The South African gold mines: exploitation and socio-economic impact, 1870-1910

This dissertation examines the economic history of South Africa between 1870 and 1910, focusing on the impact that the discovery and exploitation of the gold mines had on the South African society and economy. After describing the evolution of diamond and gold mining in South Africa, the dissertation focuses on the gold mining industry’s influence on the political events that occurred in South Africa at the beginning of the 20th century, the Jameson Raid and the Anglo-Boer War. The study examines the consequences of the war for the native and the Afrikaner population, but mainly focuses on the causes of the conflict and on the various economic interests involved. A major part of the dissertation is dedicated to the racial situation in South Africa. In particular, the study tries to understand in what measure the mining industry was connected to the discrimination against South African natives during the 20th century. The study shows how natives had been discriminated against since the beginning of gold mining, when they were exploited in the mines as a cheap work force, and how their conditions only worsened with the development of the industry. The study concludes with an analysis of the Natives Land Act of 1913, the first major segregation law in South Africa, which was taken as a model for the apartheid. The aim of the study is to show how the apartheid system was an evolution of the racial discrimination that had been undermining natives for decades. In particular, the study wants to highlight how racial discrimination in South Africa, despite being depicted as “natural” and “necessary”, was a product of greed, as it satisfied specific economic needs.