Pretorius, Andries Wilhelmus Jacobus

Pretorius, Andries Wilhelmus Jacobus (pritôr'ēus, Du. än'drēs vilhel'mus yäkō'bus prātôr'ēus) [key], 1799–1853, Boer (Afrikaner) leader. He was elected (1838) commandant general of the Boers of Natal and in that year defeated a large force of Zulus at Blood River. This victory made possible the organization of a Boer Republic of Natal (see KwaZulu-Natal). In 1848, Pretorius led a party of Boers across the Drakensberg and created there the nucleus of the South African Republic (the Transvaal). The city of Pretoria was named in his honor.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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