The calls for Britain’s royal family to return the world’s largest known clear-cut diamond to South Africa are growing. The entire world will see lay eyes on the 530-carat diamond on Saturday when King Charles III holds the royal scepter during his coronation.
“The diamond needs to come to South Africa. It needs to be a sign of our pride, our heritage, and our culture,” said Mothusi Kamanga, a lawyer and activist in Johannesburg, via Reuters. “I think generally the African people are starting to realise that to decolonize is not just to let people have certain freedoms, but it’s also to take back what has been expropriated from us.”
There is currently an online petition to have the diamond returned. At the time of writing, the petition had already garnered more than 8,000 signatures.
Officially known as Cullinan I, the diamond in the scepter was cut from the Cullinan diamond, a 3,100-carat stone mined near Pretoria. The diamond was unearthed in South Africa in 1905 and presented to the British monarchy by the colonial government. At the time, South Africa was under British rule. A smaller diamond cut from the same stone, Cullinan II, is set in the Imperial State Crown, which British monarchs sometimes wear on formal occasions.
In 1934 following the enactment of the Status of the Union Act, South Africa became a fully sovereign nation-state within the British Empire. On May 31, 1961, the monarchy was replaced by a republic, becoming the Republic of South Africa.
“The Cullinan Diamond must be returned to South Africa with immediate effect,” activist Thanduxolo Sabelo told local media. “The minerals of our country and other countries continue to benefit Britain at the expense of our people.”
Sabelo’s call echoes those of South African parliament member Vuyolwethu Zungula, who, in September, urged his country to “demand reparations for all the harm done by Britain” and to “demand the return of all the gold, diamonds stolen by Britain.”
After the death of Queen Elizabeth II, there were also calls for the British government to surrender artifacts obtained by the British Empire, including the Kohinoor diamond. The Kohinoor, which means “Mountain of Light,” was mined in Andhra Pradesh during the Kakatiya dynasty of the 12th-14th centuries. The iconic gem is rumored to have been 793 carats uncut. The Mughals possessed it in the 16th century before the Persians seized it and then the Afghans.
The diamond was eventually “gifted” to Queen Victoria. Queen Consort Prince Albert requested the diamond be recut and set in the crowns of Queen Alexandra and Queen Mary. In 1937, it was placed in the Queen Mother’s crown. Governments in Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan and India have all laid claim to the diamond.
