Croatians in South Africa

[derLowe]

Croatians in South Africa (http://www.croatia.org/crown/articles/4777/1/E-Croatians-in-South-Africa.html)


In Search of a Better Life
Are Croats (amongst) the first settlers in South Africa ?

To claim that Croats participated in the discovery of new continents and that they sailed with Columbus,
Magellan, Da Gama and other great explorers, would not be easily believed and probably questioned by many. To say that they established the first supply station and probably had a colony on the South African coast sounds like fiction. However, the 1400-1650's were in fact the golden age for Croatia, quite
disproportionate to her size in territory and population.

These Croat explorers: sailors, mariners, captains, pilots, merchants, bankers and diplomats; were mostly
from the Dalmatian Coast and the Republic of Raguza (Dubrovnik).

The Croatian Republic of Dubrovnik was known in the Middle Ages as the Republic of Raguza and it was well
respected for its merchants, shipbuilders and sailors. Together with Venice they commanded the largest
merchant fleets in the Mediterranean. Using the able diplomats and unsurpassed skills of its mariners and
merchants Raguza managed to spread trade interests far away from the Mediterranean. In order to improve
the spice trade a Raguzan colony of Sao Braz was established on the Malabar Coast in north Goa, India. The
Church of Sao Braz was built in 1653. This coIony had at one time 12 000 residents. Saint Vlaho was (is)
the Patron Saint of Raguza (Dubrovnik). It is of interest to note that Saint Vlaho is mentioned as Blaise
or Blaze in English and Braz or Bras in Portuguese.

"During the absence of Venice the largest part of the oriental trade was taken over by Raguza, which in
about 1530-1540 had a virtual monopoly of that trade. For a decade or two there existed a sharp
competition between Raguza and Portugal, which was also carried on in Portugal's own East Indian empire.
The Raguzan colony Sao Braz near Goa is one of the strangest and most interesting examples of the economic
expansion of that little republic in the period of the commercial revolution." (*)

This book has. South Africa's map,. dated 1508, with two place names:' '.Cape of Good Hope and Cape of Sao
Bras (Saint Vlaho)!, see below.

"Sao Bras or Mossel Bay is located 60 leagues beyond the Cape of Good Hope. Bartholomew Dias stopped there
and named it Bahia dos Vaqueiros. Vasco da Gama had remained there for thirteen days on his voyage to
India, securing beef and water from the natives. It was here that he broke up his store-ship. Cabrat would
probably have stopped at Mossel Bay (Sao Bras) for supplies and water had it not been for the storm which
he encountered in the South Atlantic"

On the early 19th century maps (1805) there is still distinctively marked, Cape of St. Blaise, situated
between Mossel Bay and adjacent Fish Bay.

This indicates that able Ragusans had established, under the name of Sao Bras, and used Mossel Bay as a
supply station on their voyages to India. May we proudly conclude, on the basis of the above evidence,
that Croats discovered and lived in this beautiful land before Dias, Da Gama and other famous explorers,
certainly long before van Riebeeck! "C.DE S. BRAS", Cape and Bay of Saint Blaise (Vlaho)

For us, Croats and descendants of early Croat settlers in South Africa, the "Book about the voyage of
Pedro Alvares Cabral to Brazil and India in 1500-1501", London 1937, is of special interest.

Compiled from:

A.S. Eterovich, "Croatia in the New World"(*) Ragusan Press, CA, 1992.

Article taken from CASA Croatian Association of South Africa newsletter

http://www.stjerome.co.za/cs_1stcr.htm
http://www.stjerome.co.za/cs_refer.htm

www.stjerome.co.za

[derLowe]

Images are broken for this article so I took a screen shot, here is the original URL:
http://www.stjerome.co.za/

http://www.theapricity.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=21997&stc=1&d=1331908504

[Rastko]

Are they recognised minority there,like in Australia?
And are they more on the right wing,do they like Afrikaans or Blacks more?

[derLowe]

Are they recognised minority there,like in Australia?
And are they more on the right wing,do they like Afrikaans or Blacks more?

I have not met any of them, so I don't know how their political orientation is.

[derLowe]

The Cape of Good Hope - with "C. DE S. BRAS" - Cape with the Bay of Saint Blaise (sv. Vlaho)

There is evidence to suggest that the first Croats to arrive on Southern African shores were Dalmatian and Ragusan (from today's Dubrovnik) sailors in the early part of the sixteenth century, based on Adam Eterovic's book - Croatia in the New World, 1992 To view an article from CASA on the first Croatians in South Africa (http://www.stjerome.co.za/cs_1stcr.htm) click here


Were these the first Croats in Southern Africa ?

http://www.theapricity.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=22003&stc=1&d=1331910655



In 1757, Franciscus Drago arrived from "Castelrave",
according to the Archives in Cape Town,
however subsequent research (in Holland) by TA Mursalo,
showed that he actually came from Bosnia and not from Istria.
The fact that he gave a fictious place of origin gives rise to speculation ..
or did the clerk simply not know how to spell Drago's hometown's name ?
In 1758, Josef Kacer Zeganzig (Cigancic) arrived from Rijeka




Main references

For more information, you should refer to the following publications.
T. A. Mursalo's book is the best
but is now out of print and hard to find.
http://www.theapricity.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=22006&stc=1&d=1331910655
(http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0620050055/qid=911389564/sr=1-41/002-4184405-7576033)In Search of a Better Life (http://www.stjerome.co.za/csb_main.htm)
A story of Croatian Settlers in Southern Africa, 1981,
ISBN 0 620 05005 5
Click on the title to read extracts from the book

http://www.theapricity.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=22007&stc=1&d=1331910655
The late Ivan Hetrich's Kroz juznoafriku republiku
was until recently the only other book on Croats in South Africa
(also out of print)
http://www.theapricity.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=22005&stc=1&d=1331910655
The Croatian Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies
has published a book (in Croatian) on the Croats in South Africa
Juzna Afrika i Hrvati
by Ante Lausic and Jozo Anic
Zagreb 2000
ISBN 953-6028-13-1.
http://www.theapricity.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=22004&stc=1&d=1331910655
The Croatian Homeland Foundation, Hrvatska Matica Iseljenika
has recently published a new book (in Croatian) on the Croats in South Africa
Hrvati na Jugu Afrike
by Tvrtko Andrija Mursalo
Zagreb 2003
ISBN 953-185-074-7.
This is a translated and updated revision of his earlier work In Search of a Better Life A few copies of this book are still available at the Parish Office of the
St Jerome Catholic Church (http://www.stjerome.co.za/cs_svjer.htm), Houghton, Johannesburg.

[derLowe]

DUBROVAČKI JEDRENJACI NA JUGU AFRIKE I U INDIJSKOM OCEANU, KONCEM XVIII I POČETKOM XIX STOLJEĆA



Između 6. i 7. studenoga 1795. godine jedrenjak, u ono vrijeme srednje veličine, s tonažom od oko 400 tona, pod zastavom sv. Vlaha, Republike Dubrovačke, uplovio je u luku Port Louis na otoku Mauritiusu. Brod, koji se zvao Constanta i bio pod zapovjedništvom kapetana Josipa Fiskovića (Joseph Christoforo Fiskovic), imao je posadu od 25 mornara, što je uključilo i kapetana.

Kapetan Fisković je isplovio iz Livorna 6 mjeseci prije, 10. svibnja 1795. godine, i premda je prošao kroz olujno područje rta Dobre nade (Cape of Good Hope) sa stanovitim poteškoćama, ipak je sretno stigao na svoje odredište, mali otok usred Indijskog oceana, Mauritius. Kapetan je bio zabrinut za stanje povjerenog mu tereta, pa je pri dolasku zatražio da mu pomorski sud (Tribunal) pregleda isti, da ne bi imao neprilika s vlasnicima. No, prema podacima francuskog Admiraliteta izgleda da se sve dobro završilo, jer u Arhivu u Mauritiusu, folio 44, No. 93, volume F. 30, nema znakova da je kapetan Fisković ovaj puta imao bilo kakvih neprilika.

Put ovog jedrenjaka opisan je i u literaturi, pa tako prof. Vinko Foretić u svom poznatom djelu "Povijest Dubrovnika" do 1808., napominje da je Constanta plovila od Marseillea do Mauritiusa 1794. godine. Također i Pomorska enciklopedija JAZU, vol. 6, str. 76., pri opisivanju pomorstva na Pelješcu navodi da je kapetan Josip Visković plovio do Mauritiusa 1796. (sic) godine. Izgleda da je to i jedini brod za kojeg se znalo da je plovio u Indijski ocean u to doba.

Proučavajući, međutim, dolazak naših iseljenika u Južnu Afriku, primijetili smo da je bilo i drugih dubrovačkih brodova koji su plovili u taj dio svijeta. No, interesirao nas je prvenstveno razlog radi kojeg su ovako mali brodovi poduzimali tako daleka i opasna putovanja. Poznata je vještina i smjelost naših mornara kroz vjekove, no ipak, plovidba stranim i opasnim morima morala je imati i jedan bolji razlog, a ne samo dokazivanje dubrovačkih brodova, da su bili kadri ploviti svjetskim morima i oceanima.

Razlog treba tražiti u političkoj, odnosno ratnoj situaciji, koja je vladala koncem XVIII. i početkom XIX. stoljeća, a također i u djelovanju trgovačkih kompanija koje su operirale između dalekog Istoka i Europe. Najpoznatija i najmoćnija od tih kompanija bila je, bez sumnje, engleska (britanska) Istočno-indijska kompanija, koja je praktički imala u svojim rukama svu službenu trgovinu između Engleske i Indije.

Tako, na primjer, sve do 1813., nijedan engleski trgovački brod nije mogao oploviti rt Dobre nade bez "licence", odnosno dozvole te kompanije. Kao rezultat te situacije, a također i englesko-francuskih (koalicionih i drugih) ratova, neutralno brodovlje bilo je u velikoj potražnji.

U XVIII. stoljeću svaka pomorska država u Europi imala je svoju Istočno-indijsku kompaniju, pa je tako čak i Austrija osnovala svoju sa sjedištem u Ostende-u 1722. godine. No, političke prilike povezane s Pragmatičkom sankcijom i konkurencija među pomorskim nacijama, prisilile su Austriju da suspendira djelovanje svoje kompanije već 1727., da bi je, kao rezultat Bečkog ugovora s Engleskom, formalno likvidirala 1731., premda je djelovala još do 1744. Nasljednica, u neku ruku, službene austrijske Istočno-indijske kompanije, ali posve privatnog karaktera, bila je Imperijalna Istočno-indijska kompanija u Trstu.

Iako je Trst bio službeno sjedište kompanije, ona je stvarno operirala iz Ostende-a u Belgiji. Njeni brodovi nosili su imena kao što su: Prince de Kaunitz, Comte de Kollowrath, Le Croate, Le Hongrois, La Ville de Vienne itd. Kompanija je imala i naših mornara u službi, pa je tako kapetan "La Ville de Vienne" bio stanoviti Antonio Matteo Gherizza, vjerojatno Hrvat s Korčule ili iz okolice Dubrovnika gdje i danas ima Gerica. Antonio Gherizza (Gerica) je 1782. godine plovio na ovom jedrenjaku od 700 tona iz Marseille-a u Kinu, što baš nije bilo uobičajeno putovanje u to doba.

Kako se dobar dio neslužbene trgovine između dalekog Istoka i Europe sastojao od krijumčarenja robe u Englesku, Imperijalna je kompanija bila veoma upletena u te poslove. Profiti od takvih neslužbenih transakcija bili su vrlo unosni, no ipak Imperijalna kompanija doživljava financijski slom 1795. godine, najviše radi nesolidnog poslovanja i ignoriranja političke situacije u Indiji.

No, najveći protagonisti te "neslužbene" trgovine bile su kompanije priznatih neutralnih država kao što je bila Danska. Ovdje treba napomenuti da je većina te ilegalne, odnosno neslužbene trgovine, opet obavljana za račun Engleza, doduše privatnih osoba, ali vrlo često službenika engleske Istočno-indijske kompanije koji su otpremali robu preko Copenhagen-a i Ostende-a na stranim brodovima neutralnih zastava, jer to nisu mogli činiti na engleskim trgovačkim brodovima. Radilo se pretežno o svili, indigu i finom pamučnom platnu, a također i o salitri, šećeru, riži i kasnije čaju, uključivši tu i stanovite novčane dokumente velikih vrijednosti.

Jedno od glavnih uporišta danske Istočno-indijske kompanije u Indiji bila je luka Tranquebar, gdje je danski admiral Gedde (Giede, odnosno Gjedde,1594-1660.) još 1620. sagradio utvrdu "Dansborg". Grad se nalazi na obali Coromandel-a, 140 milja južno od Madrasa, i pripadao je Danskoj od 1755. do 1846. godine kada je prodan Englezima.

Pod ovako kompliciranim ratno-trgovačkim prilikama nalazimo dubrovačke brodove u Indijskom oceanu; najprije, kako smo već napomenuli, brod Constantu 1795., a zatim 1804. i 1805. i druge jedrenjake Dubrovačke Republike.

Nastavak u slijedećem broju. Constanta je vrlo vjerojatno prevozila robu za Francuze koji su tada imali Mauritius pod svojom kontrolom. Da li su dubrovački brodovi bili upleteni u prijevoz tih "neslužbenih" tereta, možemo samo nagađati, no uzevši u luccki bis obzir da matična luka Dubrovnik nema podataka o takvim putovanjima, vjerojatno je da su ti jedrenjaci, uz dobru zaradu, prevozili onu robu koja im je bila ponuđena u stranim lukama od stranih klijenata. U drugu ruku, kako znamo, Dubrovačka Republika nije nikad ni publicirala a ni precizno registrirala pojedine činove svojih građana koji su iz političkih ili komercijalnih razloga bili osjetljive ili opasne naravi. Prijevoz ovakovih tereta u burnim godinama između 1775. i 1805., kad su se Sjedinjene Američke Države formirale, a Europa bila pred Francuskom revolucijom i napoleonskim ratovima, bio je inzvanredno opasan posao.

U to vrijeme nije bilo neuobičajeno da su se brodovi raznih zastava plijenili, potapali i često bili žrtve gusara i u Sredozemnom moru i u ostalim svjetskim morima i oceanima. Ne treba nas stoga čuditi da, radi ovakovih okolnosti, danas imamo tako malo podataka o kretanju i poslovanju dubrovačkih brodova u Indijskom, a i u ostalim oceanima. U međuvremenu je prošlo 8 godina, dok se opet nije našao jedan dubrovački brod na jugu Afrike.

Ovaj put se radilo o malom jedrenjaku od 120 tona, naoružanom sa 4 topa, pod zapovjedništvom Vicka Cibilića (Vincenzo Zibelich), porijeklom s Pelješca, ali sa stalnim boravkom u Dubrovniku. Brod se zvao La Sovrana i imao posadu od 14 mornara, uključivši i kapetana. U Cape Town je stigao iz Texela, nizozemske luke, iz koje je isplovio 27. svibnja 1803.,da bi stigao na svoje odredište 7. veljače 1804. La Sovrana je na putu za Južnu Afriku pristala 7. srpnja 1803. na Madeiri i onda opet u zaljevu Sv. Jelene (St. Helena Bay), nedaleko od Cape Town-a. Po nesreći, kapetan Vicko Cibilić je iz nepoznatih razloga umro u Cape Town-u 26. ožujka 1804., pa je tako La Sovrana otplovila iz Južne Afrike 19. travnja iste godine bez svog kapetana. Izgleda da je brod iz zaljeva sv. Jelene nosio vino u Cape Town.

Zanimljivo je zabilježiti da je La Sovrana spomenuta u djelu dr. Josipa Luetića "Pomorci i jedrenjaci Republike Dubrovačke" (Matica Hrvatska, Zagreb 1984.). Tu na 148. stranici dr. Luetić piše da je ruska korveta "Count (grof) Suvorov" zaplijenila u kolovozu 1800. blizu Cagliari-a slijedeće dubrovačke brodove: "Dianu", pod zapovjedništvom kapetana Antuna Brbore, "La Sovranu", pod zapovjedništvom Vinka Cibilića i još jedan jedrenjak koji je pripadao kapetanu Mati Magudi. La Sovrana se iskopala iz svoje sredozemne neprilike, jer je 1803. vidimo na putu u Cape Town.

Godinu dana kasnije dubrovački jedrenjak na putu u dansku koloniju Tranquebar pristaje u luku Port Louis, na otoku Mauritius. Radilo se ovaj puta o brodu koji je plovio pod imenom Nemesis i kojim je zapovijedao kapetan Pavao Pavlović (Paolo Paulovich). Brod je imao posadu od 16 mornara, no tonaža nam nije poznata. Polazna luka je bila Marseille u Francuskoj, a datum dolaska u Port Louis 1. travnja 1805. godine. Nedugo nakon toga, 2. lipnja 1805., pristaje opet u Port Louis još jedan dubrovački jedrenjak na putu, kao i Nemesis, iz Marseille-a u Tranquebar. Brod se zvao Terpsichor i bio je pod zapovjedništvom kapetana Franje Kopšića (Francesco Tommaso Copsich); imao je posadu od 15 mornara i nosivost od oko 200 tona. Bio je to doista malen brod za ovako dugačko i opasno putovanje, pogotovo ako se uzme u obzir da su dobro naoružani "istočno-indijci", brodovi engleske Istočno-indijske kompanije, normalno imali nosivost od 500 do 1200 tona.

U XVIII. stoljeću jedrenjak tipa "brik" (brig), s prosječnom tonažom od 150 do 400 tona, bio je vrlo popularan na Mediteranu, pa tako i u Dubrovniku. Ovi su relativno mali, ali naoružani i brzi jedrenjaci, bili u stanju da se obrane od gusarskih napadaja, koji su u to doba bili prava napast u Sredozemnom moru, a tako i na dalekom Istoku. Sva četiri dubrovačka broda koja ovdje spominjemo bili su "brikovi", u stanju da plove na kraća, a i duga putovanja. I Nemesis i Terpsichor su, izgleda, imali poteškoće prigodom puta i zato su pristali na Mauritiusu, gdje se normalno nije prekidao put. Nemamo podataka kuda su ova dva broda plovili na povratku iz Tranquebara, ali je vjerojatno da su robu nosili ili u Ostende ili u Copenhagen.

Kao što je poznato, već 1806. Francuzi su okupirali Dubrovnik i nakon toga dubrovački brodovi uglavnom iščezavaju sa svjetskih oceana. To je svakako bio slučaj s Indijskim oceanom, jer nakon 1805. nema traga dubrovačkim brodovima u registrima niti u Cape Town-u, niti na Mauritiusu. No vrijedno je zabilježiti da su dubrovački brodovi koncem XVIII. i početkom XIX. stoljeća učestvovali u prijevozu robe iz Indije, Južne Afrike i Mauritiusa, što u okviru svjetske trgovine toga doba možda nije posebno važno, ali je ipak, po našem mišljenju, značajno i važno za pomorske povjesničare Dubrovnika i općenito Hrvatske.

[derLowe]

The Early Croatians arrivals to South Africa

References to early arrivals - until 1900

These names were taken from the book : "In Search of a Better Life" (Part III)

Joseph Kacer Zeganzig (Cigancic ?) - Rijeka arrived 1758
Gerolamo (Jeronim) Marinkovic -Istria, arrived 1829 - (changed name to Marinkovitz)
Mr. Gasic, arrived 1851
Nikola Matovic - Dubrovnik, recorded in 1863, date of arrival unknown
Pavle Matovic - Dubrovnik, recorded in 1867, date of arrival unknown
Anton Petar Jersich (Jerzic ?), arrived 1873
Nikola Superina - Pula, arrived 1874?
Josip Pepo Postic - Volosko, arrived 1886
Nikola Stipic - Slano, recorded in 1890 , date of arrival unknown
Armand Paulic, recorded in 1896 , date of arrival unknown
Karlo Surina

Arrivals in the period between 1880 and 1884

J Cristich (Kristic) arrived 1880
L Sattalich (Satalic)
Mr. Kovaschich (Kovacic)
T Lucich
A Kralievich (Kraljevic)
Mrs Subara
A Stepcovitch (Stipkovic)
J Natalich (Natalic)
J Veitch (Veic)
Mr. Italiancich
A Radelevich (Radeljevic)
S Luganitch arrived 1884
Marko Baleta arrived 1889
Antun Luksic
George Sinovic arrived 1891
Vicko Vukovac arrived 1894
Pavle Vidas arrived 1894
Pavle Rosic arrived 1879
Pavle Boskovic arrived 1895
Frans Josip Brnic arrived 1897
George Jokovic arrived 1897
Ignac Zoric arrived 1897
Mate Cekalovic arrived 1897

More early arrivals (up to 1900)

The following list was extracted from : "In Search of a Better Life" Appendix I (pg 182)

Surname, Forename, from
Car, Josip, Peljesac
Cetkovich, Milo Kotor
Cigancic, Josip Rijeka
Dabovitch, Antonie Rijeka
Dabrovic, George Dubrovnik
Dubretich, Ivan unknown
Feretic, Ivan Krk
Gojkovich, Spiro Filip Kotor
Lizerovitch, Andrew Pravac (Lazerevic ?)
Madenich, Gabriel Francisco Peljesac
Marcovich, Marko unknown
Marinkovic, Gerolamo Istria
Matic, Pavle Austria
Mavricic, John Austria
Mazurich, J unknown
Medonich, Stanko Korcula
Milutinovich, Nikola Dalmatia
Mitrovich, E Malta
Moporich, Jonh Dalmatia
Nadetich, Pieter Istria
Negovetich, Felix Moscenice
Piskulic, Petar Ogulin
Pondic, Frederick unknown
Sliskovic, Michael Sinj
Vaklovitch, Nicholas Istria (Valkovic ?)
Vignovich, Louis Ogulin
Vucinovic, Tripo Lepetane
Zibilic, Vicenzo Dubrovnik

©For more information, see T. A. Mursalo's book "In Search of a Better Life",
A story of Croatian Settlers in Southern Africa, 1981, ISBN 0 620 05005 5

[derLowe]

IN SEARCH OF A BETTER LIFE
The Early Croatians in Rhodesia


Extracts from : "In Search of a Better Life" (Part III) pages 108-110
Background
It was mentioned earlier that the Croats in search of a better life arrived in Rhodesia well before the Boer War (1899-1902). The original magnet was the possibility of the discovery of gold on a similar scale to that on the Rand; but as time went on and other minerals were discovered Croatian immigrants found work in and around a variety of newly opened mines. However, as subsequent events have proved, one of the most important mineral discoveries in what is now Zambia was that of copper-bearing ore.
In 1902 W.C. Collier, a prospector working for the Rhodesia Copper Company, left Bulawayo for what is today the northern part of Zambia. He and his two partners were after deposits of copper ore, which they believed existed in the area. After an arduous journey they arrived at their destination. The local tribesmen, having been instructed by their chief not to say anything about copper to the white men, were not helpful.
However, Mr. Collier managed to gain the cooperation of an old man, who directed him to look for "something" in the upstream direction of the Luanshya River. There, as is well known, in a clearing by the side of the river, he shot a roan antelope bull. As it fell down he noticed under the antelope's horn a rock which was stained green with copper. The clue was sufficient for Mr. Collier to proceed with his investigations which ended up in the discovery of major deposits of copper ore. This and subsequent discoveries led to the formation of one of the biggest copper mining operations in the world which eventually became known as the Northern Rhodesia Copperbelt. However, the actual exploitation of the ore did not start before the mid-1920s and when it did Croatian immigrants arrived on the scene.

Numbers
The number of early Croatian immigrants in Rhodesia was never large. In 1911 there were, according to the Rhodesian census, 114 Austrians and, as in South Africa, the majority of these were Croats. After the First World War a number of them left the country for home or moved to South Africa. As a result, in the 1921 census there were only 24 Yugoslavs (the Rhodesian census recorded citizens of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes as Yugoslavs already in 1921 ) 111 Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and three in Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia). However, as the work opportunities in Southern Rhodesia improved and the production of copper in Northern Rhodesia increased, their numbers increased.
By 1931 there were 72 male and 2 female Croatian immigrants in the Copperbelt and around 70 in Southern Rhodesia. Throughout the 1930s this figure remained more or less unchanged.
Twenty five years later, in the 1956 census there were 101 recorded Yugoslavs in Southern Rhodesia, 134 in Northern Rhodesia and 3 in Nyasaland. In other words a total of 238, of which 104 were naturalised British subjects. An investigation has shown that nearly all of these people were of Croatian origin.
The Croatian immigrants who settled in the Rhodesias in the 1920s and 1930s mostly came from the Croatian Littoral and Dalmatia. The former were, by and large, artisans and the latter farmers and fishermen. For quite a while there were only two or three Croatian women among them, but once the depression years were over the situation, particularly in the late 1930s, changed as a few more Croatian women came to join their husbands.

Names
Croatian immigrants in the Rhodesias were hard workers, respected and sought-after. The names like A. Kabalin, the brothers Polic, Baron Tasilo Rukavina, Fran Juretic, brothers Mavric, S. Gosparovic, J. Grbcic, S. Guzovic, Mato Lozina, Stanko Drazic, Plovanic, Glavovic, Lovre Antak, Stjepan Klanfar, Kombol, G. Babaja, Ivo Zvanovic, the brothers Mazuranic, Stjepan Blagus, D. Tasovac, Mrzljak, Radetic, Valentin and Mate Tonkovic, B. Piskulic, Vinko Lusic and others are still remembered by old Rhodesia hands.

Commentary
Of those surviving, only a few are still living in Rhodesia; but most have moved to South Africa or left the continent altogether. The Croats in the Rhodesias, as in South Africa, lived in a close-knit community. Inevitably there, was a folk, "tamburitza," orchestra, which will be described in greater detail later, that played during social gatherings and was greatly appreciated. However, as the number of Croatian immigrants was relatively small, no formal organisations of a social, sporting or political nature were possible. Instead, people joined local clubs and unions and some individuals became well known and accomplished members of the Copperbelt sports community. Meanwhile in South Africa its gold mining industry, having recovered from the General Strike, was following the path of expansion with increased profits. However, a shortage of Black labour created problems which threatened to interfere with the normal working of the mines. On the other hand, the supply of White miners was sufficient to meet the needs of the industry. Even though the proportion of South African born White miners was now dominant, immigrants in fairly large numbers still had to be relied upon.
Sensing work opportunities in South Africa, the Croats kept coming into the country. Again, the number of arrivals was not large, but sufficient to significantly strengthen the existing community.

Even though most Croatian immigrants lived and worked in Johannesburg and other Reef towns nearby, small communities existed practically all over South Africa and Rhodesia. In South Africa one could, in those days, find Croats in varying numbers in Bloemfontein, Durban, Cape Town, Stellenbosch, Simonstown, Pietersburg, Port Elizabeth, Pretoria, Barberton, Pilgrim's Rest, Lydenburg, Heidelberg, Namaqualand, Umtata and as far as Port Nolloth in South West Africa. As far as Rhodesia was concerned, they lived in Salisbury, Selukwe, Sinoia, Umtali, Wankie, Gatooma, Bulawayo and Gwelo.
A few lived in Lourenco Marques and about half a dozen in the Belgian Congo.

As far as Zambia and now Zimbabwe are concerned, the number of Croats living there is small. Immediately before and after the Second World War a number of them moved to South Africa and some left the continent altogether. Mocambique, on the other hand, never had more than a handful of Croats living in the country. It would therefore appear that the Republic of South Africa with its rich resources, employment and business opportunities, had and still has by far the largest number of Croats in the continent of Africa south of the Sahara desert.

In Rhodesia at this time most of the Croatian immigrants worked as masons and builders. A few were prospectors, one had a farm, but the number of those who worked as miners was actually small.
Perhaps a typical case was that of Frank Juretic from Grobnik near Rijeka. He first came to the Transvaal in 1897. Throughout the Boer War he served as a policeman on the Boer side. He went back home in 1901 but a few years later returned to Southern Africa. In 1912 he arrived in what used to be Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe). He was a carpenter by trade but apart from working in his profession be became the owner of two gold mining claims, one in Sinoia and another in Shamwa. For Frank Juretic the future looked reasonably rosy, but unfortunately at the start of the First World War he was interned as an Austrian subject, As a result he could not perform even a minimum amount of work on his mining claims and, according to law, he lost them. He still survived and having gone through three wars in Southern Africa, he died in 1946 in Ndola, Zambia. He left a son, also Frank, who became a well-known personality in Copperbelt mining circles immediately before and particularly after the Second World War.

The activities of the Croatian miners in the Northern Rhodesian Copperbelt have already been described. However, one should mention in a sporting context A. Kabalin, who in 1932, 1933 and 1934 played rugby against South Africa as a member of the Northern Rhodesian team.
But of all the early Croatian Copperbelt miners perhaps the most successful was Baron Tasilo Rukavina. This titled and very well educated man worked initially as a shift boss in the Copperbelt mines and from there moved to Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe). There in 1935 he pegged the Kamtchatka Mine, selling it at the end of that year. This mine was in the vicinity of Bulawayo in the Fort Rixon area and it produced gold until 1939. Then in 1937 he pegged a lead mine, again near Bulawayo, but it never reached production stage.
Baron Tasilo Rukavina went on pegging another gold mine before the Second World War and chromite mines after it. His final and what appeared to be the major operation was in an area near Salisbury, There he became involved in the exploitation of manganese ore.
This enterprising man was actively exploring the main areas of his manganese ore exposures, the Marocco and Sheffield, when he died in a motor accident in 1961.
Still in connection with mining, a man called Paskijevic from Zagreb appears to have been involved in the exploitation of antimony ore near Beira in Mocambique.

[derLowe]

Barrel Chardonnay from Mulderbosch

MULDERBOSCH recently introduced its first fully barrel-fermented Chardonnay, fairly similar to the one that came under the hammer at last year's CIWG Auction. Forty cases of the Chardonnay Barrel-fermented 1997 are available from the farm at R8O a bottle. The Chardonnay was fermented in first- and second-fill French barrels. Winemaker Mike Dobrovic allowed spontaneous fermentation in some barrels, comprising a third of the final blend. The wine was left on the lees for 10 months, and barrels were rolled twice a month - hence Dobrovic calls this his "007" wine - "rolled, not stirred". He recommends laying it down for three to seven years "to allow the full rich fruit to develop and wood tannins to marry."

pg. 10 WINE magazine - April 1999

[Sisak]

What has happend to first Croatians in Africa?