South Africa has a history spanning back many thousands of years. In fact, the oldest humanoid fossils were found at the Cradle of Humankind near Johannesburg. Below is a brief introduction to the history of South Africa.
BC
Khoi-San Hunters migrate south with their livestock into the present day Limpopo valley
1300 - 1500
SeSotho-SeTswana people settle in the interior, while Nguni-speaking people settled on the south-eastern seaboard and the Khoi-San settled in the south-western Cape.
1488
Vasco Da Gama successfully navigates the southern coast of Africa (present day South Africa) and successfully finds a route to India
1652
Jan Van Riebeek lands at Cape Town
1659
Khoi-San rebel against the new settlers
Middle 1700s- 1850
White immigrants, mainly Dutch and French Huguenots, move inland and fight fierce battles with the already settled Xhosa and Zulu tribes.
1800-1850
The British settlers also have encounters with the Zulu in present-day KwaZulu-Natal.
1899
Anglo-Boer War
1910
South Africa becomes a Union
1948
Apartheid formalised, although the black population were already not treated equally
1960
69 killed in Sharpville for protesting pass laws
Anti-apartheid parties are banned
1961
South Africa becomes a Republic
1976
Soweto Uprising
1990
FW De Klerk lifts the ban on anti-apartheid parties
Nelson Mandela released from prison
1994
First general elections with universal suffrage.
Mandela become President of South Africa
2004
South Africa awarded the rights to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup™
2004
South Africa celebrates 10 years of democracy
The first recorded football match in South Africa was played in 1862 in Cape Town between British Officers and Civil Servants.