KING WILLIAM'S TOWN AND THE XHOSA, 1854 - 1861. THE RoLE OF A FRONTIER CAPITAL DURING THE HIGH·COMMISSIONERSHIP OF SIR GEORGE GREY • n w o T .. e p G. S. HOFMEYR . a C f .. o y t i s r e v i n U Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in History··at the University of Cape Town • . . . , May 1981 .. '. n w The copyright of this thesis vests in the author. No o T quotation from it or information derived from it is to be published without full acknowledgeement of the source. p The thesis is to be used for private study or non- a C commercial research purposes only. f o Published by the Universit y of Cape Town (UCT) in terms y t of the non-exclusive license granted to UCT by the author. i s r e v i n U CONTENTS Page PREFACE iii INTRODUCTION Ethnography and Early Travellers 1 The Fpunding of King William's Town 5 The First Years as British Kaffrarian Capital 8 CHAPTER I: MISSION ACTIVITY ·: SPIRITUAL AND SECULAR Propagation of Christianity in the Early Nineteenth Century 12 Re-establishment of the Buffalo· Mission 16 Wesleyan Missionary Activities 25 Other Denominations. · 29 Schooling for the Xhosa Through the Buffalo Mission 30 The Wesleyans 33 Other Missionary Education 34 The Governments Involvement 35 CHAPTER II: THE IMPACT OF TOWN LIFE ON THE XHOSA Social Facets 40 Negative Facts of Acculturation 51 The Europeans: Ethnocentricity and Prejudice 52 Recreation and Entertainment 58 CHAPTER III: JAN TZATZOE, THE PJ1A NTINDE TRIBE AND THEIR TERRITORY Tzatzoe and his Tribe 64 The Tribal Area of the Arna Ntinde Tribe and the Effects · of Land Reforms 76 CHAPTER IV: NATIVE POLICY AND ADMINISTRATION Policy 87 General Administration 89 Labour 92 Communications 10 I Subjugation of the Chiefs 103 Immigration 107 Kaffraria Proper 108 Local Government 110 General Aspects 111 CHAPTER V: · CURE AND PREVENTION · THE MEDICAL DEPLOYMENT The First Phase 11 3 A New Native Hospital 120 Treatment, Training and Regulations 125 Smallpox 128 CHAPTER VI: THE IMPACT OF THE CATTLE-KILLING EPISODE 133 CHAPTER VII: THE OPERATION OF THE LEGAL SYSTEM Legal Complexity 169 Customary Xhosa Laws and Grey's Reforms 170 The Resident Magistrate 174 Board of Magistrates and Criminal Court 176 Offences 177 I ii Police 181 The Gaol 182 Transportation 185 Remissions and Pardons 186 CHAPTER VIII: THE GROWTH OF TRADE AND COMMERCE Economic :Fae tors 188 Traditional Economy and Trading Commodities 189 Traders 191 Food 193 Clothes 195 The Market 196 Auctions 198 Occupations 198 Industries 202 Hotels 202 Banks 203 Trading with Kaf fraria Proper 205 CONCLUSION 208 B !BL IOGRAPY 210 PREFACE This thesis sets out to examine the important r8le of the Xhosa in the development of King William's Town durine a crucial period. The local Xhosa community and the nearby Arna Ntinde tribe under Chief Jan Tzatzoe obviously made a major contribution to the history of British Kaffraria's capital in this era (1854-1861), but there were many other external forces. The interaction between cultures in anc around King William's Town affected the Xhosa at all levels. This process of acculturation was hastened by many of Sir George Grey's administrative measures. He es tablished several institutions in the Kaffrarian capital for the benefit of the Xhosa population as a whole and some aspects of his "native policy~ are still applied on a national basis. Grey's administration therefore forms one of the central issues. Another important theme which will become apparent in this thesis is that the interaction of historical factors, events and persons in this phase extended much wider than the narrow confines of King William's Town's physical boundaries. In a wider context the revival of missionary zeal abroad and the vaci':;I!lat.ing native policy of the Colonial Office in London had a direct bearing on the Xhosa and their rale in the town's history. In several respects the Kaffrarian capital's history was influenced and in turn had a bearing on broader South African history. Apart from being one of the earliest missionary outposts among the Blacks, the town assumed a national r8le in the cattle-killing catastrophe which affected the lives of many thousands of Xhosa and determined future labour policy. The establishment of an institution like the Native Hospital had wide i~­ plications too in breaking the power of witchcraft. Grey's many visits to King William's Town and his discussions there with officials, largely determined his native policy as a whole. The capital's importance as military headquarters in several of the Frontier Wars is well-known •. In keeping with the modern emphasis on social history, thi·s thesis will devote attention to reany cultural facets. This may emphasize that in a subject of this nature history cannot only be regarded as "past politics". It will become apparent too that throughout the period under consideratic~. segregation was applied at all levels in King William's Town. Finally, the aim of this thesis is to make a modest contribution,to a growing in terest in Black-White relations and local history. Both these aspects lV until recently have received inadequate attention in South African historiography. The social history of the Xhosa in particular has been sadly neglected. There are a number of works on native policy as it affected the Xhosa politically over the past two centuries, but few of these books refer to the many other results of contact between two cultures. The Xhosa have usually been regarded as part of a larger political problem and not as an integrated fector in creating the present structure of South African society. Although it deals with the Frontier native policy in general, I have found A.E. Du Tait's The Cape Frontier very useful and accurate. Concerning King William's Town itself, A.W. Burton dealt with certain aspects of the town's rich heritage in his books Sparks from the Border Anvil and Highlands . of Kaffraria. However, I have found that these works are often fragmentary and unreliable and they have little relevance to the role of the Xhosa in the Kaffrarian capital. B. Holt's Greatheart of the Border was a valuable source of infomation about the Rev. John Brownlee and Chief Jan Tzatzoe. There are no other secondary sources which deal in any detail with the Xhosa's rtle in this crucial era of King William's Town's history and I had to rely heavily on archival sources and current newspapers. This is also the first detailed study about the r8le of the Ama Ntinde tribe and their Chief Tzatzoe. Despite its small size, this tribe is certainly one of the best recorded ones in South Africa - probably because of their proximity to the capital. A problem hampering objective and balanced approach when dealing with ~n a subject like :this, is the all-too-common lack of written .evidence re flecting the Black viewpoint. In the case of King William's Town, Tzatzoe was an educated man who had also been to England. However, the written records left by him are confined to one or two letters(written in another .handwriting) on administrative matters. There is not a single document in the extensive British Kaffrarian Records - covering 462 volumes - that re flects the innermost feelings of the local Xhosa at the time. I hope that my training in Social Anthropology has helped to lessen the dangers of ethnocentricity. I found this background essential in the study of a changing Xhosa community and in outlining the many facets of v their contribution to King William's Town's history. In dealing with my subject I have come to the conclusion ·that an interdisiplinary approach is of the utmost importance in trying to avoid some of the pitfalls of "The White Man's View". Sir George Grey's High Commissionership (1854 - 1861) was chosen as a logical period for this thesis. It was an era of peaceful reconstruction, transi ttpn and progress for Black and White in King William's Town after three successive Frontier Wars. Grey laid many important administrative founda tions which have influenced the local Xhosa population to this day. It was a decisive phase of social and economic change too in which the Kaffra- rian capital played a central part for example, in breaking the powers of the Xhosa chiefs and the influence of witchcraft, as well as in the in troduction of new food items and clothes. The cattle-killing episode and King William's Town's role in it was also a watershed. Between 1847 and 1861 the capital had developed from a mission station with scattered Xhosa huts kraals to a town miles long and half a mile a~d one-~nd-a-half wide. With its status as a capital, King William's Town was then seen as one of the most important towns in Southern Africa. The year 1861, in another respect, can be regarded as a logical end to this study, with King William's Town acquiring munici~al status in June. The daily lives of the Xhosa inhabitants after that, were affected to an increasing extent by this form of local government; the role of the civil and military administration diminished accordingly. By 1861 this frontier community was properly established and the future social pattern deter mined. For the purposes of this thesis, the European part of King William's Town, the surr6unding Xhosa villages, the Buffalo Mission, as well as Chief Tzatzoe 1s territory around the capital were chosen as the physical limits. The chapter arrangement in this thesis is thematic, but within each theme chronological sequence is followed. For perspective it was sometimes necessary to give a fairly detailed description of the position before Grey's arrival. It is impossible, for example, to describe the central role played by an institution like the Buffalo Mission or an individual like Tzatzoe without the necessary background information. With regard to terminology, I have used the words "Xhosa" and to a lesser degree "Blacks" when referring to the Xhosa-speaking Nguni persons or groups who influenced King William's Town's hiRtory. These terms are applied to the Fingo too, unless otherwise stated. The alternatives, "Kaffirs" and "Natives''(to a lesser extent) were invariably used in 1 contemporary documents, but are not used because of the derogatory connotations which they have since acquired. Because of practical reasons and as it is still used widely, the phrase "Native policy" has been re tained. Where necessary, tribal distinctions are acknowledged. When referring to those local inhabitants of predominantly British descent, the terms "Europeans" or"Whites" are used. The area which now comprise5 the Republic of Transkei was in the 1850s still generally referred to as "Kaffraria Proper" - a term which· has been retained in this work. A brief explanation is due too concerning the spelling of Xhosa.names. The simplest forms, which were usually also current in that era, were used. The Arna Ntinde Chief is therefore referred to as Jan Tzatzoe and the Rarabe Paramount Chief as Sandile. The names of the Xhosa Paramount Chiefs Kreli and Gaika were for the same reasons preferred to the ethnologically more correct Sarili and Ngqika. Despite metrication and decimalization, it was decided to leave the old weights, measures, sizes, distances and currency as they were in that period. These terms are still familiar. There now remains the pleasure of thanking the many who have helped to make this thesis possible. I am in the first place indebted to Prof. A.M. Davey ' who, as my supervisor, gave me invaluable advice, perceptive guidance, constructive criticism and continuous encouragement. A word of appreciation is also due to Mr. D. Comins(Director) and Mr. B. Randles(Historian) of the Kaffrarian Museum in King William's Town •. It was Mr. Comins who first in spired me to undertake further research into King William's Town's history after my transfer there by the Department of Co-operation and Development. Mr. Randles has been most helpful in providing me with information lo~al and further leads. I am very grateful to the Director of the Archives, Mr. J.F. Preller, and the staff of the Cape Archives Depot, for the generous use of their facili ties. The assistance rendered and interest shown by the Director and Mr. S. Schoeman, the Head of the Depot, as well as Miss L. Du Plessis, Senior Archivist, is particularly appreciated. My sincere thanks must further be expressed to Dr. A.M. Lewin-Robinson and the staff of the South African Library for their considerable contribution. In addition, the Jagger V11 Library at the University of Cape Town, the Cory Library at the University of Rhodes, the Albany Museum and the Africana Museum in Johannesburg have given cordial co-operation. I am also grateful to Mrs. M. Du Tojt and Mrs. R. Houghton for the typing of this manuscript. Finally, this thesis has been made possible by the encouragement and assistance in immeasureable ways which I have received from Annalet and my parents. ABBREVIATIONS B.K. British Kaffrarian Records. c.o. Colonial Office Records. D. Beobachter Deutscher Beobachter. G.H. Government House Records. G. Journal The Graham's Town Journal. K. Gazette The King William's Town Gazette. L.G. Lieutenant-Governor's Records. D.S.G.B.K. Deputy Surveyor-General's Records, British Kaffraria. Microfilm Collection, London Missionary Z .L. Society, Cape Archives.