CAPE TOWN IN SOUTH AFRICA

HISTORICAL MAP CHART

Cape Town (Afrikaans: Kaapstad; Xhosa: eKapa or SaseKapa) is the third most populous city in South Africa. It is the legislative capital of South Africa, as well as capital of the Western Cape province. Cape Town is famous for its natural harbour, as well as its location near the Cape of Good Hope. Its central area is dominated by Table Mountain, so named after its flat top. Cape Town is located at 33°55? S 18°27? E. The area today known as Cape Town was settled by the San and Khoikhoi, collectively known as the Khoisan, long before the Dutch East India Company (Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie; VOC) established a supply depot in Cape Town in 1652. By and large the indigenous people refused to deal with the Dutch, so the VOC imported slaves from Madagascar, India, Ceylon, Malaya, and Indonesia to deal with the colony's chronic labour shortage. There was also a shortage of women in the colony, so the Europeans exploited the female slaves for both labour and sex. In time the slaves also mixed with the Khoisan. The offspring of these unions formed the basis of sections of today's Cape Coloured population and also helps explain the unique character of the city's Cape Malay population. During 150-odd years of Dutch rule, Kaapstad, as the Cape settlement became known, thrived and gained a wider reputation as the "Tavern of the Seas", a riotous port used by every sailor travelling between Europe and the Orient. But, by the end of the 18th century, the VOC was nearly bankrupt, making Cape Town an easy target for British imperialist interests in the region. Following the British defeat of the Dutch in 1806 at Bloubergstrand, 25 kilometres north of Cape Town, the colony was ceded to the Crown on 13 August 1814. The slave trade was abolished in 1808, and all slaves were emancipated in 1833. The discovery and exploitation of diamonds and gold in the Highveld region of South Africa in the 1870s and 1880s led to rapid changes. Cape Town was soon no longer the single dominant metropolis in the country, but as a major port it too was a beneficiary of the mineral wealth that laid the foundation for an industrial society. The same wealth led to imperialist dreams of grandeur on the part of Cecil John Rhodes, the premier of the Cape Colony in 1890, who had made his millions at the head of De Beers Consolidated Mines.

1890s Wood Engraving Antique Map

Approximate Overall Size: 7 X 10 1/2 inches

CONDITION: Book Plate INTEXT MAP - Excellent Condition. Beautiful with excellent detail. There is Text on Front and Back Side.