Orange Free State
Encyclopedia : O : OR : ORA : Orange Free State
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| Capital | Bloemfontein | |
| Created | 1854 | |
| Dissolved | 1900 | |
| Official language | Dutch | |
The Orange Free State (Afrikaans: Oranje Vrystaat) was an independent country in southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, and later a province in South Africa. It is the historical precursor to the present-day Free State province. Extending between the Orange and Vaal rivers, it was established as a free state by Voortrekker settlers, after their departure from the British-dominated Cape Province (the Great Trek), and was annexed by the United Kingdom in 1848. The British recognised the independence of the Orange Free State on 17th February, 1854 and the country officially became independent on 23rd February, 1854, with the signing of the Contract of Bloemfontein. The Transvaal Republic, a sister Boer state, was granted independence two years earlier.
Although the Orange Free State developed into a politically and economically successful republic, it experienced chronic conflict with the British (see the Boer Wars) until it was finally annexed as the Orange River Colony in 1900. It joined the Union of South Africa in 1910. The republic's name derives partly from the Orange River (just as the Transvaal Republic was named after the Vaal River), but both names were bestowed by the Dutch Protestant settlers in honour of the Dutch ruling family, the House of Orange.
Presidents
The Presidents of the Orange Free State were:
- Josias P. Hoffman: First President, from 1854 to 1855.
- Jacobus Nicolaas Boshoff: Second President, from 1855 to 1859.
- Marthinus Wessel Pretorius: Third President, from 1859 to 1863 (also President of the South African Republic from 1857 to 1871).
- Johannes Henricus Brand: Fourth President, from 1864 to 1888.
- Francis William Reitz: Fifth President, from 1889 to 1895.
- Marthinus Theunis Steyn: Sixth and last President, from 1896 to 1902.
- Christiaan Rudolph de Wet: Acting President from 29 May to 31 May 1902 and signatory of the Peace of Vereeniging.
Flag
The national flag of the Orange Free State was adopted in 1856. The OFS national flag contained alternating horizontal orange and white stripes (three orange and four white, with the white stripes on the outside) with a version of the Dutch flag (used initially at Graaff Reinet and Swellendam in 1795) featured in the canton. The former national flag of South Africa (from 1927 to 1994) had, as a feature contained within its central white bar, a vertically hanging flag of the Orange Free State.
Postage stamps
The republic began to issue postage stamps in 1868, and continued until 1897. The sole design used was an orange tree, with the inscription "Oranje Vrij Staat" in the margin. The stamps were typographed by De La Rue and Company, and came in denominations from one penny to five shillings, in various colours. Periodic shortages forced the use of overprints, in 1877, 1881, 1882, 1888, 1890, 1892, 1896, and 1897. The stamps of the republic are generally common today, but some of the overprints are scarce and are in the US$200 range. Many kinds of overprint errors are known (inverted, double, etc), and some of them command high prices.
See also
External links
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