Welsh independence () is the political movement advocating for Wales to become a sovereign state, independent from the United Kingdom.

Wales was conquered during the 13th century by Edward I of England following the killing of Llywelyn the Last (Prince of Wales). Edward introduced the royal ordinance, the Statute of Rhuddlan, in 1284, introducing English common law alongside Welsh law and custom and causing the recently established Welsh principality to be incorporated into the Kingdom of England. Owain Glyndŵr restored Welsh independence c. 1400–10, but Henry IV of England put down the revolt.

Henry VIII of England introduced the Laws in Wales Acts between 1535 and 1542, English law replaced Cyfraith Hywel (Welsh medieval law), and the Welsh principality and Marches were integrated into England. and Wales gained representation in parliament and a new equality under the law. The Wales and Berwick Act defined "England" to include Wales in 1746, but the Welsh Language Act 1967, partly repealed this with the term "England and Wales".

The modern Welsh independence movement emerged during the mid-19th century, as did a movement for "home rule". Since 1999, Wales has been granted some legislative power as part of Welsh devolution from the UK parliament, and contemporary Welsh law within the English legal system. At present, the political parties Plaid Cymru, Propel, Gwlad, and the Wales Green Party support Welsh independence, as does the non-partisan YesCymru campaign group. Support for independence has increased from  in 2014 to its highest support of  in April 2021 when excluding don't knows. A YouGov poll in January 2021 found that 47% of people in Wales opposed holding a referendum on Welsh independence within the next five years with 31% supporting, and in March 2023, support for independence dropped to its lowest level since 2019 at 18%; the drop was potentially attributed to the prospect of a Labour UK Government.

History

Conquest of Wales

The only King to unite Wales was Gruffydd ap Llywelyn, who ruled as King of Wales from about 1057 until his death in 1063. Fourteen years later the Norman invasion of Wales began, which briefly controlled much of Wales, but by 1100 Anglo-Norman control was reduced to the lowland Gwent, Glamorgan, Gower, and Pembroke, while the contested border region between the Welsh princes and Anglo-Norman barons became known as the Welsh Marches. The remaining territory was divided between native Welsh principalities. The leading principality was Gwynedd, and, with other Welsh princes becoming their vassals, princes of Gwynedd took the title Prince of Wales. Although English monarchs had made several attempts to seize control of the native Welsh territories, it was not until Edward's war of conquest against Llywelyn, the last native prince of Wales, that this was achieved with the death of Llywelyn in 1282.

A significant revolt against English rule was the Glyndŵr Rising of 1400–1415, which briefly restored Welsh independence. Owain Glyndŵr held the first Welsh parliament (Senedd) in Machynlleth in 1404 where he was proclaimed Prince of Wales and a second parliament in 1405 in Harlech. During the same period, the Penal Laws against the Welsh people was implemented, restraining Welsh rights which were reaffirmed during the 15th century and were not removed from the statute books until the 17th century.

During the reign of the King of England Henry VIII, two statutes were passed that are often referred to as the "Acts of Union". The laws incorporated Wales (both the principality and the march) into the King's empire and imposed English law in Wales. Wales was geographically and legally defined, and the laws allowed the Welsh equal status and representation in the English parliament. Nevertheless, the Welsh did not share in legal or political sovereignty and English was insisted as the official language of government, administration and law, which proved to be unpopular.

The Act of Uniformity 1549 made English the language of the reformed church and no provision were made for a Welsh prayer book.

Home rule movement (1881–present)

Independence of church
The march for home rule in Wales began with the movement for disestablishing the Anglican church in Wales, and the first step towards this was
the Sunday Closing (Wales) Act 1881 was the first legislation to acknowledge that Wales had a separate politico-legal character from the rest of the English state. The majority of people in Wales belonged to noncomformists chapels despite members of the Church of England having legal and social privileges.  This led to a view that things could be done differently in Wales

David Lloyd George, MP for Caernarfon at the time, was committed to the cause of disestablishment, but it wasn't until 1914 that the Welsh Church Act was passed giving the Church in Wales the freedom to govern its own affairs. The Act came into effect from 1920.

Cymru Fydd
In response to the Irish demand for "home rule", Liberal prime minister of the UK, William Gladstone proposed two bills on home rule for Ireland in 1886 and 1893, which both failed. In the same year, the Cymru Fydd (Young Wales) movement was founded to further the cause. The main leaders were David Lloyd George, J. E. Lloyd, O. M. Edwards, T. E. Ellis (leader, MP for Merioneth, 1886–1899) and Beriah Gwynfe Evans. Their goal was a devolved assembly, but the movement was disbanded in 1896 amid personal rivalries.

Home Rule All Round
After the end of the first world war, there was widespread belief that "home rule all round" was an essential part of reformations and discussions of self-government for small nations were considered an essential part of any peace conference. Home rule for Ireland had been enacted via the Government of Ireland Act 1914 but faced opposition from Ulster unionists and the 1916 Easter Rising proving significant. The UK government considered home rule for Wales and Scotland to avoid making a special case for Ireland. In May 1918, a home rule conference for Wales was held in Llandrindod mostly attended by Liberals and a month later, "home rule all round" was in the Labour manifesto. A stance on federalising the UK was agreed by the South Wales Labour Federation and Arthur Henderson believed that a home ruled Wales could be a "modern utopia". Support was widespread in Wales and some Welsh media felt it was imminent.

Liberal Joseph Chamberlain also proposed "Home Rule All Round" for all nations of the United Kingdom, but after the formation of the Irish free state in 1922, "home rule all round" lost support.

Plaid Cymru
In 1925 Plaid Genedlaethol Cymru ("the National Party of Wales") was founded; it was renamed Plaid Cymru – The Party of Wales in 1945. The party's principles as defined in 1970 were (1) self government for Wales, (2) to safeguard the culture, traditions, language and economic position of Wales and (3) to secure membership for a self-governing Welsh state in the United Nations. The party's first Westminster seat (MP) was won by Gwynfor Evans in 1966. By 1974 the party had won three MP seats and in the 2019 general election it won four seats. Following the formation of the Senedd in 1999, Plaid Cymru won 17 of 60 seats in the initial Welsh election of 1999 and 13 seats in 2021.

In 1975, Plaid Cymru opposed remaining in the European Communities (EC). The party stated, at the time, that it felt that the EC's regional aid policies would "reconcile places like Wales to their subordinate position". Nevertheless, 65% of Welsh voters voted to remain in the EC in the 1975 referendum. The EC were incorporated into the European Union (EU) in 1993.

A Parliament for Wales
In the 1950s, the deterioration of the British Empire removed a sense of Britishness and there was a realisation that Wales was not as prosperous as south-east England and smaller European countries. Successive Conservative Party victories in Westminster led to suggestions that only through self-government could Wales achieve a government reflecting the votes of a Welsh electorate. The Tryweryn flooding which was voted against by almost every single Welsh MP, suggested that Wales as a nation was powerless. The Epynt clearance in 1940 has also been described as a "significant – but often overlooked – chapter in the history of Wales".

On 1 July 1955, a conference of all parties was called at Llandrindod by the New Wales Union (Undeb Cymru Fydd) to consider a national petition for a Parliament for Wales. The main leaders were Megan Lloyd George, the daughter of David Lloyd George, T. I. Ellis, and Sir Ifan ab Owen Edwards. According to the historian Dr William Richard Philip George, "Megan was responsible for removing much prejudice against the idea of a parliament for Wales". She later presented the petition with 250,000 signatures to the British government in April 1956.
The declaration of Cardiff as the capital of Wales in 1955, the Labour Party's 1959 commitment to appoint a Secretary of State for Wales, the creation of the Welsh Office in 1965, and the repeal of the Wales and Berwick Act 1746 two years later seemed to demonstrate a growing nationalist impetus. However, the heavy defeat for a proposed Welsh Assembly offered by Labour in the 1979 devolution referendum "suggested that the vast majority of the inhabitants of Wales had no desire to see their country having a national future".

In the early 1990s, Labour became committed to devolution for both Scotland and Wales, and in 1997 it was elected with a mandate to hold referendums on a Scottish Parliament and a Welsh Assembly. The proposed assembly won a narrow majority in the 1997 referendum.

The National Assembly for Wales was formed in 1999, which was renamed Senedd Cymru/Welsh Parliament in 2020. Since the referendum on Welsh devolution in 1997 and formation of the Senedd (then National Assembly for Wales) in 1999, there has been increased support for and trust in the Senedd, with support for it to receive more devolved powers. Further powers have been granted to the Senedd by the Government of Wales Act 2006, the Wales Act 2014, and the Wales Act 2017.

Independence movement
The independence movement has been present in Wales since the mid-19th century and Plaid Cymru has also campaigned for it throughout the majority of the 20th century, since it was founded in 1925.
In the 21st century, the question of Welsh independence became more prominent following increased discussion on a second Scottish independence referendum.

YesCymru
Non-partisan pro-independence group YesCymru was founded in 2014 and open to the public for membership in 2016. In 2020, the group claimed that they had had a sudden rise in membership with 17,000 members by the end of 2020, partly influenced by the British government response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Referendum proposals

In 2017, there were plans to hold a second referendum on Scottish independence, Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood said there needed to be a national debate on Welsh independence. In July 2020, Plaid brought forward a motion to discuss a referendum on Welsh independence, but it was rejected by 43 votes to 9. On 24 October 2020, Wales Green Party members voted at their party conference that the party would support Welsh independence in the event of a referendum being held on whether or not Wales should become independent from the United Kingdom. In July 2020, Plaid Cymru tabled a motion for Welsh ministers to seek permission from Westminster for the right of the Senedd to legislate for a Welsh independence referendum. The members of Senedd rejected this motion by 43 votes to 9. This was the first time in history that Welsh independence was debated in the Senedd.

On 11 December 2020, Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price stated that if his party won a majority at the 2021 Senedd election, an independence referendum would be held in its first term in office. At Plaid's special conference on independence, held on 13 February 2021, party members formally approved Price's pledge to hold a referendum in or before 2026. In addition to Plaid, three other parties—the Wales Green Party, Gwlad and Propel—stood on a pro-independence platform at the Senedd election. In the 2021 Senedd Election, of 60 seats, Plaid Cymru won 5 Constituency and 8 regional. Gwlad and Propel both won 0.

In June 2022, the UK government announced its intention to repeal the Welsh Government's 2017 Trade Union Act, which bans agency staff from being used if public sector workers go on strike. Price called this a "power grab" and "potentially devolution's breaking point", and called for a referendum to be held in order to protect the Senedd's powers. In response, First Minister Mark Drakeford stated that in order for a referendum to be held, a pro-referendum party would have to win the most seats in an election.

Labour for an Independent Wales

Labour for an Independent Wales, which is a group of Labour Party members who "believe the best way to achieve a democratic socialist Wales is through independence", was formed in 2018. Welsh Labour member Harriet Protheroe-Soltani has suggested that in order for the Welsh independence movement to create a supermajority and a cross-party movement, then the support of Welsh Labour members is required. In August 2020, a YouGov poll showed that 39% of Welsh Labour voters would vote for independence "if there was a referendum tomorrow". The Welsh Governance Centre also showed that in the last Senedd election over 40% of Labour voters supported independence.

All Under One Banner Cymru and independence marches

On 11 May 2019, the first ever march in history for Welsh independence was organised by All Under One Banner Cymru (AUOB Cymru) in Cardiff, with an estimated 3,000 in attendance. On 27 July 2019, AUOB organised an independence march in Caernarfon. An estimate put the attendance at about 8,000. On 7 September 2019, a third AUOB Cymru was held in Merthyr Tydfil and attracted a crowd of 5,200.

A pro-independence march organised by AUOBCymru, Indy Fest Wrexham and YesCymru took place in Wrexham on 2 July 2022, the first such march since before the pandemic. According to organisers, 6,000–8,000 were in attendance. A further march was held in Cardiff on 1 October 2022, with around 8,000 campaigners taking part.

The first march of 2023 was held in Swansea on 20 May. Between 6,000 and 7,000 supporters attended.

Influence of Brexit and Scottish independence
In January 2021, Guto Harri, who was Boris Johnson's communications chief when the latter was Mayor of London, wrote in The Sunday Times that "the idea of independence is taking off, with new recruits from very different backgrounds." He went on to say, "Brexiteers will hate me for saying this, but it is clear that some have contributed more to the cause of Welsh independence than my late father. The prospect of being attached to a leftover English rump of the UK, if Scotland and Northern Ireland head off, seems bleak to many people. And having argued against pooling sovereignty with our neighbours to facilitate trade and maximise our influence, Brexiteers should not be surprised if the same logic is applied in a different setting." Likewise, according to Martin Johnes, Professor of Modern History at Swansea University: "For so many [Welsh] voters, Brexit was not just a rejection of the EU but also of the British political establishment and its ways of doing things — ways that have failed far too many working-class communities for far too long. [...] For those who haven't given up on politicians entirely, independence can feel the only hope they have left. Some feel they have little to lose."

Richard Wyn Jones, director of the Welsh governance centre at Cardiff University, claimed that the cause of independence in Wales would be boosted significantly if Scotland chose independence first. Adam Price made the argument that if the UK Supreme Court allowed a referendum on Scottish independence to be held without Westminster's position, then Wales should be allowed to do the same. The judgement of the Supreme Court in November 2022 was that "If the UK Government and Parliament were unwilling to modify those reserved powers (as they did before the 2014 independence referendum) then "the Scottish Parliament does not have the power to legislate for a referendum on Scottish independence".

Independent Constitution Commission
In September 2021, an open letter, signed by a number of groups who advocate for Welsh independence (including AUOBCymru, members of the former central committee of YesCymru as well as Welsh Football Fans for Independence), was sent to First Minister Mark Drakeford. Written in response to Drakeford's proposed constitutional commission, it stated that "Wales needs an independence commission, not one to salvage the union."

The following month, the Independent Constitutional Commission was launched by the Welsh Labour government. Led by Professor Laura McAllister and former Archbishop of Wales, Rowan Williams, it will examine Wales' future relationship with the rest of the UK and will consider Welsh independence as well. Plaid Cymru called the commission the "most wide-ranging national conversation about Wales' future". The interim findings of the commission outlined three viable options for Wales including independence, to be explored in more depth in 2023. The report outlined the option of a Free Trade Association during a transition period to independence where an agreement could be made for e.g England responsibility for matters such as defence. The report also identified a confederation of Britain and Ireland as a potential option and key questions on independence to be addressed in 2023. The report concluded that there are "significant problems" with the way Wales is currently governed within the Union of the United Kingdom and independence is a "viable" option.

Future Cymru Forum
In the Plaid Cymru conference of 2022, leader Adam Price announced "The Future Cymru Forum" with the Wales Green Party to "consult, research and develop a ground-breaking body of work" on an independent Wales.

On 23 December 2022, think tank Melin Drafod announced the first ever Welsh independence summit, which was held in the Brangwyn Hall in Swansea on 28 January 2023. Speakers at the summit included Adam Price, Wales Green Party leader Anthony Slaughter and Councillor Rachel Garrick of Welsh Labour for Independence. Welsh independence campaign groups Undod and YesCymru as well as Welsh-language pressure group, Cymdeithas yr Iaith all made speeches as well.

Melin Drafod's Harriet Protheroe-Soltani said, "This is the first summit of its kind where we're trying to bring people from all across the movement into one room to kind of thrash out some of those difficult discussions, to learn from one another. It is also to see the diversity of the movement in terms of different people in different parties having different tactics - but we're all on the same broader journey towards independence."

Issues
The independent constitution commission identified "key questions" on the "viable" option of independence in its interim report. It aims to test potential solutions in the next phase, set to be published by the end of 2023. The key questions included addressing the following;

 Sustaining at least the level of public services on the basis of its own fiscal capacity.
 Financing matters currently controlled by UK government including pensions and benefits, and forming the capacity immigration, trade and overseas representation.
 Establish fiscal stability and credibility, selection of currency.
 Maintain confidence of the financial markets immediately after independence and in the long term.
 Operating the Wales/England border operate and any implications for businesses and citizens crossing.
 Implications of a national trade border with the rest of the UK, Europe and the world.
 Would an independent Wales join the EU and how long would this take.

Arguments for independence

Westminster criticisms

As of the 2019 general election, 40 of 650 seats at the House of Commons are in Wales. Wales has the smallest average constituency size, with 56,000 constituents per MP compared to 72,200 per MP for England. Proposals revealed by the Boundary Commission in 2020 would reduce the number of Welsh seats from 40 down to 32 as part of efforts to equalise constituency sizes. Advocates for Welsh independence often cite the small number of seats in Wales as a justification for independence. They feel that this limits the ability of Wales to help make political decisions within the UK. Dissatisfaction with the House of Lords, where members are appointed rather than elected, has also been cited as a reason for independence. Further criticisms made of the Westminster system includes:

 Westminster government is not necessarily the government Wales voted for
 The Westminster first-past-the-post voting system ensures that a party can win a majority with only three in ten of voters
 Lack of Westminster concern for Welsh matters and lack of investment in Wales
 Welsh devolution powers are limited, with many matters reserved by Westminster
 Westminster retains parliamentary sovereignty and devolved powers can be taken away

Powers

A central argument made by those in favour of independence is that becoming an independent country would allow Wales to make its own decisions on policy areas such as foreign policy, taxation, and other non-devolved issues. It has also been suggested that the Welsh government would be able to be fully accountable for an independent Wales and that the Welsh electorate would have sole political representation and would elect a government voted for by Wales only. Further proposed powers include:

 Ability to develop infrastructure such as transport and broadband
 Ability to build large energy projects to generate electricity that could be sold
 Creation of a custom, bespoke Welsh constitution including human rights and rights within the judicial system
 Control over the Crown Estate to provide Welsh revenue and potential for even more green energy generation
 Making Wales safer by separation from UK foreign affairs
 Option for inclusion in the UK and Ireland Common Travel Area.
 A custom immigration system

Economy and trade

Welsh independence would also grant Wales far greater control over its economy. Proponents of independence argue that this would allow Wales to flourish as an independent country.

Advocates for independence suggest that Wales could draw from the success of the Republic of Ireland following its independence from the UK. In 1922, Ireland was financially heavily dependent on Britain. Ireland is said to have benefitted from EU membership in 1973 and by International Monetary Fund and had an economic growth called the Celtic Tiger from the 1990s. It has also been noted that Wales is in a better economic state than 1920s Ireland, when it gained independence.
Think tank Melin Drafod suggests that an independent Wales would have newly found abilities to raise an additional £3 billion a year in public services funding via different tax and other policies.
Further economic arguments made for independence include:
 Economic flexibility, more open to trade and adapt better to economic shock as a relatively small country as seen in the Flotilla effect.
 Full control over economic ability
 Powers for borrowing money
 Ability to form a development bank
 Ability to develop a competitive tax rate to draw industries
 A system of bank regulation, designed to protect citizens and not just the banks
 Addressing the fiscal deficit in Wales and reshaping the Welsh economy
 Welsh internal exports within the UK not published. These could be substantial
 Currency options: Pound, Welsh pound or euro all with pros and cons

Culture and sport

Bank holiday powers, including a proposed St David's Day bank holiday
 Better protection of Welsh culture
 Supporters of Welsh independence have argued that the ability to form Welsh teams in sports such as cricket or at the Olympics would represent a significant benefit.
 Better protection of the Welsh language

European Union membership

The United Kingdom left the EU in 2020 following a referendum on membership in 2016. At the referendum, 53% of Welsh voters voted to leave, though Plaid Cymru, the only pro-independence party with representatives in the Welsh Assembly, opposed leaving. While most people who are pro-independence also favour joining the EU, this is not a universal position. According to Ashcroft Polls, a "significant" number of Plaid voters also voted for Brexit.

Since Brexit, many pro-independence campaigners, including Plaid, have argued that joining the EU would be a benefit to leaving the UK, noting the success of small nations such as Lithuania, Slovakia and the Republic of Ireland within the EU. It has been suggested that an independent Wales would have the option to join the EU in an exclusive Welsh deal if this option benefits Wales. A January 2021 poll found that a majority of Welsh voters were in favour of rejoining the EU, (44% for and 38% against).

An alternative option to EU membership is membership of the European Free Trade Association with a view to joining the European single market. Plaid Cymru has said that it will " explore the prospects for an independent Wales becoming a member of the European Free Trade Association, with a view to becoming part of the European Economic Area." With EFTA membership, an independent Wales would also be in a position to negotiate a free trade deal with England. Adam Price has stated that Plaid Cymru would seek to join the EFTA if Wales became independent. The Welsh Labour Government's current position is to remain outside both the EU and single market. In June 2022, Adam Price of Plaid Cymru called on the Welsh Labour Government to support rejoining the single market (without rejoining the EU) as was previously supported by both parties in the "Securing Wales's Future" white paper.

Arguments against independence
Reasons for continuing the union can be summarised as follows:

 Fiscal Deficit - At £4,300, Wales' fiscal deficit per capita is the second highest of the UK's economic regions, after the Northern Ireland fiscal deficit. Tax revenue per capita in Wales is 76 percent of the UK average, but spending is 108 percent, leading to a shortfall. This shortfall is currently made up in part by the net fiscal surplus of some English regions of the UK and the absence of this in the event of Welsh independence would necessitate some combination of increased revenue, reduced expenditure or increased borrowing.
 Currency – In the event of independence for either Scotland or Wales, the issue over currency is brought up. A currency union between an independent Scotland and the remaining UK was ruled out in the lead-up to the 2014 referendum. Scotland can continue to use the pound sterling without a currency union, however will lack control over its monetary policy, such as interest rates as those would be the responsibility of the Bank of England, the UK's central bank, who may prioritise the UK's economy over Scotland, in the absence of a currency sharing agreement.
 "A stronger voice" and money from other parts of the UK – former First Minister of Wales and Leader of Welsh Labour from 2009 to 2018, Carwyn Jones, argued in 2012 that Wales being part of the UK "gives us a much stronger voice on the world stage". He also argued that "money is transferred from richer parts of the UK into Wales".

Support for independence

Political parties with parliamentary representation in Wales
 Plaid Cymru

Other parties
 Wales Green Party (in the event a referendum is held on Welsh independence. The party does not actively campaign for independence but has stated it would do so if a referendum was called on the matter)
 Propel
 Gwlad
 Socialist Workers' Party

Individuals

 Eddie Butler (1957–2022) - Welsh rugby international and rugby commentator
 Charlotte Church - Welsh singer songwriter and political campaigner.
 Dafydd Iwan - Welsh folk singer, political campaigner and former politician.
 Bryn Fôn - Welsh singer, actor and producer
 Neville Southall - Welsh football international and social justice activist
 Iolo Williams - Welsh nature observer, author and television presenter.
 Julian Lewis Jones - Welsh actor best known for House of the Dragon.
 R. S. Thomas (1913–2000) - Welsh poet
 Angharad Mair - Welsh television presenter and executive director of Tinopolis
 Polly James - Welsh broadcaster who supports independence if it helps to reduce child poverty.
 Kizzy Crawford - Welsh singer-songwriter.
 Myrddin ap Dafydd - Welsh writer, poet and publisher.
 Callum Scott Howells - Welsh actor
 The Barry Horns - Welsh football brass band.
 Ashton Hewitt - professional Welsh rugby player
 The Proclaimers - Scottish music duo
 Mike Jenkins - Welsh poet
 Patrick Jones - Welsh poet
 Glyndwr Jones - Welsh CEO, author and education professional argues for a confederation.
 Adwaith - Welsh band.
 Andy John - The current Archbishop of Wales.
 Russell T Davies - Welsh screenwriter and producer

Politicians

 Adam Price - former leader of Plaid Cymru
 Leanne Wood - former leader of Plaid Cymru
 Gwynfor Evans (1912–2005) - former leader of Plaid Cymru
 Rhun ap Iorwerth - leader of Plaid Cymru (from 16 June 2023) and former BBC journalist
 Dafydd Wigley - Lord and former leader of Plaid Cymru
 Ieuan Wyn Jones - former leader of Plaid Cymru
 Lewis Valentine (1893–1986) - first leader of Plaid Cymru
 Dafydd Elis-Thomas - first Llywydd, former leader of Plaid Cymru and independent MS
 Gwynoro Jones - former Labour MP
 Elystan Morgan (1932–2021) - former Labour MP and Lord that supported "dominion" status

Opposition to independence

Parties with parliamentary representation in Wales
 Welsh Labour
 Welsh Conservatives
 Welsh Liberal Democrats
 Co-operative Party

Other parties
 Liberal Party
 UK Independence Party
 Reform UK
 British National Party
 Abolish the Welsh Assembly Party
 Social Democratic Party
 Socialist Party Wales
 Christian Party

Alternatives
 Further devolution of powers – More powers devolved from the Parliament of the United Kingdom to Wales and its devolved government. Devolution of powers to either local councils or a regional collection of them, such as North Wales has also been advocated.
 Decentralising power and wealth across the UK, including to and within Wales – This argument not only supports greater decentralisation to Wales, but also more power decentralised within Wales and the rest of the UK to local authorities and regions. For example, it has been argued that too much power is centralised in Cardiff, which could be handed out to the regions of Wales.
 Devolution system reform – An April 2022 article in The Economist argued that "a better combination of devolution and centralisation would compel governments to work together". The author argues that the existing devolution settlement "is making the United Kingdom chronically miserable", as politics in Scotland and Northern Ireland are "dominated by unresolved arguments about the constitution", neglecting local issues, such as healthcare and schooling. The editor suggests that powers were "crudely handed out" to devolved bodies and the resulting politics "favour blaming the centre [Westminster] rather than working with it". Leading to clashes over issues such as new nuclear power stations or gas drilling as energy policy is reserved to Westminster but planning is devolved. An "exchange" of powers to allow for better co-ordination, such as increasing devolved say over immigration and EU relations in return for increased UK-devolved cooperation in major transport links and energy security, as well as direct Westminster involvement in devolution failings over health and education, was advocated.
 Federal system – Federalism in the United Kingdom has been touted as an alternative political system to prevent a possible breakup.

Public opinion

Opinion polling on Welsh independence is continually being carried out by various organisations to gauge public attitudes to independence. The dates for these opinion polls range from January 2007 to the present day. Polling was initially sporadic, but it has been carried out almost every month since January 2021. The question typically asked by pollsters is "Should Wales be an independent country?".

See also

Wales
 Independent Nation: Should Wales Leave the UK?
 Culture of Wales
 History of Wales
 Welsh nationalism
 Parliament for Wales Campaign
 Yes for Wales
 Welsh Wars of Independence
 Glyndŵr Rising
 List of movements in Wales

Related movements

 Scottish independence
 Yes Scotland
 United Ireland
 Ireland's Future
 English independence
 Potential breakup of the United Kingdom
 List of active separatist movements in Europe

References

Sources

Further reading

Celtic nationalism
Separatism in the United Kingdom
Government of Wales
Politics of Wales
Welsh nationalism
Campaigns and movements in Wales
Proposals in Wales

Welsh independence


Eugene Earl Thompson (June 7, 1917 – August 24, 2006), nicknamed "Junior", was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Cincinnati Reds and New York Giants.

Born in Latham, Illinois, Thompson made his professional debut in the Reds' farm system in 1935. After a year off, he spent 1937 and 1938 with several minor league teams, primarily the Syracuse Chiefs. He was promoted to the Reds the following year and made his major league debut on April 26, 1939.

Thompson played for the Reds between 1939 and 1942, earning 39 wins against 27 losses. He was 13–5 as a rookie, but lost Game 3 of the World Series against the New York Yankees as the Reds were swept. Thompson was a member of the Reds team that won the 1940 World Series against the Detroit Tigers, achieving a 16–9 record in the regular season although he was ineffective in his only Series start in Game 5. He played for the Giants in 1947–48, posting an 8–8 record. He ended his career with a record of 47–35, a 3.26 earned run average and 315 strikeouts in 185 games and  innings pitched.

In between playing for the Reds and Giants, Thompson served in the United States Navy during World War II.

After his career ended, Thompson became a scout for the Giants, by then in San Francisco, serving in that capacity for 40 years. He worked briefly for the Cleveland Indians and Chicago Cubs before finishing his career with the San Diego Padres, finally retiring in 2005. He died at age 89 in Scottsdale, Arizona.

References

External links

Junior Thompson at The Deadball Era

Further reading

1917 births
2006 deaths
Baseball players from Illinois
Chicago Cubs scouts
Cincinnati Reds players
Cleveland Indians scouts
Columbia Reds players
Jersey City Giants players
Major League Baseball pitchers
New York Giants (NL) players
Paducah Indians players
Peoria Reds players
Sacramento Solons players
San Diego Padres (minor league) players
San Diego Padres scouts
San Francisco Giants scouts
Syracuse Chiefs players
Waterloo Reds players
United States Navy personnel of World War II

Junior Thompson


An ultralight trike or paratrike is a type of powered hang glider where flight control is by weight-shift. These aircraft have a fabric flex-wing from which is suspended a tricycle fuselage pod driven by a pusher propeller. The pod accommodates either a solo pilot, or a pilot and a single passenger. Trikes grant affordable, accessible, and exciting flying, and have been popular since the 1980s.

Trikes are classified as microlights in Europe, and as light-sport aircraft in the United States.  The aircraft are also known by other names, including 2-axis microlights, flex-wing trikes,  microlight trikes, deltatrikes or motorized deltaplanes.  In the United States, they are formally recognized by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as weight-shift-control aircraft.

History

The history of the trike is traced back to the invention of Francis Rogallo's flexible wing and subsequent development by the Paresev engineering team's innovations and then others. On 1948, engineer Francis Rogallo invented a self-inflating wing which he patented on March 20, 1951, as the Flexible wing. In 1957, Rogallo released his patent to the government and with his help at the wind tunnels, NASA began a series of experiments testing Rogallo's wing – which was renamed Para Wing – in order to evaluate it as a recovery system for the Gemini space capsules and recovery of used Saturn rocket stages. F. Rogallo's team adapted and extended the totally flexible principle into semi-rigid variants. This mainly involved stabilizing the leading edges with compressed air beams or rigid structures like aluminum tubes. By 1960, NASA had already made test flights of a powered heavily framed cargo aircraft called the Ryan XV-8 or Fleep (short for 'Flying Jeep') and by March 1962, of a weight-shift experimental glider called Paresev. By 1967, all Para Wing projects were dropped by NASA in favor of using round parachutes without officially considering development of personal ultralight gliders, but the airfoil's simplicity of design and ease of construction, along with its capability of slow flight and its gentle landing characteristics, did not go unnoticed by hang glider enthusiasts. The challenge then, was to modify and fit a Rogallo flexible wing with an appropriate frame to allow it to be used as a hang glider.

Some modern Rogallo flexible-winged aircraft
A crucial development toward the trike was introduction of several mechanical innovations developed by the Paresev and the Fleep engineers; they proved the Rogallo wing suitable for free-flight gliding, powered and unpowered, and for safe landing.

Publicity from the Fleep and the Paresev tests sparked interest in the design among several tinkerers, including Barry Palmer, and Sport Aviation of 1962 shown Jim Hobson of Experimental Aircraft Association (wing shown on US national TV in Lawrence Welk Show in 1962). An Australian engineer Mike Burns developed and used the boat-towed Rogallo-airfoiled SkiPlane starting in 1962 through the 1960s. A fellow countryman of Mike Burns, John W. Dickenson, made ski-kites and eventually partnered with Mike Burns to improve the ski-kite; he formatted a ski-kite that used what could be found in the 1929 George A. Spratt simple triangle control bar or A-frame with single-point pendulum weight-shift control.

An influence through John Dickenson's duplication of his device, who named his flexible-wing ski-kite the Ski Wing. Dickenson fashioned a water ski kite airframe to fit on a Rogallo airfoil where the pilot sat on a swinging seat while the control frame and wire bracing distributed the load to the wing as well as gave a frame freedom to be pushed/pulled for weight-shift control. Dickenson's Ski Wing turned out to be stable and controllable under tow, unlike the flat manned kites used at water ski shows. The Ski Wing kite was first kited in public at the Grafton Jacaranda Festival in September 1963 by Rod Fuller while towed behind a motorboat. Australian manufacturers like Bill Bennett and Bill Moyes, actively developed and marketed Dickenson's innovations to the world, which significantly fueled the hang glider revolution.

Although by the early 1970s many rigid wings were developed, none sold well, while dozens of flexible-wing hang glider companies were springing up worldwide, building variants of Dickenson's Ski Wing. In 1972, Popular Mechanics and Popular Science magazines published articles on hang gliding which further increased its popularity, as the Sky Raiders hang gliding movie released in 1975.

Francis Rogallo, Barry Palmer, John Dickenson, and others never made any money out of their innovations. Profit to manufacturers of hang gliders and Rogallo-winged hang gliders came once organized and insured sporting events grew in popularity. Dickenson's adaptation and innovations eventually produced a foldable hang glider that dramatically reduced difficulty in control, storage, transport, assembly and repair. In addition, the flexible wing lends itself to design changes for possible improvements.

The crucial developments put together by the Paresev engineers, Barry Palmer, John Dickenson, Bill Bennett, Bill Moyes, Richard Miller, and then hundreds of other innovators gave success to the flexible-wing hang glider.

First trikes

In 1961, Engineer Thomas Purcell built a towable Rogallo-wing glider with an aluminum frame, wheels, a seat and basic control rods; soon he replaced the wheels for floats and motorized the aircraft. In 1964, Swiss inventor Pierre Aubert saw a photo of NASA's Fleep and completed construction of a similar trike. As with the Fleep, his Rogallo wing was fixed and did not allow for pendulum weight-shift control.

In March 1967, aeronautical engineer Barry Palmer completed the earliest example of a true weight-shift powered trike: the Paraplane; it was controlled by a single vertical control bar as the Paresev experimental glider that inspired him. The Paraplane used two West Bend-Chrysler 820 engines of 8 hp at 6000 RPM, reduced to 4700 RPM for about 6.5 hp each, for a total of 13 hp. Each engine had a direct drive to a 27-inch-diameter two-blade propeller made of polyester and fiberglass. On March 24, 1967, Palmer registered the trike with the FAA as the Palmer Parawing D-6, serial number 1A, registration number N7144; no restrictions were noted.

The second Palmer trike, Skyhook (FAA registration N4411), in spite of its early date of origin, had most of the attributes of a modern ultralight, except it used a single-cylinder snowmobile engine, as the two-stroke twin-cylinder engines were not available yet. It was powered by a 17 hp at 5000 RPM single-cylinder JLO L297 two-stroke engine, driving a composite propeller designed and built by Palmer himself and driven by a 2.1/1 reduction gearbox. The engine had electric start and the craft had fiberglass composite spring landing gear. Airframe construction was bolted 6061-T6 aluminum thin-wall tube, with 6061 T-6 extruded angle. The craft took off, flew, and landed at around 30 mph.

The commercial availability of Dickenson's hang glider made the Rogallo wing very popular, and prompted several builders during the 1970s to attempt motorization of their flexible-wing aircraft but unlike Barry Palmer – who placed the center of gravity well below the keel – most builders were mounting the engine to the wing, where a fine balance existed between applying too much power, causing the aircraft to overtake the pilot, or not enough power for flight. It was not until Roland Magallon took a long look at the Motodelta ultralight (a hybrid Rogallo wing designed by Jean-Marc Geiser had a 'fuselage' and a rudder) that Magallon decided to replace the Motodelta's 'fuselage' with a simple tubular framework pendulum and dispensing with the rudder. Magallon is thus generally thought to have invented the trike because it was he who first marketed it. He called the first version 'Mosquito' and marketed it from October 1979 through 1981. The prototype had flown with a McCulloch MC-101A motor of 125 cc, delivering 10 hp at 8000 RPM to a direct-drive prop with ground-adjustable pitch. Later he offered it with a Solo 210 engine which produced  at much smaller RPM.

The "trike", as it soon became known, quickly became popular in the UK and France, where it had been reborn. Trike technology still shows its hang gliding origins, though the wings are no longer converted hang gliders, but are designed for power. In fact, none of the commercially available trike wings can be used as foot-launched hang gliders as they are too heavy and too fast.

Manufacturers
Many trike manufacturers produce only the undercarriage and procure their wings elsewhere. The majority of these companies are found in Europe, with a number appearing in the United States. Manufacturers can also be found in India, South Africa, Australia, and elsewhere. At their most basic, manufacturers often sell single-place ultralight trikes at a price of around $10,000–$17,000 Prices often depend on whether the wing is included. Two-person, high-performance trikes may cost from $15,000–$30,000 and up. For instance, the two-seater Air Creation Tanarg can cost up to $85,000 when loaded with every available performance option.

Records
Brian Milton flew from London to Sydney in 1987 in the Dalgety flyer which at the time was the longest recorded microlight flight taking 59 days. The Dalgety Flyer is now on display at Sydney Airport. In 1998, he made the first circumnavigation of the world by ultralight, completing the flight in 80 flying days (over a period of 120 days) in the Global Flyer, a Pegasus Quantum, including crossing the Alps and being buzzed by a Syrian MiG, setting a Guinness World Record for the first and fastest ultralight circumnavigation of the world and resulting in the award of both the Britannia Trophy and the Segrave Trophy.

On January 19, 2008, Mark Jackson from Altrincham, UK, flew over Kilimanjaro. In doing so, he broke the record for the highest altitude attained in a microlight, , and the fastest climb to  (25 minutes). He also broke the British record for the fastest climb to  (19 minutes). He did the flight with Eve Jackson.
In 1994, an altitude record has been set by Serge Zin at Saint-Aubin at an altitude of 9720 meters.

See also

 Paragliding
 Hang gliding
 Powered hang glider
 Powered paraglider
 Ultralight aviation
 Ultralight aircraft (United States)

References

Air sports

Ultralight trike


First Meetings (2002) is a collection of science fiction  short stories by American writer Orson Scott Card, belonging to  his Ender's Game series. Tor Books republished the book in 2003 under the titles First Meetings in the Enderverse and First Meetings in Ender's Universe and included the more recent "Teacher's Pest", a story about the first meeting of Ender's parents.

Story list
The stories in this book are:

 "The Polish Boy" (2002) – Tells the story of how Jan Paweł Wieczorek (Ender's father) as a small child gets tested by the International Fleet and convinces them to get his family out of Poland.
 "Teacher's Pest" (2003) (Not present in 2002 version of book) – Tells the story of how John Paul Wiggin (Ender's father) meets and falls in love with his future wife.
 "Ender's Game" (1977) – First appeared in the August 1977 issue of Analog magazine and was later expanded into the novel Ender's Game.  Although the foundation of the Ender's Game series, the short story is not properly part of the Ender's Game universe, as there are many discrepancies in continuity.
 "Investment Counselor" (1999) – Tells the story of how Ender Wiggin first met the artificial intelligence Jane and became a speaker for the dead.  It first appeared in the anthology Far Horizons edited by Robert Silverberg.

Plot summaries

The Polish Boy
Polish: Jan Paweł Wieczorek (John Paul Wiggin) is a very smart child who is being homeschooled because his family refused to comply with the population's control laws. One day, Captain Helena Rudolf from the International Fleet shows up to test three of John Paul's brothers for possible admission into Battle School. She notices John Paul reading a book and decides to test him early. He passes the test and gets a very high score for leadership. The IF tries to get him to go to Battle School, but John Paul is only interested in trying to get his family out of Poland so that they can have a better life and he can get a good education. Captain Graff realizes this, but agrees to send the Wieczorek family to America because he hopes that one of John Paul's children will go to Battle School.

This story contains younger versions of important characters in the Enderverse, such as Ender's father John Paul Wieczorek (later Wiggin), Hyrum Graff, and Admiral Chamrajnagar. Other characters associated with the IF appear, including Captain Helena Rudolf and Colonel Sillian.

Teacher's Pest
While going to college, John Paul is assigned to take a Human Communities class being taught by Theresa Brown. First being annoyed at having to take a class being taught by a graduate student, John Paul soon changes his mind as Theresa Brown leads the class through a provocative debate about communities, war, and population laws. Unfortunately, she has just been told that her research project is being taken away from her in an effort to get her father Admiral Brown to come out of retirement.  As a result, she does not want to speak to anyone.  Determined, John Paul waits outside her office and orders food for her while she talks to her father on the phone.  When she finally comes out, he is still waiting for her.  She decides to eat with him, and during the meal John Paul tells her about his secret past.  As they continue to talk, they both begin to fall in love, even as they realize that they were both set up by the government to do so.

Ender's Game (short story)

This story begins as Ender is made the commander of Dragon Army at Battle School, an institution designed to make young children into military commanders against an unspecified enemy. Armies are groups of students that fight mock battles in the Battle Room, a null gravity environment, and are subdivided into "toons".  Due to Ender's genius in leadership, Dragon Army dominates the competition.  After his nineteenth consecutive victory, Ender is told that his Army is being broken up and his toon leaders made commanders in their turn, while he is transferred to Command School for the next stage of his education.  Here, veteran Mazer Rackham tutors him in the use of a space battle simulator.  Eventually, many of his former toon leaders serve under him once more.  Once familiar with the simulator, they fight a series of what Mazer tells them are mock battles against a computer-controlled enemy.  Ender's team wins again and again, finally destroying a planet that the enemy fleet seems to be protecting.  Once the battle is over, Mazer tells Ender that all of the battles were real, the children's commands having been relayed to the extant fleet, and that he has destroyed the enemy's home world and ended the war.

Investment Counselor

Ever since the events of Ender's Game, Ender Wiggin has been voyaging through space at near-lightspeed. When he arrives at the planet Sorelledolce, he has just turned twenty in relativistic time, so he has to file his first tax return on the trust fund which had been given to him by the International Fleet at the end of the Third Bugger War. He shows his list of investments to Benedetto, a tax collector in the starport, who immediately plans to steal some of it. Meanwhile, Andrew receives an email offering him financial software, which has an interactive personality that calls itself Jane.

While they are on Sorelledolce, Andrew's sister Valentine Wiggin takes him to a "speaking" for a dead man. Andrew talks to the speaker and discovered that the man learned how to be a speaker for the dead from reading Ender's own books The Hive Queen and The Hegemon.

Andrew decides to accept the assistance of the Jane program. She prepares his tax forms, showing him ways to minimize what he owes. The amount is much less than he had expected. When Andrew delivers the forms to Benedetto, the tax collector tries to blackmail him because he has discovered Ender's identity as the hated Xenocide. But Benedetto finds that his files have mysteriously disappeared, and the evidence trail is now behind Fleet security. In an attempt to get revenge against Ender, he tries to leak what data he still has to the media, but Jane appears on his screen and gives him a choice: "Either say nothing, or tell the whole truth."  Benedetto rejects the first option, but when the media receives his story, it has been mysteriously integrated with a full confession of his embezzlements.

Benedetto is arrested, his claims against Andrew are assumed to be falsehoods, and while he is in prison one of his more powerful victims has him killed. Andrew does a speaking at Benedetto's funeral. He has thus inadvertently given himself a career, that of "speaker for the dead."

See also

List of Ender's Game characters
List of Short Stories in Ender's Universe
Orson Scott Card bibliography

References

External links
 About the book First Meetings from Card's website
  (does not include the short story Teacher's Pest)
  (All editions included the short story Teacher's Pest)

2002 short story collections
2003 short stories
Ender's Game series books
Ender's Game series short stories
Short stories by Orson Scott Card
Short story collections by Orson Scott Card
Subterranean Press books

First Meetings


Sveagruva (sometimes called Svea, translates to 'mine of the Swedes') was a mining settlement on Spitsbergen. It was used to get coal from the Svea Nord mine, the biggest mine on Spitsbergen. It is the southernomst settlement on Spitsbergen, not counting the Polish research station at Hornsund. The mine was closed in 2016. Only few people permanently lived in Sveagruva. Most poeple lived in Longyearbyen with their families, and commuted to work.

There are no roads to connect Sveagruva to other settlements. There is an airport, and there is a port, about  away. The coal was transported by ship, the people used airplanes.  Since 2020, there have not been permanent residents in Sveagruva. It is a ghost town.

Settlements in Norway
Ghost towns

Sveagruva


In the study of human visual perception, scotopic vision (or scotopia) is the vision of the eye under low-light conditions. The term comes from Greek skotos, meaning "darkness", and -opia, meaning "a condition of sight". In the human eye, cone cells are nonfunctional in low visible light. Scotopic vision is produced exclusively through rod cells, which are most sensitive to wavelengths of around 498 nm (blue-green) and are insensitive to wavelengths longer than about 640 nm (red-orange). This condition is called the Purkinje effect.

Retinal circuitry

Of the two types of photoreceptor cells in the retina, rods dominate scotopic vision. This is caused by increased sensitivity of the photopigment molecule expressed in rods, as opposed to that in cones. Rods signal light increments to rod bipolar cells, which, unlike most bipolar cell types, do not form direct connections with retinal ganglion cells – the output neuron of the retina. Instead, two types of amacrine cell – AII and A17 – allow lateral information flow from rod bipolar cells to cone bipolar cells, which in turn contact ganglion cells. Rod signals, mediated by amacrine cells, therefore dominate scotopic vision.

Luminance
Scotopic vision occurs at luminance levels of 10−3 to 10−6 cd/m2. Other species are not universally color blind in low-light conditions. The elephant hawk-moth (Deilephila elpenor) displays advanced color discrimination even in dim starlight.

Mesopic vision occurs in intermediate lighting conditions (luminance level 10−3 to 100.5 cd/m2) and is effectively a combination of scotopic and photopic vision. This gives inaccurate visual acuity and color discrimination.

In normal light (luminance level 10 to 108 cd/m2), the vision of cone cells dominates and is photopic vision. There is good visual acuity (VA) and color discrimination.

In scientific literature, one occasionally encounters the term scotopic lux which corresponds to photopic lux, but uses instead the scotopic visibility weighting function.

Wavelength sensitivity

The normal human observer's relative wavelength sensitivity will not change due to background illumination change under scotopic vision. The wavelength sensitivity is determined by the rhodopsin photopigment. This is a red pigment seen at the back of the eye in animals that have a white background to their eye called Tapetum lucidum. The pigment is not noticeable under photopic and mesopic conditions.  The principle that the wavelength sensitivity does not change during scotopic vision led to the ability to detect two functional cone classes in individuals.  If two cone classes are present, then their relative sensitivity will change the behavioral wavelength sensitivity.  Therefore, experimentation can determine "the presence of two cone classes by measuring wavelength sensitivity on two different backgrounds and noting a change in the observer's relative wavelength sensitivity."
For adaption to occur at very low levels, the human eye needs to have a large sample of light across the signal in order to get a reliable image. This leads to the human eye being unable to resolve high spatial frequencies in low light since the observer is spatially averaging the light signal.

The behavior of the rhodopsin photopigment explains why the human eye cannot resolve lights with different spectral power distributions under low light.  The reaction of this single photopigment will give the same quanta for 400 nm light and 700 nm light.  Therefore, this photopigment only maps the rate of absorption and does not encode information about the relative spectral composition of the light.

The scotopic luminosity function is a standard function established by the Commission Internationale de l'Éclairage (CIE) and standardized in collaboration with the ISO.

The maximum scotopic efficacy is 1700 lm/W at 507 nm (compared with 683 lm/W at 555 nm for maximum photopic efficacy). While the ratio between scotopic and photopic efficacies is only around 2.5 counted at peak sensitivity the ratio increases strongly below 500 nm.

Another reason that vision is poor under scotopic vision is that rods, which are the only cells active under scotopic vision, converge to a smaller number of neurons in the retina. This many-to-one ratio leads to poor spatial frequency sensitivity.

See also

References

Eye
Vision

Scotopic vision


Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa (born 17 November 1952) is a South African businessman and politician who is the fifth and current president of South Africa. A former anti-apartheid activist, trade union leader, and businessman, Ramaphosa is also the president of the African National Congress (ANC).

Ramaphosa rose to national prominence as secretary general of South Africa's biggest and most powerful trade union, the National Union of Mineworkers. In 1991, he was elected ANC secretary general under ANC president Nelson Mandela and became the ANC's chief negotiator during the negotiations that ended apartheid. He was elected chairperson of the Constitutional Assembly after the country's first fully democratic elections in 1994 and some observers believed that he was Mandela's preferred successor. However, Ramaphosa resigned from politics in 1996 and became well known as a businessman, including as an owner of McDonald's South Africa, chair of the board for MTN, member of the board for Lonmin, and founder of the Shanduka Group.

He returned to politics in December 2012 at the ANC's 53rd National Conference and served as the deputy president of South Africa under President Jacob Zuma from 2014 to 2018. He was also chairman of the National Planning Commission. At the ANC's 54th National Conference on 18 December 2017, he was elected president of the ANC. Two months later, the day after Zuma resigned on 14 February 2018, the National Assembly (NA) elected Ramaphosa as president of South Africa. He began his first full term as president in May 2019 following the ANC's victory in the 2019 general election. While president, Ramaphosa served as chairperson of the African Union from 2020 to 2021 and led South Africa's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ramaphosa's net worth was estimated at over R6.4 billion ($450 million) as of 2018. He has been criticised for the conduct of his business interests, including his harsh posture as a Lonmin director towards the Marikana miners' strike in the week ahead of the Marikana massacre.

On 19 December 2022, it was announced that the ANC's 55th National Conference had elected Ramaphosa to a second term as president of the ANC.

Early life
Ramaphosa was born in Soweto, Johannesburg, on 17 November 1952, to Venda parents. He is the second of the three children to Erdmuth and retired policeman Samuel Ramaphosa. He attended Tshilidzi Primary School and Sekano Ntoane High School in Soweto. In 1971, he matriculated from Mphaphuli High School in Sibasa, Venda where he was elected head of the Student Christian Movement. He subsequently registered to study law at the University of the North (Turfloop) in Limpopo Province in 1972.

While at university, Ramaphosa became involved in student politics and joined the South African Students Organisation (SASO) and the Black People's Convention (BPC). This resulted in him being detained in solitary confinement for eleven months in 1974 under Section 6 of the Terrorism Act, 1967, for organising pro-Frelimo rallies. In 1976 he was detained again, following the unrest in Soweto, and held for six months at John Vorster Square under the Terrorism Act. After his release, he became a law clerk for a Johannesburg firm of attorneys and continued with his legal studies through correspondence with the University of South Africa (UNISA), where he obtained his Bachelor of Procurationis degree (B. Proc.) in 1981.

Anti-apartheid and labor activism
After completing his legal qualifications and obtaining his degree, Ramaphosa joined the Council of Unions of South Africa (CUSA) as an advisor in the legal department. In 1982, CUSA requested that Ramaphosa start a union for mineworkers; this new union was launched in the same year and was named the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM). Ramaphosa was arrested in Lebowa, on the charge of organising or planning to take part in a meeting in Namakgale which had been banned by the local magistrate.

In August 1982, CUSA resolved to form the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), and in December Ramaphosa became its first secretary. Ramaphosa was the conference organiser in the preparations leading to the formation of the Congress of the South African Trade Union (COSATU). He delivered a keynote address at Cosatu's launch rally in Durban in December 1985. In March 1986, he was part of COSATU's delegation which met the African National Congress in Lusaka, Zambia.

Ramaphosa was elected as the first general secretary of the union, a position he held until he resigned in June 1991, following his election as secretary-general of the African National Congress (ANC). Under his leadership, union membership grew from 6,000 in 1982 to 300,000 in 1992, giving it control of nearly half of the total black workforce in the South African mining industry. As general secretary, he, James Motlatsi (president of NUM), and Elijah Barayi (vice-president of NUM) also led the mineworkers in one of the biggest strikes ever in South African history.

In December 1988, Ramaphosa and other prominent members of the Soweto community met Soweto's mayor to discuss the rent boycott crisis.

In 1985, the NUM broke away from CUSA and helped to establish the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU). When COSATU joined forces with the United Democratic Front (UDF) political movement against the National Party government of P. W. Botha, Ramaphosa took a leading role in what became known as the Mass Democratic Movement (MDM).

Ramaphosa has claimed that he is a committed socialist.

Rise in the ANC (1990–1996)

After the ANC was unbanned in early 1990, Ramaphosa became increasingly close with the organisation. In January 1990, he accompanied released ANC political prisoners to the ANC headquarters in Lusaka, Zambia; and, later, that year, he served as chairman of the National Reception Committee, which coordinated arrangements for Nelson Mandela's release from prison, including concomitant celebratory rallies. Ramaphosa was elected Secretary-General of the ANC at the party's 48th National Conference in Durban in July 1991, and subsequently became head of the ANC's delegation to the negotiations that ended apartheid. He was also a visiting professor of law at Stanford University in October 1991.

Following the first fully democratic elections in 1994, he became a Member of Parliament (MP) and was elected the chairperson of its Constitutional Assembly on 24 May 1994, a central role in Mandela's Government of National Unity. He was also re-elected, unopposed, as ANC Secretary-General at the party's 49th National Conference in December 1994. However, in 1996, he resigned from ANC office and from Parliament and announced his retreat from politics, reportedly because he was disappointed that Thabo Mbeki had been anointed Mandela's successor.

Business career (1996–2014)

After he resigned from politics, Ramaphosa became a businessman, taking advantage of the conducive environment provided by the new Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) policy. Among other positions, he was executive chairman of the Shanduka Group, a company he founded, which invested in mineral resources, energy, real estate, banking, insurance, and telecoms (SEACOM). By 2014, Shanduka was worth more than R20-billion, and the Ramaphosa family's Tshivhase Trust was its majority shareholder. Ramaphosa was also a chairman of Bidvest, MTN, and from March 2007, Mondi, a leading international paper and packaging group. His other non-executive directorships included Macsteel Holdings, Alexander Forbes, SABMiller, Lonmin, Anglo American, and Standard Bank. In 2011, Ramaphosa paid for a 20-year master franchise agreement to run 145 McDonald's restaurants in South Africa. He also belonged to the Coca-Cola Company International Advisory Board and the Unilever Africa Advisory Council.

Ramaphosa's various shareholdings made him one of South Africa's richest men. According to the Sunday Times, his estimated net worth of R2.22 billion made him the 13th richest person in South Africa in 2011, and that figure jumped to R3.1 billion in 2012. Both estimates, moreover, excluded his unlisted investments through Shanduka, including the McDonald's franchise agreement and a coal-mining partnership with Glencore.

Cattle farming

During a visit to Uganda in 2004, Ramaphosa became interested in the Ankole breed of cattle. Because of inadequate disease control measures in Uganda, the South African government denied him permission to import any of the breed. Instead, Ramaphosa purchased 43 cows from Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni and shipped them to Kenya, where they were artificially inseminated; the embryos were then removed and shipped to South Africa, to be transferred to quarantined cows. As of August 2017, Ramaphosa had 100 Ankole breeding cows at his Ntaba Nyoni farm in Mpumalanga. That year, he co-wrote a book about the breed, Cattle of the Ages: Stories, and Portraits of the Ankole Cattle of Southern Africa.

Public service
His resignation from politics notwithstanding, Ramaphosa occasionally accepted positions in the public eye, both abroad and in South Africa. He became the first Vice Chairman of the Commonwealth Business Council, and, in 1998, the Chairman of South Africa's BEE Commission. In 2000, he was appointed to the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning as an arms inspector, responsible for supervising the decommissioning of Irish Republican Army armaments in Northern Ireland. And, in April 2010, he was appointed by President Jacob Zuma to the National Planning Commission, where he served as Deputy Chairperson to Minister in the Presidency Trevor Manuel.

In the 2007–2008 Kenyan crisis, which followed the disputed re-election of President Mwai Kibaki in December 2007, Ramaphosa was unanimously chosen by Kofi Annan's mediation team to be the chief mediator in charge of long-term talks. However, Kibaki's government protested Ramaphosa's involvement, saying that he had business links with Kibaki's opponent Raila Odinga. According to Ramaphosa, Odinga had visited him in 2007, but he did not have any "special interest" that would lead him to favour one side or the other; however, he said that he could not be an effective mediator without "the trust and confidence of all parties" and that he did not wish to become an obstacle to the negotiations. He therefore withdrew from the talks on 4 February. However, he returned to a peacemaking role in 2014, when – in his capacity as Deputy Chairperson of the National Planning Commission – he served as the South African President's Special Envoy to South Sudan during the South Sudanese civil war.

Ramaphosa also continued to accept nominations to the National Executive Committee of the ANC: at the 50th National Conference in 1997, he received the most votes of any candidate; and at the 51st National Conference in 2002, he received the second-most. Ahead of the 52nd National Conference in 2007, he denied persistent rumours that he intended to join the race to replace Mbeki as ANC president; that year, he ranked 30th on the list of most popular NEC candidates.

ANC Deputy Presidency (2012–2017)

Ramaphosa made his return to political leadership in 2012, ahead of the ANC's 53rd National Conference, when he received nominations to become ANC Deputy President. On 20 May 2012, Derek Hanekom, an ANC MP, publicly encouraged Ramaphosa to run for the ANC presidency, saying, "We need leaders of comrade Cyril's calibre. I know Cyril is very good at business, but I really wish he would put all his money in a trust and step up for a higher and more senior position". Ramaphosa dismissed the resulting speculation, saying, "You can't read anything [into what Hanekom said]. He was joking".

Indeed, Ramaphosa did not confirm his intention to accept the deputy presidential nomination until 16 December, the day before the conference began. However, he received strong backing from incumbent President Jacob Zuma – a partnership viewed as a strategic attempt by Zuma to "outsmart and punish" Kgalema Motlanthe, who was challenging Zuma for the presidency but whose constituency was similar to Ramaphosa's, given their shared union backgrounds and polished reputations. Ramaphosa elected ANC Deputy President in a resounding victory on 18 December: he received 3,018 votes, while Mathews Phosa received 470 votes and Tokyo Sexwale received 463 votes.

Deputy Presidency of South Africa (2014–2018)

After his reelection in the 2014 elections, President Zuma appointed Ramaphosa the Deputy President of South Africa on 25 May 2014; Ramaphosa was sworn into office by Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng the following day.

After his election as ANC Deputy President, Ramaphosa had begun the process of resigning from various business positions, and in 2014 he concluded the process, as required by the Executive Ethics Code. This entailed his exit from Shanduka, from McDonald's South Africa, from platinum producer Lonmin, and from all other companies which might give rise to a conflict of interest, particularly in industries regulated by the government. His other interests – including a share trading company, his livestock farms, his property interests, and a sports car company – were placed in a blind trust. Parliament's 2014 Register of Members' Interests reflected over R76-million in company shares held by Ramaphosa (although that figure excluded shares held together with private individuals), as well as his ownership of 30 townhouses in Johannesburg and two apartments in Cape Town.

Domestic role
Alongside his duties as Deputy President, Ramaphosa was made Leader of Government Business in the National Assembly in terms of section 91(4) of the Constitution, a role which involved coordinating between Parliament and Zuma's cabinet. On 3 June, Zuma also appointed him the Chairman of the National Planning Commission, with Jeff Radebe as his deputy. In addition, Ramaphosa was responsible for developing a proposal to implement a national minimum wage, leading consultation on the matter between Zuma's administration and representatives of labour and business. The proposal was approved by cabinet in November 2017.

In July 2014, Ramaphosa called for unity in the country after Julius Malema argued that the Afrikaans portion of the national anthem should be scrapped. Ramaphosa said, "We are about building a nation and we must extend a hand of friendship, a hand of continued reconciliation to those who feel that the national anthem does not represent them any longer, and it can happen on both sides". Late in Zuma's term, Ramaphosa also began to address publicly the widespread allegations of corruption in Zuma's administration.

Foreign relations

In 2018, Ramaphosa, in Zuma's stead, led South Africa's delegation to the World Economic Forum in Davos, to promote investment and business in South Africa. His other official trips abroad included a two-day working visit to Vietnam and Singapore, the objectives of which included consolidating trade relations, as well as the opportunity for South Africa to learn from the Singaporean economic model and the role it prescribed for state-owned enterprises. Ramaphosa also continued to serve as Zuma's Special Envoy during the mediation in the South Sudanese conflict, and participated in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) mediation in neighbouring Lesotho.

ANC Presidency (2017–present)

Election

Ramaphosa stood for the ANC presidency in 2017, at the expiry of Zuma's term. Although he received the NUM's endorsement as early as September 2016, his campaign did not begin until April 2017. Under the banner #CR17 Siyavuma, Ramaphosa ran on anti-corruption platform, with an emphasis on economic policies conducive to industrialisation and investment. He was endorsed by Cosatu and the SACP; by the provincial leadership of the ANC's Northern Cape, Eastern Cape, and Gauteng provinces; and by politicians including education minister Angie Motshekga, former finance minister Pravin Gordhan, Cosatu president Sdumo Dlamini, and former KwaZulu-Natal Premier Senzo Mchunu.

Ramaphosa's primary opponent was Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, who had the endorsement of Zuma, her ex-husband. On 18 December 2017, he was elected the President of the ANC at the party's 54th National Conference, defeating Dlamini-Zuma by 2,440 votes to 2,261.

Renewal project
In his first speech as ANC leader, Ramaphosa pledged to stamp out corruption in the party. He subsequently spearheaded what he said was a campaign to "renew" the ANC internally and to restore its integrity and public image. Among other things, this campaign entailed the implementation of the new step-aside rule to suspend ANC leaders accused of corruption. This, in turn, led to a confrontation with ANC Secretary-General Ace Magashule, who, upon his suspension from the party in May 2021, attempted to retaliate by suspending Ramaphosa, accusing him of irregularities in the financing of the CR2017 campaign. Magashule's attempt had no legal force because of his own suspension.

In December 2022, Ramaphosa was re-elected leader of the ANC, running against Zweli Mkhize, for a second five-year term. The next parliamentary general election is set to take place in 2024, with the ANC largely expected to remain the largest party in South Africa, despite losing 19 seats in the last election.

Presidency of South Africa (2018–present)

Following President Jacob Zuma's resignation in February 2018, Ramaphosa was elected unopposed as President of South Africa by the National Assembly on 15 February 2018. Ramaphosa took his oath of office in the presidential guesthouse, Tuynhuys, by Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng.

Markets rallied strongly the day after Ramaphosa assumed the presidency with stocks rising and the rand reaching its firmest since early 2015. Government bonds also increased in strength.

On 16 February 2018, Ramaphosa gave his first State of the Nation Address as the president of South Africa, the first time in a democratic South Africa where the president delivered his State of the Nation Address without a deputy president. Ramaphosa emphasised the need to grow the economy of South Africa, increase tourism and youth employment, as well as reduce the size of the Cabinet. In this speech, Ramaphosa also focused on the importance of keeping Mandela's legacy alive.

Ramaphosa's speech was met with mostly positive reviews from opposition parties saying that his speech was positive and that it would bring about change, but that they would hold him accountable.

On 17 February 2018, Ramaphosa, as commander in chief of the South African National Defence Force, attended the Armed Forces Inter-Faith Service at the Mittah Seperepere Convention Centre in Kimberley and made his first public speech as the president of South Africa.

On 26 February 2018, Ramaphosa, who had inherited Jacob Zuma's cabinet, reshuffled cabinet for the first time removing many of the cabinet members who had been controversial through the Zuma era and who had close links to the Gupta family. Ramaphosa also named the deputy president of the African National Congress and the Premier of Mpumalanga, David Mabuza, as the country's Deputy President.

On 8 May 2019, the African National Congress led by President Ramaphosa won 57.50% of the vote in the 2019 South African general election. Ramaphosa was subsequently elected unopposed to his first full term as president by the National Assembly on 22 May 2019. As Ramaphosa had previously been elected as president to fill the vacancy left by the resignation of his predecessor, he is constitutionally eligible to serve two full terms.

At the 2020 AU summit, Ramaphosa expressed support for the African Continental Free Trade Area and described it as a major driver for reigniting industrialization and paving the way for Africa's integration into the global market. Ramaphosa also stated that the free trade agreement will make Africa a player of considerable weight and scale in the global market as well.

At the 2020 AU Summit, Ramaphosa also expressed support for closing the gender gap and ending gender inequality.

His government responded to the 2021 South African unrest, the deadliest riots in South Africa since the apartheid era.

Domestic policy
Since Ramaphosa became president he has made land reform and the economy his main priorities, as well as dealing with the outbreak of listeriosis which has claimed the lives of over 100 since the start of 2018.

In February 2018, South Africa's parliament voted 241–83 to begin amending the "property clause" in the constitution to allow the expropriation of land without compensation.

On 19 March 2018, Ramaphosa suspended Tom Moyane as the Commissioner of the South African Revenue Service after Moyane had refused to step down.

Under his leadership, the African National Congress has pushed for a constitutional amendment allowing the government to confiscate farms owned by White South Africans. He has said that the state having the power to seize property for no compensation will encourage economic growth. In a time when the Rand is at a two-year low, economists have been doubtful over the possibility of this policy being successful.

On 14 August 2018, Ramaphosa appointed Dr. Silas Ramaite as the Acting National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) following the ruling by the Constitutional Court that Director Shaun Abrahams had been appointed unlawfully by the former president, Jacob Zuma.

South Africa made world headlines because of attacks against foreign nationals within the borders of the country, with many South Africans blaming foreign nationals for the country's socio-economic issues.

On 10 June 2021, Ramaphosa announced that his government would raise the threshold for the amount of electricity that private companies could produce without a license – from 1 Megawatt to 100 Megawatts. The decision was taken in order to respond to the increasing challenges faced by the country during the ongoing energy crisis, and to give "oomph," in Ramaphosa's words, to South Africa's economic recovery.

On 11 February 2022, Ramaphosa announces that his government will formalise the South African cannabis industry, seeking to grow both production and exports.

Ramaphosa launched the Youth Employment Service (YES) initiative as a means to employ one million youth and giving them more experience in the working field, with the South African Government even introducing the Employment Tax Incentive, which would reduce employer's costs when hiring youth.

On 14 August 2018, President Ramaphosa addressed the launch of the Sanitation Appropriate For Education (SAFE) initiative in Pretoria to respond to the sanitary challenges facing the country's poorest schools.

Foreign policy

Ramaphosa made his first international trip as President of South Africa to the Republic of Angola and met with President João Lourenço in his capacity as chairperson of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to talk about peace and defence. Ramaphosa made his first international trip as the president of South Africa on 2 March 2018 to the Republic of Angola and met with President João Lourenço as the chair of the SADC.

On 20 March 2018, Ramaphosa made a trip to Kigali, Rwanda, along with Foreign Minister Lindiwe Sisulu, and met with President Paul Kagame and spoke about restoring relations between South Africa and Rwanda, later participating as panelists on the African Continental Free Trade Area Business Forum (ACFTABF) ahead of the 10th African Union Extraordinary Summit. The following day, Ramaphosa signed the Kigali Declaration on the establishment of the ACFTABF at the 10th African Union Extraordinary Summit.

Ramaphosa hosted the 11th BRICS summit for 25–27 July 2018, at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg.

On 10 May 2021, Ramaphosa said that the ANC condemned "in the strongest possible terms" the potential evictions of Palestinian families from their homes in Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem and the "brutal attacks on Palestinian protesters" at Al-Aqsa.

Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, launched on 24 February 2022, Ramaphosa did not condemn Russia or agree to any sanctions against Russia. A month later, he stated that maintaining neutrality was essential to his having been asked to mediate between the two countries' leadership. Ramaphosa blamed NATO's proximity to Russian borders for the war: "The war could have been avoided if NATO had heeded the warnings from amongst its own leaders and officials over the years that its eastward expansion would lead to greater, not less, instability in the region."  On 11 May 2023, the United States ambassador to South Africa alleged the country was supplying weapons and ammunition to Russia. Days later, Ramaphosa announced his Russian and Ukrainian counterparts have agreed that a delegation of African heads of state could visit Moscow and Kyiv to present a peace plan. "Whether that will succeed or not is going to depend on the discussions that will be held," he said.

In November 2022, Ramaphosa became the first foreign head of state to make a formal state visit to the United Kingdom during the reign of King Charles III. He was made an honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath by Charles.

On 16 May 2023, Ramaphosa announced that the leaders of African countries came up with a new initiative for peace in Ukraine. In June 2023, Ramaphosa led a delegation to Russia and Ukraine, which also included heads of state from Zambia, the Republic of Congo, Egypt, Uganda and Senegal. After a meeting with Ramaphosa in Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that peace talks with Russia would be possible only after Moscow withdraws its forces from the entire occupied territory. Ramaphosa visited the site of a mass grave in the town of Bucha, Ukraine and was in Kyiv during Russia's missile attack on the city. He met Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg and told Putin that the war must end, but Putin rejected the delegation's peace plan based on accepting Ukraine's internationally recognized borders.

In July 2023, Ramaphosa attended the 2023 Russia–Africa Summit in Saint Petersburg and met with Russian President Putin. Ramaphosa called for peace in Ukraine and expressed concern about the global food crisis and rising fertilizer prices.

Coronavirus response

Ramaphosa has been internationally praised for his response to the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa with the BBC commenting that, in this regard, "Ramaphosa has emerged as a formidable leader — composed, compassionate, but seized by the urgency of the moment." In October 2020, Ramaphosa began a period of self-isolation after a guest at a dinner party he attended tested positive for coronavirus.

On 12 December 2021, Minister in the Presidency, Mondli Gungubele announced that Ramaphosa had tested positive for COVID-19, and deputy president, David Mabuza would take over "all responsibilities" for the following week.

Political philanthropy
Ramaphosa publicly declared in South Africa on 24 May 2018 that he would be donating half of his salary (R3.6 million annually) to charity in honour of late former South African president Nelson Mandela. He said the gesture was aimed at encouraging the wealthy to dedicate some of their pay to help build the nation. The donation was set to be managed by the Nelson Mandela Foundation (NMF).

Ramaphosa is also the founder of the Cyril Ramaphosa Foundation.

Controversies

Marikana massacre

The Marikana massacre, as referred to in the media, occurred when police broke up an occupation by striking Lonmin workers of a "koppie" (hilltop) near Nkaneng shack settlement in Marikana on 16 August 2012. As a result of the police shootings, 34 miners died and an additional 78 miners were injured causing anger and outcry against the police and South African government. Further controversy emerged after it was discovered that most of the victims were shot in the back and many victims were shot far from police lines. The violence on 16 August 2012 was the single most lethal use of force by South African security forces against civilians since the end of the apartheid era.

During the Marikana Commission, it also emerged that Lonmin management solicited Ramaphosa, as Lonmin shareholder and ANC heavyweight, to coordinate "concomitant action" against "criminal" protesters and therefore is seen by many as being responsible for the massacre.

Under the investigation of Farlam committee, Ramaphosa said that Lonmin lobbied government and the SAPS firstly to secure a massive police presence at Lonmin and secondly to characterise what was taking place as a criminal rather than an industrial relations event.

The Marikana Commission of Inquiry ultimately found that given the deaths that had already occurred, his intervention did not cause the increase in police on site, nor did he know the operation would take place on 16 August.

He was employed on the board of directors of Lonmin while taking an active stance when the Marikana Massacre took place on Lonmin's Marikana premises. On 15 August 2012 he called for action against the Marikana miners' strike, which he called "dastardly criminal" conduct that needed "concomitant action" to be taken. He later admitted and regretted his involvement in the act and said that it could have been avoided if contingency plans had been made prior to the labour strike.

Alleged extramarital affairs
In August 2017, the Sunday Independent published an article alleging that Ramaphosa had had several extramarital affairs, including with some women to whom he had given money. Ramaphosa denied the allegations, claiming that they were politically motivated aimed to derail his presidential campaign.

CR17 campaign funds
On 19 July 2019, the Public Protector, Busisiwe Mkhwebane, released a report in which she claimed that Ramaphosa had intentionally misled the Parliament of South Africa over the controversial Bosasa donations to his CR17 ANC presidential campaign. COPE Leader Mosiuoa Lekota called for Ramaphosa to be impeached while DA Leader Mmusi Maimane proposed the establishment of an ad hoc committee to effectively investigate these allegations. Ramaphosa briefed the nation on 21 July 2019 and described the report as "fundamentally flawed" and called for a judicial review of Mkhwebane's findings.

Conduct of business interests
Ramaphosa has been criticised for the conduct of his business interests, although he has never been indicted for illegal activity in any of these controversies. Controversial business dealings include his joint venture with Glencore and allegations of benefitting illegally from coal deals with Eskom which he has staunchly denied, during which Glencore was in the public spotlight for its tendentious business activities involving Tony Blair in the Middle East; his son, Andile Ramaphosa, has also been found to have accepted payments totalling R2 million from Bosasa, the security company implicated in corruption and state capture by the Zondo Commission.

Phala Phala robbery

On 9 February 2020, it is alleged about US$4 million in cash was stolen from Ramaphosa's Phala Phala game farm in Limpopo, although the exact amount was disputed.

Ramaphosa later said the amount was $580,000. In 2022, he was accused of corruption, obstruction of justice, kidnapping and bribing the burglars into silence. After delivery of a report on the matter commissioned by Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, the parliament voted on 13 December 2022, 148 for and 214 against impeachment of the president.

Honours and awards

Ramaphosa received the Olof Palme Prize in Stockholm in October 1987. In 2009, he received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement in 2009, presented by Awards Council member Archbishop Desmond Tutu at a ceremony at St. George's Cathedral, Cape Town. He has also frequently been listed as an influential individual: he was voted 34th in the 2004 list of Top 100 Great South Africans, and was included in the Time 100 in 2007 and 2019.

He has received honorary doctorates from, among others, the University of Natal, the University of Port Elizabeth, the University of Cape Town, the University of the North, the National University of Lesotho, National University of Ireland Galway, the University of Massachusetts Boston, and the University of Pennsylvania.

State honours
: Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit (2019)
: Collar of the Order of King Abdulaziz (2018)
: Grand Cross of the National Order of the Lion (2021)
: Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB, 2022)

Personal life
Ramaphosa was married from 1978 to 1989 to Hope Ramaphosa, with whom he has a son, and from 1991 to 1993 to the now deceased businesswoman Nomazizi Mtshotshisa. In 1996, he married Tshepo Motsepe, a medical doctor and the sister of South African mining billionaire Patrice Motsepe. He is thought to have five children.

He owns a luxury mansion at the foot of Lion's Head in Cape Town, as well as 30 other properties. In 2018, Investing.com estimated his net worth at R6.4 billion ($450 million).

He is a polyglot, and is known for using a variety of South African languages when delivering his speeches.

References

Further reading
Butler, Anthony (2011). Cyril Ramaphosa. Johannesburg: Jacana. p. 1. .
Lodge, Tom (2006). Mandela : a critical life. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 211. . .
Black Economic Empowerment Commission (2001). A National Integrated Black Economic Empowerment Strategy (PDF). Johannesburg: Skotaville Press. .
Ray, Hartley (2019). Der Weg zur Macht in Südafrika. Tessa Publishing.
Ray, Hartley (2018). Ramaphosa: Path to Power. South Africa: Jonathan Ball Publishers.

External links

 Cyril Ramaphosa (1952 – ) | The Presidency

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1952 births
African National Congress politicians
Anti-apartheid activists
Living people
Olof Palme Prize laureates
People from Soweto
South African Venda people
University of South Africa alumni
University of Limpopo alumni
Deputy presidents of South Africa
Presidents of South Africa
Presidents of the African National Congress
South African Pentecostals
20th-century South African politicians
21st-century South African politicians
Chancellors of the University of Mpumalanga
Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
Recipients of orders, decorations, and medals of Senegal
Recipients of the Order of the Baobab

Cyril Ramaphosa