31 - Hundreds of endangered species from Madagascar are found in a South African airport.source
2015September 10 – Scientists announce the discovery of Homo naledi, a previously unknown species of early human in South Africa.source
2022November 2–November 3 – Tigray War: The Ethiopian government and the TPLF agree to a formal cessation of hostilities, signing a peace agreement in Pretoria, South Africa.source
2023December 29 – A genocide case against Israel is brought towards the International Court of Justice by South Africa for Israel's invasion and subsequent bombardment of the Gaza Strip, and its role in the subsequent humanitarian crisis.source
202429 June – The ICC Men's T20 World Cup Final is held at Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, where India defeats South Africa by seven runs to win the tournament.source
2025November 22–23 – The G20 Johannesburg summit is held in South Africa, the first time a G20 summit has been held in Africa.source