21 November 1757
Swellendam Khoikhoi herders report armed cattle seizures
Khoikhoi herders complained that armed trekboers had entered their kraals and taken or forcibly extorted cattle.
View in timelineOn 21 November 1757, Khoikhoi herders in the Swellendam district formally complained that armed trekboers had entered their kraals and taken or forcibly extorted their cattle.
The complaint is one of the clearest dated records of direct livestock seizure in the historical Hessequa region. It concerns Swellendam Khoikhoi generally, however, and should not be attributed exclusively to the Hessequa without further evidence.
Why it matters
The complaint provides direct archival evidence of livestock seizure during colonial expansion into the Overberg.
Perspective notes
The record concerns Khoikhoi herders in the Swellendam district generally and is not attributed exclusively to the earlier Hessequa polity.