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Stephanus Schoeman (14 March 1810 – 19 June 1890) was President of the South African Republic from 6 December 1860 until 17 April 1862. His red hair, fiery temperament and vehement disputes with other Boer leaders earned him the moniker "Stormvogel den Noorden," "Storm bird of the North."


Early life

The first member of the Schoeman clan arrived in the Cape in 1724 from
Ditmarschen Dithmarschen (, Low Saxon: ; archaic English: ''Ditmarsh''; da, Ditmarsken; la, label=Medieval Latin, Tedmarsgo) is a district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts of Nordfriesland, Sch ...
in
Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sc ...
, Germany. Ditmarschen had been a Boer Republic (Burenrepublik) of Merchant-farmers until 1550, and the memory of this free Boer Republic must have lived on in her sons who emigrated to South Africa. He originally settled in the Zoutpansberg but also owned a farm in Pretoria – the area now occupied by the Pretoria Zoo. Bloedstraat was also part of his farm. Stephanus Schoeman was a minor Trekker leader, who had his own flag. He joined Andries Pretorius' group, fighting in the
Battle of Blood River The Battle of Blood River (16 December 1838) was fought on the bank of the Ncome River, in what is today KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa between 464 Voortrekkers ("Pioneers"), led by Andries Pretorius, and an estimated 10,000 to 15,000 Zulu. Es ...
. One of the three cannons used in the battle, ''Ou Grietjie'' belonged to Schoeman and is now on display in the Voortrekker Monument.


Presidency

As Commandant-General, Stephanus Schoeman was involved in a major political conflict with Marthinus Wessel Pretorius, the ZAR's First President and writer of its constitution. Schoeman rejected the constitution. Amongst others, Schoeman was supported by
Willem Cornelis Janse van Rensburg Willem Cornelis Janse van Rensburg (16 May 1818 – 13 August 1865) was the second President of the Executive Council of the South African Republic, from 18 April 1862 until 10 May 1864. Life He was born near the town of Beau ...
whom he subsequently appointed as a provisional commandant. Van Rensburg represented Schoeman in negotiations with Pretorius's faction. In 1858, when Schoeman fell ill, Van Rensburg was appointed as acting Commandant-General. Shortly before the end of 1859, MW Pretorius, who was the son of the popular Voortrekker leader
Andries Pretorius Andries Wilhelmus Jacobus Pretorius (27 November 179823 July 1853) was a leader of the Boers who was instrumental in the creation of the South African Republic, as well as the earlier but short-lived Natalia Republic, in present-day South Afric ...
, was concurrently elected president of 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 ...
(OFS). The
Volksraad The Volksraad was a people's assembly or legislature in Dutch or Afrikaans speaking government. Assembly South Africa * Volksraad (South African Republic) (1840–1902) * Volksraad (Natalia Republic), a similar assembly that existed in the Natalia ...
granted him six months leave to take up his office in the OFS during which he would negotiate the unification of the two Boer Republics. However, once his leave expired, the Volksraad would not allow Pretorius to resume his former office of president of the ZAR, as well as that of the OFS. Initially, Johannes Hermanus Grobler was appointed as acting president in Pretorius' absence, but Commandant-General Stephanus Schoeman refused to accept Grobler as acting president.http://www.sahistory.org.za/pages/places/villages/gauteng/pretoria/index.php?id=3&page=1 ''SA History Online, Pretoria, Period of Civil War''. Schoeman instead believed that the presidency should have been granted to him as the constitution at the time stipulated that in cases of the president's dismissal or death, the presidency should be granted to the oldest member of the Executive Council. Being three years older than Grobler, the presidency should thus have been granted to Schoeman. Schoeman, supported by many dissatisfied burghers, relieved Grobler of his office, assuming it himself. In 1861, the Volksraad decided to take action against Schoeman, who with his followers steadfastly refused to give up his position,
Paul Kruger Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger (; 10 October 1825 – 14 July 1904) was a South African politician. He was one of the dominant political and military figures in 19th-century South Africa, and President of the South African Republic (or ...
intervened against Schoeman, however, no one was prepared to take extreme action, and bitter letters were exchanged between Schoeman and Kruger. It was only in 1862, when the Volksraad declared the Schoeman factions to be rebels, that Kruger could summon his burghers to the conflict. Kruger, who was elected commandant-general in April 1863, succeeded in driving Schoeman over the
Vaal River The Vaal River ( ; Khoemana: ) is the largest tributary of the Orange River in South Africa. The river has its source near Breyten in Mpumalanga province, east of Johannesburg and about north of Ermelo and only about from the Indian Ocean. ...
. Schoeman's faction then tried to restore their position by force of arms. Commandant Jan Viljoen led a so-called 'People's army' against Kruger and his 'State Army' in January 1864, but was defeated at the Crocodile River. Peace was restored when a new election was held in 1864. Pretorius became president for a second time and Kruger retained his position as commander-in-chief.


Retirement and death

Pretorius resigned as president and retired in 1871 after a spectacular failure to prevent the Keate award which lopped off a large piece of the western Transvaal to satisfy a claim by the Barolong tribe. He died in
Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foothi ...
in 1890, aged 80. In 1904, both executors of his estate had died and the Master of the Supreme Court had to publicly advertise for anyone willing to finally settle what remained of his estate.


Family and ancestors

Schoeman married three times, finally marrying the widow Elsie Maria Aletta (née van Heerden) of the political figure state-head Pieter Johannes Potgieter, arch-antagonist of Andries Pretorius. Elsie Maria Aletta had children with both political leaders in their marriages and started a family famous for political and society influence. Her daughter Elsie Maria Aletta Potgieter was the mother of the famous doctor, successful businessman,
Broederbond The Afrikaner Broederbond (AB) or simply the Broederbond was an exclusively Afrikaner Calvinist and male secret society in South Africa dedicated to the advancement of the Afrikaner people. It was founded by H. J. Klopper, H. W. van der Merwe, ...
leader and Member of Parliament Dr. Pieter Johannes Potgieter Stofberg, whose father Ds. Jan Hendrik Malan Stofberg was Secretary and Head of NG churches in South-Africa. Schoeman's son with his second wife Gertina Johanna Schutte, General Hendrik Jacobus Schoeman, went on to fight in the
Anglo-Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the South ...
of 1899 – 1902. One of his daughters with Schutte, Catharina Christina Susanna Schoeman, married the Boer general, Johannes Hermanus Michiel Kock. His grandson, Dr.
Gustav Preller Gustav Schoeman Preller (4 October 1875 in Klein Schoemansdal, Klipdrift, Pretoria – 7 October 1943 in Pelindaba) was a journalist, historian, writer and literary critic. He fought for the recognition of Afrikaans. Preller helped the Afrika ...
became not only a leading historian but a renowned "Taalstryder," or champion of the Afrikaans language, while one of his sons, Johan Schoeman achieved renown as a publisher of anti-Communist materials. A great-grandson, Hendrik Schoeman was the Minister of Transport for decades. Minister Schoeman was also a cousin of Dr. Pieter Johannes Potgieter Stofberg.


Legacy

The street in Pretoria, Schoemanstraat is named after him, as is the town, Schoemansdal, which was razed by the Venda in the 1860s. (The ruins are currently being excavated again.) Another Street, Andries Street (originally St. Andries street) is named after his flag, the flag of St. Andrew, flown in opposition to the ZAR's "Vierkleur".


References


Bibliography

O.J.O. Ferreira, Stormvoël van die Noorde: Stephanus Schoeman in Transvaal. Pretoria: Makro-Boeke, 1978 {{DEFAULTSORT:Schoeman, Stephanus Presidents of the South African Republic South African Republic politicians 1810 births 1890 deaths Afrikaner people People from Oudtshoorn South African people of German descent 1860s in the South African Republic 1860s in Transvaal 19th-century South African people