Commandant
Appointed Commander of the Boer forces
Historical biography archive · Updated 2026-11-03
Marthinus Pretorius Biography and Timeline
Follow Marthinus Pretorius through 18 dated historical records for South Africa.
Marthinus Pretorius, historical timeline
A chronological timeline drawn from matching World History Database records.
18Distinct records
1 of 1Page
1853–1881Years on this page
1853
1855
Pretorius Establishes Pretoria Settlement
Marthinus Wessel Pretorius helped found Pretoria, which developed into a major administrative centre of the South African Republic.
1856
Transvaal Factions Discuss Political Union
Marthinus Pretorius worked to unite competing Boer communities under a common republican government in the Transvaal.
1857
President of South Africa
Appointedrst President of the newly formed South African Republic, 1st term
Role range: 1857-1864
Transvaal Republic Constitution Adopted
Under the leadership of Marthinus Pretorius, the South African Republic adopted constitutional institutions and developed a formal presidency.
Pretorius Takes Republican Presidency
Marthinus Pretorius became president of the South African Republic as its government pursued political consolidation.
1859
Election
Elected President of the Orange Free State
Role range: 1859-1863
Free State
Elected President of the Orange Free State
Role range: 1859-1863
1860
Pretorius Seeks Boer Republic Cooperation
Pretorius pursued closer relations between Boer republics while regional disputes complicated attempts to create durable republican institutions.
1864
Election
Elected President of the South African Republic, 2nd term
Role range: 1864-1869
1868
Capture of Bechuanaland
Captures Bechuanaland but cedes Delagoa Bay to Portugal
1869
President of South Africa
Appointed President of the South African Republic, 3rd term
Role range: 1869-1871
1871
Resignation of Marthinus Pretorius
The Volksraad refuses to ratify arbitration, depriving Boers of Vaal diamond fields
Role range: 1869-1871
1877
Alliance Marthinus Pretorius and insurgent Boer leaders
The British capture the Orange Free State & Pretorius joins the insurgent Boer leaders
Free State
The British capture the Orange Free State & Pretorius joins the insurgent Boer leaders
1881
Free State
Helps win independence for the Orange Free State from Britain
Independence of Orange Free State
Helps win independence for the Orange Free State from Britain
Independence of South Africa
Helps win independence for the Orange Free State from Britain
Records, sources and methodology
These dates and descriptions come from the historical_events database. Exact duplicate records have been collapsed. Names are grouped by the country, Name 2 and Name 1 fields; records with missing Name 2 cannot be reliably assigned to an individual biography. Check the underlying sources before formal citation.