Dingane orders his forces to wipe out remaining parties of Voortrekkers after the murder of Piet Retief and his companions. The two Voortrekker parties at Bloukrans and Bushmans Rivers in Natal are attacked in the early morning hours of the 17th and 41 men, 56 women, 185 children and more than 200 Black servants are massacred. Numbers of those killed vary in different sources.
eventREF E-0074044Revised
Event record
Dingane orders his forces to wipe out remaining parties of Voortrekkers after the murder of Piet Retief and his companions
- Updated
- 30 Sep 2019
Search events by date
This day in history
What happened on your birthday?
How we know this
- 01Potgieter, D.J. et al. (eds)(1970). Standard Encyclopaedia of Southern Africa, Cape Town: NASOU, v. 2, p. 380
- 02Swart, M.J., et al. (eds)(1980). Afrikaanse Kultuuralmanak, Aucklandpark: Federasie van Afrikaanse Kultuurvereniginge
- 03Muller, C.F.J. (ed)(1981). Five Hundred years: a history of South Africa; 3rd rev. ed., Pretoria: Academica
- 04Wallis, F. (2000). Nuusdagboek: feite en fratse oor 1000 jaar, Kaapstad: Human & Rousseau
- 05https://www.news24.com
Last updated · 30 Sep 2019
South African History Online. (2012, February 10). Dingane orders his forces to wipe out remaining parties of Voortrekkers after the murder of Piet Retief and his companions. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0074044
South African History Online (2012) 'Dingane orders his forces to wipe out remaining parties of Voortrekkers after the murder of Piet Retief and his companions', South African History Online, 10 February. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0074044 (Accessed: 9 August 2026).
South African History Online, Dingane orders his forces to wipe out remaining parties of Voortrekkers after the murder of Piet Retief and his companions [website], https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0074044, (accessed 9 August 2026).
"Dingane orders his forces to wipe out remaining parties of Voortrekkers after the murder of Piet Retief and his companions." South African History Online, 10 Feb. 2012, https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0074044. Accessed 9 Aug. 2026.
South African History Online. "Dingane orders his forces to wipe out remaining parties of Voortrekkers after the murder of Piet Retief and his companions." South African History Online. February 10, 2012. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0074044.
Further reading
Place
Mooivallei, Dairy Farm
Mooivallei, meaning “beautiful valley”, is named after the picturesque town of Bonnievale – a place synonymous...
Place
Cape St Francis, Western Cape Peninsula
Manuel Perestrelo visited Cape St Francis in 1575 and named it 'Bahia de Sao Francisco'.
SAHO is free because readers fund it. Donate →