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Sir Richard Southey (25 April 1808 – 22 July 1901) was a British colonial administrator, cabinet minister and landowner in South Africa.


Early life

Southey was the son of
1820 Settlers The 1820 Settlers were several groups of British colonists from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, settled by the government of the United Kingdom and the Cape Colony authorities in the Eastern Cape of South Africa in 1820. Origins After ...
leader
George Southey George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presid ...
of
Culmstock Culmstock is a village and civil parish in Mid Devon, England, centred 10 miles from Tiverton and 6 NE of Cullompton. It is laid out on both sides of the River Culm; the village is joined by a single old narrow stone bridge across the river. The ...
, Devon, and later of Bloemhof Farm, Albany. He voyaged to South Africa with his family aboard the ''Kennersley Castle'' in 1820. The family were the cadet branch of a family of Devonshire
gentry Gentry (from Old French ''genterie'', from ''gentil'', "high-born, noble") are "well-born, genteel and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past. Word similar to gentle imple and decentfamilies ''Gentry'', in its widest c ...
and were cousins to
Poet Laureate A poet laureate (plural: poets laureate) is a poet officially appointed by a government or conferring institution, typically expected to compose poems for special events and occasions. Albertino Mussato of Padua and Francesco Petrarca (Petrarch ...
Robert Southey Robert Southey ( or ; 12 August 1774 – 21 March 1843) was an English poet of the Romantic school, and Poet Laureate from 1813 until his death. Like the other Lake Poets, William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Southey began as a ra ...
.


Career

Southey began his career as an officer during the Frontier Wars of the
Eastern Cape The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are East London and Gqeberha. The second largest province in the country (at 168,966 km2) after Northern Cape, it was formed in ...
. He was a lieutenant in the Albany Mounted Sharpshooters and Captain of the Corps of Guides. It was during this conflict, in May 1835, that the Xhosa paramount chief Hintsa was shot in the head by Richard Southey's brother, George. Hintsa had been taken captive by Governor Harry Smith, during peace talks, and was being guarded by Southey's Corps of Guides when he was killed while trying to escape. He was shot in the back of the head by George Southey after asking for mercy. His body was partially dismembered for trophies afterwards, by two of the Southey brothers – George and William – among others. Richard Southey worked particularly closely with
Sir Harry Smith Lieutenant-General Sir Henry George Wakelyn Smith, 1st Baronet, GCB (28 June 1787 – 12 October 1860) was a notable English soldier and military commander in the British Army of the early 19th century. A veteran of the Napoleonic Wars, he is a ...
during this time, and later became his Secretary in Natal. He went on to fill two of the highest offices in the colonial government; firstly as Treasurer (1861–1864) and later as Colonial Secretary (1864–1872), replacing his moderate colleague
Rawson W. Rawson Sir Rawson William Rawson, (8 September 1812 – 20 November 1899) was a British government official and statistician. During his tenure as a public servant in Canada he contributed to the ''Report on the affairs of the Indians in Canada'', a ...
.


Colonial Secretary (1864–1872)

As Colonial Secretary, he consistently and strongly opposed the growing movement for "
Responsible Government Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability, the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy. Governments (the equivalent of the executive br ...
" (local democracy) in the Cape, that was led by his fiercest political enemy,
John Molteno Sir John Charles Molteno (5 June 1814 – 1 September 1886) was a soldier, businessman, champion of responsible government and the first Prime Minister of the Cape Colony. Early life Born in London into a large Anglo-Italian family, Molten ...
. He was also noted for his expansionist politics regarding the Cape's neighbouring states. He firmly believed in bringing all southern African states – especially the remaining indigenous African states – under British imperial rule. This strategy, together with his "native policy" was heavily criticised by the local Cape Parliament of the time, which was dominated by liberal politicians such as
Saul Solomon Saul Solomon (25 May 1817 – 16 October 1892) was an influential liberal politician of the Cape Colony, a British colony in what is now South Africa. Solomon was an important member of the movement for responsible government and an opponent ...
. In 1872, the
Cape A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck. History Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. Th ...
finally attained
responsible government Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability, the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy. Governments (the equivalent of the executive br ...
and Southey was then discreetly retired from the post of Colonial Secretary. In a highly unexpected move,
Molteno Molteno (; lmo, label= Brianzöö, Mültée) is a '' comune'' (municipality) and a hill-top town in the Province of Lecco in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northeast of Milan and about southwest of Lecco. As of 31 December 2004, it ...
, his victorious enemy, approached him together with the Governor and offered him the post of
Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...
for the new country. A surprised Southey refused to have any involvement with the movement he had fought for so many years.


Lieutenant-Governor of Griqualand-West (1873–1875)

The neighbouring state of Griqualand West had recently come under British Imperial control as a separate colony, to the north of the Cape Colony. In 1873, Southey moved there and was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of Griqualand-West, where he had previously found one of the first diamonds in South Africa, on a witch doctor. He had laid it on a table before the Cape Parliament and declared "Gentlemen, this is the rock on which the future success of South Africa will be built". He had previously also done a great deal of work in settling the boundaries and land ownership claims in Griqualand-West. In 1871, soon after the diamond discovery, the land was being claimed by the local
Griqua people The Griquas (; af, Griekwa, often confused with ''!Orana'', which is written as ''Korana'' or ''Koranna'') are a subgroup of heterogeneous former Khoe-speaking nations in Southern Africa with a unique origin in the early history of the C ...
(represented by their agent David Arnot), by the
Orange Free State The Orange Free State ( nl, Oranje Vrijstaat; af, Oranje-Vrystaat;) was an independent Boer sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeat ...
, by the
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
, and even by migrant diggers who had staged a revolt. Southey had engineered the eventual British takeover, persuading Chief Waterboer to accept British protection, according to the discovery of the dubious Charles Warren Report, commission and Land Claims court, by Claudine Fourie-Grosvenor in 2004 & 8. Griualand-West itself was annexed to the Cape soon afterwards, ironically thereby gaining
Responsible Government Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability, the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy. Governments (the equivalent of the executive br ...
, which Southey was so firmly against. In Griqualand, as in the Cape Colony, he was a firm proponent of British imperial expansion and favoured British annexation of the neighbouring Tswana states. (This controversial annexation of " Bechuanaland" was eventually carried out, but only a decade after Southey had left Griqualand.)


Eastern Cape Opposition (1876–1878)

Southey's opposition to Responsible Government still had considerable support among the highly reactionary British settler population of the Eastern Cape. They were predominantly supportive of more direct British rule, and of annexation of the neighbouring Xhosa land of the
Transkei Transkei (, meaning ''the area beyond he riverKei''), officially the Republic of Transkei ( xh, iRiphabliki yeTranskei), was an unrecognised state in the southeastern region of South Africa from 1976 to 1994. It was, along with Ciskei, a Ba ...
, so when Southey returned to the Eastern Cape, he was soon elected to the Cape Parliament as the member for
Grahamstown Makhanda, also known as Grahamstown, is a town of about 140,000 people in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is situated about northeast of Port Elizabeth and southwest of East London. Makhanda is the largest town in the Makana ...
. In this capacity, he joined fellow easterners John Paterson and
Gordon Sprigg Sir John Gordon Sprigg, (27 April 1830 – 4 February 1913) was an English-born colonial administrator, politician and four-time prime minister of the Cape Colony. Early life Sprigg was born in Ipswich, England, into a strongly Puritan fa ...
, as the opposition to the Cape's ruling government. Southey's career finally ended in 1878, when Britain suspended the elected Cape Government, and assumed direct control of the Colony.Hon. Alex Wilmot: ''The Life and Times of Sir Richard Southey, KCMG''. London: Samson Low, Marston & Company Ltd. 1904.


Later life and family

His residence in
Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
was Southfield House in Plumstead, where he died in 1901. His first wife was Isabella Shaw (1810–1869). After her death he married Susan Krynauw (1842–1890) who became Lady Southey. He had two daughters and eight sons, including Richard Southey who gained distinction as a military commander. His niece was Lady Frost, born Frances Cordelia Powell, married to Sir John Frost.


References

* ''Dictionary of South African Biography'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Southey, Sir Richard 1808 births 1901 deaths British colonial governors and administrators in Africa Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George English emigrants to South Africa Cape Colony army officers Members of the House of Assembly of the Cape Colony