Church Square, Pretoria
Encyclopedia
Church Square or Kerkplein (Afrikaans
), is the historic centre of the city of Pretoria
, South Africa
.
Its most prominent feature is the statue of the Boer
leader and president of the South African Republic
Paul Kruger
at its centre. Statues of four anonymous Boer citizen-soldiers surround that of Kruger's on a lower level of the plinth
.
Several historically and architecturally significant buildings surround the square: the Palace of Justice, the Old Capitol Theatre, the Tudor Chambers, the Ou Raadsaal
(Old Council Chamber) and the General Post Office, which was designed by John Cleland.
The turreted Palace of Justice was the scene of arguably the most famous political trial in South Africa's history, the Rivonia Trial
. During this trial, Nelson Mandela
and a number of other prominent liberation struggle figures were charged with treason and subsequently incarcerated.
Afrikaans
Afrikaans 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...
), is the historic centre of the city of Pretoria
Pretoria
Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is one of the country's three capital cities, serving as the executive and de facto national capital; the others are Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein, the judicial capital.Pretoria is...
, 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...
.
Boer
Boer is the Dutch and Afrikaans word for farmer, which came to denote the descendants of the Dutch-speaking settlers of the eastern Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 18th century, as well as those who left the Cape Colony during the 19th century to settle in the Orange Free State,...
leader and president of the South African Republic
South African Republic
The South African Republic , often informally known as the Transvaal Republic, was an independent Boer-ruled country in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century. Not to be confused with the present-day Republic of South Africa, it occupied the area later known as the South African...
Paul Kruger
Paul Kruger
Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger , better known as Paul Kruger and affectionately known as Uncle Paul was State President of the South African Republic...
at its centre. Statues of four anonymous Boer citizen-soldiers surround that of Kruger's on a lower level of the plinth
Plinth
In architecture, a plinth is the base or platform upon which a column, pedestal, statue, monument or structure rests. Gottfried Semper's The Four Elements of Architecture posited that the plinth, the hearth, the roof, and the wall make up all of architectural theory. The plinth usually rests...
.
Several historically and architecturally significant buildings surround the square: the Palace of Justice, the Old Capitol Theatre, the Tudor Chambers, the Ou Raadsaal
Ou Raadsaal
Ou Raadsaal was the Parliament Building of the Transvaal Republic Government in Pretoria, South Africa. The Volksraad sat session in this building at the end of the 19th century when Paul Kruger was the last President of the old Boer Republic...
(Old Council Chamber) and the General Post Office, which was designed by John Cleland.
The turreted Palace of Justice was the scene of arguably the most famous political trial in South Africa's history, the Rivonia Trial
Rivonia Trial
The Rivonia Trial was a trial that took place in South Africa between 1963 and 1964, in which ten leaders of the African National Congress were tried for 221 acts of sabotage designed to overthrow the apartheid system.-Origins:...
. During this trial, Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
and a number of other prominent liberation struggle figures were charged with treason and subsequently incarcerated.