Church Square (

Afrikaans Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans gr ...

: Kerkplein), originally Market Square (

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

: Marktplein), is the square at the historic centre of the city of

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foothi ...

Gauteng Gauteng ( ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. The name in Sotho-Tswana languages means 'place of gold'. Situated on the Highveld, Gauteng is the smallest province by land area in South Africa. Although Gauteng accounts for only ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...

. The founder of Pretoria,

Marthinus Pretorius Marthinus Wessel Pretorius (17 September 1819 – 19 May 1901) was a South African political leader. An Afrikaner (or "Boer"), he helped establish the South African Republic (''Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek'' or ZAR; also referred to as Transva ...

, determined that the square be used as a market place and church yard. It was subsequently named for the church buildings that stood at the centre of the square from 1856 to 1905. The square's most prominent feature, since June 1954, is the statue of the late

Boer Boers ( ; af, Boere ()) are the descendants of the Dutch-speaking Free Burghers of the eastern Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. From 1652 to 1795, the Dutch East India Company controlled this are ...

leader and president of the

South African Republic The South African Republic ( nl, Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek, abbreviated ZAR; af, Suid-Afrikaanse Republiek), also known as the Transvaal Republic, was an independent Boer Republic in Southern Africa which existed from 1852 to 1902, when i ...

Paul Kruger Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger (; 10 October 1825 – 14 July 1904) was a South African politician. He was one of the dominant political and military figures in 19th-century South Africa, and President of the South African Republic (or ...

, at its centre. Statues of four anonymous Boer citizen-soldiers surround that of Kruger on a lower level of the

plinth A pedestal (from French ''piédestal'', Italian ''piedistallo'' 'foot of a stall') or plinth is a support at the bottom of a statue, vase, column, or certain altars. Smaller pedestals, especially if round in shape, may be called socles. In ...

Current buildings

Several historically and architecturally significant buildings surround the square: the Palace of Justice, the Old Capitol Theatre, the Tudor Chambers, the

Ou Raadsaal The Ou Raadsaal (English: ''Old Council Hall'') is a historic building in Pretoria, South Africa, located on the south side of Church Square. The Ou Raadsaal housed the Volksraad, the parliament of the South African Republic, from 1891 to 1902 ...

(Old Council Chamber) and the

General Post Office The General Post Office (GPO) was the state postal system and telecommunications carrier of the United Kingdom until 1969. Before the Acts of Union 1707, it was the postal system of the Kingdom of England, established by Charles II in 1660. ...

, which was designed by William Hawke.

2014 revamping project

In keeping with the historical value of the square, a rejuvenation project was announced in 2014 in the old Raadsaal. Roads around the square would be converted for exclusive use by the A Re Yeng ("Let's Go")

bus service Public transport bus services are generally based on regular operation of transit buses along a route calling at agreed bus stops according to a published public transport timetable. History of buses Origins While there are indications ...

and its service vehicles, while pedestrian areas would be made more public-friendly. The defunct south wall’s fountain head would be restored and trees would be planted around the square. Numerous street benches would be provided and the square's tar walkways would be replaced with slate. The Kruger statues at the centre of the square would remain, and the square will be closed for hawkers.

History

Market

Produce was conveyed to the Market Square by wagon, where their owners' oxen were also outspanned. The produce, if not sold direct from the wagon, would be placed on the ground amidst the trek oxen and the cattle and horses for sale. A first market shed was erected by the municipality after 1910 which led to a legal battle between the Pretoria Market and Estate Company and the town council. This was finally decided by Lord de Villiers at Bloemfontein, whose verdict gave the council control over 3/4 of the square, while the Market and Estate Company retained control of the Market Hall and buildings on the square's north-western corner for about another 40 years. The building of further sheds and the paving of the Market Square c.1917 were consequences of Lord de Villiers' verdict. Lines for horse-drawn trams initially connected the railway station with Market, Church, du Toit and Esselen streets to the terminus at the east end of de Kock Street. This company ceased operations at the outbreak of war in 1899, and it was not until c.1904 that the municipality purchased their concession and restarted it. Only in November 1910 were electric trams put into operation.

Churches

The square became known as Church Square due to a succession of three churches that stood at the center of the square. The first church on Church Square was built in 1856 by Skinner and Devereux, and inaugurated in 1857. This was replaced by a larger building, which burnt down in 1882. This simple

Cape Dutch Cape Dutch, also commonly known as Cape Afrikaners, were a historic socioeconomic class of Afrikaners who lived in the Western Cape during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The terms have been evoked to describe an affluent, apolitical ...

style building was replaced by an early

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

style building, built by Claridge, together with Leslie Simmonds. This third church building, known as the Verenigde Kerk, was demolished in 1904/1905, shortly after president Paul Kruger's state funeral was conducted from it.

Fountain

According to a ''Minute of His Worship the Mayor (Andrew Johnson) for the Mayoral Year ending 25th October 1905, Municipality of Pretoria'', a fountain was proposed for the square by Mr. Samuel Marks. This piece in turn was moved to the Pretoria Zoo, making way for the current collection of sculptures.

Rivonia trial

The turreted Palace of Justice was the scene of arguably the most famous political trial in South Africa's history, the

Rivonia Trial The Rivonia Trial took place in South Africa between 9 October 1963 and 12 June 1964, and led to the imprisonment of Nelson Mandela and the others among the accused who were convicted of sabotage and sentenced to life at the Palace of Justic ...

. During this trial,

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African anti-apartheid activist who served as the first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. He was the country's first black head of state and the ...

and a number of other ANC members were charged with treason, found guilty and subsequently incarcerated.

Nearby landmarks

Nearby Pretoria landmarks include the State Theatre,

City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

, the historic Kruger House and Paul Kruger church.

Gallery

File:Market square 1881.jpg, The original Market Square in 1881 File:Nagmaal op Kerkplein.jpg, The Verenigde Kerk building (1885-1905) was the third to grace the square File:COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Inspectie van Boerencommando's op het grote plein voor het regeringsgebouw TMnr 60038564, monochroom.jpg, Boer commandos on the square during the

Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...

, 1899 File:Church Square, Pretoria, South Africa, 1905 WDL3016.png, The square in 1905, adorned by the

Sammy Marks Sammy is a nickname, frequently for people named Samuel, and also an English spelling of the Arabic name Sami. People Music *Sammy Adams (born 1987), American rapper and songwriter *Sammy Cahn (1913-1993), American songwriter *Sammy Davis Jr. (1 ...

Fountain File:9 2 258 0013-Law Chambers-Palace of Justice-Pretoria-s.jpg, File:Chuch Square, PTA.jpg,

References

External links

360 degree Virtual Tour of Church Square
{{Pretoria Buildings and structures in Pretoria Tourist attractions in Pretoria Squares in South Africa History of Pretoria