The History of South Africa (3000BC - 1879AD) - with Armchair Historian!

Pastoral African herdsmen, roving bands of Dutch-speaking farmers and tribes of iklwa-wielding Zulus are just some of the things that make early South Africa history a fascinating area of our past. In this video, which is indeed a collaboration with the awesome channel over at Armchair Historian, I'll be taking a closer look at this early history of South Africa and the prelude to the Anglo-Zulu War which kicked off in 1879.Who were the various African peoples living there in the forms of the Khoikoi and the San, and where did the later Bantu arrivals of the Zulus, Xhosa and Sotho to name a few, come from. Why were there lighter-skinned Europeans in the form of the Dutch VOC Company and later the British, interfering in this already complex politically situation at the tip of the African continent? Find out all this and more in my video and don't forget to check out Armchair Historian's video on the Anglo-Zulu War itself, link and cards provided!

Armchair Historian's video on the Anglo-Zulu War:

Music Used:
Eine Kleine Nachtsmusik - Wulfgang Amadeus Mozart
Expeditionary - Kevin MacLeod
Eastern Thought - Kevin MacLeod
Constancy Part III - Kevin MacLeod
Piano Concerto Number 23 - Wulfgang Amadeus Mozart
Thunderhead - Kevin MacLeod
Tikopia - Kevin MacLeod
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
Hungarian Rhapsody - Franz Liszt

Related Videos of Mine:

The Great Trek:

The First Boer War:

The South African Flag:

Why did the Dutch Flag Change Three Times?

The Netherlands, Holland and the Low Countries:

The Eighty Years War:

Why is Belgium so Divided?

The History of Australia:

Patreon:

Facebook:

Twitter:

[darthguilder]

So if the Boers went into space, would the migration be called Star Trek? 🤔

[gospelfilms]

I love South Africa and reading about South African history. I did this for many hours for years as a teenager, and when I moved to South Africa, I found that I knew much more about South African history than my Afrikaner friends who had learned South African history at school (ANC curriculum).

[tec-jones]

What about the Kingdom of Mapungubwe? It was a Bantu civilization kingdom believed to be the predecessor to Great Zimbabwe in the north. It appeared in 1075 and declined around 1220, existing just south of the Limpopo river in what would become the northern Transvaal(now Limpopo province). Like great Zimbabwe, it had large stone structures, and gold/ivory/copper trade routes to Kilwa and the rest of the Swahili coast cities, and engaged in indirect trade across the Indian ocean. It was part of the Bakalanga Kingdom. It is thought by many archeologists to be the first true class based civilization in southern Africa. It was also one of the earliest evidence of "sacred leadership". Its style of building would later be replicated in Butua, Mutapa, Maravi, Rozwi and Zimbabwe. It was one of the most complex and powerful kingdoms in what is now south africa, and would really be the renaissance that would shape later societies like Zimbabwe, Butua, the Tsonga Thembe, and other kingdoms in and around south africa.

[MonsieurDean]

Wait...Hilbert speaks Zulu? I get the feeling there's a dark history here we have not been told.

[MonsieurDean]

Those Boers really can't catch a break.

[dragatus]

If someone tried to tax my stroopwafels that would be an instant rebellion.

[BrandonVanKeuren]

I'm actually a descendant of a Lord-Director of the Dutch West Indies Company, who is also named as the Patroon of Zwaanendeal, Mathijs Jansen van Keulen. Has nothing to do with this video, but I figured it was sufficiently Dutch to share.

[talktoteacher]

This video is really good. As a South African history teacher, it is something I will actually use as a resource for my students. Thanks.

[TheArmchairHistorian]

Awesome video as always Hilbert, really well done!

Griff

[teagslangford]

Where my south Africans desperately trying to pass history at 🙋‍♀️

[surgeknight]

As a white guy i was interested in learning the history of s.a and our bantu friends and i discovered that the contemporary history of south africa is as a result of the scramble for africa but prior to that the ottoman empire were the colonizers of s.a and according to the ottomans the bantu migration into s.a started more 3000 years ago while the portuguese, the dutch and the british only came to s.a from the 1400s onwards and during that time the moorish empire of north africa were invading spain and portugal and the portuguese circumnavigated africa as a counter attack of the crusades wars between the roman empire and the ottoman empire.the victors of the crusades which were us white people(roman empire) then took s.a from the ottomans.according to arabic texts in the book of zanj, before the 1400's south africa was known as Azania and the bantu were known as the the zanj people of the zanj empire of south and east Africa hence modern day countries with names like ZANZIbar tANZANIA and mZANZI (the zulu name for South Africa).Zanj was a name used by medieval Muslim geographers to refer to both a certain portion of South of Africa primarily the Swahili Coast and to the area's Bantu inhabitants. The indian ocean around s.a was known as the Sea of Zanj, and included the Mascarene islands and Madagascar. During the anti-apartheid struggle it was proposed that South Africa should assume the name Azania, to reflect ancient Zanj.The term Zanj apparently fell out of use in the tenth century, the appellation in Persian is roughly equivalent with "negro". It is recorded in Arabic as zanjī (زنجي), and in Turkish as zencî. and seng ze in chinese.The tenth-century Arab historian and geographer Abu al-Hasan 'Alī al-Mas'ūdī describes Zanj as the country of the blacks in the south of africa.

[junglemonkeyful]

I'm from South Africa and I must say your pronunciation is superb, both with African languages and Afrikaans. Enjoyed the video, brushed up on my SA history and reminded me of a few things. Thumbs up!

[blackqueen]

Props to you for the effort you put in pronouncing Xhosa 🙆🏾‍♀️🙆🏾‍♀️💖💖

[draycoeternal]

I’m soo happy this oak got the facts right . Bantu and Khoisan where in SA thousand years before first Europeans arrived

[lukhanyogqili]

this is interesting because, you missed the part of the Khoi- Dutch wars and the raiding of livestock of the various Chiefdoms in the Cape. It is well documented. Furthermore, the Zulu were the most organized and united, not sure about the strongest. AmaHlubi were a seperate Chiefdom, and when King Langalibalele (King of amaHlubi) was taken by the British and imprisoned in the Cape (hence a place called Langa in the Cape) the Hlubi kingdom experienced serious stability split up...many of them moving to the Eastern Cape.

[curtist]

The similarities between the Boers and colonial Americans are striking. Protestant farmers immigrating to a distant land, not wanting to pay taxes, encroaching on native lands, enslaving the natives, fighting a guerrilla war against the British for independence, and later on implementing apartheid while the southern US implemented segregation. It’s really surprising how many parallels there are.

[Emmanuelmatu]

I knew the word Sawabona and I really love the meaning of that greeting, which means "I see you". Then the response to that is equally amazing as well, which says Sikbona meaning "I'm here."

[harrynobutee]

so... unless "expropriation without compensation" means: "give the land back to the Khoi-san", anyone who utters those words is an ABSOLUTE HYPOCRITE

[corneljansevanrensburg]

In politics there are two types of people: those who want to be left alone and those who won't leave them the fuck alone. Nothing describes the historical relationship between the Afrikaners and the British better than this.

[Xx_SummerDude_xX]

Very accurate video! It's such a shame that people disregard the facts and stick to the rumours they hear. I love history so much!