The Colonial Experience

By the 20^th century, colonial rule changed South Africa because the Europeans changed many aspects of life, as the South Africans knew it. In 1910, the British parliament allowed the Union to form (which allowed South Africa to be a self-governing place) (B). But, South Africa wasn’t truly self-governing because black men had to be nominated by white men, in order to be a representative of parliament (B). So, in an essence, the British heavily influenced the South Africans. The British rule created separate kingdoms that lead to a single political economy, they established new states, and implemented new methods of enforcement, such as policemen, soldiers, and tax collectors (D). However, not all of the changes that were caused by the Europeans were bad, some were beneficial to the community. The change in the transportation system benefited the community because along with the new railroads came new sources of labor (C). This change in labor market was not only limited to railroads, but was seen when the number of workers and peasants suddenly increased. But, along with these new job opportunities, some old jobs were lost. The production of nonagricultural items decreased because they had to compete with the cheap, mass-produced goods that were the results of the industrialization that was going on, so many farmers lost their jobs to machines (D). Another change seen in the community was the shift in authority. The Colonial authorities tried to destroy the African kings’ powers, since they had complete control over their own kingdoms before when they were under Dutch rule, but that didn’t happen (D). What really happened was that the kings/chiefs still controlled their sections (they were no longer kingdoms, according to the British), but their power was made less effective because they became appointees of the colonial authorities.