Beaufort West
Encyclopedia
Beaufort West is a town in the Western Cape
province in South Africa
. It is the largest town in the arid Great Karoo
region, and forms part of the Beaufort West Local Municipality
, with 37 000 inhabitants in 2001.
It is the centre of an agricultural district based mainly on sheep farming, and is a significant town on the N1
national road.
Next door to Beaufort West is the Karoo National Park
. Important fossils have been found in the area, initially by David Baird, son of the local magistrate in 1827.
As part of a drive to create employment opportunities, a hydroponics project was started and now supplies premium herbs and vegetables nationally.
The old Town Hall and the Dutch Reformed Church have been declared national monuments.
, who was the father of Lord Charles Henry Somerset, then governor of the Cape Colony
. The town was renamed Beaufort West in 1869 to avoid confusion with Port Beaufort in the Western Cape as well as Fort Beaufort
in the Eastern Cape.
The town became prosperous with the introduction of Saxon Merino
sheep by one of its early citizens, John Molteno
. Molteno, a young Anglo-Italian immigrant (later nicknamed "the Lion of Beaufort"), founded the first bank in 1854 and went on to become the first Prime Minister
of the Cape and the champion of the responsible government
movement.
Beaufort West became the first municipality
in South Africa in 1837 and had the country's first town hall. When the railroad reached the town in 1880 it became a marshalling yard and locomotive depot and today it is the largest town in the Karoo.
Professor Christiaan Barnard
, the town’s most famous son, performed the first successful human-to-human heart transplant
.
He is honoured in the local museum, which houses a display of awards presented to him and a replica of the original heart transplant theatre.
Beaufort West is the site of one of the largest migrations of mammals on record. In 1849, Sir John Fraser (son of the local Dutch Reformed Church minister) observed and famously documented a herd of Springbok
that took three days to pass the town.
Western Cape
The Western Cape is a province in the south west of South Africa. The capital is Cape Town. Prior to 1994, the region that now forms the Western Cape was part of the much larger Cape Province...
province in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. It is the largest town in the arid Great Karoo
Karoo
The Karoo is a semi-desert region of South Africa. It has two main sub-regions - the Great Karoo in the north and the Little Karoo in the south. The 'High' Karoo is one of the distinct physiographic provinces of the larger South African Platform division.-Great Karoo:The Great Karoo has an area of...
region, and forms part of the Beaufort West Local Municipality
Beaufort West Local Municipality
Beaufort West Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. As of 2001, the population is 37,107. Its municipality code is WC053.- Government :The mayor of the municipality is currently vacant...
, with 37 000 inhabitants in 2001.
It is the centre of an agricultural district based mainly on sheep farming, and is a significant town on the N1
N1 (South Africa)
The N1 is a South African National Route, running from Cape Town to Beit Bridge on the border with Zimbabwe. It is also the main road link between Johannesburg and Cape Town, and forms the first section of the famed Cape to Cairo Road....
national road.
Next door to Beaufort West is the Karoo National Park
Karoo National Park
The Karoo National Park, founded in 1979, is a wildlife reserve in the isolated Karoo area of the Western Cape, South Africa near Beaufort West. The area is mostly semi-desert and is well known for its isolation...
. Important fossils have been found in the area, initially by David Baird, son of the local magistrate in 1827.
As part of a drive to create employment opportunities, a hydroponics project was started and now supplies premium herbs and vegetables nationally.
The old Town Hall and the Dutch Reformed Church have been declared national monuments.
History
The town was founded in 1818 and initially named Beaufort after Henry Somerset, 5th Duke of BeaufortHenry Somerset, 5th Duke of Beaufort
Henry Somerset, 5th Duke of Beaufort KG was the only son of Charles Noel Somerset, 4th Duke of Beaufort and his wife, Elizabeth Berkeley. Styled Marquess of Worcester from 1746, on his father's death on 28 October 1756, he succeeded him as Duke of Beaufort.He succeeded to the title of 13th Lord...
, who was the father of Lord Charles Henry Somerset, then governor of the Cape Colony
Cape Colony
The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652, with the founding of Cape Town. It was subsequently occupied by the British in 1795 when the Netherlands were occupied by revolutionary France, so that the French revolutionaries could not take...
. The town was renamed Beaufort West in 1869 to avoid confusion with Port Beaufort in the Western Cape as well as Fort Beaufort
Fort Beaufort
Fort Beaufort is a town in the Amatole District of South Africa's Eastern Cape Province, and has a population of 78,300. The town was established in 1837 and became a municipality in 1883. The town lies at the confluence of the Kat and Brak rivers between the Keiskamma and Great Fish rivers...
in the Eastern Cape.
The town became prosperous with the introduction of Saxon Merino
Merino
The Merino is an economically influential breed of sheep prized for its wool. Merinos are regarded as having some of the finest and softest wool of any sheep...
sheep by one of its early citizens, John Molteno
John Charles Molteno
Sir John Charles Molteno KCMG was a soldier, businessman, champion of responsible government and the first Prime Minister of the Cape Colony.-Early life:...
. Molteno, a young Anglo-Italian immigrant (later nicknamed "the Lion of Beaufort"), founded the first bank in 1854 and went on to become the first Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
of the Cape and the champion of the responsible government
Responsible government
Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability which is the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy...
movement.
Beaufort West became the first municipality
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
in South Africa in 1837 and had the country's first town hall. When the railroad reached the town in 1880 it became a marshalling yard and locomotive depot and today it is the largest town in the Karoo.
Professor Christiaan Barnard
Christiaan Barnard
Christiaan Neethling Barnard was a South African cardiac surgeon who performed the world's first successful human-to-human heart transplant.- Early life :...
, the town’s most famous son, performed the first successful human-to-human heart transplant
Heart transplantation
A heart transplant, or a cardiac transplantation, is a surgical transplant procedure performed on patients with end-stage heart failure or severe coronary artery disease. As of 2007 the most common procedure was to take a working heart from a recently deceased organ donor and implant it into the...
.
He is honoured in the local museum, which houses a display of awards presented to him and a replica of the original heart transplant theatre.
Beaufort West is the site of one of the largest migrations of mammals on record. In 1849, Sir John Fraser (son of the local Dutch Reformed Church minister) observed and famously documented a herd of Springbok
Springbok Antelope
The springbok is a medium-sized brown and white gazelle that stands about high. Springbok males weigh between and the females between...
that took three days to pass the town.
Famous residents
- Sir John Fraser LlD, was born in Beaufort West in the Colony of the Cape of Good Hope in 1840. He later studied medicine at Kings College, Aberdeen. In 1871, he was was appointed Private Secretary to Joh Brand, President of the Orange Free State. IN 1878 he qualified as an Advocate of the Free State Bar and, after serving as Financial Commissioner of the Free State during the Second Boer War, accepted the Honour (sic) of the Knighthood from the British Crown for his reconciliatory role after the conflict.,
- Christiaan BarnardChristiaan BarnardChristiaan Neethling Barnard was a South African cardiac surgeon who performed the world's first successful human-to-human heart transplant.- Early life :...
, the pioneering heart surgeon, grew up in Beaufort West. His father, Adam Barnard, was a minister in the Dutch Reformed Church. One of his four brothers, Abraham, died of a heart problem at the age of five. Barnard matriculated from the Beaufort West High School in 1940, and went to study medicine at the University of Cape Town Medical School, where he obtained his MB ChB in 1945. He is commemorated in the local museum. - Cyril Karabus, MBChB, former Professor of Paediatrics, University of Cape Town (also FRCP, FRCPE)and head of the Oncology and Haemotology Unit of Red Cross Children's Hospital Cape Town
- Sir John MoltenoJohn Charles MoltenoSir John Charles Molteno KCMG was a soldier, businessman, champion of responsible government and the first Prime Minister of the Cape Colony.-Early life:...
, the first Prime MinisterPrime ministerA prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
of the Cape. In his youth, this Anglo-Italian immigrant was a farmer and businessman who opened Beaufort West's first bank. - Cromwell EversonCromwell EversonCromwell Everson was primarily known as a composer during his lifetime. He was brought up as an Afrikaner by his mother, Maria De Wit and father, Robert Everson. He continued this tradition and all his children were brought up as Afrikaners....
, the classical music composer and composer of the first AfrikaansAfrikaansAfrikaans is a West Germanic language, spoken natively in South Africa and Namibia. It is a daughter language of Dutch, originating in its 17th century dialects, collectively referred to as Cape Dutch .Afrikaans is a daughter language of Dutch; see , , , , , .Afrikaans was historically called Cape...
opera, was born and grew up in Beaufort West. Gained the basis of his music skills under the piano tutelage of Beckie Karabus (whose husband, Isaac Karabus, was one of the first five Ford agents in South Africa), mother of the jurist, Alan Karabus and doctor, Cyril Karabus - Mandlenkosi, who fought against the apartheid government and was shot whilst feeding his baby boy (Sira). Mandlenkosi Senior Secondary School is named after him.
- Gert Vlok NelGert Vlok NelGert Vlok Nel is a South African poet. He studied English, Afrikaans and history at Stellenbosch University and worked as a guide, a bartender and a watchman. He has published one collection of poems, Om te lewe is onnatuurlik , for which he received the Ingrid Jonker Prize...
, the pioneering poet, was born (1963) and grew up in Beaufort-Wes. - Alan Karabus, BA, LlB, BCL, former Professor at the universities of, inter alia, Tulane, McGill, and Bridgeport