The Cape Agulhas Lighthouse is situated at

Cape Agulhas Cape Agulhas (; pt, Cabo das Agulhas , "Cape of the Needles") is a rocky headland in Western Cape, South Africa. It is the geographic southern tip of the African continent and the beginning of the dividing line between the Atlantic and Indi ...

, the southernmost tip of Africa. It was the third lighthouse to be built in South Africa, and the second-oldest still operating, after Green Point. It is located on the southern edge of the village of

L'Agulhas L'Agulhas is the most southern coastal village and holiday resort in South Africa, located within the Cape Agulhas Local Municipality at the southernmost tip of the African mainland. It is situated next to the town of Struisbaai and about south ...

, in the

Agulhas National Park The Agulhas National Park is a South African national park located in the Agulhas Plain in the southern Overberg region of the Western Cape, about south-east of Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's thre ...

; the light is operated by

Transnet National Ports Authority Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) is a government corporation of South Africa and a subsidiary of Transnet, responsible for managing and governing eight of South Africa's major seaports. TNPA is a landlord authority responsible for the ...

. In 2016, the

American Society of Civil Engineers American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

(ASCE) identified the lighthouse as a deserving prominent historic engineering project and International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark.

History

A lighthouse at Cape Agulhas was suggested by Colonel

Charles Collier Michell Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Collier Michell, Royal Guelphic Order, KH (29 March 1793 in Exeter – 28 March 1851 in Eltham, London), later known as Charles Cornwallis Michell, was a British soldier, first surveyor-general in the British Cape Colon ...

, the Surveyor-General of the Cape, in March 1837. A public meeting at

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second larges ...

on 11 July 1840 resolved to raise funds for the construction of the lighthouse, and

Michiel van Breda Michiel van Breda (1775–1847) was a South African farmer, founder of Bredasdorp, Mayor of Cape Town and a Freemason. Roots Van Breda was born on 12 August 1775 in Cape Town. His parents were Pieter van Breda and Catharina Sophia Myburg. He ma ...

, the founder of

Bredasdorp Bredasdorp is a town in the Southern Overberg region of the Western Cape, South Africa, and the main economic and service hub of that region. It lies on the northern edge of the Agulhas Plain, about south-east of Cape Town and north of Cape A ...

, offered to donate the land on which it was to be built. Apart from local contributions, funds were received from

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the '' de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the sec ...

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comm ...

Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Tamil Nadu, the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and territories of India, Indian state. The largest city ...

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital city, capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is Cities of the Philippines#Independent cities, highly urbanize ...

St Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...

and London; by June 1843 the sum raised was £1,479.3s.9d (£1,479.19). In 1847, the government of the

Cape Colony The Cape Colony ( nl, Kaapkolonie), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope, which existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when it united with t ...

agreed to fund the construction at a cost of £15,871; building work began in April of that year and was completed in December 1848, and the light was first lit on 1 March 1849. Originally, it was fuelled by the tail-fat of sheep, but in 1905 an oil-burning lantern was installed. In March 1910, the lens was replaced with a first-order

Fresnel lens A Fresnel lens ( ; ; or ) is a type of composite compact lens developed by the French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel (1788–1827) for use in lighthouses. It has been called "the invention that saved a million ships." The design allows the ...

. In 1929, the oil burner was replaced by a petroleum vapour burner, which was in turn replaced in 1936 by a four-kilowatt electric lamp powered by a diesel generator. In 1968, the lighthouse was taken out of service, and the light moved to an aluminum tower, as it was discovered that the sandstone walls were crumbling due to excessive weathering. The building was declared a national monument in 1973 and is also a Western Cape provincial heritage site. Restoration and reconstruction was performed by the Bredasdorp Shipwreck Museum and the local council, and the lighthouse was recommissioned in 1988. In 2016, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) identified the lighthouse as a deserving prominent historic engineering project and International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark.

Characteristics

The lighthouse consists of a round tower, high and painted red with a white band, that is attached to the keeper's house, which now contains a museum and restaurant. The design of the building was inspired by the

Pharos of Alexandria The Lighthouse of Alexandria, sometimes called the Pharos of Alexandria (; Ancient Greek: ὁ Φάρος τῆς Ἀλεξανδρείας, contemporary Koine ), was a lighthouse built by the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, during the re ...

. The focal plane of the light is above high water; the range of the 7.5

megacandela The candela ( or ; symbol: cd) is the unit of luminous intensity in the International System of Units (SI). It measures luminous power per unit solid angle emitted by a light source in a particular direction. Luminous intensity is analogous to ...

lantern is . The rotating optic gives off one white flash every five seconds. The lighthouse is 171 years old

References

External links

Transnet National Ports Authority: Cape Agulhas

Agulhas National Park
{{Authority control 1848 establishments in the Cape Colony Buildings and structures in the Western Cape Lighthouses completed in 1848 Lighthouses in South Africa Monuments and memorials in South Africa South African heritage sites Tourist attractions in the Western Cape Cape Agulhas Local Municipality Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks

History

Characteristics

See also

References

Further reading

External links