Today, we were going to publish a post on the striking action, but then the horrendous train and taxi accident happened this morning, and what with the funeral for Fiona Coyne yesterday, the media censorship dilemma and rhino poaching in the news, we got quite depressed. So, to distract ourselves, we decided to write a post about a part of Cape Town that is quite alive (‘scuse the pun) with stories, legends and tales of the ‘undead’ …
The ghosts at the Cape Castle of Good Hope
The Cape Castle is unmissable, especially if you take the Strand Street offramp from the M3 highway. The very name “Strand” means “Beach” in Afrikaans, and this street is named as such for good reason: Strand Street is where the waterline of the ocean began when the Castle was built. The sea water wold fill the moat surrounding the Castle, increasing the defense of the sructure. Construction of the Castle began in 1666, making this one of the oldest collonial buildings still standing in South Africa. The Castle lies in a star shape with five bastions.
Ghostly occurrences began only as recently as 1915 when the spectre of a man stwo metres tall was seen on the ramparts. In 1947 the ghost was seen again, this time on a regular basis over two weeks, and jumping over the side of one of the castle walls and walking between Leerdam and Oranje, two of the Castle bastions.
One of the bettwer known ghosts hanuting the Cape Castle is governor Pieter Gysbert van Noodt. This strict and militant man died on the 23 April 1728 during the hanging of seven soldiers who had been caught attempting to escape.Van Noodt had overruled the soldiers’ initial sentence and condemned them all to death for desertion. He did not attend the hanging, and one of the soldiers cursed him and requested he came and watched the excecution, which he did not. Later on, Van Noodt was found dead, having died of a heart attach. Those who found his body, seated at his desk where he had died, claimed he had “a look of horror upon his face.”
The Lady in Grey is another famous ghost who haunts the Castle. Her ghost has not been seen since recent excavations, when a woman’s body was exhumed. Prior to this, the ghost appeared in the Castle, running through the property with her hands covering her face as she wept.
A few centuries ago, A soldier hung himself using the bell-rope in the bell tower, which stands over the entrance to the Castle. Afterwards, the bell tower was walled-up, leaving the bell hanging from its original wooden beams, which it still does today. The bell, which was cast in 1697 by Claude Fremy in Amsterdam, sometimes rings of its own accord. A black dog also haunts the property and has been known to attack visitors and then disappear.
For those that would like to go and explore the Castle, the necessary details are below. Unfortunately the Castle is not open at night, but drive past and you may see the 2 metre spectre jumping over the battlements!
Pricing:
Adults: ZAR 25,00
Pensioners (SA card holders only): ZAR 15,00
Children/Students(5-16yrs): ZAR 10,00
Booked School Groups: ZAR 5,00
Gates open: 09h00 daily (close at 17h00 as from 11 June to 11 July 2010)
Key Ceremony Monday-Friday (10h00 & 12h00)
Firing of Signal Cannon: Monday-Friday (10h10 & 12h10), Saturday (11h00 & 12h00)
Contact Details:
Telephone: +27 21 787 1260
Tour Bookings: +27 21 787 1249 Fax: +27 21 787 1089
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- E-Mail: casteel@mweb.co.za