Al-Husayn I ibn Ali establishes the Husainid Dynasty in Tunisia, and becomes the first bey (king) of the province of the Turkish Ottoman Empire. Because Husayn’s father was Greek – his mother was Tunisian – he earns his legitimacy in the eyes of Tunisians by using Islam to unite the country. He will create a royal succession that will rule Tunisia until 1956, beginning with his sons, before he falls victim to a royal civil war.
130 ships from Portugal, Malta, Naples, Sicily, Tuscany and Spain join in a naval bombardment of Algiers to stop Barbary Coast pirates from harassing European shipping and enslaving Europeans. Like Spain’s bombardment of 1783, this attack fails. But this time Algeria sues for reparations, and Spain must pay one million pesos as damages inflicted in the two bombardments as well as for an attempted invasion ten years ago, in 1775.
All matches have been imported into Southern Africa until now, as William Booker opens a match factory in Port Elizabeth, Cape Colony, South Africa. His wife, children and other family members are workers. The company will last only two years, but will inspire other matchmakers. Cape colony imported £9,249 worth of in matches in 1884 (equal to £1,198,000 in 2022), and this will drop to £1,019 in 1889.
Bathhurst, Gambia and Freetown, Sierra Leone are connected telegraphically with their own submarine cable, laid by the Africa Direct Telegraph Company. (pic: ship laying Atlantic Ocean cable)
Passengers aboard the train traveling from the Indian Ocean port of Beira in Portuguese Mozambique, headed for Northern Rhodesia (Zambia), step out for a stroll in the middle of the wild veld while the train crew shoots impala on one of such frequent unscheduled stops. Passengers are advised to watch out for lions.
The government of the Democratic Republic of Congo, only 12 days old, appeals to the U.N. for security assistance. The arrival of Belgian troops to protect Belgian citizens living in the former Belgian colony worsens the chaos of mutinying soldiers (pic). The soldiers are angry that the national army is not immediately purged of Belgian officers.
The University of Zambia is founded. Its campus is in the Zambian capital Lusaka. Enrollment in 2022 will be 30,000 students.
São Tomé and Príncipe achieve national independence, from Portugal. The capital is São Tomé. The national population is 83,134. The new country constitutes itself as a one-party Marxist state. Fearing confiscation of their properties under a communist regime, many white settlers and wealthier Creoles relocate to Portugal.
With efforts underway to dismantle apartheid, Switzerland ends its 17 year ban on exporting capital to South Africa, which South Africa needs to address economic inequities and social problems. (pic: South Africa delegation in Geneva, 1994)
Namibian sprinter Frankie Fredericks becomes the oldest human to run 200 metres in under 20 seconds when at age 34 years and 283 days he runs the 200 metres in Rome at 19:99.
Harare International Airport officials announce that when refurbishment ends in December the facility will have Africa’s longest runway, surpassing the 4.4-km runway at Johannesburg’s airport.
Ghana-born Nana Twumasi-Ankrah, now an officer in the British army, is appointed by the UK’s Queen Elizabeth II as the first back Equerry, a senior position in the royal household that combines diplomatic and security skills. He will be chosen to escort the Queen’s coffin when she dies in 2022.
South African naturalist, in Arnhem, The Netherlands. His fascination with museums combined with his wonder at South Africa’s natural abundance led him to establish the Transvaal Museum, while also teaching natural sciences at the University of Witwatersrand. Seven species of African plants and two species of African lizards are named after him.
Malian writer and politician, in Bamako, French Sudan. Her father insisted on her education over her mother’s objections. She was active in the independence movement as the only female member of the party leadership of the African Democratic Assembly. When Mali’s independence came in 1960, she was elected as the first and at the time only woman member of the National Assembly.
Sudanese writer and cultural expert, in Karmakol, British Sudan. While popularising Sudanese, Arabic and African culture on BBC broadcasts, and working in this field for UNESCO, he produced newspaper columns and novels on contemporary life. His 1966 novel, Season of Migration to the North, is considered one of Arabic literature’s most important novels, and is his most famous work.
Egyptian children’s book writer, in Cairo, Egypt. After a successful career as a TV documentary director, at age 64 she found her legacy in writing award-winning children’s stories, which have been translated into several languages.
