| Whittlesea | |
| Other Name: | Vetlisi |
| Native Name: | Hewu |
| Pushpin Map: | South Africa Eastern Cape#South Africa |
| Coordinates: | -32.1667°N 75°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | South Africa |
| Subdivision Type1: | Province |
| Subdivision Name1: | Eastern Cape |
| Subdivision Type2: | District |
| Subdivision Name2: | Chris Hani |
| Subdivision Type3: | Municipality |
| Subdivision Name3: | Enoch Mgijima |
| Subdivision Type4: | Main Place |
| Established Title: | Established |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 15.37 |
| Population Total: | 14756 |
| Population As Of: | 2011 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Demographics Type1: | Racial makeup (2011) |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Black African |
| Demographics1 Info1: | 99.1% |
| Demographics1 Title2: | Coloured |
| Demographics1 Info2: | 0.2% |
| Demographics1 Title3: | Indian/Asian |
| Demographics1 Info3: | 0.2% |
| Demographics1 Title4: | White |
| Demographics1 Info4: | 0.1% |
| Demographics1 Title5: | Other |
| Demographics1 Info5: | 0.4% |
| Demographics Type2: | First languages (2011) |
| Demographics2 Title1: | Xhosa |
| Demographics2 Info1: | 93.3% |
| Demographics2 Title2: | English |
| Demographics2 Info2: | 2.5% |
| Demographics2 Title5: | Other |
| Demographics2 Info5: | 4.2% |
| Timezone1: | SAST |
| Utc Offset1: | +2 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code (street) |
| Postal Code: | 5360 |
| Postal2 Code Type: | PO box |
| Postal2 Code: | 5360 |
| Area Code Type: | Area code |
Whittlesea is a semi-rural town situated on the R67 road in the Hewu district, 37 km south of Komani, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. The town is made up of the townships Ekuphumleni, Bhede, Ndlambe, Extension 4, Extension 5 and Sada. The town falls under the Enoch Mgijima Local Municipality which is under the Chris Hani District Municipality. Surrounding Whittlesea are 36 villages which make up the Hewu (meaning "flat land' in Xhosa) district.
Founded in 1849, Whittlesea was as a military outpost created to protect white settlers during the Frontier War of 1850–1853. The town was named after Whittlesea in Cambridgeshire, birthplace of Sir Harry Smith (1787-1860), Governor of the Cape Colony from 1847 to 1852.[2] A British officer fortified five houses during the War of Mlanjeni (1850 to 1853), when the Xhosas besieged the settlement. One of these, which now forms part of the Post Office Complex, is still standing.[3] Between 1948 and 1994, at the height of the apartheid regime in South Africa, Whittlesea belonged to the former Ciskei, a bantustan/homeland established in 1961 under the Promotion of Self-Government Act of 1959. Until 1994, there was no formal political organisation in Whittlesea. The Department of Internal Affairs facilitated decisions around land use, services and rates in the townships through township managers. After South Africa's first democratic election in 1994, Whittlesea became governed by a council.[4]
Whittlesea functions as a central town, providing services and shopping facilities to the surrounding villages. The inhabitants of the town rely on the neighbouring town of Queenstown for their economic needs. Due to the failure of the factories built by the Taiwanese in Sada in the 1990s, the underutilisation of small business complexes, a lack of funding and a lack of natural resources, Whittlesea has become a source of migrant labour.[7] However, projects started by The South African National Roads Agency Ltd (SANRAL)[8] and Expanded Public Works Programmes [9] have brought hope to the area.
The following statistics describing Whittlesea are from the 2011 census.[10]
| Gender | Population | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 6,774 | 45.91 | |
| Female | 7,982 | 54.09 |
| Race | Population | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coloured | 27 | 0.18 | |
| Black African | 14,621 | 99.09 | |
| White | 16 | 0.11 | |
| Indian or Asian | 35 | 0.24 | |
| Other | 57 | 0.39 |
| First language | Population | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Afrikaans | 64 | 0.44 | |
| isiXhosa | 13666 | 93.27 | |
| English | 369 | 2.52 | |
| Sesotho | 80 | 0.55 | |
| Setswana | 19 | 0.13 | |
| Sign language | 118 | 0.81 | |
| isiZulu | 53 | 0.36 | |
| isiNdebele | 49 | 0.33 | |
| Xitsonga | 17 | 0.12 | |
| Sepedi | 31 | 0.21 | |
| Tshivenda | 19 | 0.13 | |
| siSwati | 6 | 0.04 | |
| Other | 162 | 1.11 | |
| Not applicable | 104 |
Some of the villages surrounding Whittlesea include;
Cape Socio-Economic Consultative CouncilFani (Bradloof)