South African History & Heritage

Early Origins

South Africa contains some of the earliest evidence of man's origins. Archaeological sites at Sterkfontein (now the Cradle of Mankind, a World Heritage Site) and Makapansgat in Limpopo province show traces of early human settlements dating back well over three million years. The discovery of the Taung Skull, Little Foot (over 3,5 million years ago) and Mrs Ples (2,5 million years ago) have created worldwide interest in South African palaeo-anthropology (see World Heritage Sites, Best Archaeological sites, Museums).

Not much evidence of South Africa's earliest inhabitants, the San, survives today, except for numerous rock-art paintings to be found in caves (and museums) around the country. Good examples of San rock-art may be found in the uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Nature Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal and the South African Museum in Cape Town (See World Heritage Sites).

Ethnic experience

For an experience of ethnic tribal life in South Africa, there are a variety of cultural villages to choose from. The Lesedi Cultural Village, less than an hour's drive from Johannesburg, offers a multi-cultural African village experience. The Botshabelo Open Air Museum near Middleburg and the AmaNdebele Traditional Village, north of Bronkhorstspruit, contain examples of the distinctive, brightly- coloured Ndebele decorative style. In KwaZulu-Natal, Shakaland near Eshowe and PheZulu in the Valley of a Thousand Hills, near Durban, are recreations of Zulu villages.
The way of life of the South Sotho may be seen at the Basotho Cultural Village, near the Golden Gate National Park in the Free State, while the Tswana culture is recreated in the attractive Lotamoreng Dam and Cultural Village, near Mafikeng, in North-West province.

Colonial era

Vestiges of the colonial era, which began with the arrival of Jan van Riebeeck from Holland in 1652, may be found in the Castle of Good Hope in Cape Town, the Old Slave Lodge, Koopmans-De Wet House, Groot Constantia and the Bo-Kaap Museum in Cape Town and the Huguenot Monument (to French settlers) at Franschhoek. (See Western Cape, Cape Town)

Afrikaner monuments, of which there are many, include the Voortrekker Monument, Paul Kruger House and Melrose House in Pretoria; the Bronze Wagon Monument near Dundee and the Church of the Vow and Voortrekker Museum in Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal, as well as the Language Monument and Museum at Paarl, near Cape Town. (See Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Museums)

British influence is most noticeable in the many elegant public buildings in many of South Africa's bigger cities and towns, of which the Union Buildings in Pretoria and other Herbert Baker-designed edifices are prime examples. Other cities with a distinctive British character include Pietermaritzburg in KZN, Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape and Kimberley in the Northern Cape. (See Pretoria, Northern Cape)

Gold Reef City in Johannesburg is the faithful reconstruction of the city in its early gold-mining days, while the Kimberley Mine Museum is one of many historic reminders of the excitement of the diamond rush in the late 19th century. (See Johannesburg, Kimberley)

Indian, Jewish legacies

The Indian influence on South Africa is particularly evident in Durban, where the Great Mosque and the Victoria Street Market are among many places to see.
(see Durban)

The Jewish presence in South Africa has been small in number but huge in impact. The Great Synagogue in Cape Town, the Old Synagogue and Sammy Marks Museum in Pretoria and the new Jewish Museum and Holocaust Centre in Cape Town are well worth visiting.

Battlefields

South Africa's turbulent history is reflected in many famous battlefield sites that commemorate the Anglo-Zulu conflict in 1879 and the two Anglo-Boer Wars of 1880-81 and 1899-1902 respectively. (See Battlefields)

Apartheid relics

The malign legacy of the apartheid era is commemorated in many new sites which have become among the country's premier tourist attractions. Robben Island, the isolated prison of Nelson Mandela and other political dissidents, is a ferry-ride away from the Cape Town Waterfront. The District Six Museum, also in Cape Town depicts life in the Muslim community on the fringes of the city before it was swept away by the Group Areas Act in the 1960s. The Hector Peterson Memorial Square in Soweto commemorates the uprising of 1976 which led eventually to the demise of the white-led government. MuseumAfrica, in Newtown, and the new Apartheid Museum at nearly Gold Reef City also contain vivid depictions of life under the apartheid regime. (See Cape Town, Johannesburg, Museums)

A more direct experience of life in a South African township may be had by taking one of the many good township tours on offer in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth.