A History of South Africa

             The government can be defined as the control and administration of a country or state, and governments differ within each region. Typically, when one thinks of a successful government, one thinks of democracy in the United States, but few people realize that success doesn't come easy. Many countries, such as South Africa, are modeling, or in most cases being forced to model, their government after the United States. Other countries, such as Ethiopia, are still having trouble finding which government will bring them their success. During the twentieth century, while South Africa met the needs of its people through political parties, ending apartheid, and a newly founded democracy, Ethiopia has struggled to match the same success.
             South Africa is such a successful country today because of its settlers many years ago. Throughout the seventeenth century, many European sailors passed by South Africa on their way to East Africa and India, however, the first European settlers didn't arrive until 1652. Headed by Jon van Riebeeck, the Dutch East India Company was sent to South Africa to set up a base for trading at what is presently known as Cape Town. After the Dutch had settled, they began to offer free passage and land to new settlers in Europe and brought in Africans as slaves. By 1795, the whites had spread all over and around Cape Town. With a colonial population of about 60,000 and only 20,000 of these being white, the Dutch had already instilled the idea of "white power".
             From 1795 to 1803, and again from 1806 to 1814, the British replaced the Dutch at Cape Town. However, it wasn't until 1820 that Britain colonized South Africa. The Boers, or farmers of Dutch descent, soon came to resent British colonial rule. Britain made certain restrictions, such as making English the colony's only official language in 1828 and the abolishment of slavery in 1833. Because the Boer farmers relied on slaves for the upkeep of their farms, many of t...

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A History of South Africa. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 09:41, March 28, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/21995.html