Bloemfontein
Bloemfontein (in Afrikaans and Dutch, Flower Fountain; pronounced /ˈblum.fɔn.ˌtɛi̯n/) is one of the three capitals of South Africa, along with Pretoria and Cape Town. Bloemfontein is the judicial capital of the country, as well as the capital of the province of the Free State. The Sesotho name for the town is Mangaung, which means "the place where cheetahs dwell".
Bloemfontein is popularly and poetically known as the city of roses, due to the abundance of these flowers and the annual festival of roses that takes place there. Although Bloemfontein has a reputation for its flowers in an otherwise arid region, the town's name is alleged by some to refer to Jan Bloem (1775-1858), a Griqua Korana leader whose people inhabited (and still inhabit) parts of the Free State. and the Northern Cape. Others view this proposition as vanity, a manifestation of political correctness, and a retrospective reconstruction of history. The British colonial authorities did not usually name sites after local Aboriginal people.
The city is located on the dry plain at 29°06′S 26°13′E, at an altitude of 1,395 meters above sea level. The city has about 370,000 inhabitants, while Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality has a population close to 650,000. Bloemfontein has an airport. It is a center of commerce, manufacture of furniture, glassware and textiles.
History
Although historically a predominantly Afrikaner settlement, Bloemfontein was officially founded in 1846 by British Army Major Henry Douglas Warden as a British outpost in the Transoranje region, at that stage occupied by various groups of towns including trekkers (emigrants) Boers from Colonia de Cabo, Griqua and Basothos. With changes in colonial policy the region became the Orange River Sovereignty (1848-1854) and finally the Republic of the Orange Free State (1854-1902). Between 1902-1910 it was the capital of the Orange River Colony and since then the provincial capital of the Orange Free State (later the Free State) as well as the judicial capital of the country.
Foundation and early days
The city was founded in 1846 around a fort. The Warden originally chose the site largely because of its proximity to the main route to Winburg, the spacious open field, and the absence of horse disease.
1854-1898
As the capital of the Republic of the Orange Free State the growth and maturation of the Republic spawned the growth of the city. Numerous public buildings were built that remain in use to this day, this was largely facilitated by the excellent form of government of the Republic (which acquired the model of republican periodicity) and the compensation from the British for the loss of the Griqualandia area., rich in diamond.
Among its most important historic buildings is the old Raadsaal, where the Council of the Orange Free State met. A railway line was built in 1890 linking Cape Town and Bloemfontein.
The Second Anglo-Boer War
In 1899, the city was the site of the Bloemfontein Conference, which failed to prevent the outbreak of the Second Anglo-Boer War. The conference was a final attempt to prevent a war between England and the Transvaal Republic; with its failure the scene was set for the Anglo-Boer War.
The Cape Town railway line proved critical to the British in the later occupation of the city.
On March 13, 1900, during the Anglo-Boer War, British forces captured the town and built a concentration camp nearby to house Boer women and children. The National Women's Memorial, on the outskirts of the city, honors the 45,000 women and children (including more than 17,000 Black people) who died in these camps.
Beginning of the 20th century
The African National Congress - the now ruling party - was founded to defend the rights of the black majority on January 8, 1912 in Bloemfontein, and counted John Dube (its first president) and the author and poet Sol Plaatje among its founding members.
Geography and climate
Bloemfontein is located in the central region of South Africa, at the southern end of the Highveld, at an elevation of 1400 meters, on the border of the semi-arid region of the Karoo. The area is generally flat, with occasional hills (koppies in Afrikaans) and the vegetation is generally grassland. Bloemfontein has a semi-arid climate (Köppen: BSk), with hot days in summer, January being the hottest month with maximum temperatures of 32 °C and minimum temperatures of 19 °C; during the summer the precipitations are frequent in the afternoons. Winters are dry, with frost being very common. The coldest month is July, with a maximum temperature of 17 °C and a minimum of -2 °C. Snow is infrequent, however there was a snowfall in August 2006 within the city, with subsequent snowfall at the airport on July 26, 2007.
 Average climatic parameters of Bloemfontein | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Ene. | Feb. | Mar. | Open up. | May. | Jun. | Jul. | Ago. | Sep. | Oct. | Nov. | Dec. | Annual |
| Temp. max. abs. (°C) | 39.3 | 38.9 | 34.7 | 33.3 | 29.5 | 24.5 | 24.1 | 28.6 | 33.6 | 34.8 | 36.6 | 37.7 | 39.3 |
| Average temperature (°C) | 30.8 | 28.8 | 26.9 | 23.1 | 20.1 | 16.8 | 17.4 | 20.0 | 24.0 | 26.1 | 28.1 | 30.1 | 24.4 |
| Average temperature (°C) | 22.8 | 21.4 | 19.2 | 14.9 | 10.7 | 6.9 | 7.2 | 10.1 | 14.6 | 17.5 | 19.9 | 21.9 | 15.6 |
| Temp. medium (°C) | 15.3 | 14.7 | 12.4 | 7.7 | 2.5 | -1.5 | -1.9 | 0.5 | 5.2 | 9.1 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 7.5 |
| Temp. min. abs. (°C) | 5.6 | 4.3 | 0.8 | -2.6 | -8.7 | -9.1 | -9.6 | -9.7 | -6.7 | -2.9 | -0.1 | 3.3 | -9.7 |
| Total precipitation (mm) | 83 | 111 | 72 | 56 | 17 | 12 | 8 | 15 | 24 | 43 | 58 | 60 | 559 |
| Precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 11 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 84 |
| Hours of sun | 296.3 | 247.9 | 258.6 | 250.2 | 266.0 | 249.9 | 272.6 | 285.9 | 278.0 | 290.9 | 296.5 | 319.5 | 3312.3 |
| Relative humidity (%) | 55 | 62 | 64 | 66 | 62 | 62 | 57 | 50 | 46 | 50 | 52 | 52 | 57 |
| Source No. 1: NOAA | |||||||||||||
| Source No. 2: South African Weather Service | |||||||||||||
Local government
Bloemfontein is part of Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality and Motheo Municipal District.
Suburbs
Suburban Bloemfontein includes Bayswater, Brandwag, Ehrlichpark, Fauna, Fichardtpark, Fleurdal, Gardeniapark, Generaal De Wet, Hospitaalpark, Kiepersol, Lourierpark, Park West, Pellissier, Uitsig, Universitas, Westdene, Wilgehof and Willows south of the city. To the north of Bloemfontein are Langenhovenpark, Arboretum, Bayswater, Dan Pienaar, Helicon Heights, Heuwelsig, Hillsboro, Hillside, Hilton, Naval Hill, Navalsig, Noordhoek, Pentagon Park, and Waverley.
Education
Pre-university institutions in the city often use different languages, but some schools are bilingual. The most used languages are Afrikaans, English or Sesotho. Primary education is accounted for in approximately 48 schools, the most famous and prestigious being Gray College Primary School. Secondary education or commonly called high school, is integrated into approximately 30 institutes, including St. Andrew's School, Gray College Secondary School, Eunice High School, Castle Bridge School, Bloemfontein High School, and the private institute of Calvinist religion, CVO Skool Dankbaar in Bain's Vlei. Higher education is made up of:
Public
- University of the Free State
- Central Technological University of Bloemfontein
- Motheo Colegio FET (formed by three main campuses, and three others acting as satellite)
Private
- Boston City Campus (with a certain variety of academic divisions)
- CTU Training Solutions (focused on computer and multimedia)
- Damelin (is characterized by requiring part-time training)
- Qualitas Career Academy (mainly in business training and consulting services, as well as government departments)
And to serve the demand needs of students who cannot acquire the entrance requirements, the following temporary buildings are used:
- Jeppe College
- Rostec College
- Hatfield
- iZululethu
- St Ignatious
Economy
Bloemfontein has industries in the agriculture, mining, manufacturing and service sectors such as the judicial sector. The city is especially important for companies in the food, furniture and glass industries. Also, the automaker Barnard Motor is located here.
Transportation
Since 1890, the city has had a railway line connecting to Cape Town, and another running north to Johannesburg. On the way to Bethlehem, only freight trains run.
The city is also home to Bloemfontein Airport. In turn, the city is very well connected to the national road network, with direct connections to Cape Town and Johannesburg. The national highways that lead to the city are the N1, N6 and from Maseru, take the N8.
Featured Characters
- J. R. R. Tolkien (3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was born in the city. Famous for their epic fantasies The hobbit, The Lord of the Rings and The SilmarillionAt the age of 3, South Africa left with his family, heading for the United Kingdom.
Twinnings
Nanking, China
