16 Facts About Thomas Upington

Sir Thomas Upington KCMG, born in Cork, Ireland, was an administrator and politician of the Cape Colony.

Thomas Upington was briefly Prime Minister of the Cape Colony, between 1884 and 1886, during a period of extreme turbulence in the Cape's history.

Thomas Upington was born in Rathnee, near Mallow, County Cork, on 28 October 1844.

Thomas Upington was educated at Cloyne Diocesan School, Mallow, and at Trinity College Dublin, where in 1863 he obtained Mathematical Honours in the Hilary term examinations.

Thomas Upington was called to the Irish Bar in 1867.

Thomas Upington emigrated to the Cape Colony in 1874, due to his fragile health, from which he suffered throughout his life.

Thomas Upington was elected to the Cape Legislature in 1878 and stood for several constituencies in turn; Colesberg, Caledon, and Swellendam.

Thomas Upington was appointed Attorney General in 1879, by his ally, Prime Minister Gordon Sprigg.

Thomas Upington was on "the northern bank of the Orange River at the time of the last attack, only it was thought Claus Lucas would have surrendered, and in that case Mr Upington wished to superintend the negotiations himself".

Thomas Upington's Foot was one of the 240 locally raised units which took part.

Thomas Upington was accused of deliberately allowing the trial to take place in a racist and hostile town that would be expected to acquit the murderers due to local influence, and thereby of dereliction of the Attorney General's duty.

Thomas Upington became the fourth Prime Minister of the Cape Colony in 1884, after the growing Afrikaner Bond Party compelled the government of Premier Thomas Charles Scanlen to retire.

Thomas Upington was appointed to form a government by the powerful Afrikaner Bond, but held office for only two turbulent and strife-torn years, in what subsequently became known as the "Warming-pan" Ministry.

Thomas Upington attempted to reject the flamboyant imperialism of Sprigg, however while trying to restrict British Imperial involvement in southern Africa, he nonetheless pushed for an expansion of the Cape's frontiers into the territory of the neighbouring Xhosa.

Thomas Upington often looks and often professes to be with one foot in the grave, and his most brilliant efforts are said to be made after a few weeks' light diet of champagne.

However his lifelong health problems worsened, and on 10 December 1898, Thomas Upington died in Wynberg, Cape Town, aged only 54.