Pretoria

Kerkplein and its buildings:

The Kerkplein (church square) is the historic center of the city. The square is at the intersection of Kerkstraat and Paul Krugerstraat. The square was realized in 1855 in the then independent Boerenstaat the South African Republic (ZAR), better known as Transvaal. It was designated by the then president Pretorius as a marketplace and to go to church, from which the square derives its name.

It is also sometimes called the Dutch square because of the Dutch architecture that is present here. In the center of the Church Square stands the statue of Paul Kruger, the famous president of Transvaal. He is surrounded by four protectors from the South African Republic. 

The first church on the square was completed in 1857. After that church was burnt down in 1882, a second Dutch Reformed Church was built in 1884, which was completed in 1885. The stately Palace of Justice is also a creation of the Dutch architect Wierda. The first stone was laid by Paul Kruger himself in 1879. During the Second Boer War the building was set up as an emergency hospital. In the 60s of the 20th century, this building was the scene of the famous "Rivonia" lawsuit that was held here.

Nelson Mandela was send into prison with a life sentence. De Munt (the coin) was completed in 1892 and since 1893 the coins of the South African Republic have been minted there. The Oude Nederlandsche Bankgebouw (the Dutch bank building) was built in 1897. It was the first building in Pretoria in Art Nouveau / Art Nouveau style.

The Kruger House and the Heroes cemetery

The Kruger House is the historic residence of Paul Kruger, Boerenleider and President of the South African Republic in Pretoria. Today it serves as a biographical museum in which the Kruger era (late 19th century) is exhibited.

The Kruger House was built in 1884 and was one of the first in Pretoria with electricity and telephone. Opposite is the Dutch Reformed Church where Kruger and his wife always prayed (SEE ALSO MUSEUMS). 

De Heldenakker (hero’s field) is a graveyard and part of the Church Street Cemetery in Pretoria. De Heldenakker was established in 1867 as the final resting place of many prominent Afrikaners, such as presidents and generals. For example, the founder of the South African Republic Andries Pretorius is buried here and his successors Van Rensburg, Burgers and of course Paul Kruger. Also Louis Botha and architect of the apartheid Hendrik Verwoerd have found their final resting place here. Nowadays it’s protected by the clock against vandalism.

Melrose House:

The Melrose House is a stately Victorian mansion built in 1886. The house is named after the famous Melrose Abbey in Scotland. The house gained fame when the house was appointed by Lord Roberts as headquarters of the British Army during the Second Boer War (1899-1902) after Pretoria was invaded in June 1890.

For more than 18 months the instructions to the British army were given from this house. The house was no longer used for such purposes when the Peace of Vereeniging was signed in the dining room. Today, the elegant house is a museum that serves as an excellent example of the transition from Victorian to Edwardian architecture and interior decoration.

The inside of the house is characterized by colorful windows, paintings by English artists, mats in rich colors, elegant ceilings and stoves. Most of the objects belonged to the Heys family itself. (SEE ALSO MUSEUMS).

The Union building:

The Union building is the official seat of the South African government. The sandstone building consisting of several parts is 275 long and is built in the shape of a half moon. The two side wings represent the Dutch (Afrikaners) and English (Anglo-Africans) parts of the white population in South Africa.

The first cornerstone was laid in 1910, shortly after the Union of South Africa was established, to which the building was named. The building was completed in 1913. Around the Union building is a large garden with various native plants, there is also an amphitheater near the building. This government seat gained international fame when the first democratic president Nelson Mandela was inaugurated here in 1994.

Nowadays, the garden has an impressive image of the former president with open arms. At the bottom of the garden is a statue with old president Louis Botha on a horse. The imposing building is located on the Meintjieskop and overlooks Pretoria. Unfortunately it is closed for the public.

Voortrekker monument and the Freedom park

The heavy granite monument was erected in memory of the Voortrekkers, who left the English Cape Colony between 1835 and 1854 and moved into the interior of South Africa. Construction began in 1938 and some 200,000 people were attended with the inauguratisation of the monument in 1949.

The monument depicts two important milestones in the history of the Voortrekkers: Frist the The Great Trek (1835-1854) and second The Battle of Blood River (1838). The Voortrekker monument is 40 meters high and is surrounded by a tropical garden that contains just about all South African plants, trees and flowers. The complex is surrounded by a layer of 64 granite replicas of the ox wagons. Inside the Voortrekker monument you will find the 30 meter high Heldenhal (hero’s hall) with a 92 meter long marble wall engraving. Today the Voortrekker monument has often become a tourist attraction, but for the Afrikaners it will still retain the meaning and function of the good old times.  

Between the city and the pioneer monument lies the Freedom Park. The complex consists of a brand new museum that explains the whole history of South Africa. On top of the hill the actual park is built with, among other things, a holy place for the fallen (Isivivane) and the S'khumbuto which consists of a name with heroes, amphitheater and an eternal flame. The whole is rather symbolic; entrance is 100R for international guests. 

Other attractions:

• The Transvaal Museum, the Erasmus Castle, Forts of Pretoria and Pretoria National Botanical Garden.

The first inhabitants in the area of present-day Pretoria were members of the Nguni tribe, who later became known as South Ndebele (literally: refugees). They lived here because of the fertile valley and the Apies river. Thousands of people were murdered during the Zulu wars and the rest fled largely north (Zimbabwe). In that vacuum the farmers would claim land. During the Great Trek in the 1930s, the first whites came to the area and several farms were founded.

In September 1853, Marthinus Wessel Pretorius requested at a meeting of the Volksraad of the new South African Republic that a more centrally located capital was to be found, whereupon he bought the farms Elandspoort and Daspoort on the Apiesrivier. In 1854 a municipality was founded at Elandspoort and on 16 November 1855 the Volksraad (people’s council) decided to build a village here called Pretoria.

The city was named after Voortrekker Andries Pretorius, who was honored as a folk hero after his victory over the Zulus in the Battle of Blood River. Andries Pretorius also played an important role in the negotiations with the United Kingdom, which in 1852 led the Zandriviertractaat to the independence of the South African Republic (Transvaal). Pretoria succeeded Potchefstroom as the capital of Transvaal on 1 May 1860. Between 1863 and 1869 a bitter war broke out between the Peasants and it was not at all certain whether Pretoria would remain as its capital. There were also constant wars with black tribes. 

During the First Boer War (1880-1881) Pretoria was besieged by republican troops between December 1880 and March 1881. Due to British struggles, a railway from Pretoria to Maputo was drawn by the Dutch South African Railways after the First Boer War. This line was opened in 1894. As a result, Pretoria became less dependent on the British will to allow (sometimes not) transportation over land to Cape Town and Durban ports. But dark clouds emerged above the Boer Republic once gold was found of what is now Johannesburg (Witwatersrand). The Second Boer War (1899-1902) led to the downfall of the Transvaal state and heralded an era of British rule in South Africa.

Pretoria capitulated on June 5, 1900 and was captured by troops under the command of Frederick Sleigh Roberts. With the signing of the Treaty of Vereeniging the war was ended on May 31, 1902 in Pretoria (see Melrose House). The Boer Republics Transvaal and the Orange Free State were united in 1910 with the British Cape Colony and Natal to the Union of South Africa, with Pretoria as its administrative capital (Cape Town became the parliamentary and legislative capital). In the era between 1860 and 1994 Pretoria also served as the seat of the provincial government of Transvaal.