General Johan Isak Jacobus Fick was the founder of Ficksburg, a town in the Free State province, South Africa. After the Basotho Wars, peace was made and the town named after Johan Fick.^[1] He was also known as Commandant Generaal Johan Fick.^[2]

He was born on September 22, 1816, on the farm Kruisfontein, in Olifantshoek in the Grahamstown district of South Africa. He died on May 20, 1892, at the age of 75. He was buried in the town of Ficksburg. He was the son of Paul Hendrik Fick and Lenie Meyer. He was the second eldest of four sons his parents had, with the eldest Johan inheriting the family farm.^[2]

His father Johan took part in the battle of the Battle of Grahamstown in 1819 to help the British defend Grahamstown against the Xhosa attack. During these years, the Xhosa's continued to raid the Boers farms. In total, 40 farmers (Boers) were killed and 416 farmhouses burnt down. In addition, 5,700 horses, 115,000 head of cattle, and 162,000 sheep were plundered by Xhosa tribespeople. The next Xhosa war in the region broke out in 1834, when the junior Johan Fick was 17 years old. He was injured twice during the conflict.^[2]

Following the defeat of the Xhosa's at the 1834 war, the British governor Sir Benjamin d'Urban declared that Xhosa lands were to become part of the British protectorate and that the Boers were entitled to reparations. This was however overturned by, Lord Glenelg, as he felt the terms unjust. Johan Fick and other boers in turn lost faith in the British justice system and decided to move north in search of a peaceful settlement.^[2]

Johan Fick did however not join his mother and brothers during the Great Trek of 1836. Instead, he stayed behind and married Susanna Christina Johanna Fourie on May 5, 1837, in Olifantshoek. They had a son, Paul Fick on February 8, 1838. Following the birth of their eldest son, they too decided to leave the Grahamston area and move north, following Piet Retief to Natal. Johan Fick and his family traveled via Senekal to Unkomaas where he settled for a while, but he did not enjoy the British involvement in the area. He finally decided to settle back near Senekal.^[2]

After settling in the Free State area, Johan Fick fought the British at the lost Battle of Boomplaats in 1848, where he lost his horse and had to flee the British on foot. He and other Boer fighters were labelled as rebels and had to lay down their arms and pay a fine. Fick paid the fine, but refused to lay down arms. Impressed, the British asked Johan Fick to remain a 'veldkornet' for the new British government that ruled the Free State after the Battle of Boomplaats. His new role meant that he had to collect taxes (of which he could keep 10%), he married couples and acted as a judge for criminal and civil cases.^[2]

In 1851 Fick was required, through his position as 'veldkornet', to ask the Boers to fight for the British against the Basothos under Moshoeshoe I, at the Battle of Viervoet. However, he was forced to fight alone with the British as the other Boers refused to fight. The British, with many of their troops fighting in the east of South Africa at the time, were outnumbered and lost the battle. As Fick asked the Boers to fight with the English again, he was considered a traitor and instead appointed Freek Senekal, who the town Senekal was named after, as their 'veldkornet'. Fick was forced to leave Senekal and moved to current day, Ficksburg. The British got 780 reinforcements from Natal to help with the Senekal rebels under Freek Senekal. Fick refused to attack the rebels at night, as the British had planned. The threat of the reinforcements was, however, enough to bring the Senekal rebels to the table. Once the identities of the rebels were learnt by the British Major Warden, they were sentenced to death, but Fick successfully asked to have their sentences reduced to fines.^[2]

Following the British defeat at the Battle of Viervoet in 1851 and the Battle of Berea in December 1852 it became clear that the limited financial and military resources available to the British in Orange River Sovereignty that they struggled to maintain control of the boundaries in this territory. They saw the possibility of the Boers being used to maintain the security of the remaining British colonies.^[3] The Boers at this point enjoyed the British help in defending the region and wanted to maintain British rule. The Boers even unsuccessfully sent a party to England to ask the British to remain sovereign in the Free State.^[4] Ultimately, the British departed and this led to the formation of the Orange Free State in 1854.

The Basothos were emboldened by their defeats of the British. Without the British support, the Boers lived in fear of Basotho raiding parties. As the parties would come from modern day Lesotho and the farmers would often flee westward to avoid the raiders. Once the raiders had vacated, the farmers would return to what was left. In general, the farmers would keep their distance if approached by Basothos.^[2]

Following the Second Free State-Basotho War, Fick was promised a farm near the vicinity of Ficksburg by President Brand, however the Volksraad refused the gift. Upset, Fick bought a farm called Sterkfontein, where he lived until his death.