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Writer's pictureTanya Ritchie-Hicks

“He who does not travel does not know the value of men.” – Moorish proverb

A tour of Pretoria can truly bring to life the history of South Africa. They say it is better to see something once than to hear about it a thousand times and this is never truer than visiting this historic city.

When in Africa “Stop worrying about the potholes in the road and enjoy the journey.” – Babs Hoffman. The land on which Pretoria stands was originally occupied by Ndebele in the early 1600s, until 1840 when the first Afrikaans settlers arrived. When South Africa became a Union in 1910, Pretoria was again named as the capital. Pretoria has always had a turbulent history. During the Boer War of 1899 to 1902, the city surrendered to the British, despite being surrounded by four forts to defend the city. This war, however, was ended by the signing of the Treaty of Vereeniging which took place on 31 May 1902 in Melrose House, Pretoria.

Throughout the city, many great works of architecture show a variety of influences. Examples include the Union Buildings, the Voortrekker Monument, The City Hall, the Ou Raadsaal, Fort Schanskop and UNISA College. The rich history of the area is also captured within the many museums within Pretoria, such as the Transvaal Museum, National Cultural History Museum and many old buildings that have been preserved as treasures of the past.

Today Pretoria claims the longest urban street in South Africa in Church Street, Pretoria’s main street, being one of the straightest urban streets in the world.

Within the heart of the city stand Church Square, which was used as a location in a movie location for the 1996 film, The Ghost and The Darkness (which starred Val Kilmer and Michael Douglas)? The steam train that was used in the film was borrowed from the Pretoria Railroad Museum.)

Church Square was home to the first church built in Pretoria, which burnt down in 1882. This is the home to many historically significant buildings, like the Ou Raadsaal (council chamber) and the Palace of Justice. The square is perhaps most famous for the large bronze statue of Paul Kruger, former State President, which stands in its centre. But remember “One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” – Henry Miller

It is better to see something once than to hear about it a thousand times. Visit where the Rivonia Trial, (where former SA president Nelson Mandela and other ANC leaders were sentenced to life-long imprisonment), took place in the Palace of Justice (on Pretoria’s Church Square). This is also where Madiba made his “I’m prepared to die” speech on the 20th of April 1964.

Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before, like the Cafe Riche (a restaurant on Church Square) has a glass pane that you walk over to get into the restaurant. This is because it used to be a gentleman’s club. The club was underground so the glass was there allegedly so the gentlemen could look up under the ladies skirts (who were walking past the club).

The Union Buildings represent the change South Africa underwent, constructed between 1909 and 1913, and was the largest building in the country and possibly the largest building work undertaken in the Southern Hemisphere at that time. The 9m tall statue of Nelson Mandela (which was erected in December 2013) cost R8 million and weighs 3.5 tons. As Bill Bryson said “To my mind, the greatest reward and luxury of travel is to be able to experience everyday things as if for the first time, to be in a position in which almost nothing is so familiar it is taken for granted.”

Paul Kruger’s house, built in 1884, was the president of the ZAR (later known as Transvaal) from 1883 to 1900. Milk was used instead of water for mixing the cement from which the house was constructed, as the cement available was of poor quality. It was one of the first houses to be lit by electricity in Pretoria. The two stone lions on the verandah were presented to President Paul Kruger as a birthday gift on 10 October 1896 by Barney Barnato (the mining magnate).

Pretoria can claim to be on average 2 degrees warmer than Jo'burg and the area is also home to many nature reserves, parks and gardens, including the National Zoological Gardens, the National Botanical Gardens and many small parks scattered across the city.

The Pretoria National Botanical Gardens was established in June 1946. The University of Pretoria granted approval to the Department of Agriculture for the development of a botanical garden on a piece of land that was previously part of the University’s Experimental Farm.

The Department of Agriculture acquired properties on the Northern ridge and the garden was officially opened in October 1958. One could only visit these gardens if you made special arrangements, but in 1984 that changed when the gardens were opened its gates to the general public.

Church Square

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