For mankind, for the entire period of its existence, the desire to unravel unknown secrets was characteristic, and the south of the African continent can also be attributed to such mysterious distances. Many travelers wanted to visit South Africa, and the colonial policy, which sought to implement certain tasks, contributed to this.

Keywords: colonial politics, South African peoples, missionary movement, London Missionary Society, racism, Van der Kemp, Georg Schmidt.

The British authorities were still preparing for a colonial invasion of the continent, and there missionaries were already actively developing their activities "imbued not only with romantic ideas, but also with various difficulties in introducing South Africans to culture through religious influence on them" [Etherington, 1977, p. 30].

N. Etherington singled out missionaries as a special social class, whose activities in the colony were provided with significant support, and not only economically. Looking at the various missions that operated on the territory of South Africa (Christian Mission, Methodist, Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican, etc.), he identified and showed the variety of goals and methods of their actions. So, in the article " Social theories and the study of the activities of missionaries in Africa. South African Research Problems " the author mentions the first American missionaries with strong anti-imperialist sentiments and talk of independence in the Zulu state. Lutheran missionaries of the Germansburg Society tried to establish communes in South Africa that led a religious life and formed the basis of camps for itinerant preachers (Etherington, 1977, p. 32-33).

In their actions, missionaries set themselves various tasks: in addition to their educational and religious functions, they had to "prepare the ground" for English expansion, and they had to become the "eyes and ears" of the colonial authorities among various, not always friendly, tribes [Shklyazh, 1985, p.64]. Thus, the missionaries needed to explore the situation, find out whether the natural and climatic conditions are suitable for the development of agriculture, whether resources are available, and of course establish relations with the native population.

In 1875, the London Missionary Society was established. The missionaries had many hardships, and as pioneers they penetrated the most remote and dangerous areas of South Africa. Missionaries came to Africa from different countries - Germany, Holland, England. Among the English missionaries who visited the Cape Colony were John Edmond and William Edwards and many others.

The missionary movement was based on the performance of religious functions, but under the guise of good intentions to promote the development of civilization among the people.-

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among the African tribes, ordinary colonial affairs were carried out. Thus, representatives of various missionary societies located in South Africa conducted some propaganda work among African leaders, trying to win them over to their side, which fully contributed to the implementation of the colonial tasks set, for example, the development of exchange and trade with native tribes.

Many European powers were fighting for dominance in the south of the African continent, so missionaries had to take on the performance of diplomatic functions. They attracted African tribal leaders to their side through mutually beneficial contracts. Among the peoples of South Africa, who are at the tribal stage of their development, the dominant role was played by the institution of chiefdom. The tribal leaders were constantly at war with each other. These circumstances were skillfully used by missionaries, who provided assistance and support to those leaders who allowed them to carry out their activities, or whose lands were distinguished by a favorable geographical and strategic position.

In most cases, the missionaries ' actions were carried out taking into account the interests of the ruling circles of the colonial Powers. In the current situation of a colonial invasion of the continent, full of contradictions and intrigues, African leaders had to act as politicians and make wise decisions. Many South Africans were ready to embrace the new religion. Some leaders were primarily interested in strengthening the position of their country, improving relations with other tribes and relations with Europeans who came to the continent.

Despite a lot of difficulties, representatives of various church organizations and societies managed to establish a number of small organizations in South Africa. The authorities of the Cape Colony encouraged and supported those missionaries who carried out the tasks given to them of a non-religious nature. "If a missionary's work is unsuccessful, it is only his fault, because he pays all his attention to the religious education of the natives, completely forgetting about the tasks of the civilization that he is called upon to plant. The true mission of a missionary is to strike a balance between work and the law. And in this direction, activity is happiness for the country" [Shil, 1903, p. 195].

Depending on the personal qualities of a particular missionary, their relationships with the peoples of South Africa in whose midst they were located were built. So, among them were a few who, being among the South African tribes, studied their language, life and sought to understand their customs and traditions. Some members of the London Missionary Society tried to protect the oppressed South Africans, which earned them good treatment. For example, John Phillip, the curator of all the London Society's missions in South Africa, succeeded in easing the slave and Hottentot laws.

There was an ambivalent attitude among Boers, Englishmen, and South Africans towards the very activities of missionary organizations. Good deeds remained in the memory, apparently, because not so much was done in relation to the "black" population during the colonial history of South Africa. The program of the South African Communist Party stated that "among the white population of South Africa, there has always been a minority that fought against racial oppression and courageously defended the rights of the oppressed..." [Shklyazh, 1990, p.7]. The program mentioned the name of an outstanding representative of the Netherlands, Johannes van der Kemp.

Johannes van der Kemp was born in Rotterdam in 1747. In 1795, he read an appeal in the newspapers calling for volunteers to enlighten the pagans in South Africa, and he did not hesitate to respond to this appeal. Van der Kemp really tried to do good deeds, thereby increasing the influence of the missionary society among the tribes. And the African people will always honor the memory of such figures as van der Kemp... [Shklyazh, 1991, pp. 8-17].

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Another representative of the missionaries, Georg Schmidt (1709-1785), received the well-deserved nickname "the apostle of the Hottentots". He saw all the hardships and hardships that colonial politics brought with it, and he was well aware of the true goals of the colonial officials. In his observations, Schmidt noted: "There is nothing more terrible than the miserable existence of Hottentots" [ibid., 1991, p. 20].

While the missionaries performed exactly all the tasks assigned by conservative ministries and colonial authorities to move inland and establish a system of administration based on the dependent status of South African tribes and peoples, they were also well received by government circles.

Of course, among the majority of Europeans arriving in the colony, whether they were military or officials, there was a very negative attitude towards the indigenous population. Therefore, according to the observation of Adolf Schiel (former chief commandant of the German Volunteer corps in the Republic of South Africa - I. D.), "the Boers and colonists harbor hatred for missionaries who give shelter to all sorts of black scum and idlers" (Schiel, 1903, p. 196).

In the colonies of Germany, a similar policy of oppression of the non-white population was carried out. Dr. Schreiber, the missionary Inspector, wrote in a letter to the Director of the Colonial Office:: "It is not to be regretted, on the contrary, it should be highly desirable if perhaps most of the country falls into the hands of white settlers, because the country is too large for its few inhabitants" (Shklyazh, 1991, p.195).

Thus, we can speak about the common tendencies characteristic of the colonial powers in the era of general absorption in the ideas of imperial politics.

The emerging missionary movement supported the trends of European politics. "In the 19th century, after seeing the situation in Africa with their own eyes, many missionaries began to talk about genocide, calling for the establishment of European control over Africa and even its conquest in order to put an end to the extermination of people" (Ki-Zerbo, 1977, pp. 22-23). intertribal military clashes of African peoples. Whether the Dutch, the English, or representatives of other European countries considered themselves entitled to interfere in the course of the history of the indigenous people of South Africa and regard tribal clashes in terms of their territorial benefits.

The missionary movement was actively developing in South Africa. Those missionaries who followed the instructions of the authorities in everything received encouragement and every possible support. Thus, John Brownlee, who arrived in South Africa in 1817, was given the task of establishing relations between the administration and the leaders of the South African tribes. "His Excellency the Governor of the Cape Colony, Lord Somerset, finds it very necessary to introduce Christianity among the unenlightened neighbors, which will introduce them to a civilized society. His Excellency draws your attention to the interest in the settlement of Europeans on these lands " [Shklyazh, 1985, p. 66]. The mission was completed - the missionaries were allowed to settle these lands and, in addition, South Africans were allowed to trade with the white colonists.

Since the 1980s, travelers, missionaries, and colonial officials who glorified the British Empire and shared racist beliefs have written on historical topics. They advocated territorial expansion of the colonies of Great Britain and in their writings described the favorable geographical position and economic importance of the South African territories.

At the end of the 19th century, a book by J. R. R. Tolkien was published. Bryce's " Impressions of South Africa "[Vgus, 1899], written on the basis of personal experience of being in the south of the African continent. The book contains descriptions of geographical features, climate, vegetation, which shows the value of English colonial acquisitions. In addition, his research has taken the first steps in

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the study of non-European peoples. The book contains descriptions of the traditional life of the Kaffir and Zulu tribes of South Africa. Bryce's attention to the Zulu chieftain Chaka, who managed to create a powerful "tribal monarchy" out of disparate tribes, is noteworthy, causing respect and even fear among the English colonists. "Chaka, thanks to his intellectual gift and boundless ambition, tough will and perfection of the military system, created regiments and taught them to resist the enemy "[Bryce, 1899, p. 84] - so Bryce described the activities of the Zulu leader.

However, his observations were of a superficial nature and were limited to collecting individual facts that were most beneficial for the policy of colonial conquest. The author, apparently strongly influenced by racist attitudes, suggests the inferiority of South African tribes and gives a high assessment of the missionaries ' activities aimed at breaking the traditional way of life of the peoples of South Africa.

The main focus of historiography was on the British conquests in Africa. The presentation of the history of the colonial development of South Africa, where it took place especially intensively, in foreign African studies was completely subordinated to the prevailing ideology. This ideology justified imperialism by the benevolent aspirations of the "civilizers" who came to eradicate the barbarity of South Africans.

The traveler E. Smith, who visited Natal in 1834, left "Documents telling about the early history of Natal" (Smith, 1955), compiled in the form of a diary and containing an examination of the tribal structure of the Zulus. South African society, he noted, is characterized by a fusion of the state and spiritual spheres. In connection with this provision, all rituals, ceremonies, prohibitions, and legal proceedings were the responsibility of the leader. The chief could participate in the performance of priestly functions either directly or indirectly, by providing cattle to the priest. E. Smith in his diary described in detail the ritual of causing rain (Smith, 1955, p. 47).

Smith's notes contain an analysis and schematic representation of the family tree of the Chucky family, confirming the above procedure for taking into account the degree of consanguinity in the transfer of power. The Zulu state is characterized by the presence of a strong centralized authority of the chief. Only the son born into the family with the highest number of male descendants of the clan founder could become a chief. The royal power of the South African chieftain was limited. For the traditional society, the main thing was respect for the elders, who were the advisers of the (induna) leader (Smith, 1955, p. 88-92).

From the observations of travelers and missionaries, you can learn a lot about the life and way of life of the tribes of South Africa. However, these observations cannot be objective, since travelers described the most interesting moments from their point of view and were supporters of the views prevailing in England. "All English observers agreed that Africans, due to their savagery and underdevelopment, do not know how to use the rich opportunities that nature provides them" (Erofeev, 1977, p.277).

The evidence of travelers is valuable for ethnography, sociology, linguistics and history and, as an African researcher noted, "is of great value for studying our (African) peoples" (Ki-Zerbo, 1977, p. 24).
British travelers, as well as representatives of government and financial circles, were infected with imperialist ideas, so when they went to South Africa, they were fully confident that they were bringing the benefit of the enlightenment spirit of Europe to these countries. Many of those who came from the mother country to the colony looked at the traditional life of the native population through the prism of ideo-

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logical principles of colonialism. "The information brought out by the average traveler from a foreign country as his personal impressions almost always exactly confirms those opinions with which he set out on a journey" [Mill, 1977, p.22-23].

The main influence on the views of the British was the ideology of Eurocentrism. They believed that "Europe is the center, the axis of the globe, the light of reason, civilization and progress in the vast ocean of savagery and barbarism" (Erofeev, 1977, p.287). The influence of this idea became significant in colonial politics. The system of the hierarchical structure of the world taken as a basis placed the representatives of the English nation at the top level in comparison with other nations. "The missionaries proceeded from the identification of culture in general with its European form. Hence the desire of the English missionaries to destroy as soon as possible, to eliminate everything that is different from Europe: the forms of political and social life, views, concepts and, of course, beliefs, and in their place to plant English customs as soon as possible. From their point of view, such a replacement seemed to be an absolute blessing, since there could be nothing valuable in the old customs and views of Africans" (Erofeev, 1977, p.289).

Considering negative stereotypes, it is possible to reveal the heterogeneity of the views of the colonial authorities and destroy existing ideas about both the" civilization "of Europeans and the" savagery " of South Africans. The phrase of the English scholar A. R. Radcliffe-Brown about overcoming misunderstandings between the English and South Africans is very accurate: "If we want to correctly understand the laws and customs of non-European peoples, we must beware of interpreting them in the spirit of our own legal concepts, which are the result of a long and complex historical development and are specific to our culture" [Radcliffe- Brown, 2001, p. 43].

It was difficult and almost impossible for colonial officials and some missionaries to evade the prejudices and stereotypes that existed in the minds of the British, which prevented them from seeing in the life of the South African peoples the beginnings of civilization, the process of the development of specific early class relations that had already begun.

The difference of views on subordinate peoples was determined by who was their bearer, and the conditions in which they were formed. British colonial officials considered their main task to organize the system of administration of the colonies. Therefore, they did not even want to delve into the specifics of social and cultural development, psychology, and mentality of African tribes and peoples. All of them in their ideas were "incomprehensible", "animals", "lazy" and endowed with other negative qualities that hindered the colonizers in the implementation of management. British colonialists seized new territories animated by imperialist ideas. The worldview of colonial officials was based on the "domination of the higher races" (Lurie, 1996, p.70). The British were sure that South Africans "due to their savagery and underdevelopment "(Erofeev, 1977, p.277) were not capable of independent development.

Indeed, the peoples of South Africa before the arrival of Europeans were at the stage of a primitive communal system. The English colonialists, as part of the economic development of the colonies, contributed to the construction of communications. Missionaries, in addition to facilitating colonial penetration into the interior of the continent, helped to improve the situation in the areas of health and education by creating hospitals and schools. We can say that colonization brought with it a civilizational component to the African soil, but we should not forget about the methods by which this was carried out.

This attitude is explained by a lack of understanding caused by different social institutions, culture, speech, as well as different values and worldviews.-

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with my eyes. For example, the attitude to work: for the British, work is a necessary condition for obtaining and increasing material goods, for the South African, it is simply a necessary means of subsistence.

When two cultures collide with different values and worldviews, it is difficult for interacting peoples to come to an understanding.

To build a more effective system of colonial administration, it is necessary to study the characteristics of South African tribes. Despite the fact that by the end of the 15th century the regions of South Africa had already been explored by travelers and missionaries, they still remained unknown. A comprehensive study of the totality of the culture of the peoples of South Africa was not available to Europeans at the initial stage.

Even in the accounts of travelers, there is a tendency to portray South Africans as "barbarians" in order to justify the white man's civilizing mission.

When they talked about the inhabitants of South Africa, they attributed all sorts of vices to them. So, English researchers, speaking about the character and psychology of South Africans, noted their inherent negative traits. The reasons for such statements were rooted in the lack of understanding by the British of the peculiarities of the worldview of South Africans and their social system. The most common ideas about Africa were as follows:: "Africa is a continent inhabited by savages devoid of any culture" (Erofeev, 1977, p. 286). These views reflect the ideas of Eurocentrism and, as a result, the conviction of the absolute superiority of England and the British.

The peoples of South Africa have already developed a certain socio-cultural standard of living in the pre-colonial past. But the history of state formations of this period did not attract the attention of Europeans. The policy of dividing and oppressing the indigenous South African population could not have had a positive impact on them. Ever since the conquest and development of colonial areas, Europeans have always treated the indigenous population of the southern African continent from the standpoint of the superiority of the white race.

Curiosity and adventurism, as well as sometimes the desire to avoid prison and enrich themselves, encouraged Europeans to go to Africa. The increased interest in Africa is largely due to economic reasons. During the 19th century, the industrial revolution continued in England. Therefore, the colonies in South Africa were considered by the colonial authorities as sources of raw materials for the development of industry and cheap labor.

The main figures who carried out the colonial conquests, along with the military and merchants, were missionaries. But, despite the similarity in the goals and actions of these categories of people interested in colonial conquest, there were also certain differences in the methods used. In fact, the missionaries ' actions cannot be regarded as aggressive. Among them were people who sincerely wished the peoples of South Africa well. However, it was they who prepared the ground for further colonial expansion into the depths of the African continent.

The European expansion primarily involved travelers who obtained data on the natural resources, lifestyle and life in South Africa based on their own observations, and then reported this information to the British authorities. Observers paid close attention only to those facts that attracted their attention and were of particular interest for a colonial invasion of the continent. In order to justify the colonial invasion of British troops, travelers and missionaries depicted Africa in the most gloomy colors.

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list of literature

Erofeev N. A. Africa in the kingdom of crooked Mirrors (testimonies of English travelers) // Source studies of African History, Moscow: Nauka Publ., 1977.

Ki-Zerbo J. Invasion of the continent. Afrika, otnjataya u afrikantsev [Africa taken from the Africans] / / Say afrikanskie istoriki / Ed. by V. A. Subbotin, Moscow: Nauka Publ., 1977.

Lurie S. V. Rossiiskaya i Britanskaya imperii: kul'turologicheskii podkhod [Russian and British Empires: a Cultural approach]. 1996. N4.

Mill, J. S. Representative Government / Translated from English; edited by R. I. Sementkovsky. St. Petersburg: Izdanie F. Pavlenkova, 1897.

Radcliffe-Brown A. R. Structure and function in primitive society. Ocherki i lektsii [Essays and lectures]. Vostochnaya Literatura, Russian Academy of Sciences, 2001.

Shiel A. Twenty-three years in the sun and storms of South Africa. Issue 1-3. St. Petersburg: Brockhaus and Efron, 1903 (microfilm).

Shklyazh I. M. Thomas Pringle-the South African Democrat, Moscow: Nauka Publ., 1985.

Shklyazh I. M. Johannes van der Kemp. At the origins of the fight against racism in South Africa, Moscow: Nauka Publ., 1991.

Bryce J. Impressions of South Africa. London: Macmillan and Co Limited, 1899.

Etherington N. Social Theory and the Study of Christian Missions in Africa: A South African Case Study // Africa. Journal of the international African institute. 1977. Vol. 47. N 1.

Smith A. Documents relating to the early history of Natal. Cape Town: The Van Ri Beek Society, 1955.

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