Genadendal Residence is the official
Cape Town residence of the
President of South Africa
The president of South Africa is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of South Africa. The president heads the executive branch of the Government of South Africa and is the commander-in-chief of the South African Nation ...
,
situated on the
Groote Schuur
Groote Schuur (, Dutch for "big shed") is an estate in Cape Town, South Africa. In 1657, the estate was owned by the Dutch East India Company which used it partly as a granary. Later, the farm and farmhouse was sold into private hands. Groote Sc ...
estate in
Rondebosch
Rondebosch is one of the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town, South Africa. It is primarily a residential suburb, with shopping and business districts as well as the main campus of the University of Cape Town.
History
Four years after the first Dutch ...
. It has been the official residence since 1994 when
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 ...
took up residence here rather than the main Groote Schuur manor house. The mixed
Victorian-
Georgian residence, formerly known as Westbrooke, is named after the town of
Genadendal – itself an
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 grad ...
word meaning "Valley of Mercy",
until it was changed to the current name in 1995.
The residence first came into existence in the early 18th century as a grain barn, and was converted into a residence in the mid 1800s.
See also
*
Mahlamba Ndlopfu
, image = Libertas, since 1994 known as Mahlamba Ndlopfu, in 1934 by Gerard Moerdijk designed as official residence in Pretoria for the state of the Union of South Africa. - panoramio.jpg
, caption = Libertas, since 1994 kn ...
*
List of Castles and Fortifications in South Africa
References
Buildings and structures in Cape Town
Presidential residences in South Africa
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