Masters Degrees (History)

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All my companions are free, I alone am excepted : a socio-economic history of recaptured Africans at the Cape Colony in the age of reform, c. 1807-1834
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2024-03) Crous, Benjamin Daniel; Fransch, Chet; Ekama, Kate; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of History.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The study of the enslaved peoples ‘rescued’ from illegal slave ships and apprenticed in colonial locales in the aftermath of the Abolition Act of 1807 is of burgeoning scholarly interest. The lived experiences and governance of those subject to this scheme in the British Caribbean, Sierra Leone and more recently Brazil and Cuba have received increasing attention. The literature on ‘recaptured Africans’ or ‘prize negroes’ as they were known at the Cape Colony, by contrast has remained rather inert since the early twenty first century. This study is an attempt to redirect attention to the history of recaptives at the Cape Colony, focusing on the period of change ushered in by the 1820s. Using the underutilised records collected by the Commission of Eastern Inquiry, as well as new quantitative sources and methods, allow for new insights to be gleaned about the history of recaptives during this period. Forming part of a larger ‘experiment’ in free labour, the 1820s saw the end of the fourteen-year apprenticeships of recaptured Africans at the Cape. With the aim of ending chattel slavery, the metropolitan government sought to assess the state of their colonies and prepare their labour markets for the integration of free labourers. This resulted in the despatch of Royal Commissions of Inquiry, as well as the passing of various ameliorative legislation. This dissertation argues that the period of reform ushered in by the 1820s merits attention specifically because it resulted in a variety of power struggles leading to conflict between colonists, commissioners and recaptives. Indeed, these contestations were symptomatic of a larger struggle as each group sought to redefine their place within the shifting colonial boundaries of class and race. Analysing the testimonies of recaptives brought before the Commissioners of Inquiry allows for these struggles to be personalized and the lived experiences of these subaltern labourers to come to the fore during this tumultuous period in Cape history.
A man for all reasons : an economic and political biography of Sir Abe Bailey, 1864-1940
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2024-03) Steinke, Katherine; Chetty, Suryakanthie; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of History.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Sir Abe Bailey, 1864-1940, was a South African business magnate and statesman, who left a lasting legacy on the economic and political scenes of his homeland. Born into a middle-class, immigrant family in the Cape Colony, Bailey navigated the complex landscape of colonial-era South Africa, emerging as one of the period's most salient and idiosyncratic figures. Drawing on various historical documents and primary sources, this study details the development of Bailey's rise in the economic sphere, exploring the strategies, technologies, and historical events that enabled him to amass a vast fortune, during the rise of Johannesburg and the gold mining industry. Delving into Bailey's multi-faceted life, this thesis seeks to understand his political legacy. It examines both his successes and setbacks in South Africa's political arena, as well as his motivations, aspirations, and ultimate impact on the nation's political past. The interplay of these two themes of economics and politics provides insight into the dynamics of wealth and power in the late 19th, and early to mid-20th centuries. This biography analyses both the positive and adverse features of Bailey’s character and actions and draws a more comprehensive picture than has been available from previous studies. “A Man For All Reasons: A Biographical Analysis of Abe Bailey,” offers a detailed analysis of Bailey’s life and impact, and his relationship with South Africa’s tumultuous past.
`n Geskiedenis van die Rooms-Katolieke Kerk van Stellenbosch, 1948-1994
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2023-12) Osborne, Nienke Joy; Visser, Wessel (Wessel Pretorius), 1957-; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of History.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The Roman Catholic Church in South Africa during the years of apartheid has been discussed extensively in academic literature. Although many sources are available on the Catholic Church, limited information is available on the Roman Catholic Church of Stellenbosch. This study is therefore an attempt to address this gap and contribute to South Africa’s church and town history as well as Afrikaans literature. This dissertation is a historical analysis of the socio-economic and political impact of the Roman Catholic Church on a South African community, more specifically on the “Coloured” community of Stellenbosch in the period 1948-1994. The influence of three apartheid laws namely, the Group Areas Act of 1950, the Bantu Education Act of 1953 and the Black Laws Amendment Act of 1957 will be examined to determine to what extent the laws influenced the development of the Catholic Church in Stellenbosch. The laws will also be discussed with relation to the three Stellenbosch churches, namely Saint Nicholas, Saint Marks and All Saints to ascertain the establishment and development of these churches in the “Coloured” community. This study essentially examines how and to what extent the image of the church has transformed throughout the years. Although the Catholic Church’s initial reaction to apartheid was delayed and non-responsive, the church has transformed through the course of the apartheid years, to advocate for freedom. This dissertation therefore argues that the involvement and development of the Catholic Church in Stellenbosch was beneficial to the “Coloured” community.
Making useful men and women of our children : investigating the medical inspection of schools in the Cape Province, 1918-1938.
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2023-03) Lemon, Kelsey; Fourie, Johan, 1982-; Sapire, Hilary; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of History.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The history of school medical services is an underrepresented area in the South African historiography, either of education, childhood, or medicine. Little is known about the ideological or legislative origins of inspections, nor how these programmes operated, and what effect they had on social meanings of childhood and the state of child health. The thesis addresses this gap by examining the pioneering years of the Cape school medical service, (1918-1938). The Cape Province in the interwar, segregation era offers a unique case given its size and history of liberalism. In the twentieth century, the state claimed greater responsibility for the welfare of some of its citizens; ameliorating white poverty while entrenching systems to segregate those who were black, coloured, or Indian. Beginning in the nineteenth century and continuing through the twentieth, childhood was progressively regulated through state intervention, compulsory education, and child welfare work. Nevertheless, one’s class, gender, and especially race mediated the extent to which this idealised (western, middle-class) vision of childhood was a possibility for all children. The thesis applies traditional qualitative techniques and quantitative analysis to a range of sources, chief among them being the annual reports of the school medical inspectors. It is found that those promoting school medical inspections touted the service as a best means for alleviating white poverty and securing a healthy, productive white population. The thesis thus uncovers the political origins of school medical inspections and contributes to understanding how child health was leveraged in discussions of the “poor white problem”. When inspections began in 1918, inspectors were restricted to visiting school board schools which were predominantly (but not exclusively) white. In examining the operation of school medical inspections, it is found that, while the service’s value was widely perceived, financial insufficiency limited what the inspectors were ultimately able to achieve. A failure to provide medical treatment for indigent children also restricted the service’s impact. The thesis argues that demands for state involvement in the provision of free treatment offer a window on this early period in South Africa’s social welfare history and societal notions about the state's responsibility to its youngest citizens. By applying a mixed-methods approach to the annual school medical inspection reports, the thesis explores the impact of the Cape school medical service. To do this, the statistical returns of the inspection reports were transcribed which (recognising bias and subjectivity inherent in the data) constitutes a new dataset for examining historical child health outcomes in the Cape. The thesis finds, through their annual reports, the inspectors constructed an image of child health. This image comprised subjective meanings of healthiness and the contemporaneous state of child health. By measuring public and parental compliance with inspections, the thesis finds that school medical inspections contributed to the medicalisation of childhood, education, and parenting. Through their everyday interaction with children, lectures to teachers, meetings with parents and publication of official reports, the Cape school medical service altered societal perceptions of the ideal childhood.
Reflections in a broken mirror : a cinematic exploration of Afrikaans theatre post-apartheid, c. 1984–2022
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2023-03) Fox-Martin, Amber Dawn; Bickford-Smith, Vivian; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of History.
ENGLISH SUMMARY : The documentary-thesis, Reflections in a broken mirror, uses the medium of film to explore Afrikaans theatre history from 1984 to 2022. More specifically, this research defines and investigates a sub-genre of Afrikaans theatre that bears the following traits: engaging, cathartic, self-reflective, existential and boundary-pushing. Exploring theatre history through documentary film methodology is underutilised, moreover, this research proposes that the visual storytelling medium of theatre is best represented through film. The central question driving the film asks how this genre of Afrikaans theatre survived and adapted to a post-Apartheid South Africa. Reflections in a broken mirror explores theatre’s role in capturing the zeitgeist of different periods. While existing research has investigated broader trends in Afrikaans theatre post-1994 and the Afrikaans theatre festivals, these dissertations end their analyses between 2003 and 2006, leaving the subsequent period unchartered. Film sequences present case studies by combining archival sources with interviews to capture the historical moment of each case study. The key theatre productions explored in the film are TRITS (Mis, Mirakel, Drif) (1992–1994), Donkerland (1996), Drie Susters, Twee (1997), Boklied (1998), Ek, Anna van Wyk (1999), Aars! (2001), Saad (2007), Ons vir Jou (2008), Sakrament (2009), Die kortsondige raklewe van Anastasia W. (2010), and Balbesit (2013). Three generations of theatre makers emerged in this study. The first generation operated within the apartheid state-funded infrastructure between the 1970s and 1990s and were referenced in the preceding study, A Feast in Time of Plague. The second generation emerged as creators during the period of transition between the 1980s and 1990s. The third generation emerged at the turn of the century, creating work in the 2000s. The film notes that this sub-genre of theatre has experienced existential struggles throughout each period, with a recent decline in industry infrastructure after 2013. This study concludes that the methodological practice of documentary filmmaking is effective when exploring theatre history, due to the correlations between both storytelling mediums.

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