Invasion of the Cape Colony - Wikipedia Invasion of the Cape Colony Invasion of the Cape Colony Part of the French Revolutionary Wars Cape Peninsula region Date 10 June -- 15 September 1795 Location Dutch Cape Colony, Southern Africa Result British victory Belligerents Batavian Republic Dutch Cape Colony Great Britain Commanders and leaders Abraham Josias Sluysken George Elphinstone James Craig Strength 3,600 1,800 East Indies theatre of the French Revolutionary Wars Pondicherry Sunda Strait 5 May 1794 Île Ronde Ceylon Cape Colony Saldanha Bay Sumatra Bali Strait Manila Macau 9 February 1799 28 February 1799 Port Louis Mahé Dutch colonial campaigns 17th Century Bantam ( 1601 ) Malacca ( 1606 ) Cape Rachado ( 1606 ) Banda Islands ( 1621 ) Macau ( 1622 ) Pescadores ( 1622 -- 1624 ) Bahia ( 1624 ) Persian Gulf ( 1625 ) Elmina ( 1625 ) Cuba ( 1628 ) Recife ( 1630 ) Albrolhos ( 1631 ) Liaoluo Bay ( 1633 ) Taiwan ( 1635 -- 36 ) Lamey Island ( 1636 ) Elmina ( 1637 ) Vietnam ( 1637 -- 43 ) Goa ( 1638 ) 1st Bahia ( 1638 ) 2nd Bahia ( 1638 ) Mormugão ( 1639 ) Itamaracá ( 1640 ) Ceylon ( 1640 ) Malacca ( 1641 ) Luanda ( 1641 ) Chile ( 1643 ) Cambodia ( 1643 -- 44 ) New Netherland ( 1643 -- 45 ) Tabocas ( 1645 ) Philippines ( 1646 ) Kombi ( 1647 ) Guararapes ( 1648 ) Guararapes ( 1649 ) Taiwan ( 1652 ) 2nd Colombo ( 1654 ) New Netherland ( 1659 -- 63 ) Taiwan ( 1661 -- 62 ) Java ( 1674 -- 1680 ) 18th Century Java ( 1704 -- 07 ) Java ( 1719 -- 23 ) India ( 1739 -- 41 ) Java ( 1741 -- 43 ) Java ( 1749 -- 57 ) India ( 1781 ) Ceylon ( 1782 ) Gold Coast ( 1782 ) Cape Colony ( 1795 ) 19th Century Suriname ( 1804 ) Cape Colony ( 1806 ) Java ( 1810 -- 11 ) Algiers ( 1816 ) Palembang ( 1819 ) Palembang ( 1821 ) Sumatra ( 1821 -- 37 ) Borneo ( 1823 ) Bone ( 1824 -- 25 ) Java ( 1825 -- 30 ) Aceh ( 1831 ) Ahanta ( 1837 -- 39 ) Bali ( 1846 ) Bali ( 1848 ) Bali ( 1849 ) Palembang ( 1851 -- 59 ) Montrado ( 1854 -- 55 ) Nias ( 1855 -- 64 ) Bali ( 1858 ) Bone ( 1858 -- 59 ) Borneo ( 1859 -- 63 ) Japan ( 1863 -- 64 ) Pasoemah ( 1864 -- 68 ) Gold Coast ( 1869 -- 70 ) Aceh ( 1873 -- 1913 ) Mandor ( 1884 -- 85 ) Jambi ( 1885 ) Edi ( 1890 ) Lombok and Karangasem ( 1894 ) Pedir ( 1897 -- 98 ) 20th Century Kerinci ( 1903 ) Bone ( 1905 -- 06 ) Bali ( 1906 ) Bali ( 1908 ) Venezuela ( 1908 ) War with Japan ( 1941 -- 45 ) Indonesian Revolution ( 1945 -- 49 ) Part of a series on the Military history of South Africa Conflicts Khoikhoi -- Dutch Wars Anglo -- Dutch rivalry Xhosa Wars Ndwandwe -- Zulu War Anglo -- Zulu War First Anglo -- Boer War Second Anglo -- Boer War South African Wars ( 1879 -- 1915 ) First World War Second World War Korean War Border War National Defence Force Army Air Force History Navy Medical Services Special Forces Historical forces Union Defence Force South African Defence Force Lists Conflicts Military chiefs List of wars involving South Africa The Invasion of the Cape Colony was a British military expedition launched in 1795 against the Dutch Cape Colony at the Cape of Good Hope, the southern tip of Southern Africa. The Dutch colony at the Cape, established in the seventeenth century, was at the time the only viable South African port for ships making the journey from Europe to the European colonies in the East Indies. It therefore held vital strategic importance, although it was otherwise economically insignificant. In the winter of 1794, during the French Revolutionary Wars, French troops entered the Dutch Republic, which was reformed into the Batavian Republic. In response, Great Britain launched operations against the Dutch Empire to use its facilities against the French Navy. The British expedition was led by Vice-Admiral Sir George Keith Elphinstone and sailed in April 1795, arriving off Simon 's Town at the cape in June. Attempts were made to negotiate a settlement with the colony, but talks achieved nothing and an amphibious landing was made on 7 August. A short battle was fought at Muizenberg, and skirmishing between British and Dutch forces continued until September when a larger military force landed. With Cape Town under threat, Dutch governor, Abraham Josias Sluysken, surrendered the colony. Elphinstone subsequently strengthened the garrison against counterattack and stationed a Royal Navy squadron off the port. Almost a year later a Dutch reinforcement convoy reached the colony only to find that it was badly outnumbered, and surrendered without a fight. The British occupation continued until the Peace of Amiens in 1802 when it was returned to the Dutch. In 1806, during the Napoleonic Wars, a second British invasion reoccupied the colony after the Battle of Blaauwberg and it remained a British colony until the establishment of the Union of South Africa in 1910. Contents 1 Background 2 Invasion 2.1 Elphinstone 's order of battle 3 Aftermath 4 Citations 5 References Background The French Revolutionary Wars, which began in 1792, following the French Revolution, expanded in January 1793, when the French Republic declared war on the Dutch Republic and the Kingdom of Great Britain. This brought the war to the Indian Ocean, where both Britain and the Netherlands maintained lucrative empires. Trade from these empires was menaced by French privateers and warships operating from Île de France, ( now Mauritius ) but it was protected in the waters off Southern Africa by the presence of the Dutch Cape Colony. Situated at the Cape of Good Hope, the Cape Colony had been established in the seventeenth century to offer a harbour for shipping traveling between Europe and the East Indies, and in the 1790s it remained the only such station between Rio de Janeiro and British India. The Cape Colony was administered from two towns, the larger Cape Town on the wide Table Bay facing west and smaller Simon 's Town on False Bay facing south. Neither bay was sheltered from Atlantic storms and both were notoriously dangerous, with winds, currents and rocks posing considerable threats to shipping. Beyond its importance as a resupply port for East Indies shipping the colony had little economic value in the 1790s, and was defended by a garrison of approximately 1,000 Dutch regular soldiers supplemented by Boer militia and local Khoikhoi units, commanded by General Abraham Josias Sluysken and Colonel Robert Jacob Gordon, in total around 3,600 troops. This garrison was centered on the Castle of Good Hope and operated from a series of coastal fortifications which protected Table Bay. False Bay was more weakly defended, covered by only two lightly armed batteries. In the winter of 1794, French soldiers invaded the Netherlands and captured Amsterdam. After the Stadtholder, William of Orange, fled to Britain, the Dutch Republic was reconstituted as the Batavian Republic by the revolutionaries In Britain, William issued the Kew Letters instructing his colonial governors to cooperate with British occupation forces. At the urging of Sir Francis Baring, the Secretary of State for War Henry Dundas authorised a mission to ensure control of the Cape Colony and eliminate the potential threat it posed to the East Indian trade. The Admiralty sent two battle squadrons to the cape on 3 April 1795, one under Vice-Admiral Sir George Keith Elphinstone and the other under Commodore John Blankett, carrying a small expeditionary force of 515 soldiers from the 78th Regiment of Foot under Major - General Sir James Henry Craig. A larger force under General Alured Clarke was instructed to follow these squadrons on 15 May with troops and supplies for a longer campaign, with orders to hold at Salvador until requested. Invasion Extent of Dutch Cape Colony in 1795. Cape Town is at bottom left Blankett and Elphinstone united off the Cape on 10 June 1795 and anchored in Simon 's Bay. There messages were sent to Sluysken offering an alliance against the French. The Dutch governor was inclined to resist however, evacuating the civilian population from Simon 's Town in early July and making preparations to raze the town. To prevent this, Craig landed 800 soldiers and Royal Marines on 14 July, who occupied Simon 's Town while the Dutch withdrew to the pass at Muizenberg, through which passed the road to Cape Town. For the next month the two armies observed an uneasy truce, broken by occasional patrols and sniping. During this period, Elphinstone and Sluysken continued negotiations for the surrender of the colony. These negotiations were stalled by disputes in the colonial government regarding the legitimacy of the deposed William of Orange and suspicion concerning British intentions. While the debates continued, British envoys were permitted free movement in Cape Town, making detailed observations of the defences. Elphinstone became concerned that the Dutch positions were too strong for his forces to overwhelm, and on 19 June he sent HMS Sphinx to request assistance from Clarke 's fleet. On 7 August, with negotiations stalled, Elphinstone ordered an attack on the pass at Muizenberg. Craig 's forces were supplemented with 1,000 sailors from Elphinstone 's squadron redeployed on land under captains Temple Hardy and John William Spranger. Among this force were a number of American citizens who immediately deserted to the Dutch and were promised repatriation. At noon on 7 August, HMS America, HMS Stately, HMS Echo and HMS Rattlesnake opened fire on Dutch forward positions. Return fire from Dutch field guns killed two men on America and wounded three more, while Craig 's troops were able to advance against the Dutch positions and seize them, with the Dutch defenders falling back in confusion. A second attack by soldiers of the 78th captured a rocky height nearby and a Dutch counterattack the following morning was driven off by Hardy 's sailors and marines. The Dutch fell back to Wynberg but British forces were not strong enough to advance, suffering shortages of food and ammunition. Elphinstone 's positions were, however, improved by reinforcements, which arrived in the Arniston on 9 August, as well as disorganisation in the Dutch command resulting in stalemate. The British commander subsequently authorised the seizure of five Dutch East Indiamen merchant ships at anchor at Simon 's Town on 18 August. Skirmishing continued throughout the month, with stronger Dutch attacks on 1 and 2 September followed by a larger planned assault on Simon 's Town on 3 September in which Sluysken committed all his reserves including 18 cannons. That morning, 14 East India Company ships were seen arriving in Simon 's Bay and the attack was cancelled. These ships were the reinforcement fleet under Clarke, who landed 4,000 troops from the 95th and 98th Regiments of Foot, the 2nd Battalions of the 78th and 84th Regiments of Foot, and a contingent of EIC troops from Saint Helena, at Simon 's Town for an overland campaign against Cape Town. Clarke 's army then advanced against Dutch piquets, losing one killed and 17 wounded in skirmishes. To support this operation, Elphinstone sent America, Rattlesnake, Echo and the Indiaman Bombay Castle to blockade Cape Town and provide artillery support. Outnumbered and surrounded, Sluysken requested a 48 - hour truce from Clarke, but was given a 24 - hour ultimatum to surrender. Seeing no alternative, the Dutch governor passed control of his colony to the British on 15 September 1795, although he allowed approximately 40 British deserters in Cape Town, mostly impressed Americans, to escape into the countryside before the deadline passed. Elphinstone 's order of battle Elphinstone 's squadron Ship Rate Guns Navy Commander HMS Monmouth Third rate 74 Royal Navy Vice-Admiral Sir George Keith Elphinstone Captain John Elphinstone HMS Victorious Third rate 74 Royal Navy Captain William Clark HMS Arrogant Third rate 74 Royal Navy Captain Richard Lucas HMS America Third rate 64 Royal Navy Captain John Blankett HMS Stately Third rate 64 Royal Navy Captain Billy Douglas HMS Echo Ship - Sloop 16 Royal Navy Captain Temple Hardy HMS Rattlesnake Ship - Sloop 16 Royal Navy Captain John William Spranger Source : James & 2002 ( 1827 ), p. 300 See also : Transport vessels for the British invasion of the Dutch Cape Colony ( 1795 ) Aftermath Total British losses were four killed and 54 wounded. Captured in Table Bay were the Dutch frigate Castor and the 14 - gun mercantile brig Star. The British took both into service, Castor as HMS Saldanha and Star as HMS Hope. Elphinstone 's substantial squadron remained on station at the Cape to deter efforts to recapture the colony. Parts of this force were subsequently deployed to bolster British forces in the Indian Ocean. The blockade of Île de France was restored and Arrogant and Victorious were sent to the Dutch East Indies where they would fight an inconclusive battle with a French squadron off Sumatra in September 1796. Elphinstone himself sailed for Madras, where he received reports that a Batavian Navy force had sailed from the Batavian Republic to retake the Cape Colony. The Admiral returned to Cape Town, assembling a large squadron to await the Dutch arrival. Further reports revealed the strength and progress of the Dutch and Elphinstone had ample time to prepare his squadron for their arrival and increase the garrison ashore. The Dutch rear - admiral, Engelbertus Lucas, spent almost six months on the passage and gathered no intelligence on British defences. Thus when he arrived off the Cape he was soon discovered by Elphinstone in Saldanha Bay and intimidated into surrendering without a fight. No further attacks on the Cape Colony were made during the course of the war. Elphinstone returned to Britain in October 1796 and was subsequently awarded the title of Baron Keith for his service in the capture and defence of the Cape, a reward that historian C. Northcote Parkinson calls `` on the whole, easily earned ''. At the Peace of Amiens, in 1802, one of the treaty terms returned the Cape Colony, along with all captured Dutch colonies except Ceylon, to the Batavian Republic. The peace was short - lived, and after the outbreak of the Napoleonic Wars in 1803 a second British invasion was planned, executed in 1806 and victory secured following the Battle of Blaauwberg. The Cape Colony remained part of the British Empire until its independence as part of a unified South Africa in 1910. Citations Jump up ^ Chandler & 1999 ( 1993 ), p. 373. Jump up ^ Parkinson 1954, p. 18. ^ Jump up to : Parkinson 1954, p. 33. Jump up ^ Parkinson 1954, p. 32. ^ Jump up to : Potgeiter & Gundlingh 2007, p. 45. Jump up ^ Chandler & 1999 ( 1993 ), p. 44. Jump up ^ Potgeiter & Gundlingh 2007, p. 46. Jump up ^ Potgeiter & Gundlingh 2007, p. 43. ^ Jump up to : Potgeiter & Gundlingh 2007, p. 47. ^ Jump up to : `` No. 13834 ''. The London Gazette. 24 November 1795. pp. 1235 -- 1241. Jump up ^ James & 2002 ( 1827 ), p. 300. Jump up ^ Potgeiter & Gundlingh 2007, p. 48. Jump up ^ Clowes & 1997 ( 1899 ), p. 281. ^ Jump up to : Mostert 2007, p. 306. ^ Jump up to : James & 2002 ( 1827 ), p. 301. ^ Jump up to : Potgeiter & Gundlingh 2007, p. 51. ^ Jump up to : James & 2002 ( 1827 ), p. 302. Jump up ^ Clowes & 1997 ( 1889 ), p. 281. Jump up ^ Parkinson 1954, p. 84. Jump up ^ James & 2002 ( 1827 ), p. 353. Jump up ^ Potgeiter & Gundlingh 2007, p. 55. Jump up ^ James & 2002 ( 1827 ), p. 373. Jump up ^ Parkinson 1954, p. 87. Jump up ^ Chandler & 1999 ( 1993 ), p. 10. Jump up ^ Gardiner & 2001 ( 1998 ), p. 65. References Chandler, David ( 1999 ) ( 1993 ). Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars. Ware, Hertfordshire : Wordsworth Military Library. ISBN 1 - 84022 - 203 - 4. Clowes, William Laird ( 1997 ) ( 1900 ). The Royal Navy, A History from the Earliest Times to 1900, Volume IV. London : Chatham Publishing. ISBN 1 - 86176 - 013 - 2. Gardiner, Robert, ed ; Woodman, Richard ( 2001 ) ( 1998 ). The Victory of Seapower. London, England : Caxton Editions. ISBN 1 - 84067 - 359 - 1. CS1 maint : Extra text : authors list ( link ) James, William ( 2002 ) ( 1827 ). The Naval History of Great Britain, Volume 1, 1793 -- 1796. London, England : Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0 - 85177 - 905 - 0. Mostert, Noel ( 2007 ). The Line upon a Wind : The Greatest War Fought at Sea Under Sail 1793 -- 1815. London : Vintage Books. ISBN 978 - 0 - 7126 - 0927 - 2. Parkinson, C. Northcote ( 1954 ). War in the Eastern Seas, 1793 -- 1815. London, England : George Allen & Unwin Ltd. Potgeiter, Thean ; Grundlingh, Arthur ( 2007 ). `` Admiral Elphinstone and the Conquest and Defence of the Cape of Good Hope, 1795 -- 96 ''. Scientia Militaria, South African Journal of Military Studies. 35 ( 2 ) : 39&ndash, 67. Colonial conflicts involving the English / British Empire 17th century Virginia ( 1609 -- 46 ) Swally ( 1612 ) Ormuz ( 1622 ) Saint Kitts ( 1626 ) Quebec ( 1628 ) Pequot War ( 1634 -- 38 ) Acadia ( 1654 -- 67 ) Anglo - Spanish War ( 1654 -- 60 ) Jamaica ( 1655 -- 1739 ) Tangier ( 1664 ) King Philip 's War ( 1675 -- 78 ) King William 's War ( 1688 -- 97 ) Ghana ( 1694 -- 1700 ) 18th century Queen Anne 's War ( 1702 -- 13 ) Tuscarora War ( 1711 -- 15 ) Yamasee War ( 1715 -- 17 ) Father Rale 's War / Dummer 's War ( 1722 -- 25 ) War of Jenkins ' Ear ( 1740 -- 42 ) King George 's War ( 1744 -- 48 ) Carnatic Wars ( 1746 -- 63 ) Nova Scotia ( 1749 -- 55 ) French and Indian War ( 1754 -- 63 ) Seven Years ' War ( 1756 -- 63 ) Anglo -- Cherokee War ( 1758 -- 61 ) First Carib War ( 1769 -- 73 ) Jamaica ( 1762 ) Anglo - Spanish War ( 1762 -- 63 ) Pontiac 's War ( 1763 -- 66 ) Lord Dunmore 's War ( 1774 ) American Revolutionary War ( 1775 -- 83 ) First Anglo -- Maratha War ( 1775 -- 82 ) Second Anglo -- Mysore War ( 1779 -- 84 ) Gold Coast ( 1781 -- 82 ) Sumatra ( 1782 -- 84 ) Australian Frontier Wars ( 1788 -- 1934 ) Nootka Sound ( 1789 ) Third Anglo -- Mysore War ( 1789 -- 92 ) Cotiote ( Wayanad ) War ( 1793 -- 1806 ) Cape Colony ( 1795 ) Jamaica ( 1795 -- 96 ) Ceylon ( 1795 ) Kandyan Wars ( 1796 -- 1818 ) Malta ( 1798 -- 1800 ) Fourth Anglo -- Mysore War ( 1798 -- 99 ) Dwyer 's Guerrilla Campaign ( 1799 -- 1803 ) 19th century Newfoundland ( 1800 ) Castle Hill convict rebellion Second Anglo -- Maratha War ( 1803 -- 05 ) Suriname ( 1804 ) Guiana ( 1804 ) Cape Colony ( 1806 ) Río de la Plata ( 1806 -- 07 ) Egypt ( 1807 ) Froberg mutiny ( 1807 ) Reunion ( 1809 ) Seychelles ( 1809 ) Mauritius ( 1810 ) Java ( 1810 -- 11 ) Xhosa Wars ( 1811 -- 79 ) Martinique ( 1809 ) Guadeloupe ( 1810 ) USA ( 1812 -- 15 ) Nepal ( 1814 -- 16 ) Guadeloupe ( 1815 ) Cape Colony ( 1815 ) Algiers ( 1816 ) Third Anglo - Maratha War ( 1817 -- 18 ) Guiana ( 1823 ) Anglo - Ashanti wars ( 1824 -- 1901 ) First Anglo - Burmese War ( 1824 -- 26 ) Black War ( Van Diemen 's Land ) 1828 -- 32 ) Jamaica ( 1831 -- 32 ) Malacca ( 1831 -- 33 ) Lower Canada ( 1837 -- 38 ) Upper Canada ( 1837 -- 38 ) Egyptian -- Ottoman War ( 1839 -- 41 ) First Anglo - Afghan War ( 1839 -- 42 ) First Opium War ( 1839 -- 42 ) New Zealand Wars ( 1845 -- 72 ) First Anglo -- Sikh War ( 1845 -- 46 ) Río de la Plata ( 1845 -- 50 ) Ceylon ( 1848 ) Second Anglo -- Sikh War ( 1848 -- 49 ) Second Anglo -- Burmese War ( 1852 ) Eureka Rebellion ( 1854 ) Anglo -- Persian War ( 1856 -- 57 ) Second Opium War ( 1856 -- 60 ) Indian Rebellion ( 1857 -- 59 ) Ambela Campaign ( 1863 -- 64 ) Bhutan War ( 1864 -- 65 ) Fenian Rebellion in Canada ( 1866 -- 71 ) Abyssinia ( 1868 ) Manitoba ( 1870 ) Perak ( 1875 -- 76 ) Anglo -- Zulu War ( 1879 ) Second Anglo - Afghan War ( 1879 -- 80 ) Basutoland ( 1880 -- 81 ) First Boer War ( 1880 -- 81 ) Mahdist War ( 1881 -- 99 ) Anglo - Egyptian War ( 1882 ) Saskatchewan ( 1885 ) Central Africa ( 1886 -- 89 ) Third Anglo - Burmese War ( 1885 ) Mashonaland ( 1890 ) Hunza - Nagar Campaign ( 1891 ) Anglo - Manipur War ( 1891 ) Matabeleland ( 1893 -- 94 ) North Borneo ( 1894 -- 1905 ) Chitral Expedition ( 1895 ) Jameson Raid South Africa ( 1896 ) Anglo -- Zanzibar War ( 1896 ) Matabeleland ( 1896 -- 97 ) Benin Expedition ( 1897 ) Siege of Malakand ( 1897 ) First Mohmand Campaign ( 1897 -- 98 ) Tirah Campaign ( 1897 -- 98 ) Six - Day War ( 1899 ) Boxer Rebellion ( 1898 -- 1901 ) Second Boer War ( 1899 -- 1902 ) 20th century Somaliland ( 1900 -- 20 ) West Africa ( 1901 -- 02 ) Tibet expedition ( 1903 -- 04 ) Bambatha Rebellion ( 1906 ) Nyasaland ( 1915 ) Nigeria ( 1915 ) Nigeria ( 1918 ) Third Anglo - Afghan War ( 1919 ) Waziristan campaign ( 1919 -- 1920 ) Iraq ( 1920 ) Malabar Rebellion ( 1921 ) Kurdistan ( 1922 -- 24 ) Transjordan ( 1923 ) Pink 's War ( 1925 ) Ikhwan Revolt ( 1927 -- 30 ) Barzani revolt ( 1931 -- 32 ) Second Mohmand Campaign ( 1935 ) Palestine ( 1936 -- 39 ) Waziristan campaign ( 1936 -- 1939 ) Ethiopia ( 1943 ) Indochina ( 1945 -- 46 ) Indonesia ( 1945 ) Sarawak ( 1946 -- 50 ) Malayan Emergency ( 1948 -- 60 ) Mau Mau Uprising Kenya ( 1952 -- 60 ) Oman ( 1954 -- 59 ) Cyprus Emergency ( 1955 -- 59 ) Suez Crisis ( 1956 ) Oman ( 1962 -- 76 ) Brunei ( 1962 ) Sarawak ( 1962 -- 90 ) Malaysia ( 1962 -- 66 ) Aden ( 1963 -- 67 ) Falklands ( 1982 ) Political history of South Africa Defunct polities Kingdom of Mapungubwe ( c. 1075 -- c. 1220 ) Dutch Cape Colony ( 1652 -- 1806 ) Mthethwa Paramountcy ( c. 1780 -- 1817 ) Ndwandwe Kingdom ( c. 1780 -- 1819 ) Cape Colony ( 1795 -- 1910 ) Zulu Kingdom ( 1816 -- 97 ) Natalia Republic ( 1839 -- 43 ) Natal Colony ( 1843 -- 1910 ) Orange Free State ( 1854 -- 1902 ) South African Republic ( 1856 -- 1902 ) Griqualand East ( 1861 -- 79 ) Griqualand West ( 1870 -- 73 ) Goshen ( 1882 -- 83 ) Stellaland ( 1882 -- 85 ) Nieuwe Republiek ( 1884 -- 88 ) Upingtonia ( 1885 -- 87 ) Klein Vrystaat ( 1886 -- 91 ) Orange River Colony ( 1902 -- 10 ) Transvaal Colony ( 1902 -- 10 ) Union of South Africa ( 1910 -- 61 ) Transkei ( 1976 -- 94 ) Bophuthatswana ( 1977 -- 94 ) Venda ( 1979 -- 94 ) Ciskei ( 1981 -- 94 ) Events 1652 -- 1815 Dutch settlement French Huguenot settlement Khoikhoi -- Dutch Wars Xhosa Wars Battle of Muizenberg Battle of Blaauwberg Anglo - Dutch Treaty of 1814 1815 -- 1910 Mfecane 1820 Settlers Great Trek Boer Republics Transvaal Civil War Mineral Revolution Witwatersrand Gold Rush South African Wars South Africa Act 1909 ( National Convention ) 1910 -- 1948 South West Africa campaign Maritz Rebellion Rand Rebellion Great Depression 1946 African Mine Workers ' Union strike Bantustans Apartheid era 1948 general election Apartheid legislation Pass laws Internal resistance Coloured - vote constitutional crisis Defiance Campaign Congress of the People Freedom Charter Women 's March 1956 1957 Alexandra bus boycott Sharpeville massacre 1960 republic referendum International isolation Academic boycott Disinvestment Sporting boycott Olympics Rugby union Rivonia Trial Tar Baby Option Durban Moment Border War Israeli alliance Israel -- South Africa Agreement Soweto Uprising Weapons of mass destruction Project Coast Constructive engagement Church Street bombing 1983 constitutional reform referendum Langa massacre Rubicon speech Dakar Conference Third Force CODESA 1992 apartheid referendum Saint James Church massacre Bophuthatswana crisis Shell House massacre Post-apartheid 1994 general election Government of National Unity Reconstruction and Development Programme Truth and Reconciliation Commission Arms Deal Floor crossing Soweto bombings African Renaissance Xenophobia Marikana massacre 2012 Western Cape farm workers ' strike Nkandlagate Racism 2014 platinum strike # RhodesMustFall protests # FeesMustFall student protests Tshwane riots Political culture African nationalism Afrikaner Calvinism Afrikaner nationalism Azania Baasskap Boerehaat Black Consciousness Movement Day of the Vow Greater South Africa Honorary whites Rooi gevaar Slavery Swart gevaar Uitlander Volkstaat Defunct organisations Civic and political organisations Afrikaner Bond Afrikaner Broederbond Afrikaner Party AITUP APO AVF BPC Black Sash CDA CTEG COD Congress Alliance COSG CP Dominion Party DP ( 1973 -- 1977 ) DP ( 1989 -- 2000 ) DPP ECC FA FD Genootskap van Regte Afrikaners GNP Het Volk HNP IDASA ID IP ISL Jeugkrag Johannesburg Reform Committee Labour Party ( 1910 -- 1958 ) Labour Party ( 1969 -- 1994 ) Liberal Party ( 1953 -- 1968 ) NA NCP Natal Indian Congress NLP NNP NP NPP NRP NUSAS PFP Progressive Party ( Cape Colony ) Progressive Party PRP Radio Freedom Reform Party SABP SADECO SAIC SASO SAYCO SAYRCO South African Party ( Cape Colony ) South African Party ( 1911 -- 1934 ) South African Party ( 1977 -- 1980 ) TNIP Torch Commando UFP United Party Unionist Party Volksparty Workers Party WOSA Trade unions and social movements APF BCM BLATU CNETU CTSWU FCWU FNETU FOSATU ICU IWW MUSA NEUM NURHS PAWE SAAPAWU SACTU SAIF SARHU SATUC Die Spoorbund UDF Umkosi Wezintaba Paramilitary and terrorist organisations APLA ARM BBB Boeremag Greyshirts MK Ossewabrandwag Orde van die Dood SANF Histories of political parties African National Congress Democratic Alliance Pan Africanist Congress of Azania Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Invasion_of_the_Cape_Colony&oldid=854448971 '' Categories : Conflicts in 1795 Battles of the French Revolutionary Wars Battles involving the Netherlands Military history of South Africa Military history of the Cape Colony 1795 in the Cape Colony Invasions by Great Britain Military history of the Dutch East India Company Hidden categories : CS1 : Julian -- Gregorian uncertainty Good articles Use South African English from June 2015 All Wikipedia articles written in South African English Use dmy dates from June 2015 CS1 maint : Extra text : authors list Talk Contents About Wikipedia Español Italiano Nederlands Polski Edit links This page was last edited on 11 August 2018, at 12 : 42 ( UTC ). Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: who was the british commander whose troops landed in simonstown on 7 august 1795
Answer: Sir George Keith Elphinstone