Exploring with my camera
Urquhart House was built sometime between 1806-21 on land belonging to Johan Hendrik Greyling in the Cape Dutch style, with a prominent anchor and stars on the front gable. Incredibly, the reason for these decorations is unknown. The building became the … Continued
On our first day in Graaff Reinet we launched ourselves into The Graaff Reinet Museum which is housed in four historic buildings: Reinet House, Urquhart House, The Old Library, and The Old Residency. Reinet House, built in 1812 on an H-plan, … Continued
Graaff Reinet is named after Cornelis van de Graaff, the then-Governor of the Cape Colony, and his wife whose maiden name was ‘Reinet’. It was founded in 1786 and is the fourth oldest town in South Africa (after Cape Town, Stellenbosch, and Swellendam). … Continued
The Rev Jean Pierre Pellissier (1808-67), of the newly created Paris Evangelical Missionary Society, arrived in the Cape in 1831. He stayed in Wellington to learn Dutch, and then moved further north to Bethulie. His house was built in 1834-35 by C Gosselin, a … Continued
The concentration camp at Bethulie was one of the largest camps established by the British during the Anglo-Boer War, 1899-1902. Of the 1,737 people who died at the camp, 1,311 were under 15 years, and 426 were over 15 years. The women and … Continued
It was going to be a long, hot day and so we set off early to drive 504 kms from Bloemfontein to Graaff Reinet.
The President Brand Cemetery is disturbing in many ways: there is a memorial to the women and children who died in the Anglo-Boer War; there are graves of young men who died, both in combat and from disease; gravestones had been broken and damaged; … Continued
In the grounds of the Museum there are interesting sights: a hospital, train, blockhouse, replica guns, and a memorial graveyard.
I read The Boer War as we travelled in South Africa and was horrified by the bungling, stupidity, ruthlessness, and barbarity of the 1899-1902 war. Of course there were acts of bravery, daring, and enterprise, even cleverness, but this was a war which … Continued
