Cornelius Hermanus Wessels

Sir Cornelius Hermanus Wessels
Member of the Volksraad of the Orange Free State
In office 1885 – October 1899
Member of the Executive Council of the Orange Free State
In office 1894–1896
Vice President of the Volksraad of the Orange Free State
In office 1896–1897
President of the Volksraad of the Orange Free State
In office 1897–1899
Preceded by	Christiaan Willem Hendrik Van Der Post
Member of the War Cabinet of the Orange Free State
In office 1899–1900
Member of the Diplomatic Delegation of the Boer Republics to Europe and America
In office 1900–1902
Minister for Mines, Lands, and Public Works of the Orange Free State
In office 1907–1914
Preceded by	New office
Succeeded by	Unknown
Administrator of the Orange Free State
In office 1915–1924
Preceded by	A.E.W. Ramsbottom
Succeeded by	E.R. Grobler
Personal details
Born	(1851-04-26)26 April 1851 Rietfontein, Winburg, Orange River Sovereignty
Died	1 March 1924(1924-03-01) (aged 72) Bloemfontein, Orange Free State, Union of South Africa
Political party	Orangia Unie, South African Party
Residence(s)	Kwagafontein farm, nr. Bloemfontein
Profession	Farmer, Politician

Sir Cornelius Hermanus Wessels (26 April 1851 Rietfontein, Winburg, Orange River Sovereignty – 1 March 1924 Bloemfontein, Orange Free State, Union of South Africa) was a South African statesman.^[1]

Wessels stemmed from an important Orange Free State family clan, dedicated to farming and the Boer way of life. Mainly self-educated, he turned to politics in his early thirties. As a member of the Volksraad he developed his skills as a diplomat and mediator, and was involved in many of the important political decisions the Orange Free State had to make in the 1880s and 1890s. In 1897 he was appointed president of the Volksraad.

During the South African War (1899–1902), Wessels was first a member of the war cabinet, and later a member of the Joint Diplomatic Delegation of the Boer Republics sent to Europe and the United States to muster support for the Boer cause. After the war Wessels sided with De Wet and Hertzog and became a cabinet minister in the Free State government. In 1915, the colonial government appointed Wessels as administrator of the Orange Free State. He was awarded a knighthood for his services to the state in the 1920 New Year Honours.