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Introduction to the Resolutions
of the Council of Policy of Cape of Good Hope
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Designations of functionaries
A variety of positions and titles appear in the Resolutions of the Council of Policy. Some of these designations became obsolete in Dutch but are still used in Afrikaans, although sometimes with a different meaning or only used as an historic reference.
- The “opperhoofd” [ Eng. chief] was the commander of an army or fleet, admiral of a ship, or head of a settlement in the colonies. The term also referred to the chief of an indigenous tribe.
- The “commandeur” [ Eng. commander] was a military commander or commander of a fortress, garrison or settlement, or commander of a ship.
- The “gouverneur” [ Eng. governor], lit. ‘manager’ was a representative of the supreme authority and had authority over a region, for example a colony.
- The “sekunde” (from Latin secundus ‘second’) [ Eng. secunde] or second in charge, acted as a substitute for the commander or governor.
- The “koopman”, also called “commies” [ Eng. merchant] was the official involved with commercial matters on board a merchant vessel (in particular ships of the so-called “voorcompagnieën” [first companies] and later mostly of the VOC). The term “koopman” also referred to a particular rank in the VOC, categorised as junior merchant, merchant and senior merchant.
- The “ fiscaal” [ Eng. fiscal] was a legislative official who was responsible for maintaining law and order. He was in charge of a number of law officials and served as the public prosecutor. In 1688 the Lords Seventeen declared the fiscal “independent” and only responsible to them as the supreme authority.
- The “secretaris” [ Eng. secretary] was an official who was responsible for the correspondence of a body, who had to write and answer letters, compile documents etc. The secretary attended the Council meetings and took the oath of confidentiality. He had no vote in the Council but had to co-sign all the resolutions as well as attestations, obligations, letters and bonds. He also had to attest deeds and explain the contents of these documents to the people involved.
- The “weesmeester” or “weesheer” [synonyms for Eng. orphan-master] was a council member of the “Weeskamer” [Orphan Chamber]. This institution supervised and managed the properties of orphans and the inheritance of unknown persons. Shortly after the British came into power the Orphan Chamber was replaced by the Master’s Office.
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