MOLTENO, JOHN CHARLES

Sir John Charles Molteno (June 5, 1814- September 1, 1886), a pioneer wool farmer and the first Prime Minister of the Cape Colony, was born in London into a long-established family of Italian descent. Molteno emigrated to South Africa in 1831 to become an assistant in the South African Library at Cape Town and later went into the import-export business, subsequently settling down to large-scale farming.

PHOTO CAPTION: Molteno, John Charles SOURCE: EA LIBRARY

He was so successful as a pioneer wool grower in the Beaufort district that he was able to diversify his enterprise and found a local bank. In 1854 the Cape was granted representative government, and Molteno entered the Cape Legislative Assembly, becoming a leading spokesman for white farmers, both British and Afrikaner. Thus in 1855, he was able to carry the Masters and Servants [Amendment] Act which stiffened the existing law in favour of employers.

Having served in command of settler forces as a burgher commandant under regular British officers against Africans during the so-called “War of the Axe” (1846-47), Molteno had come to dislike the British Imperial authorities. He became known as the “Lion of Beaufort,” for his efforts to obtain responsible government for the Cape, playing the leading role in the agitation.

From 1872 to 1878, Molteno served as its first Prime Minister under a constitution embodying a “responsible” (that is to say, parliamentary) government. One of Molteno’s primary preoccupations during his tenure as Prime Minister (1872-1878) was maintaining the greatest degree of self-determination for the Cape Colony possible in the face of what Molteno considered excessive British interference in Cape governmental affairs.

This difference would come to a head over frontier war policy. The British Governor in the late 1870s, Sir Bartle Frere, spoke in favour of putting all forces, colonial and imperial, under the control of an imperial officer. Molteno wanted the colonial cabinet to have a greater voice in these decisions. Frere ultimately dismissed Molteno for acting independently of Frere’s wishes.

During his tenure as Prime Minister, Molteno proved a man of considerable ability. In the cultural sphere, he played a leading part in the creation of the University of the Cape of Good Hope (1873), and in providing state aid for public libraries. In the economic field, he assisted farmers by getting the government to buy privately owned railways and extending them into the interior. He promoted the improvement of the ports at Cape Town and Port Elizabeth; he supported the creation of a telegraph system. During his term in office, the Cape Colony annexed Fingoland, Griqualand East, Walvis Bay, and Tembuland.

Molteno strongly opposed a scheme formulated by Lord Carnarvon during the 1870s to unite the South African colonies in a confederation. Instead, he would have preferred a gradual unification of South Africa by consent, under Cape auspices. In 1880 he was re-elected for Victoria West and served as Colonial Secretary (that is to say, as Secretary for the Interior) in Sir Thomas Scanlen’s Cabinet (1881-1882). He retired in 1883 and was knighted.

Molteno was an effective European leader because of his honesty, his flair for business, and his ability to get Britons and Afrikaners to cooperate. He spoke Afrikaans fluently, an uncommon attainment for British politicians of his time.

Several members of the Molteno family played a distinguished part in South African letters and politics; these included Sir John Molteno’s fourth son, Sir James Molteno, a Cape parliamentarian, and an opponent of Cecil John Rhodes and Lord Milner. The town of Molteno, founded in South Africa in 1874, was named in Sir John Molteno’s honour.

L. H. GANN