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South African Army
The South African Army is the principal land warfare force of South Africa, a part of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), along with the South African Air Force, South African Navy and South African Military Health Service. The Army is commanded by the Chief of the Army, who is subordinate to the Chief of the SANDF. Formed in 1912, as the Union Defence Force in the Union of South Africa, through the amalgamation of the South African colonial forces following the unification of South Africa. It evolved within the tradition of frontier warfare fought by Boer Commando (militia) forces, reinforced by the Afrikaners' historical distrust of large standing armies. Following the ascension to power of the National Party, the Army's long-standing Commonwealth ties were afterwards cut. The South African Army was fundamentally changed by the end of Apartheid and its preceding upheavals, as the South African Defence Force became the SANDF. This process also led ...
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Union Defence Force (South Africa)
) , headquarters = Pretoria, Transvaal, South Africa , commander-in-chief = , commander-in-chief_title = Sovereign of South Africa , minister = , minister_title = , commander = , commander_title = Chief of the UDF , age = , conscription = , active = , ranked = , reserve = , deployed = , amount = , percent_GDP = , domestic_suppliers = , foreign_suppliers = , imports = , exports = , history = World War I Rand RebellionWorld War II Berlin BlockadeKorean War , ranks = South African military ranks The Union Defence Force (UDF) ( af, Unie-Verdedigingsmag) comprised the armed forces of South Africa from 1 July 1912, when the Defence Act (No 13 of 1912) took effect, two years after the creation of the Union of South Africa, until 1957 when it was reorganised and renamed the South African Defence ...
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South African Army Artillery Formation
The South African Army Artillery Formation is the controlling entity of all South African Army artillery units. It draws much of its history from the South African Artillery, established in 1934 but with roots that reach back to 1921. The formation consists of both regular and reserve units. There is a separate South African Army Air Defence Artillery Formation that directs army anti-aircraft warfare units. History Origins The South African Permanent Force, created in 1913 as the Permanent Force and re-designated with effect from 23 February 1923, included the South African Field Artillery (SAFA), and the South African Permanent Garrison Artillery (SAPGA). The SAPGA had begun operations some time before, when the coastal defences of the Cape Peninsula (manned by the Cape Garrison Artillery) had been handed over to South Africa in December 1921. In Proclamation No. 246 of 1934, the Governor General of the Union of South Africa merged the two organisations with effect from 1 Septem ...
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Militia
A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of regular, full-time military personnel; or, historically, to members of a warrior-nobility class (e.g. knights or samurai). Generally unable to hold ground against regular forces, militias commonly support regular troops by skirmishing, holding fortifications, or conducting irregular warfare, instead of undertaking offensive campaigns by themselves. Local civilian laws often limit militias to serve only in their home region, and to serve only for a limited time; this further reduces their use in long military campaigns. Beginning in the late 20th century, some militias (in particular officially recognized and sanctioned militias of a government) act as professional forces, while still being "part-time" or "on-call" organizations. For instanc ...
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Boer Commando
The Boer Commandos or "Kommandos" were volunteer military units of guerilla militia organized by the Boer people of South Africa. From this came the term "commando" into the English language during the Second Boer War of 1899-1902 as per Costica Andrew. History In 1658, war erupted between the Dutch settlers at Cape Colony and the Khoi-khoi. In order to protect the settlement, all able bodied men were conscripted. After the conclusion of this war, all men in the colony were liable for military service and were expected to be ready on short notice. By 1700, the size of the colony had increased immensely and it was divided into districts. The small military garrison stationed at the Castle de Goede Hoop could not be counted on to react swiftly in the border districts, therefore the commando system was expanded and formalized. Each district had a Kommandant who was charged with calling up all burghers in times of need. In 1795, with the First British Occupation and again in 180 ...
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Union Of South Africa
The Union of South Africa ( nl, Unie van Zuid-Afrika; af, Unie van Suid-Afrika; ) was the historical predecessor to the present-day Republic of South Africa. It came into existence on 31 May 1910 with the unification of the Cape, Natal, Transvaal, and Orange River colonies. It included the territories that were formerly a part of the South African Republic and the Orange Free State. Following World War I, the Union of South Africa was a signatory of the Treaty of Versailles and became one of the founding members of the League of Nations. It was conferred the administration of South West Africa (now known as Namibia) as a League of Nations mandate. It became treated in most respects as another province of the Union, but it never was formally annexed. Like Canada, Australia and New Zealand, the Union of South Africa was a self-governing dominion of the British Empire. Its full sovereignty was confirmed with the Balfour Declaration of 1926 and the Statute of Westmins ...
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South African Military Health Service
The South African Military Health Service is the branch of the South African National Defence Force responsible for medical facilities and the training and deployment of all medical personnel within the force. Though unusual, as most national militaries integrate their medical structures into their existing service branches, the SANDF regards this structure as being the most efficient method of providing care and support to the SANDF's personnel. It is a significant actor in the effort to control HIV/AIDS within the SANDF. History The predecessor of the SAMHS, the South African Medical Service, was established as a full service branch of the South African Defence Force (SADF) on 1 July 1979 in order to consolidate and strengthen the medical services of the South African Army, South African Navy and South African Air Force. Rationalisation Following the end of the Border War, in the early 1990s, it implemented several retrenchment measures. It consolidated all quartermaster ...
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South African Navy
The South African Navy (SA Navy) is the naval warfare branch of the South African National Defence Force. The Navy is primarily engaged in maintaining a conventional military deterrent, participating in counter-piracy operations, fishery protection, search and rescue, and upholding maritime law enforcement for the benefit of South Africa and its international partners. Today the South African Navy is one of the most capable naval forces in the African region, operating a mixed force of sophisticated warships, submarines, patrol craft, and auxiliary vessels, with over 7,000 personnel; including a marine force. With formerly deep historical and political connections to the United Kingdom, the first emergence of a naval organisation was the creation of the South African Division of the British Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve in 1913, before becoming an nominally independent naval service for the Union of South Africa in 1922. In its history, South African naval vessels and pers ...
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South African Air Force
"Through hardships to the stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment = , equipment_label = , battles = * World War I * World War II East African Campaign North African Campaign Madagascar Italy Balkans * Korean War * South African Border War * Angolan Bush War , decorations = , battle_honours = , battle_honours_label = , flying_hours = , website = , commander1 = President Cyril Ramaphosa , commander1_label = Commander-in-Chief , commander2 = Lieutenant general Wiseman S Mbambo , commander2_label = Chief of the Air Force , commander3 = Colin Stanton-Jones , commander3_label ...
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South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; and to the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini. It also completely Enclave and exclave, enclaves the country Lesotho. It is the southernmost country on the mainland of the Old World, and the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous country located entirely south of the equator, after Tanzania. South Africa is a biodiversity hotspot, with unique biomes, plant and animal life. With over Demographics of South Africa, 60 million people, the country is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, 24th-most populous nation and covers an area of . South Africa has three capital cities, with the executive, judicial and le ...
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South African Defence Force
The South African Defence Force (SADF) (Afrikaans: ''Suid-Afrikaanse Weermag'') comprised the armed forces of South Africa from 1957 until 1994. Shortly before the state reconstituted itself as a republic in 1961, the former Union Defence Force was officially succeeded by the SADF, which was established by the Defence Act (No. 44) of 1957. The SADF, in turn, was superseded by the South African National Defence Force in 1994. Mission and structure The SADF was organised to perform a dual mission: to counter possible insurgency in all forms, and to maintain a conventional military arm which could defend the republic's borders, making retaliatory strikes as necessary. As the military expanded during the 1970s, the SADF general staff was organised into six sections—finance, intelligence, logistics, operations, personnel, and planning; uniquely, the South African Medical Service (SAMS) was made co-equal with the South African Army, the South African Navy and the South African ...
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South African Army Support Formation
The South African Army Support Formation supports and provides sustainment services to all South African Army The South African Army is the principal land warfare force of South Africa, a part of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), along with the South African Air Force, South African Navy and South African Military Health Servic ... units. Structure References Logistics units and formations of the South African Army {{SouthAfrica-mil-stub ...
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Army Combat Training Centre (South Africa)
Lohatla is a training area of the South African National Defence Force. It is located in the Northern Cape province of South Africa and is home to the SA Army Combat Training Centre, which is part of the South African Army Training Formation. Capability The SA Army Combat Training Centre is unique in the sense that it is one of only ten such institutions in the world that provide exclusive and permanent facilities for landward warfare training. Only two of these institutions are located in the Southern hemisphere, of which the SA Army Combat Training Centre is the largest, in total.} History This military training institution was founded on 15 January 1978 and was known as the South African Army Battle School. The Battle School originated due to a need by the Department of Defence for a military training facility where conventional and integrated training on divisional level could be executed. Nature Reserve The Ga-Thlose Nature Reserve was proclaimed in 1890 and was mana ...
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