The first Huguenots arrived as early as 1671, when the first Huguenot refugee, Francois Villion (later Viljoen), arrived at the Cape. By 1692, a total of 201 French Huguenots had settled at the Cape of Good Hope. The Huguenots were French Protestants who were members of the Calvinist Reformed Church that was established in 1550. From the mid 1500s until the mid 1600s, Huguenots were persecuted in France for their religious beliefs. Therefore, thousands of Huguenots fled to countries such as Switzerland, Germany, England, America, the Netherlands, Poland and South Africa, where they could enjoy religious freedom. Since French Huguenot Jacques Malan first set foot in the Cape in 1688, the Malan family’s wine knowledge accumulated over many generations, has equipped them to excel as one of the leading private producers of estate wines in South Africa. The Great Trek (Afrikaans: Die Groot Trek) was an eastward and north-eastward emigration away from British control in the Cape Colony during the 1830s and 1840s by Boers (Dutch/Afrikaans for farmers). The migrants were descended from settlers from western mainland Europe, most notably from the Netherlands, northwest Germany and French Huguenots. The Great Trek itself led to the founding of numerous Boer republics, the Natalia Republic, the Orange Free State Republic and the Transvaal being the most notable. The Second Boer War (Dutch: Tweede Boerenoorlog, Afrikaans: Tweede Vryheidsoorlog) was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 by the United Kingdom against the South African Republic (Transvaal Republic) and the Orange Free state. Boer women, children and men unfit for service were herded together in concentration camps by the British forces during Anglo-Boer War 2 (!899-1902). The first two of these camps (refugee camps) were established to house the families of burghers who had surrendered voluntarily, but very soon, with families of combatant burgers driven forcibly into camps established all over the country, the camps ceased to be refugee camps and became concentration camps. The abhorrent conditions in these camps caused the death of 4 177 women, 22 074 children under sixteen and 1 676 men, mainly those too old to be on commando, notwithstanding the efforts of an English lady, Emily Hobhouse, who tried her best to make the British authorities aware of the plight of especially the women and children in the camps. Voortrekker monument. The structure was built in honor of those (Voortrekkers) who left the Cape Colony and depicts the story of the Great Trek from 1835 to 1852. Every aspect of the monument, both within and around the building, holds symbolic significance. The inside wall is encircled with a unique marble frieze which contains 27 bas-relief panels depicting the history of the Great Trek. They represent aspects of everyday life, work beliefs and the culture of the Boer people. The central focus of the monument is the Cenotaph, which is situated in the Cenotaph Hall. There are also various statues around the monument, including one of Piet Retief and Andries Pretorius. Happy heritage day everyone !!!!
Posted on: Wed, 24 Sep 2014 10:43:13 +0000
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