Alice, South Africa

Alice, also known as Dikeni,^[2] is a small town in the Eastern Cape, South Africa that is named after Princess Alice Princess Alice of the United Kingdom, the second daughter of the British Queen Victoria. It was settled in 1824 by British colonists. It is adjacent to the Tyhume River. It has a rail and road connection to East London,Fort Beaufort ,King William's Town and other towns in the province. It forms part of Raymond Mhlaba Local Municipality.

Alice Dikeni
Buildings of the University of Fort Hare in Alice
Nickname:  eDikeni
Alice Show map of Eastern Cape Alice Show map of South Africa Alice Show map of Africa
Coordinates: 32°47′21″S 26°50′06″E
Country	South Africa
Province	Eastern Cape
District	Amathole
Municipality	Raymond Mhlaba
Area [1]
• Total	9.85 km2 (3.80 sq mi)
Population  (2011)[1]
• Total	15,143
• Density	1,500/km2 (4,000/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011) [1]
• Black African	93.0%
• Coloured	5.6%
• Indian/Asian	0.3%
• White	0.6%
• Other	0.5%
First languages (2011) [1]
• Xhosa	84.0%
• Afrikaans	7.3%
• English	3.5%
• Other	5.2%
Time zone	UTC+2 (SAST)
Area code	040

Points of Interest

• University of Fort Hare,1916
• Lovedale College,1849
• ZK Matthews House,1920
• Victoria Hospital,1898
• Masonic Hall,1911
• NGK Church,1876
• Domira Homestead,1836
• Stewart Memorial Tower
• Presbyterian Church,1849
• Alice Trinity Church,1914
• Victoria Memorial Hall,1920
• Napier Park Farmhouse,1890

University of Fort Hare

The University of Fort Hare began in early 1847 as a fort built to house British troops. The same fort was converted in 1916 into a black university institution. Many of the current political leaders in South Africa were educated at the University of Fort Hare. It is also the alma mater of former president Nelson Mandela. The university is also the repository of the archives of the African National Congress and documents and houses one of the most significant collections of African art.

Victoria Hospital

Built in 1898, it is one of the oldest sites in Alice and still graces the town with its old charm of yesterday. Victoria Hospital is a large district hospital on the outskirts of Alice reconstructed and upgraded by the Eastern Cape Provincial Government between 2006 and 2011.^[3]

History

Alice railway station, c. 1900

The location was named Lovedale by European missionaries who settled there in 1824. It lies on the southwestern bank of the Tyhume River, west-northwest of East London, at an elevation of 1,720(524m). It was named after John Love of the Glasgow Missionary Society. During the Frontier War it was abandoned and the mission resettled on the west bank of the Tyhume River. On the east bank a fort was built, called Fort Hare, after Major-General John Hare, who was lieutenant-governor of the Eastern Cape and acting governor of the Cape Colony. Later the name of the town was changed to Alice. Alice was the administrative and magisterial capital of the old district of Victoria East. In 1847, it was named Alice by Sir Peregrine Maitland after Princess Alice, the second daughter of Queen Victoria. Municipal status was attained in 1852.

The town celebrated its 200th bicentennial birthday in 2024.^[4]

Notable people

• Ngconde Balfour — politician
• Cecilia Makiwane,the first Black nurse in the country
• John Knox Bokwe — writer/author
• Sipho Burns-Ncamashe — politician
• William Wellington Gqoba — poet and journalist
• John Tengo Jabavu — poet/writer
• Milner Langa Kabane — educator and newspaper editor
• Thandathu Jongilizwe Mabandla — Xhosa chief
• Cecilia Makiwane — first Black nurse in South Africa
• Z. K. Matthews — university teacher
• Chief Mqalo — oldest chief of the Rharhabe Kingdom
• Looksmart Ngudle — anti-apartheid activist
• Jerry Nqolo — cricket player
• Sanele Nohamba — professional rugby player
• Naledi Pandor — politician
• Walter Stanford — civil servant and politician
• Makhenkesi Stofile — politician
• George McCall Theal — historian, genealogist

See also

• Lovedale Press