Kruithuis - Stellenbosch

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Aka: V.O.C. Kruithuis / Powder Magazine

Built: 1777

Locality: Blom Rd, Die Braak, Stellenbosch.

View from east. Image source: Archistori

The Kruithuis is one of the most unique buildings of Die Braak and Stellenbosch, and it stands on a small, triangular piece of land located as an extension of Mark Road between the Rhenish Complex and Het Burgerhuis.

Very soon after the establishment of Stellenbosch, a form of civic guard or infantry was formed using local citizens. Every year they had to travel down to Cape Town to be trained. As early as 1686, the request arose to hold the training sessions on their own grounds, namely on Die Braak, and to establish an accompanying arsenal there. By the late 18th century, the Stellenbosch burgher militia (bijeenwoners) needed a secure, centralized location to store ammunition, gunpowder, and weapons for defense against potential conflicts.

It was not until the second half of the eighteenth century that permission was obtained. The Governor of the Cape Colony, Joachim van Plettenberg, authorized its construction. Lambert Fick and Philip Hartog received the contract at the end of October 1776. The actual building contractor was master builder Michael Rambusch, under the supervision of the local Landdrost (magistrate), Martin Melck. Construction started in November 1776, and in May 1777 it was handed over after barely 182 days of construction - five months ahead of its original schedule.
  • Baron Joachim Ammena van Plettenberg (1739 Netherlands - 1793 Netherlands [54]) was the governor of the Cape of Good Hope from 1771 to 1785.
  • Michael Rambusch was a German immigrant master builder / mason. He migrated to South Africa under contract as an employee and tradesman for the V.O.C.
  • Martin Melck (1723 Germany -1781 Stellenbosch) arrived at the Cape in 1746. In 1750 he became a free burgher. He rose from a low-paid soldier to become one of the wealthiest, most influential land barons and entrepreneurs in the 18th-century Cape Colony. He is most celebrated today as a foundational figure for religious freedom in South Africa and a prolific builder of early Cape heritage.
Early photo showing lean-to additions (later demolished). Cape Archives.

The Kruithuis retained its military function until 1806, but despite this, cannon shots were never fired in Stellenbosch due to war. After that, it fell into disuse for a few years. The building was even threatened with demolition in 1817, but the necessary resistance from interested local parties managed to prevent this. Ultimately, the Kruithuis was given a new function as a market building. Even later, from 1859, it served as accommodation for the local fire brigade. Extra openings were provided in the surrounding wall, and a new lean-to roof was built on the southern side.

When Die Braak was declared a national heritage site in 1936, the later additions around the Kruithuis were demolished. In 1940, the Kruithuis was also awarded the title of a national monument. Just a few years later, in 1943, it opened as a small Africana Museum. However, this initiative was short-lived. For a long time, the building stood empty until 1971, when the decision was made to house the military collection of the Village Museum (Dorpsmuseum) there. The Kruithuis is unique in South Africa because it is the only arsenal from the time of the V.O.C. that still exists.

Top storey.

The building consists of three levels. The first is the semi-subterranean basement level, consisting of four long corridors with three partition walls. The crossbeams that support the ground floor rest upon these. Finally, there is an upper floor. A high wall surrounds the building. The bell tower was built around 1779. The Kruithuis was constructed with thick walls (660mm), presumably consisting of cobbles from the Eerste River, and coated with a clay mortar. The number of windows, as well as their size, has been reduced to a minimum. The roof consists of a light barrel vault construction, which was designed so that in the event of an explosion, the blast would be directed upwards.

"The barrel-vault was a method of construction fairly widely used in the Cape in the 18th century and even earlier … it was the usual form of construction for the larger nesting-places (fowl houses). In Stellenbosch... very popular between 1770 and 1782... [examples are] the Kruithuis on the Brak 1770... Utopia in 1779... Grosvenor House 1782. " (Walton, 1985)

The powder magazine is the only monument that bears the GVOC monogram (Geoctroijeerde Vereenigde Oostindisch Compagnie).

View from north-west. Image source: Archistori

View from north. Image source: Archistori

View from south-east. Image source: Archistori

South gable showing VOC monogram. Image source: Archistori

North facade Image source: Archistori

Locality map

Sources

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