The architect was gerard moerdijk and it was his ideal to design a monument that would stand a thousand years to describe the history and the meaning of the great trek to its descendants. Voortrekker monument pretoria 2020 all you need to know. Pretoria was named after the voortrekker leader andries pretorius. The voortrekker monument is a monument in pretoria in south africa. Visser formulated the original concept of a youth movement. The massive voortrekker monument, in pretoria, was built in honour of the voortrekkers pioneers who left the cape colony in their thousands between 1835 and 1854.
Voortrekker monument wikimili, the free encyclopedia. Pdf an analysis of the voortrekker monument ebrahim. In some ways the voortrekker organisation represents an afrikaanslanguage alternative to the largely englishspeaking boy scout movement, with its british heritage dr. Voortrekker monument kids britannica kids homework help. We recommend booking voortrekker monument tours ahead of time to secure your spot. A great day of history and natural beauty, with time for lunch at a lovely cafecoffee shop in groenkloof, called cafe 41. It contains the largest marble frieze in the world. This year, 150 years on, the trek was once again commemorated. The voortrekker monument is 40 metres high, with a base of 40m by 40m.
The voortrekker monument is open daily, mayaugust 8am5pm, septemberapril 8am6pm. She is currently a phd candidate in the school of history. Voortrekker synonyms, voortrekker pronunciation, voortrekker translation, english dictionary definition of voortrekker. The religious statement of the voortrekker monument as a.
It is a unique monument which commemorates the pioneer history of southern africa and t. Voortrekker high school was the first afrikaans school on the witswatersrand. The voortrekker monument in pretoria was raised to commemorate the voortrekkers who left the cape colony between 1835 and 1854. It shows how the history of its design and creation maps the multifaceted history of colonialism in south africa, and considers and problematises how the monument and its pretoria counterpart, the union building, draw on greek and roman models including the parthenon sculptures, trajans column. A tapestry borrowed from the voortrekker monument provides a womans perspective of the daily deprivations and sufferings of the pioneer journey to the north. Sep 03, 2012 there is on display, in the voortrekker monument, the famous tapestry of the great trek and it depicts the role of the woman the artist w. The voortrekker monument, the birth of apartheid, and beyond.
See more ideas about history, africa and south africa. Primary schools brochure visual arts brochure gr812 history brochure. World heritage encyclopedia content is assembled from numerous content providers, open access publishing, and in compliance. Pdf the voortrekker monument as memory institution.
Media in category voortrekker monument the following 34 files are in this category, out of 34 total. A visit to the voortrekker monument is an aweinspiring experience. The great historical monuments which were dedicated in the course of the. The last time any of us locals had been there was during our primary school days many decades back so we were unsure of what to expect. Voortrekker definition of voortrekker by the free dictionary.
The voortrekker monument pretoria stands over 40 meters tall on its hilltop home, and is visible from a large part of pretoria. Geloftedag day of the covenant voortrekker monument 16. Built in 1949 to commemorate the great trek into the interior of the country, the voortrekker monument in pretoria has stood as the embodiment of. For moerdyk, a memorial or monument should be the manifestation of the own of the history of the afrikaner. The voortrekkers left the british cape colony in the 1830s to found their own colonies in what is now south africa. The frieze consist of 27 marble relief panels depicting the history of the great trek, the life, struggles and fervent christian faith of the voortrekkers. This myth fabricates divine sanction of both the trekkers journey and battles.
The voortrekker monument situated in pretoria, part of a nature reserve, stands proud and concrete. The history of the voortrekker monument part 1 youtube. Their collective memoryexpressed via the monument was less about what. Looking at current monuments and memorials in south africa. Conflict amongst the voortrekkers was a problem because the trek leveled out the preexisting class hierarchy which had previously enforced discipline, and thus social cohesion broke down. This aspect of its composition and intention has not yet been submitted to thorough theologicalcritical investigation and scrutiny. Voortrekker monument antique fair antiekmark, pretoria, south africa. This massive granite structure is prominently located on a hilltop, and was built to commemorate the voortrekkers who left the cape colony between 1835 and 1854. The majestic voortrekker monument is situated in the northern part of south africa in the pretoria tshwane region in a nature reserve. The eventful history of the trek is illustrated by twentyseven panels of overpowering marble friezes inside the monument, reportedly one of the largest historical. History, homes and customs of the voortrekkers book, 1974. Pdf an analysis of the voortrekker monument ebrahim salie.
Archaetnos cc was appointed by the voortrekker monument heritage site to conduct a cultural heritage impact assessment hia for the new educational centre at the site. The voortrekker monument is located just south of pretoria in south africa. The religious statement of the voortrekker monument as a site of. It is a unique monument which commemorates the pioneer history of southern africa and the history of the afrikaner and is situated in a beautiful setting. This 43m high, granite monument, was inaugurated in 1949 and commemorates the pioneers of european descent called the voortrekkers, who ventured into the interior of southern africa between the years 1834 and 1854 in search of freedom and independence. Pretoria was named after a dutchman and this massive hilltop structure recounts the history behind the group of dutch pioneers to which he belonged. The two main points of interest inside the building are the historical frieze and the cenotaph. All structured data from the file and property namespaces is available under the creative commons cc0 license.
History of the voortrekker monument voortrekker monument in depth. This chapter examines material culture by looking at the voortrekker monument in south africa. The voortrekker monument in pretoria, south africa, was built in honor of the voortrekkers a group of dutch settlers or afrikaners. Abstract afrikaner nationalists used the voortrekker monument, to express their feelings and attitudes to their historical past, and to create a specific relation to it. See all 42 voortrekker monument tours on tripadvisor. The world africa and indian ocean south africa johannesburg gauteng pretoria voortrekker monument. The voortrekker monument is a wellknown national heritage site, located to the south of. Entry to the monument park only costs r30 plus r10 per person, r70 for buses, r40 for mini buses and r30 for hikers, joggers and cyclists. The school was started by a group of afrikaners, under the leadership of louw, who wanted their children to have an alternative to english schools. Files are available under licenses specified on their description page. The monument boasts sculpted portrayals of the journey the voortrekkers pioneers and the afrikaner endured, which makes it no surprise that the voortrekket monument is one of the countrys most visited museums. It was built to describe the history of the afrikaner pioneers who left the cape colony, where they suffered under british rule, to travel to the interior of the country from 1835 to 1854 on what has come to be known as the great trek. At the foot of the monument stands a bronze sculpture of a voortrekker woman and her two children by south african sculptor anton van wouw. The voortrekkers helped to give south africa its distinctive character.
The voortrekker museum is an amazing and imposing historical building near pretoria. The voortrekker monument pretoria south africa africa travel channel. The voortrekker monument is a wellknown national heritage site, located to the south of the city centre of pretoria in the gauteng province. Stepping into the gap, this article traces the religious intention and intonation of the monument. A full day outing can be done by combining a visit to the union buildings on another hill on the north side of the city, as well as the freedom park site on another hill, right opposite the voortrekker monument. South africa historic sites the voortrekker monument. The role of monuments in producing contested national histories and identities is increasingly receiving critical attention in geography. The founding of the voortrekkers coincided with a growth in afrikaner nationalism in south africa, then a member of the british commonwealth. If you book with tripadvisor, you can cancel up to 24 hours before your tour starts for a full refund. Geloftedag day of the covenant voortrekker monument 1612. A more rigorous analysis of the geometric and spatial correspondences between the two monuments then forms the basis on which a position is put forward that the masonic spatial qualities in the voortrekker monument is probably due to the fact that it borrowed design ideas from the leipzig monument and inadvertently imported the esoteric qualities. We recently visited the voortrekker monument with a friend from overseas. Apr 26, 2012 on my last trip to south africa, i took my children to a monument i had last seen when i was a little older than them. Its location is significant because voortrekker history was seen to culminate at pretoria and because it is directly visible from pretorias parliament buildings.
Consequently, the voortrekker monument represents historical events, and is a symbolic document showing the afrikaners propriety right to south africa. Voortrekker project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. Voortrekker monument simple english wikipedia, the free. The religious statement made by the voortrekker monument is part and parcel of its meaning and symbolism. The voortrekker monument as symbol of afrikaner power in a postapartheid south africa. This page was last edited on 28 december 2018, at 03. It was built to commemorate the voortrekkers who left the cape colony between 1835 and 1854. The voortrekker monument stands like an ancient obelisk over the city of pretoria. The south hall houses animaldrawn vehicles, including voortrekker wagons and some oxwagons. Pioneer, leading migrant, or those who go ahead, any of the boers dutch settlers or their descendants, or, as they came to be called in the 20th century, afrikaners, who left the british cape colony in southern africa after 1834 and migrated into the interior highveld north of the orange river. This paper contributes to the existing literature on monuments and nationalism by examining the voortrekker monument in pretoria and illustrating how it became a key site at which afrikaners produced a distinct political identity in the late 1940s. To commemorate the voortrekkers pioneers who brought their culture with them to the interior of southern africa. Dec 27, 2015 fascinating history, the monument is certainly art deco. It was built to commemorate the voortrekkers who left the cape colony between 1835 and 1854 most of the voortrekkers were not satisfied with the british government that ruled over them in the cape in those years, that is why they packed their ox wagons and started to trek to.
Voortrekker monument pretoria was named after a dutchman and this massive hilltop structure recounts the history behind the group of dutch pioneers to which he belonged. This time, however, there were two symbolic reenact ments, a clear manifestation of an afri kanerdom now divided on the signifi cance of the trek and one of the key issues left unresolved in its wake re. The voortrekker monument stands on a hill a few miles outside of pretoria. Complete with replica wagons and historical pieces from the time.
Coetzer designed the tapestries, after which nine women of the atkv embroidered for eight years to complete it. Voortrekker monument tours for kids activeactivities. No denying that it is a part of south african history, however the visitors must be warned it is not a monument built for and by south africa as we know of today. Voortrekker monument and the tercentenary van riebeeck celebrations and, finally.
Voortrekker monument pretoria 2020 all you need to. Important to understand how the slave memorial manifested voortrekker monument, pretoria. See all 41 voortrekker monument tours on tripadvisor. The iconic voortrekker monument is situated in pretoria south africa. Pdf the voortrekker monument has been a central memory institution for afrikaners since its conception in the 1930s. Climb the stairs for far reaching views and if heights are no issue, take a look down at the vow. We were very impressed with the monument, it had been kept in beautiful condition and was a pleasure to visit.
Its vast, angular form looks out of place on the dry african hilltops. A series of monographs on the history of the voortrekker monument just south of pretoria in south africa. On my last trip to south africa, i took my children to a monument i had last seen when i was a little older than them. Voortrekker, any of the boers dutch settlers or their descendants, or, as they came to be called in the 20th century, afrikaners, who left the british cape colony in southern africa after 1834 and migrated into the interior highveld north of the orange river. If you know the answer to this question, please register to join our limited beta program and start the conversation. The voortrekkers are commemorated by the voortrekker monument located on monument hill overlooking pretoria, the erstwhile capital of the south african republic and the current and historic administrative capital of the republic of south africa. This massive granite structure is prominently located on a hilltop, and was raised to commemorate the voortrekkers who left the cape colony between 1835 and 1854. Fascinating history of the voortrekker museum youtube. Search for library items search for lists search for contacts search for a library.
1423 755 376 184 730 37 673 1442 1474 554 469 1052 1060 468 325 1231 245 1203 57 1049 540 335 1331 389 1357 1540 555 692 442 768 563 781 485 882 180 820 330 1116 1252 1326 526 292 1113 1143 191 263