Alice, also known as Dikeni, is a small town on the R63 road in the Eastern Cape, South Africa, adjacent to the Tyhume River. The town serves as halfway between Qonce and KwaMaqoma. It is named after Princess Alice of the United Kingdom, the second daughter of the British Queen Victoria. In 1824, the town was settled by British Colonists. It forms part of Raymond Mhlaba Local Municipality.
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University of Fort Hare
The University of Fort Hare began in early 1847 as a fort built to house British troops. The same fort was converted in 1916 into a black university institution. Many of the current political leaders in South Africa were educated at the University of Fort Hare, including former president Nelson Mandela. The university is also the repository of the archives of the African National Congress and documents and houses one of the most significant collections of African art.
Victoria Hospital
Built in 1898, it is one of the oldest sites in Alice and still graces the town with its old charm of yesterday. Victoria Hospital is a large district hospital on the outskirts of Alice reconstructed and upgraded by the Eastern Cape Provincial Government between 2006 and 2011.
History
The location was named Lovedale by European missionaries who settled there in 1824. It lies on the southwestern bank of the Tyhume River, west-northwest of East London, at an elevation of 1,720(524m). It was named after John Love of the Glasgow Missionary Society. During the Frontier War it was abandoned and the mission resettled on the west bank of the Tyhume River.
On the east bank a fort was built, called Fort Hare, after Major-General John Hare, who was lieutenant-governor of the Eastern Cape and acting governor of the Cape Colony. Later, the name of the town was changed to Alice. Alice was the administrative and magisterial capital of the old district of Victoria East. In 1847, it was named Alice by Sir Peregrine Maitland after Princess Alice, the second daughter of Queen Victoria. Municipal status was attained in 1852.The town is famous for producing the first Bible written in isiXhosa in 1823 at the Lovedale Press.
The town celebrated its 200th bicentennial birthday in 2024.
Points of interest
Lovedale Press, 1823–1861
Fort Hare University, 1916
Old Fort Monument, 1847
Lovedale College, 1849
Masonic Hall, 1911
Victoria Memorial Hall, 1920
Stewart Memorial
Victoria Hospital, 1898
ZK Mathews House, 1920
Alice Trinity Church, 1914
Presbyterian Church, 1849
NGK Kerk, 1876
Domira House, 1836
Notable people
Cecilia Makiwane-first black nurse in South Africa
Naledi Pandor- politician
Ngconde Balfour – politician
John Knox Bokwe – writer/author
William Wellington Gqoba – poet and journalist
Sipho Burns-Ncamashe – politician
John Tengo Jabavu – poet/writer
Milner Langa Kabane – educator and newspaper editor
Thandathu Jongilizwe Mabandla – Xhosa chief
Nakhane Mahlakahlaka – author, actor, songwriter
Z. K. Matthews – university teacher
Chief Mqalo – oldest chief of the Rharhabe Kingdom
Looksmart Ngudle – anti-apartheid activist
Jerry Nqolo – cricket player
Sanele Nohamba – professional rugby player
Ntsikana – prophet and evangelist
Walter Stanford – civil servant and politician
Makhenkesi Stofile – politician
George McCall Theal – historian, genealogist