The Ciskei Defence Force (CDF) was established during March 1981 from the 141 Battalion of the

South African Defence Force The South African Defence Force (SADF) (Afrikaans: ''Suid-Afrikaanse Weermag'') comprised the armed forces of South Africa from 1957 until 1994. Shortly before the state reconstituted itself as a republic in 1961, the former Union Defence F ...

(SADF). It was the defence force of

Ciskei Ciskei (, or ) was a Bantustan for the Xhosa people-located in the southeast of South Africa. It covered an area of , almost entirely surrounded by what was then the Cape Province, and possessed a small coastline along the shore of the Indian O ...

, a

bantustan A Bantustan (also known as Bantu homeland, black homeland, black state or simply homeland; ) was a territory that the National Party administration of South Africa set aside for black inhabitants of South Africa and South West Africa (now N ...

that was controlled by the

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

regime of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. The CDF functioned as part of the 21 Battalion based near

Lenasia Lenasia, often called Lenz, is a suburb south of Soweto in the Gauteng province, South Africa, originally created to house Indians. It is part of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality. Lenasia is approximately 35 kilometres southw ...

, outside

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

Overview

In 1993 the total troop count of the CDF was 2000. The defence expenditure for Ciskei for 1991/2 was R76,883,000 and for the period of 1993/94 it was R99,910,000.

Organisation and structure

According to Jakkie Cilliers, the CDF consisted of the following:

Defence Headquarters

Originally located at Jong'umsobomvu (outside

King William's Town Qonce, formerly known as King William's Town, is a city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa along the banks of the Buffalo River. The city is about northwest of the Indian Ocean port of East London. Qonce, with a population of around ...

), however, in 1993 the CDF's headquarters moved to the Parliament Buildings in

Bhisho Bhisho (formerly Bisho) is the capital of the Eastern Cape province in South Africa. The Office of the Premier, Provincial Legislature and many other government departments are headquartered in the town. The town, three kilometres from Qonce and ...

. Jong'umsobomvu retained the following: * Logistic Depot: including general equipment, uniforms, daily maintenance, rations, fuel, etc. * Maintenance and Construction Unit * Training Centre.

One Ciskei Battalion

The battalion consisted of 900 men and were stationed at Bhisho; it consisted of: *3 companies of which 2 had Mamba mine-protected vehicles *a small support company *a large Light Workshop Troop and signals workshops which served the whole of the CDF

Two Ciskei Battalion

The battalion consisted of 700 men and was stationed at

Keiskammahoek Keiskammahoek (also spelled Keiskamahoek) is a town in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. From 1981 until the end of apartheid, the town was part of the Ciskei bantustan. Geography Keiskammahoek is a small rural town that is situated some f ...

; it consisted of: *3 companies with Mamba mine-protected vehicles *a small support company.

Air Wing

Situated at Bisho Airport a.k.a. Bulembu; it consisted of: *two Shorts Skyvan light transport aircraft for paratroopers and general air transport *three

MBB/Kawasaki BK 117 The MBB/Kawasaki BK 117 is a twin-engined medium Utility helicopter, utility–transport helicopter. It was jointly developed and manufactured by Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm (MBB) of Germany and Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Kawasaki of Japan. MBB ...

helicopters *three light fixed wing aircraft for communication flights, etc. (Cessna 150) *two

Britten-Norman Islander The Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander is a British light utility aircraft and regional airliner designed and originally manufactured by Britten-Norman of the United Kingdom. Still in production, the Islander is one of the best-selling commercial air ...

s for personnel and freight transport *

Piper Cub The Piper J-3 Cub is an American light aircraft that was built between 1938 and 1947 by Piper Aircraft. The aircraft has a simple, lightweight design which gives it good low-speed handling properties and short-field performance. The Cub is Pi ...

There was a special forces/parachute company stationed at Bulembu, the core of a possible future parachute regiment. The Ciskei military band was also stationed at Bulembo and fell under the Air Wing for administrative purposes.

Auxiliary

The CDF's auxiliary according to Jakkie Cilliers consisted of, quote: "The CDF had semi-permanent company bases at Alice and Kama/ Whittlesea. There are also Auxiliary Services for which the CDF provided training and certain administrative functions. These Services are tasked with the protection of chiefs and headmen. These forces are controlled by structures within the Council of State. There is also a decentralised medical and signals element.

Ranks

;Officers ;Other

Equipment

The CDF was equipped for counter-insurgency (COIN) operations. The CDF had one 25 pounder field gun for ceremonial purposes and used R4/R5 assault rifles. The 7,62 mm Light Machine Gun issued was the SS-77. Other armaments included the 40 mm Multiple Grenade Launcher, 60 mm and 81 mm mortars and 7,62 mm Browning. Vehicles included Mambas, Buffels, Samil 20, seven ton Isuzu trucks and 4x4 vehicles."

Insignia

Medals

There were two medals awarded for service to the members of the CDF namely: *

Independence Medal (Ciskei) The Independence Medal was instituted by the President of the Republic of Ciskei in 1981, for award to all serving members of the Ciskei Defence Force on 4 December 1981 to commemorate the independence of Ciskei. The Ciskei Defence Force The ...

, introduced in 1981 * Ciskei Defence Medal, introduced in 1988

Disbandment

With the end of

Apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

in 1994 in South Africa, the former defence forces of the

Bantustan A Bantustan (also known as Bantu homeland, black homeland, black state or simply homeland; ) was a territory that the National Party administration of South Africa set aside for black inhabitants of South Africa and South West Africa (now N ...

s were incorporated into the newly formed

South African National Defence Force The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) comprises the Military, armed forces of South Africa. The commander of the SANDF is appointed by the President of South Africa from one of the Military branch, armed services. They are in turn a ...

Flag

The

Flag of Ciskei The flag of Ciskei consisted of a white diagonal stripe running from the upper-right corner to the lower-left corner, with a blue crane (known as Indwe in the Xhosa language) in the center, on a sky blue background. The Ciskei flag was officially ...

was located in the canton on a green background. On the green a large golden eagle clasped a lightning bolt.

References

{{SA Army Units