Diamond Hill aka Donkerhoek

Boer General Louis Botha probably wrote in his diary…11^th of June 1900…it’s a week after the fall of Pretoria…bitterly cold Monday morning…we are hidden in the hills at Donkerhoek…ready for battle…

Britain’s Lord Roberts  probably wrote in his diary…11^th of June 1900… it’s a week after we advanced into Pretoria…bitterly cold Monday  morning…we are approaching the plateau of Diamond Hill…ready for battle…

Me, writing in my diary…11^th of June 2011… 30 kilometers from my house…bitterly cold morning…sitting in the Diamond Hill/Donkerhoek garden of Remembrance…the brutality of war…

Two different names, same battle.

Over the 2 days, heavy fighting occupied both commanding officer’s minds, at the largest military engagement in the history of Pretoria, this during the Anglo-Boer War.

This was the last attempt by the Boers to defeat the British by conventional means. On the Tuesday night, Louis Botha decided to end the battle, to evacuate his 7 thousand men and retreat undefeated, thus robbing Roberts and his 14 thousand men of any claim to a victory.

The few Boer casualties might have been buried at the site or on nearby farms, all I am left with are some of the 128 British dead, as well as the remains from other nearby battlefields, brought here in 1961/2.

The loss of life saddens me…alone on a desolate hill, I pause at the grave of the Earl of Airlie. Lieutenant Colonel 12^th Royal Lancers. “ Who was, as he had always desired, killed in action at the head of his regiment. “ 11 June 1900. He was 44 years old.

As I am driving home, I am reminded of the profound words of General William Sherman :  “I am tired and sick of war. Its glory is all moonshine… War is hell. “

The Pilgrimage

Some people are of the opinion that you should never go back to a certain place and retrace a childhood memory. I totally disagree, because that is exactly what I did today, and I loved every moment of it !

The National Zoological Gardens of South Africa, opened its gates in 1899 and has since been consistently ranked in the top 15 zoos of the world.

Even on a drizzly cold May Day, hundreds of families enjoyed nature in the midst of suburbia. From squeals of delight in the penguin enclosure to the solitude  in  Africa’s largest walk-through aviary, the Zoo caters for every need.

The 85-hectare gardens with approximately 6 kilometers of walk ways, got a bit crowed at lunch time, and the golf cart traffic I found slightly irritating.  Fortunately I was there at 8.30, so for about an hour it felt like I had the whole place to myself.

Still my favourite things after 45 years…

The pink flamingos were positively the most exotic birds to my 5 year old eyes, and still are.

The imposing cast iron fountain looms large in my childhood Zoo. Now I am aware that this Victorian masterpiece stood on Church Square from 1906 -1910.

The 4 life size female figures symbolise : Commerce, Art, Science and Literature. Presented to the Zoo, by a hero of mine, the indomitable Sammy Marks.

The regal and graceful cheetah impressed me then, and still does.

The elegant, gentle giant exuding brute strength woed me then, and still does.

Even in the 1960’s the hyaena enclosure was not the most popular and still seems like that today, allowing me an up-close and personal moment, with this powerful animal.

My life long love affair with birds started then, and how could  it not, with such an imposing selection, from African spoonbills to the Spotted Eagle owl.  And for a mere R200 you too can adopt such an owl for a year.

The R55 entrance fee also covers the Aqaurium and Reptile park.

This definitely  is the closest I ever want to be near any shark, ragged tooth or not.

A raging Apies river flows through the gardens, and I loved crossing it via the various suspension bridges.

No visit to the zoo is ever complete without stopping at any of the many primate encloses. Entertaining then, and maybe even more so now !!

I vividly remember outside the entrance gates, rows upon rows of curio sellers on the side walk, then my first joyful introduction into Ndebele beadwork.  Today I spoke to 70 year old Katie Tlou, who has been selling her handiwork here in Boom Street since the early 1960’s. I buy 3 strings of colourful beads, just as I had wanted to do back then.

I had thoroughly enjoyed my time at the Zoo today. Maybe I should do this more often.

Need to know more ? www.nzg.ac.za

1982

The year in which Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands,  “Chariots of Fire” won the Oscar for best film, Prince William was born, Italy triumphed in the FIFA World Cup, Princess Grace of Monaco was killed in a car crash, and I was starting my first proper job.

Freshly graduated, I was little more than a filing clerk and glorified messenger in the halls of the Department of Foreign Affairs. My office was in town, whilest Foreign Affairs also occupied offices in the Union Buildings.  A shuttle ran daily trips to Meintjes Kop and I was the chief volunteer to carry documents across town. This was way before fax machines, let alone e-mail !!  And thank goodness for that.

I absolutely loved going to the Union Buildings. Partly to get out of a stuffy office but also to enjoy the grandeur of the Union Buildings as well as the magnificent gardens.

Now for the first time in 29 years,  I am driving up Government Lane.

Memories came flooding back, as the splendour of Sir Herbert Baker’s creation is sort of hidden, because you are approaching it from the side. It is only until you are parking in front of the majestic structure, that the Union Buildings tower over you.

It was a staggering building project for 1910…imagine  83 cranes dotting the site, 15 electrically operated, 3 steam driven and the remainder worked by hand…14 million bricks and 40 thousand bags of cement were used and up to 1 265 men worked furiously to finish the building in November 1913.

There are various statues and memorials scattered in the grounds of the Union Buildings.  My favourite by far is the replica of the Delville Wood Memorial, also designed by Sir Herbert Baker. It commemorates that epic First World War battle, during which a brigade of 3 400 South African soldiers were ordered to clear the woods and hold that position against the enemy. They did just that. When the 5 day battle was over, only 3 officers and 140 wounded and weary men emerged alive.

Lifesize figures of Castor and Pollux clasp hands across the back of a fiery steed. This monument was unveiled in 1929 by Sir Percy Fitzpatrick.

In the Eastern corner of the gardens, stands the Police Memorial, quiet testament to their service and sacrifice.

I wander through the lush gardens, down the hill to the statue of General Louis Botha. South Africa’s first Prime Minister gazes resolutely down Church street.

Walking back up the hill, my eyes are drawn to the massive clock towers, all of 55 meters high. As the noonday chimes ring out, I take one last photo, and then one more, and one more,  as I can not stop looking. Still in love with the Union Buildings, 29 years on.

Chasing the Cantatores

No, they were not in the cast of the Sopranos. The cousins were part of the approximately 90 000 Italian Prisoners of War who were imprisoned  in South Africa from 1941 – 1947. And the two of them, worked om my Grandpa’s farm in the Laingsburg district.

I decided to try and find  some official trace of Francesco and Giuseppe Cantatore, starting at the Zonderwater  Prisoner of War Cemetery and Museum, some 10 km outside Cullinan.

The camp started off being basic tented accommodation. In due course a hospital was built, a most efficient sewerage system installed and clapboard, brick, concrete and corrugated iron structures erected to house the single biggest prisoner of war population in Allied territories. None of that remains today.

The site now comprise of a small museum and chapel as well as 252 graves. All beautifully kept within this tranquil setting.

Prisoner deaths occurred for a variety of reasons: disease, accidents, lightning strikes and shooting by the guards (there were 700 attempted escapes with Enrico Mottalini famously reaching Cape Town !!)

Camp life was superbly well organised and run by Colonel Hendrik Fredrik Prinsloo who was the camp commandant. His fine treatment of the prisoners of war, stands greatly to South Africa’s credit for all time. Recognition for his achievements was amongst others to be awarded  with the Order of the Star of Italy as well as the Papal Order of Good Merit.

22 Orchestras  and theatre companies held special performances in aid of charities at the time. And  28 major football teams were organised into a league.

At the Northern end of the terrain stands a striking statue of an angel, holding a lamp of remembrance. It was consecrated in 1963 in Milan, before it was sent to South Africa.

Before I drove back home, I took one more photo of the striking metal art work at the entrance, the handiwork of famed sculptor, Edoardo Villa himself a prisoner of war here at Zonderwater.  After his release, he remained in South Africa, and be greatly missed, as he passed away on Sunday 1st of May 2011.

My search for evidance of the Cantatores, were a bit fruitless. After various visits to the Military Archive as well as the State Archive, all I found were two names on the list of soldiers, to be deported back to Italy.

But the close contact Francesco and Giuseppe had with the Kleinkaroo family they lived with from 1943-45 on the farm Rietvlei, still echoes in the fact that a distant cousin, 80 year old  George Neft, can still court to 10 in near perfect Italian.

Need to know more: Contact Emilio Coccia 012 6673279

The Big House

As I enter the house in Doornkloof, it is hard to imagine that a pre-eminent Statesman had lived here. All of 40 odd years. Nothing fancy. A house made of wood and steel, strikingly unpretentious. And must have been pretty hot in Summer and pretty cold in Winter.

Only the big black Cadilac and the famous faces in faded photos on the walls, hint at the occupants.

The Smuts family lived in the Big House, as they affectionately called it,  from 1909 until Ouma Isie died here in 1954.

My visit did not focus on the famous guests, like the British Royal family or the exiled Greek Crown Prince Paul and his wife Princess Federica. I did marvel however at the library, restored to its original appearance, and the 4 000 books placed on the shelves in their original order.

Decades before the advent of our instant means of communication,  the telephone in the bathroom, allowed  General  J.C. Smuts to be in touch with affairs of State,  whilst brushing his teeth. More by default than design actually, as building alterations left it like that.

Hidden in a gloomy corner of the lounge, hangs a framed hand written note from Queen Mary dated 25 February 1952. In it she thanks the wife of Jan Smuts, Ouma Isie ,  as she was affectionately known, for her kind thoughts at having suffered  …”a great loss and losing such a devoted son.”  This after the death of King George VI,   on February the 6th 1952.

In one of the back rooms amongst Boer War and rebellion memorabilia, a small horse shoe pin catches my eye. It attests to the lifelong friendship between General Smuts and Emily Hobhouse , who gave him the pin.

In the same room, I stand transfixed,staring at the  2 red ribbons mounted next to a copy of the Red Oath,  as they bear witness to very turbulent times in South African history.  The “Rooi Lussies” were worn by servicemen on their uniforms during the Second World War.

And Ouma Isie leaves the last impression, as hers is the room, from which I leave the house…a small radio hanging from the wall next to her pillow, and a ginger cat vigilant on her bed.

I leave in pensive mood…the somewhat dim lighting in the Smuts House Museum contributing to my melancholy,… glimpses of a bygone era…

Hidden Gem

In the Post Office building on historic Church Square in Pretoria, resides a very mysterious frieze. Rather unobtrusively placed in the portico of the building’s Eastern entrance, the golden couple has been the subject of much speculation. As they are anything but unobtrusive !!

The creator of the naked couple is renowned sculptor Anton Van Wouw and it is called “Morning and Night”.

A subtle clue is the man’s face, that resembles  of one of the figures at the foot of Anton Van Wouw’s statue of Paul Kruger in the centre of Church Square,

But who is the mysterious woman, forever cast in gold ?

The General Post Office was designed by Willaim Hawke, who was one of Sir Herbert Baker’s promising students.

The cornerstone was laid in 1910, and the building is still used as a Post Office today.

So, be sure to check it out the next time you are in Pretoria !!

Baldinelli Fever

I am walking through the Van Erkom Arcade, taking a short cut from Schoeman Street via Pretorius Street, on my way to Church Square. The mosaic on the Eastern wall, halts me in my tracks. The sheer size of it takes my breath away. Could be 30 m x 2m, I am thinking.  Abstract animals conspire and mesmerize, forcing me to postpone my intended appointment.

I instantly fall in love with the handiwork of Armando Baldinelli. He was born on the 13^th of September 1908 in Ancona, Italy. Maybe the death of his wife Gianna in the early 1950’s as well as a turbulent post war Italy, led to his decision to visit South Africa in 1953. He decided to stay and I am happy he did.

My eyes feast on the colour as well as the texture of the work he called “Mosaic Mural”…done in 1971 and enjoyed by me in 2011, I think he would have loved that.

Suddenly I need to find more of the magnificent artwork of Armando Baldinelli that adorn my beloved city.  Next stop: the State Theatre. Going up the stairs to the Baldinelli foyer, I had no idea what to expect. To say that the 97m₂ overwhelms me, is putting it mildly. He named it “The Wings and The Waves of Music “ and it soars and crashes into my senses.

Finished 31 years ago, I am awestruck and I think he would have loved that.

And the dedicatition brings it all back to a more human scale.

My homage to Armando Baldinelli ends at the Seminary of St John Vianney in Waterkloof. In 1960 he was commissioned to do “The Stations of the Cross” for their chapel and as I open the heavy wooden door, I stand transfixed. The 14 small panels, are achingly beautiful. Such simple lines to illustrate the suffering of Christ.

In the side altars, 8 Saints keep a watchful eye, my favourite being St Patrick.

The Madonna and the Angels were added in 1967 by the mosaic master.

All is quiet and I am sitting in the back pew, enriched and dazzled and I know he would have loved that !!

Grazie Armando, RIP.