President Paul Kruger appoints British-trained Afrikaner lawyer…

1898 CE

President Paul Kruger appoints British-trained Afrikaner lawyer Jan Smuts as state attorney for the Transvaal in 1898.

Smuts had begun to practice law in Cape Town, but his abrasive nature made him few friends.

Finding little financial success in the law, he began to divert more and more of his time to politics and journalism, writing for the Cape Times.

Smuts, intrigued by the prospect of a united South Africa, had joined the Afrikaner Bond.

By good fortune, Smuts' father knew the leader of the group, Jan Hofmeyr.

Hofmeyr in turn had recommended Jan to Cecil Rhodes, who owns the De Beers mining company.

Smuts had become an advocate and supporter of Rhodes  in 1895, but when Rhodes launched the Jameson Raid n the summer of 1895–96, Smuts was outraged.

Feeling betrayed by his employer, friend and political ally, he had resigned from De Beers and left political life to become state attorney in the capital of the South African Republic, Pretoria.

Locations
Pretoria Gauteng South Africa View →

People
Cecil Rhodes View → Jan Smuts View → Leander Starr Jameson View → Paul Kruger View →

Groups
Afrikaners View → British people View → Britain (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland) View → Cape Colony, British View → Orange Free State, Republic of the (Boer Republic) View → South African Republic (the Transvaal) (restored) View →

Subjects
Government View → Custom and Law View →

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