The Rhodes Memorial on the slopes of Devil’s Peak is a controversial memorial to the English-born South African politician and mining magnate Cecil John Rhodes, designed by the influential architect Herbert Baker. The memorial was completed 5 July 1912.
In South African history, Rhodes’s name has become synonymous with British imperialism in Africa. Cecil John Rhodes was Prime Minister of the Cape from 1890 until 1896. He is among the most prominent figures in South African history. Rhodes rose to prominence as a Financier, Politician, and Founder of the De Beers Company of mines.
Built from Cape granite quarried on Table Mountain, the memorial consists of 49 steps – one for each year of Rhodes’s life. The Doric columns were inspired by Rhodes’s appreciation of classical Architecture, and the eight lions were modelled on those at the base of Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square.
Following Chumani Maxwele’s radical protest through a political performance of throwing human excrement at the statue of Cecil John Rhodes situated on Rugby Road of the campus of the University of Cape Town, the statue was removed a month later on the 9 April 2015. See SAHO
This vantage point not only allows a panoramic view of the Cape Flats to the Helderberg and Hottentots Holland Mountain ranges but is one of the few vantage points where both the Atlantic and Indian oceans can be seen.
WHERE: Rhodes Ave, Devil’s Peak, Cape Town, 7700 INFO: South African History Online |