Historical Sites in South Africa

The rich and varied cultural heritages, amazing natural resources, unique wildlife forms and action-packed past of South Africa let it take pride in being home to a number of most breathtaking and important sites, the World Heritage sites and the Historical Sites in South Africa being the most significant ones.

The Robben Island is one of the most notable Historical Sites in South Africa, The Robben Island, positioned within almost 12 km of Cape Town was used a military base, a hospital and a prison for almost 400 years from the 17th to the 20th century.

The buildings in this island, especially those belonging to the 20th century, bear evidence of the victory of freedom and democracy over racism and repression. The rulers used to send persons, whom they considered to be the social outcasts, political agitators and discarded by the society, in this island and when it was in use, it was considered to be famous for its institutionalized violence.

The Blood River is considered to be one of the most important battlefields at South Africa. This historic site in South Africa stands witness to a number of significant encounters between the amaZulu and the Voortrekkers on the 16th of December in 1838. The Voortrekkers struggled under the guidance of the experienced leader Andries Pretorius whereas Zulu chief Dingane’s men campaigned under the leadership of Ndlela kaSompisi.

The Sterkfontein Caves is a series of limestone caves, which particularly attract the paleo-anthropologists.

Sited in the province of Gauteng towards Johannesburg’s northwest close to Krugersdorp, these famous historic caves are found in close proximity with the historic sites of Kromdraai and Swartkrans. Swartkrans, a farm positioned close to Sterkfontein, is renowned for being home to a unique asset of archeological remains, especially those of the hominids. The age of the first deposits found at this site are considered to be almost 2 million years. The fossils that were explored at Swartkrans are comprised of Homo habilis, Paranthropus and Telanthropus capensis.

Mapungubwe, a South African city, is one of the most important Historical Sites in South Africa, which lies in the northern part of South Africa. Developing from A.D 1050 to A.D. 1270 at the meeting point of the Limpopo and Shashe rivers, Mapungubwe became the heart of a pre-Shona territory which included some portions of present-day Zimbabwe and Botswana. Identified as a World Heritage Site on the 3rd of July in 2003, this city is home to the sandstone Mapungubwe Hill which contains sharp cliffs soaring to a height of 30 meters and a flat top which is 300 meters long. This historic hill was occupied for almost seventy years from AD 1220 to AD 1290.

The Wonder Cave in Kromdaai at Gauteng is the third biggest cave of South Africa whose age is considered to be 1.5 million years. It is a single cave occupying an area of about 46000 square meters, its length being 125 meters and breadth 154 meters. Explored during the later half of the 19th century by the limestone miners, the Wonder Cave is popular for being comprised of 14 growing formations of stalagmite and stalactite.

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