How did Jan van Riebeeck come to South Africa?

In 1651, van Riebeeck was requested by the Dutch East India Company to undertake the command of the initial Dutch settlement in South Africa. Van Riebeeck was therefore assigned the task of establishing a ship refreshment post at the Cape of Good Hope at the southern end of Africa.

Who was the first European to arrive in South Africa?

The first European settlement in southern Africa was established by the Dutch East India Company in Table Bay (Cape Town) in 1652. Created to supply passing ships with fresh produce, the colony grew rapidly as Dutch farmers settled to grow crops.

Did Jan van Riebeeck Colonise South Africa?

Jan van Riebeeck, in full Jan Anthoniszoon Van Riebeeck, (born April 21, 1619, Culemborg, Netherlands—died January 18, 1677, Batavia, Dutch East Indies [now Jakarta, Indonesia]), Dutch colonial administrator who founded (1652) Cape Town and thus opened Southern Africa for white settlement.

Who was the first person to discover South Africa?

1497 – Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama lands on Natal coast. 1652 – Jan van Riebeeck, representing the Dutch East India Company, founds the Cape Colony at Table Bay.

When did Jan van Riebeeck come to Cape Town?

6 April 1652
The Arrival of Jan Van Riebeeck in the Cape – 6 April 1652. On 24 December 1651, accompanied by his wife and son, Jan van Riebeeck set off from Texel in The Netherlands for the Cape of Good Hope.

When did white South Africans come to South Africa?

1652
The history of White settlement in South Africa started in 1652 with the settlement of the Cape of Good Hope by the Dutch East India Company (VOC) under Jan van Riebeeck.

What was the name of South Africa before it was Colonised?

They were Cape Colony, Natal Colony, Orange River Colony and Transvaal Colony. In 1910 they united to form the Union of South Africa, which was called “South Africa” for short.

When did white settlers go to South Africa?

When did white settlers come to South Africa?

6th April 1652
1. The first white settlement in South Africa occurred on the Cape under the control of the Dutch East India company. The foothold established by Jan van Riebeck following his arrival with three ships on 6th April 1652 was usually taken in Afrikaner accounts to be the start of the ‘history’ of South Africa.

When did van Riebeeck arrive in South Africa?

Van Riebeeck was joined at the Cape by a fellow Culemborger Roelof de Man (1634-1663), who arrived in January 1654 on board the ship Naerden. Roelof came as the colony bookkeeper and was later promoted to second-in-charge.

Where is Jan van Riebeeck’s statue now?

However, statues of Jan van Riebeeck and his wife remain in Adderley Street, Cape Town. The coat of arms of the city of Cape Town is also based on that of the Van Riebeeck family, and Hoërskool Jan van Riebeeck is a popular Afrikaans high school in the centre of Cape Town. Read more on the history of Cape Town.

Did Jan and Maria van Riebeeck really exist?

“The well known portraits of Jan and Maria van Riebeeck are in fact not the Van Riebeecks at all, but the Vermuyden-kettinghs. The face on the previous South African note, too (see pic), was not Van Riebeeck’s but Vermuyden’s.

What did Roelof de Man and van Riebeeck do?

Van Riebeeck was joined at the Cape by a fellow Culemborger Roelof de Man (1634-1663), who arrived in January 1654 on board the ship Naerden. Roelof came as the colony bookkeeper and was later promoted to second-in-charge. Van Riebeeck established a vineyard in the Colony to produce red wine in order to combat scurvy.