Bloemfontein in the context of "Defiance Campaign"

South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. Its nine provinces are bounded to the south by 2,798 kilometres (1,739 miles) of coastline that stretches along the South Atlantic and Indian Ocean; to the north by the neighbouring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; to the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini; and it encloses Lesotho.

Covering an area of 1,221,037 square kilometres (471,445 square miles), the country has a population of over 63 million people (the 6th largest in Africa). Pretoria is the administrative capital, while Cape Town, as the seat of Parliament, is the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein is regarded as the judicial capital. The largest, most populous city is Johannesburg, followed by Cape Town and Durban.

The Free State is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Bloemfontein, which is also South Africa's judicial capital. Its historical origins lie in the Boer republic called the Orange Free State and later the Orange Free State Province.

The African National Congress (ANC) is a political party in South Africa. It originated as a liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid and has governed the country since 1994, when the first post-apartheid election resulted in Nelson Mandela being elected as President of South Africa. Cyril Ramaphosa, the incumbent national president, has served as president of the ANC since 18 December 2017.

Founded on 8 January 1912 in Bloemfontein as the South African Native National Congress, the organisation was formed to advocate for the rights of black South Africans. When the National Party government came to power in 1948, the ANC's central purpose became to oppose the new government's policy of institutionalised apartheid. To this end, its methods and means of organisation shifted; its adoption of the techniques of mass politics, and the swelling of its membership, culminated in the Defiance Campaign of civil disobedience in 1952–53. The ANC was banned by the South African government between April 1960 – shortly after the Sharpeville massacre – and February 1990. During this period, despite periodic attempts to revive its domestic political underground, the ANC was forced into exile by increasing state repression, which saw many of its leaders imprisoned on Robben Island. Headquartered in Lusaka, Zambia, the exiled ANC dedicated much of its attention to a campaign of sabotage and guerrilla warfare against the apartheid state, carried out under its military wing, uMkhonto weSizwe, which was founded in 1961 in partnership with the South African Communist Party (SACP). The ANC was condemned as a terrorist organisation by the governments of South Africa, the United States, and the United Kingdom. However, it positioned itself as a key player in the negotiations to end apartheid, which began in earnest after the ban was repealed in 1990. For much of that time, the ANC leadership, along with many of its most active members, operated from abroad. After the Soweto Uprising of 1976, the ANC remained committed to achieving its objectives through armed struggle. These circumstances significantly shaped the ANC during its years in exile.

The Orange Free State (Dutch: Oranje Vrijstaat [oːˈrɑɲə ˈvrɛistaːt]; Afrikaans: Oranje-Vrystaat [uˈraɲə ˈfrəistɑːt]) was a landlocked independent Boer republic in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeated and surrendered to the British Empire at the end of the Second Boer War in 1902. It is one of the three historical precursors to the present-day Free State province.

Extending between the Orange and Vaal rivers, its borders were determined by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1848 when the region was proclaimed as the Orange River Sovereignty, with a British Resident based in Bloemfontein. Bloemfontein and the southern parts of the Sovereignty had previously been settled by Griqua and by Trekboere from the Cape Colony.

South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. Its nine provinces are bounded to the south by 2,798 kilometres (1,739 miles) of coastline that stretches along the South Atlantic and Indian Ocean; to the north by the neighbouring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; to the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini; and it encloses Lesotho. Covering an area of 1,221,037 square kilometres (471,445 square miles), the country has a population of over 63 million people (the 6th largest in Africa). Pretoria is the administrative capital, while Cape Town, as the seat of Parliament, is the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein is regarded as the judicial capital. The largest, most populous city is Johannesburg, followed by Cape Town and Durban.

Archaeological findings suggest that various hominid species existed in South Africa about 2.5 million years ago, and modern humans inhabited the region over 100,000 years ago. The first known people were the indigenous Khoisan, and Bantu-speaking peoples who migrated, in waves, from west and central Africa to the region 2,000 to 1,000 years ago. In the north, the Kingdom of Mapungubwe formed in the 13th century. In 1652, the Dutch established the first European settlement at Table Bay, Dutch Cape Colony. Its invasion in 1795 and the Battle of Blaauwberg in 1806 led to British occupation. The Mfecane, a period of significant upheaval, led to the formation of various African kingdoms, including the Zulu Kingdom. The region was further colonised, and the Mineral Revolution saw a shift towards industrialisation and urbanisation. Following the Second Boer War, the Union of South Africa was created in 1910 after the amalgamation of the Cape, Natal, Transvaal, and Orange River colonies, becoming a republic after the 1961 referendum. The multi-racial Cape Qualified Franchise in the Cape was gradually eroded, and the vast majority of Black South Africans were not enfranchised until 1994.

The Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality (Sotho: Masepala o Moholo wa Mangaung; Zulu: UMasipala weDolobhakazi laseMangawunge; Afrikaans: Mangaung Metropolitaanse Munisipaliteit; Tswana: Mmasepala wa Toropokgolo ya Mangaung; Xhosa: uMasipala oMbaxa wase Mangaung) is a metropolitan municipality which governs Bloemfontein and surrounding towns in the Free State province of South Africa. Mangaung is a Sesotho word meaning "place of cheetahs", as it was not uncommon for the Basotho to name warrior regiments after ferocious animals.

In the municipal elections held on 1 November 2021, the African National Congress won 51 out of 100 seats on the Metro Council, while the Democratic Alliance won 26 seats and the Economic Freedom Fighters won 12 seats.