Go Tlhatlhoba Noka Ya Orange

Setlhopha se Sešwa sa Batlhatlhobi-naga

©Jacques Marais

Ka dingwaga tsa bo-1770, setlhopha se sešwa sa batlhatlhobi-naga se tsene ka Namaqualand. E ne ele banetetshi, baithuta-dinonyane le ba ithuta-dimela ba ba neng ba ngokilwe ke dimela tse di gakgamatsang tsa kgaolo le dithunya tse di sa tlwaelegang. Setlhopha seno se ne se akaretsa Francis Masson, moithuta-dimela gotswa Kew Gardens yo a neng a rometswe ke kgosi ya England go kokoanyetsa ntlwana ya dijalo ya segosi dipeo le dimela tse di tshelang. Masson o tshetse dingwaga di le di ntsi a tsamaya go ralala lefatshe, go akaretsa maeto ale mabedi mo Afrika Borwa ka 1772-1774 le 1786-1795. O kokoantswe Stapeliads gotswa kwa sedikeng sa Kamieskroon ka 1774. Masson gantsi o ne a patilwe ke mokokoanyi yo mongwe yo itsegeng, Carl Thunberg, ‘rraago Boithuta-Dimela jwa Kapa’. Mmogo, ba etetse letlhakore le le kwa borwa la Knersvlakte, gaufi le Vanrhynsdorp, ka 1774 gape.
Bannaleseabe ba le babedi ba ba golo mo kitsong ya naga tsa bophirima ka ga Namaqualand e ne ele Robert Jacob Gordon and William Paterson. Gordon, mo-Hollander, e ne ele mosepedi yo mogolo yo o tsereng maeto ale mmalwa a a tseneletseng go ralala Afrika Borwa. E ne ele ka motsi wa mangwe a maeto ano, ka 1777, fa a kgatlhana le noka e ‘Kgolo’ gaufi le Bethulie mme a e thaya leina la Orange, a tlotlomatsa Ntlo ya Segosi ya Orange, babusi ba Holland. Gordon o ne a belaela gore noka eno e elelela goya kwa lewatleng, fela o ne a sa kgone go netefatsa seno ka nako eo.

Go Bona Molomo

©Nigel J Dennis

Mme, ka 1779, Gordon o ne a tshwaragana le mobolola-mmogo wa gagwe yo o bitswang William Paterson go leka go bona molomo wa Noka ya Orange. Paterson e ne ele moithuta-dimela wa moBrithane wa mošwa, yo o rometsweng kwa Kapa ke morotloêtsi wa gagwe wa maitsholo a a sa tlwaelegang, Lady Strathmore. O itumeletse dipuopuo mo nakong e a neng a dula mo Afrika Borwa ka yona. Ka nako nngwe, o ne a latofatswa ka go nna motlhodi wa Brithane mme, morago, go ne ga begwa fa ane a upolola gauta mo dintshing tsa Noka ya Orange, fela a moma molomo ka ga seno. Legale, Paterson o ne a setse a ile kwa dintshing tsa Orange ka 1778 fa ne a tlhatlhoba meepo ya bogologolo ya koporo gaufi le Springbok ya gompieno, e a e fitlhetseng e na le tsholofetso. Ka jalo, o ne a itse kgaolo sentle fa ene le Gordon ba bololela bokone.
Sekgala se se khutswane gotswa Cape Town, ba ne ba nna lesego go kgatlhana le Hendrik Wikar, mokwaledi wa Dutch East India Company, yo a tshabileng kwa Cape Town ka 1775 Ka ntlha ya dikoloto tsa mobetšho tse a sa di duelang. Wikar o ne a dutse dingwaga di le mmalwa morago ga fao a sasanka go ikala le Noka ya Orange a na le bangwe ba batho ba selegae ba ba botsalano, mme a kwala pegelo e e seng ya semmuso ka ga kgaolo, e a e rometseng kwa Molaoding wa Dutch, Van Plettenberg. Pegelo eno e ne ya bonwa fa ele mosola mo ebileng molaodi a neng a itshwarela Wikar, yo o neng ale mo tseleng go boela Cape Town fa and a kgatlhana le Paterson le Gordon. Ntle le pelaelo, Wikar o ne a neela batlhatlhobi-naga ba le babedi bano tshedimosetso e e botlhokwa ka ga loeto lo ba tlileng go le tsaya.
Le fa go le jalo, loeto lo ne lo lo letsapa. Motlhaba o o boleta wa Sandveld o ne ka metlha ole makgwakgwa go baeti, fela Gordon le Paterson ba ne ba ikaeletse go tshwara tsela ya lobopo gona le gore ba lebe bophirima kwa mmung o o tiiling. Ka jalo ba ne ba itshoka le go tswelela go ikgoga gotswa kwa Buffels River (gaufi le Kleinzee ya gompieno) goya MacDougalls Bay (gaufi le Port Nolloth ya gompieno) mme ba tswelela go gara Holgat River Gorge, go fitlha ba fitlhelela Molomo wa Noka ya Orange ka 17 Phatwe 1779. Sekgala seno se se khutswane se se ka etsang 120 km se ba tsere malatsi ale robongwe.

Go Neela Noka ya Orange Leina

Fa ba goroga, ba pakolotse seketswana se ba tlileng ka sona mme, goya ka Paterson, ‘ba tlhoma (seketswana) le go fofisa folaga ya mebala ya se-Dutch. Mokolonele Gordon o tshitshintse pele go nwela itekanelo ya Puso, mme morago ga fao ga nwelwa Kgosana ya Orange; morago ga fao o ne a thaya noka leina la Noka ya Orange mo tlotlomatsong ya kgosana eo.’ Moletlo ono wa bobedi wa theo-leina o katswa o dirilwe ka ntlha ya gore Gordon o ne a sena bonnete jwa gore ke yona noka e a e boneng kwa Bethulie.
Morago ba ne ba emisa seketswana mo lotshing lwa bokone lwa noka, kwa ba kgatlhaneng le bangwe ba ba-Strandloper, ba Gordon a ba tshwantshitseng. Malatsi ale mmalwa a a latelang a diriseditswe go sekaseka segogoropo se se golo mo nokeng ya Orange, se se kobegang go dikologa Richtersveld National Park ya gompieno. Basekaseki kwa bofelong ba ne ba boela kwa Buffels River, kwa ba kgaoganeng teng; Paterson o ne a ya kwa Cape Town mme Gordon o ne a boela kwa Orange a latela noka goya botlhaba kwa kgaolong ya Prieska, gongwe ele go ikgotsofatsa mo goreng ka nnete ke yona noka e a e theileng leina lantlha ka 1777.

Translated by Nchema Rapoo