British Bechuanaland

Bechuanaland meant "the country of the Tswana", and for administrative purposes was divided into two political entities by the Molopo River.

Sir Charles Warren was authorised to recruit an irregular force of 1,500 in South Africa[3] in addition to the regular troops that would be provided.

On 7 February 1885 the force reached Vryburg, the principal town in Stellaland, then continued to the hamlet of Rooigrond, the administrative centre of Goshen.

By 8 April 1885, Sir Charles Warren sent a dispatch to notify the British Government that he had occupied Bechuanaland and had entirely restored order.

On 30 September 1885, Stellaland, Goshen and other territories to the south of the Molopo and Nossob rivers (excluding Griqualand West) were constituted as the Crown Colony of British Bechuanaland.

An 1885 map showing the Bechuanaland Protectorate prior to the creation of the Crown colony of British Bechuanaland and the Heligoland–Zanzibar Treaty .
refer to caption
A map showing political boundaries in Southern Africa in the late 19th century including British Bechuanaland ("Crown Colony") and the larger Bechuanaland Protectorate to the north