Enslaved labor, law, and resistance in the Cape Colony (1652–1834)

1. VOC founds Cape refreshment station

   Apr 6, 1652Labels: VOC, Jan van, Table Bay

   • SAHO
   • SAHO Timeline

2. First major slave shipments arrive

   Mar 28, 1658Labels: Amersfoort, Angola, Cape Colony

   • SAHO Slaves
   • SAHO Trade

3. VOC builds early slave lodge at the fort

   May 29, 1658Labels: Slave Lodge, VOC, Cape Town

   • Iziko Lodge

4. Castle of Good Hope built with slave labor

   Jan 2, 1666Labels: Castle of, VOC, fortification

   • Castle

5. Company Slave Lodge completed in Cape Town

   Jul 28, 1679Labels: Company Slave, Companys Garden, Cape Town

   • Iziko Building
   • W Cape Gov

6. Britain re-occupies the Cape after Blaauwberg

   Jan 8, 1806Labels: Britain, Battle of, Batavian Republic

   • Blaauwberg
   • Cape Colony

7. Cape slave uprising led by Louis van Mauritius

   Oct 27, 1808Labels: Louis van, Cape rebellion, enslaved people

   • SAHO Revolt
   • Louis van M

8. Caledon’s “Hottentot Proclamation” restricts Khoikhoi mobility

   Nov 1, 1809Labels: Caledon, Hottentot Proclamation, Khoikhoi

   • Britannica
   • O Malley

9. Anglo-Dutch Treaty cedes Cape Colony to Britain

   Aug 13, 1814Labels: Anglo-Dutch Treaty, Britain, Netherlands

   • Treaty 1814
   • Cape Colony

10. Cape orders compulsory registration of enslaved people

    Apr 26, 1816Labels: Slave registration, Cape government, slave owners

    • UK Archives
    • Proclamation

11. Somerset proclamation “ameliorates” slave conditions

    Jan 1, 1823Labels: Somerset, amelioration, Cape proclamation

    • UNB Laws

12. Ordinance 50 ends pass limits for Khoisan laborers

    Jan 1, 1828Labels: Ordinance 50, Khoisan, Cape Colony

    • Britannica
    • O Malley

13. Cape enslaved people are formally emancipated

    Dec 1, 1834Labels: Emancipation, British abolition, Cape Colony

    • SAHO 1834
    • N Archives

14. Apprenticeship ends, marking practical end of Cape slavery

    Dec 1, 1838Labels: Apprenticeship end, former apprentices, Cape Colony

    • ScienceDirect
    • SAHO Timeline