Philip Johannes Andries Watermeyer

Philip Watermeyer was unusual however, in that he was the only Afrikaans Member of Parliament who strongly favoured greater British Imperial control in southern Africa.

As such, he strongly opposed the growing movement for "responsible government" (local democratic self-rule), quite unlike most of his family members.

In 1875, he was one of the minority of Cape MPs who went along with the Confederation plan of Carnarvon, believing that it would do justice to the Free State's bid for the Griqualand West diamond fields.

He had strongly opposed the proposal that the Cape annex Griqualand West (at the time claimed by the Free State).

He also propounded the theory that the Cape would be threatened by a unification of Griqualand West, the Orange Free State and the British colony of Natal (and therefore should pre-empt it by joining Carnarvon's confederation).