The Bethulie Concentration Camp cemetery - a sad part of our history

Bethulie in the southern Free State is one of those places not many people pass through as it's not really on any of the main thoroughfares going south (or north, depending how you look at it).  On my last trip up to Johannesburg I deviated off the normal route to see what this town on the banks of the Orange River is all about.  One of the things I found out was that Bethulie was the site of one of the most notorious concentration camps of the Anglo Boer War of 1899 to 1902.  I was shocked by the size of the Concentration Camp Cemetery Memorial and even more so when I saw all the names on the remembrance wall.

It turns out that even the English called the Bethulie camp "the hell camp" because of the shocking conditions Boer men, women and children were being held in.  The ravages of disease, starvation and extreme temperatures, enhanced by the bad administration of the camp, meant that the camp saw a death toll of 1 737 prisoners among its population of about 5 000 over the 13 months it existed between April 1901 and the end of the war in May 1902.  At one stage about 30 people a day was buried in the camp.  Truly shocking and it literally had me speechless as I stood reading the info around the memorial.  

The original camp and cemetery was located much closer to the river back in the days but all the graves were relocated to this position when the Gariep Dam (called the Hendrik Verwoerd Dam back then) was constructed in the 1960's.

At the top end of the cemetery is an enclosed area containing all the original hand-carved sandstone headstones which were removed from the old cemetery.  They've all been set into three walls and having a closer look at the information on them you suddenly realise how many children were among those who had dies in the camp.  Unfortunately the gate was locked tight so I couldn't get a closer look at all of them,

I drove away deeply touched.  The Anglo Boer War was such a significant event in the history of South Africa and yet so many of us never get to visit sites like this because it's often off the beaten track.  So next time you're on the main drag down to the beach fro your summer holidays, why not set a day aside and take some of the back roads.  You will come away the better for it.

Who was Louw Wepener and why does he have a monument in the Free State?

How are you going to explore, discover new places and see interesting things if you don't road trip and venture off the beaten track?  A little detour past Bethulie in the southern Free State while heading north had me cross the second longest bridge in South Africa, take a walk through the Bethulie Concentration Camp Cemetery and learn who Louw Wepener was.  To be honest, I probably would have totally missed the Louw Wepener Monument a few hundred meters off the road if there wasn't a Geocache located there.

So who was Louw Wepener and why does he have a monument?  Lourens Jacobus (Louw) Wepener was bron in Graaff-Reinet in 1812 and was a war hero.  As a Cape burgher, while farming in Somerset East and then Aliwal North, Wepener distinguished himself through his military ability and fearlessness during the frontier wars of 1835, 1846 and 1851.  In 1862 he moved to the farm Constantia outside Bethulie and threw his lot in with the Orange Free State.  On the outbreak of the Second Basuto War in 1865 he became commandant - in - chief of the southern commandos.  As the Boers advanced they were eventually encamped at the foot of Thaba Bosigo, Moshesh’s stronghold.

Wepener and 400 volunteers decided to take the mountain by storm with Wepener, in the lead, dying a hero’s death at about sunset near the summit of the mountain.  Legend has it that his heroism made such an impression on the Basutos that they roasted and ate his heart, believing that by doing so they would acquire some of his bravery.

Louw Wepener's bones were later buried on his farm outside Bethulie on the site where the monument stands today.  The town of Wepener near the Lesotho border was also named after him.  I hopped onto the wall next to his bust after retrieving the Geocache and had a quick chat with Oom Louw while signing the logsheet.  He truly was a heroic man if you read his whole history and that of the attack on Thaba Bosigo.  The other thing that got my attention is the fact that this monument is located on a farm, in the middle of nowhere, but with close ties to Wepener plus the monument is a simple stone structure with a bust.  Perhaps a lesson to those wanting to put up monuments for struggle heroes.  Monuments don't have to be anything more than this, located in a place with no links to the person or cost millions of rands.  Just saying. 

The (second) longest bridge in South Africa

My normal route through the Karoo Heartland of the Eastern Cape when heading up north is over Cradock and Steynsburg towards Venterstad and then a short left to the Gariep Dam before hitting the N1 for Bloemfontein.  Before my last trip to Johannesburg I had a closer look at the Geocaching map to see if there are any possible alternative routes that will take me to cache locations I haven't been to.  A couple of green dots around the town of Bethulie in the southern Free State caught my eye.  It wouldn't necessarily mean more distance, just a right at Venterstad and a loop via Bethulie towards the N1.  The one thing that really caught my attention though was that one of the caches was called The Longest one in SA. Longest what?  It turns out that the (now second) longest bridge in South Africa spans the the Orange River, connecting the Eastern Cape and Free State, just outside the town. 

The arched D.H. Steyn Bridge (also called the Hennie Steyn Bridge) is 1,152 km long and 51,5 meter high above the river below.  The bridge was built in the 1970's and was named after the then   chairperson of the Orange River Development Project Advisory Council.

Another unique aspect of it is that the bridge isn't just a road bridge but also acts as railway bridge with the railway line running parallel to the road.  Approaching it from the Eastern Cape side is probably best with a great view of the bridge, but I have to be honest, standing on the bridge itself it doesn't look very spectacular. The view to both side are beautiful though (in a Karoo way) and just the fact that I can say I have visited the (second) longest bridge in South Africa made the detour worth while.   Just a pity that more people don't venture off the beaten track to come and discover places like this.  

Oh yes, and I did find the Geocache in case you were wondering.

UPDATE: Thanks to Grant Stater for the information in the comments.  The longest bridge in South Africa is now along the John Ross Parkway along the N2 near Rochards Bay in KZN.  A 1.2km long bridge spanning the Enseleni floodplain and Nsezi River was completed in December 2009 at a cost of R270-million and is now the longest bridge in the country.

Madiba gazing over Bloem

Naval Hill in Bloemfontein has always been a beacon in the Free State capitol and known for the magnificent views of the surrounding city.  In 2012 an eight meter tall bronze sculpture, made by the same sculptor as the one standing in Mandela Square in Sandton, was revealed.  Last year during the #MeetSouthAfrica bloggers trip before Indaba, the one group spent a night in Bloem and visited Naval Hill at sunset.  The pictures they posted were stunning.  I also got to spend a night in Bloem on my way to Jozi earlier in the year and wanted to do the same.  Unfortunately it was cloudy which meant the sunset wasn't going to be as spectacular and I decided not to stick around, but sharing the view with Madiba was still special.     

Vrystaatse Vlaktes

I have come to love the wide open spaces of the Karoo Heartland in the Eastern Cape but just haven't been able to get used to the, what we call in Afrikaans, Vrystaatse vlaktes.  Vrystaat is the Afrikaans name for the Free State, South Africa's central province while vlaktes is an very descriptive Afrikaans work for wide open spaces stretching for miles.  The wide open spaces, or vlaktes, of the Free State is very different from that of the Karoo Heartland.  Driving along the roads of the central and southern Free State you often feel like you are in the middle of nowhere where nothing grows about knee high.  I'm not insulting the Free State, please don't get me wrong.  I'm just saying that, like with wine, I just haven't been able to get used to it.  I found the most beautiful Afrikaans poem called the Vrystaatse Vlaktes in die Somer just to make up for it in case somebody feels insulted.  

The picture was taken just off the N1 in the southern Free State about 50 kilometers north of the Gariep Dam. 

I haven't participated in Skywatch Friday for a very long time and I think it's time I start sharing our beautiful South African skies on a regular basis on it again.

A very unusual beach

Can you guess where this beach is?

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Technically it's not a beach.  Not a coastal one anyway.  It is the sandveld on the banks of the Bloemhof Dam on the border between the North West Province and the Free State.

Bloemhof Dam was built in the late 1960's and is located at the confluence of the Vaal River and the Vet River.  At 25 000 hectares the dam with it's 4 270 m long dam wall is one of the largest in South Africa.  The dam itself is very shallow as it isn't located in a gorge and stretches up to a 100 km upstream from the wall. 

 

The area around the dam has been declared a protected area with the Bloemhof Dam Nature Reserve on the North West side is the more prominent Sandveld Nature Reserve in the Free State.  The Sandveld Nature Reserve is one of South Africa's top birding spots with 295 bird species recorded here as well as game like giraffe, buffalo, eland, gemsbok, and rare sable and roan antelope.

The Norvalspont Concentration Camp Memorial

The Anglo Boer War (1899 - 1902) is one of the big turning points in South Africa's history along with the arrival of Europeans in the country, the Great Trek, the Apartheid years and a new democratic South Africa.  Okay, so the history is about more than just those five turning points but that is what came to my mind just now.  One of the most significant things that happened during the Anglo Boar War was that it was the first time ever that concentration camps were used anywhere in the world.  During the war thousands of men, women and children were kept in these camps with 4 177 boer women, 22 074 children under sixteen and 1 676 boer men dying in these camps.  That's not even counting the over 14000 deaths in black concentration camps.

 

A couple of years back we spent a holiday at the Gariep Dam and I read about Norvalspont where one of these concentration camps we situated.  I never got a chance to visit the site but driving back from Johannesburg recently I decided to make a stop on my way back towards the coast.  The turnoff was on my route and after about 2 kilometers on a smooth dirt road I came across the site.  No magnificent monument, no fancy visitor centre, no guides hanging around to show visitors around and no tourist trap curio and food stalls.  In actual fact, there wasn't another soul in sight.  Just a big paved area surrounded by a low stone wall and three stone monuments with plaques on them.  From what I can gather its the site of the concentration camp's cemetery.

 

Norvalspont was seen as a model camp and was much better off than most of the other camps even though conditions were still very bad.  It was situated on the banks of the Orange River which meant that there was at least enough water and fire wood available.  It was not that Norvals Pont lacked the problems of the other camps. On the contrary, the measles epidemic struck early and was followed by scarlet fever and diphtheria.  Families also poured in without warning and tents and blankets often ran out.  The camp was one of those visited by Emily Hobhouse in 1901.  At times there were over three thousands people housed at Norvalspont, all housed in tents on the site, while the camp had a total of four hundred and twelve deaths.      

Standing there on a warm winters afternoon without a breath of air moving and only cicadas calling it does become a bit of a profound experience.  One where you realize how much sadness and despair there must have been right there yet there is also a spirit of strong and proud people who supported each other and stood together through this difficult time.  A profound experience indeed.   

For more information on the Norvalspont Concentration Camp have a look at
Anglo Boere Oorlog/Boer War (1899-1902) NORVALSPONT Camp/Kamp
and
Waschbank River Lodge

The Gariep Dam - South Africa's biggest dam

Returning from Gauteng on a recent road trip I decided to make a little detour via the Gariep Dam and take the Steynsburg and Hofmeyr road through the Karoo to Cradock.  I made a lunch and leg stretch stop at the lookout overlooking the Gariep Dam wall.  The Gariep Dam was opened in 1071 and initially called the Hendrik Verwoerd Dam after the first prime minister of the Republic of South Africa.  After the end of Apartheid it was decided to change the name to the Gariep Dam.  Gariep is the original name of the Orange River and means "river" in the Khoekhoe (Khoisan) language.

 

The Gariep Dam is the biggest dam in South Africa and has a total storage capacity of approximately 5,340,000 megalitres and a surface area of more than 370 square kilometers when full.  The wall is 88 meters high and along its crest is 914 meters long.  Truly a South African man made marvel.

Golden Gate Hoogland-Nasionale Park

Een van Suid-Afrika se bekendste nasionale park landmerke is die Brandberg in die Golden Gate Hoogland-Nasionale Park in die Oos-Vrystaat.  Maak nie saak of dit wit gesneeu is in die winter of gras groen is in die vroeë somer nie, dis altyd 'n welkom gesig vir reisigers oppad uit die Vrystaat na KwaZulu Natal se kant toe.  Maar moenie net deurry nie, stop vir 'n dag of twee en verken die area. 

Free State church flowers

Flowers in front of the Dutch Reformed Church in the small Free State Town of Wepener.

Free State roadside flower

Driving through the Free State there isn't always very much to see immediately next to the road, so stopping at roadworks doesn't really mean that you can sit back and enjoy the scenery.  Or can't you.  Right next to the road was a strip of greenery with these very interesting little orange flowers blooming in it.  There was just time to hop out for a quick picture before the worker swung the stop/go sign around and the lorry behind me hooted.

Retief (Voortrekker) Pass

Driving up the Olivierhoek Pass over the Drakensberg in comfort only having to dodge the occasional pothole, I was wondering how tough it must have been for the Voortrekkers to get down this mountain during the Great Trek in 1837. On a visit to the Voortrekker Monument outside Pretoria I saw the painting above and I imagine it must have been one of the most dangerous parts of their journey.  Finding the best place down and then making your own path to take a fully laden ox wagon as well.

The original trail carved by the Great Trek's ox wagons is known as Retief Pass (sometimes also called Voortrekker Pass).  It is down this path that Piet Retief's party went in 1837 in their quest for freedom and a land of their own.  Standing on top of the mountain at this point it doesn't look to challenging, but the first problem would have been finding this spot and then to make your way down it.

The pass was declared a national monument in 1977 and at the top of the mountain stands a small pyramid to mark the spot where the pass starts.  From this spot you can see the Kaalvoet Vrou Monument, while Retief Rock is only a few kilometers away.  To get to the monument you have to take a dirt road for about 20 kilometers or so, but it was quite decent and I did it very easily in my Chev Aveo.

Retiefklip (Retief Rock)

One of the things I was quite anxious to see when I was in the Drakensberg area was Retiefklip.  I asked at the resort where we were staying how to get there and was told that the road was very badly damaged in the rain that fell in the week or so before.  Seeing that I probably won't get back to that area soon again, the explorer in me decided to take a chance anyway.  I don't know where the young lady got her information, but other than having to carefully navigate my Chev Aveo past one or two badish spots, the road was better than a lot of gravel roads I have travelled on.

The Great Trek reached this area in 1837 after traveling from the Cape Colony (Eastern Cape and Western Cape) through the Free State.  The Voortrekker put up their laager in the shadow of the mountain in the picture above and a service was held to thank God for protecting them and bringing them this far.  The Voortrekker called the mountain Kerkenberg (Church Mountain).  Upon arriving in the Free State, there was a dispute amongst the Boers as to the final destination of the Great Trek.  One of the main leaders, Piet Retief, chose Natal.  On 7 October 1837 he left the laager with 14 men to scout Natal in advance.  On 12 November 1837, his daughter Deborah painted her fathers name on a rock below Kerkenberg to commemorate his birthday.

To get to Retiefklip one has to squeeze through a narrow opening between the sandstone rocks

The original writing done by Deborah has been enclosed in glass to preserve it.  Around it a lot of other graffiti have been added over the years.  Some of it date back to the 1800's, but unfortunately some has been added in later years by folk who feel nothing for heritage sites like this one.

Golden Gate

One of the most famous landmarks in the Free State is the imposing Brandberg (burning mountain) rock in the Golden Gate Highlands National Park.  We passed through Golden Gate on our way to the Drakensberg, but unfortunately the day was starting to get late and we still had some distance to drive.  This meant that there wasn't any time to hang around and take in more of the park.  Very disappointing, but definitively something that will go onto the "places to visit in future" list.

The Free State town of Wepener

For me the journey to a destination is just as important as the destination itself.  So many people get on the road and is in such a hurry to get to their end point, that they miss out on a whole lot of attractions and sights along the way.  Along the way I normally do quick detours into the towns I pass if time allows and the first thing I go looking for is the church.  Most small towns originally developed around a church in the early days which means that the chances are good of finding at least a historic church in them.

I was heading towards the Drakensberg through the Eastern Free State on a very gloomy day and although the day was getting on a bit, decided to swing through the town of Wepener close to the Lesotho border for a quick bit.  Wepener was named after Louw Wepener who was the Boer leader in their war with the Basotho people.  He was killed in 1865 while trying to storm Moshoeshoe's stronghold of Thaba Bosiu.  When a town was established in the "conquered territories" in 1867 to prevent the Basotho from resettling the land taken from them during the war, it was decided to name it after Wepener.  The Dutch Reformed parish was established in 1870 which means that the church would also date from about that time.  

The other historic building I found in the town is the old town hall.  In front of the building is a bust of Wepener as well as a number of smaller memorials.  The area around Wepener consist mainly cattle and sheep farms while crops like wheat and maize are grown.

Constantia Farm Stall

What is it with farm stalls that make one want to turn off and have a look and see what they have to offer?  Driving through the Eastern Free State on our way to the Drakensberg, we saw the Constantia Farm Stall (not referring to Constantia in Cape Town) outside Fickburg beckoning and slowed down for a look.

The farm stall catches ones attention immediately as you come down the road with its "hay bale heads and figures" right next to it.  Although I have seen something similar in the Western Cape, I thought it was quite innovative and a good way to get a motorist's attention.

The farm stall itself was divided into different sections with lots of hand made good on display.  Because the area is famous for its cherries, cherries (the fruit and not the dress wearing kind *wink*) makes up the bulk of the items on sale.  The had everything from cherries in syrup to cherries in liqueur, cherry ice cream topping and cherry jam.  Unfortunately they wouldn't let me take a picture inside the shop which is something I often can't understand.  Its free promotion.  Now if I was brandishing a Getaway or Weg travel magazine business card it probably wouldn't have been a problem, but because I'm a blog I get blown off.  Pfft... Whatever...  Vent over.               

                           

On our return trip we stopped at Constantia again for breakfast and wasn't sorry we did.  Bacon, cheese sausage, eggs, coffee in enamel coffee cans, boere beskuit (farm style rusks) and cherry jam with my toast.  Just the refill every driver needs on the long road. 

I'm just thinking. Perhaps I should have shot a sly photo with my Blackberry inside the shop to post on here as well.  Mmmmmmm.... *rubbing chin with a far off stare in the eye*

Bloemfontein statues

This is my last Bloemfontein post from this trip, I promise.  I was actually very disappointed that I didn't have time to explore the city some more.  I have never been to Bloemfontein before and it has so many places, most of historical value, to see.  The one thing I did notice is that there are many statues around Bloemfontein.  Bloemfontein used to be the capital of the Boer republic of the Orange Free State and many leaders involved in the Anglo Boer War and in the establishment of the Union of South Africa came from here.  Below follows a couple I saw.  Some of them you may have spotted in posts over the last week already.

Standing in front of the Fourth Raadsaal is the imposing figure of General Christiaan de Wet (1854 - 1922). De Wet played a major role in the Anglo Boer War (1899 - 1902) as a general.  During the war he was regarded more and more as the most formidable leader of the Boers in their guerrilla warfare.  In 1902, during peace negotiations after the war, he even acted as State President of the Orange Free State ever so briefly.  For only two days in fact when Presedent Steyn had to leave negotiations due to illness.

Hertzog Square across the road from the Bloemfontein City Hall, stand a statue to James Barry Munnik (JBM) Hertzog (1866 - 1942).  Hertzog rose to the rank of general during the Anglo Boer War, becoming the assistant chief commandant of the military forces of the Orange Free State.  Hertzog became Prime Minister of South Africa in 1924 when his party defeated that of Gen Jan Smuts.  He stayed in office until 1939.

Francis William Reitz (1844 – 1934) had an extremely varied political and judicial career that lasted for over forty-five years and spanned four separate political entities.  Reitz started his political career as a representative on the Cape Colony Parliament.  He was Chief State Justice of the Orange Free State ( 1876 - 1889) before becoming the Boer republic's 5th State President (1889 – 1895).  From 1898 until 1902 he was the State Secretary of the South African Republic (the Boer republic of the Transvaal) before being President of the Senate of the Union of South Africa from 1910 - 1921.

The last statue I want to show is that of President Johannes Henricus Brand (1823 - 1888) in front of the National Afrikaans Literature Museum.  Brand was the 4th State President of the Orange Free State from1864 until his death in 1888. He was such a popular president that the main road in the Bloemfontein city centre was named "President Brand" in his honour.

Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa

During the Apartheid years Bloemfontein was called the judicial capital of South Africa. That was because the Appeals Court of South Africa is situated there.  It used to be thew highest court before the establishment of the Constitutional Court in Johannesburg.  In 1996 it was renamed the Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa by the Constitution and it has 22 judges presiding there.

The court was formed with the formation of the Union of South Africa in 1910.  The Court initially used accommodation in the Fourth Raadsaal across the road.  The first and only court building was opened on 1 October 1929 and was extended in 1967. It is currently being refurbished and extended to accommodate the increase in the number of cases heard by it and the increased number of judges.

The building is said to have been built in a free Renaissance style. The old part was built with sandstone from Ladybrand and the newer eastern wing with sandstone from Ficksburg. The new part of the building is being similarly clad.

Hertzog Square

Across the road from the Bloemfontein City Hall in Hertzog Square stands a fine monument dedicated to General JBM Hertzog. General Hertzog was a military officer in the Anglo Boer War (1899-1902) and later became Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa.

Hertzog Square consists of fountains, a reflection pool and the statue created by sculptor Danie de Jager and unveiled in 1968.  There another sculpture on the square of which I haven't been able to find any information.  The male figure in the sculpture looks like he could be Gen Hertzog as well so I assume that its a Anglo Boer War related monument.

Drama Princess was curious to see what the children in the sculpture was reading in the book

Bloemfontein City Hall

I hope you're not tired of Bloemfontein yet, but there are still a couple of things to show you.  Bloemfontein's City Hall is a stately sandstone building designed by Sir Gordon Leithe.  Even though its looks like a very old building from the outside, it was only built in 1935 and is decorated with Italian marble and  Burmese wood. 

I found this very interesting skull design appearing at the bottom of both the towers and thought it quite an interesting feature.

My visit to Bloemfontein was very quick. We got there on the afternoon of a public holiday and left the next morning quite early, so I didn't get a chance to get a visitor guide to the city giving all the information on the tourists attractions.  Its actually been very difficult finding info to accompany the pics on here over the last couple of days as the stuff on the internet has also been very limited.  Anyway, the picture above is of the building right around the corner from the City Hall and seemingly attached to it.  The only info I could find is that it might possibly be the Clarendon Hall.