Dirk Coetzee/Coetsee (1655 – 1725) was a Dutch

colonist A settler or a colonist is a person who establishes or joins a permanent presence that is separate to existing communities. The entity that a settler establishes is a settlement. A settler is called a pioneer if they are among the first settli ...

and the Hoofdheemraad (Chancellor) of the District of

Stellenbosch Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronouncing Gazetteer.
Thomas Baldwin ...

and Drakenstein in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

for most of the 1690s and early 1700s. He also served as

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

of the Stellenbosch Infantry and

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...

of the Stellenbosch Moederkerk ( Dutch Reformed Mother Church) at different points in time. As captain of the Stellenbosch Infantry, which comprised mostly

Huguenots The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

, he provided military backing for a rebellion which began in 1706 against the

Governor of the Cape Colony This article lists the governors of British South African colonies, including the colonial prime ministers. It encompasses the period from 1797 to 1910, when present-day South Africa was divided into four British colonies namely: Cape Colony (p ...

Willem Adriaan van der Stel Willem Adriaan van der Stel (24 August 1664 – 11 November 1733) was an Extraordinary Councillor of the Dutch East Indies, and Governor of the Cape Colony, a way station for the Dutch East India Company (VOC), from 23 January 1699 to 1707. He w ...

, whom the vrijburghers (free burghers, i.e. citizens of the colony not in the employ of the

Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( ; VOC ), commonly known as the Dutch East India Company, was a chartered company, chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States Ge ...

) had accused of tyranny, corruption and racketeering. Coetsee was imprisoned in the dungeon of the

Castle of Good Hope A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble. This i ...

along with the other leaders of the

but he was released after a year. The rebellion ultimately succeeded in 1707 when the

recalled the Governor and other colonial officials. An account of the rebellion is vividly described in the "Diary of Adam Tas". Dirk Coetzee/Coetsee established Coetzenburg/Coetsenburg, one of the oldest wine estates in South Africa, in 1682, on land granted to him by the Dutch Governor of the

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

Simon van der Stel Simon van der Stel (14 October 1639 – 24 June 1712) was the first Governor of the Dutch Cape Colony (1691), the settlement at the Cape of Good Hope. He was interested in botany, establishing vineyards Groot Constantia, Groot and Klein C ...

, on the banks of the

Eerste River The Eerste River, located in the Western Cape, South Africa, rises on Dwarsberg 60 km east of Cape Town at the head of Jonkershoek valley. The Eerste River catchment covers the eastern part of the Cape Flats lying to the west of the Hott ...

at the foot of the

Stellenbosch Mountain Stellenbosch Mountain (Afrikaans: Stellenbosberg or Die Groteberg) is a mountain forming a prominent landmark overlooking the town of Stellenbosch in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. The mountain forms part of the Coetsenburg Estate, t ...

. He was the

progenitor In genealogy, a progenitor (rarer: primogenitor; or ''Ahnherr'') is the founder (sometimes one that is legendary) of a family, line of descent, gens, clan, tribe, noble house, or ethnic group.. Ebenda''Ahnherr:''"Stammvater eines Geschlec ...

(

Afrikaans Afrikaans is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language spoken in South Africa, Namibia and to a lesser extent Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and also Argentina where there is a group in Sarmiento, Chubut, Sarmiento that speaks the Pat ...

: stamvader) of the influential Coetzee / Coetsee family in

, a branch of which became

Anglicized Anglicisation or anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by the culture of England. It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English place adopts the English language ...

through intermarriage with the British Establishment after the

British conquest The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Great Britain and France, along with their respective Native American allies. European historians generally consider it a related conflict of the wider ...

in 1795.

Origins of the surname Coetzee / Coetsee

The surname Coetzee/Coetsee is of

French Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

origin, originally spelt de Couches The De Couches family were

French Protestants Protestantism in France has existed in its various forms, starting with Calvinism and Lutheranism since the Protestant Reformation. John Calvin was a Frenchman, as were numerous other Protestant Reformers including William Farel, Pierre Viret and ...

(known as

) of

Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally **Breton people **Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Gale ...

origin and nobles of the

Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for " ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien ** Ancien Régime ** Ancien Régime in France {{disambig ...

, specifically

seigneurs A seigneur () or lord is an originally feudal title in France before the Revolution, in New France and British North America until 1854, and in the Channel Islands to this day. The seigneur owned a seigneurie, seigneury, or lordship—a form of ...

feudal lords Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was a combination of legal, economic, military, cultural, and political customs that flourished in medieval Europe from the 9th to 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring societ ...

, which owned the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

Château (Castle) of Couches as well as the medieval Château (Castle) of Dracy-lès-Couches. The Château de Couches is located in the commune of

Couches A couch, also known as a sofa, settee, chesterfield, or davenport, is a cushioned piece of furniture that can seat multiple people. It is commonly found in the form of a bench with upholstered armrests and is often fitted with springs and ...

Saône-et-Loire Saône-et-Loire (; Arpitan: ''Sona-et-Lêre'') is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in France. It is named after the rivers Saône and Loire, between which it lies, in the country's central-eastern part. Saône-et-Loire is B ...

, below the town, on a flat area overlooking the

Creuse Creuse (; or ) is a department in central France named after the river Creuse. After Lozère, it is the second least populated department in France. It is bordered by Indre and Cher to the north, Allier and Puy-de-Dôme to the east, Cor ...

valley. It is one of the old fortresses of the

Duchy of Burgundy The Duchy of Burgundy (; ; ) was a medieval and early modern feudal polity in north-western regions of historical Burgundy. It was a duchy, ruled by dukes of Burgundy. The Duchy belonged to the Kingdom of France, and was initially bordering th ...

and was used in particular to protect the road leading from

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Chalon Chalon may refer to: Culture *Chalon people, a Native American tribe of California *Chalon language, an Ohlone language spoken by the Chalon people Places *Chalon, Isère, formerly Châlons, in France's Isère ''département'' *Le Chalon, in th ...

via

Autun Autun () is a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Saône-et-Loire Departments of France, department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region of central-eastern France. It was founded during the Principate era of the e ...

. The Castle of Dracy-lès-Couches is located in the town of Dracy-lès-Couches in

, on the side of a slope. Surnames were only recorded for

taxation A tax is a mandatory financial charge or levy imposed on an individual or legal person, legal entity by a governmental organization to support government spending and public expenditures collectively or to Pigouvian tax, regulate and reduce nega ...

purposes and many officials of the

were semi-literate, but this was also before the time of canonised spelling conventions, and thus there are a number of variations of the surname in South Africa, e.g. Coetzee, Coetse, Coussé. Coetsenburg, the family's wine estate in

Stellenbosch Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronouncing Gazetteer.
Thomas Baldwin ...

, is often spelt Coetzenburg. The De Couches family also had homes in

Le Marais The Marais (Le Marais ; "the marsh") is a historic district in Paris, France. It spreads across parts of the 3rd arrondissement of Paris, 3rd and 4th arrondissement of Paris, 4th Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements on the Rive Droit ...

which they fled with other Émigrés after the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre in 1572. They resettled initially in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

in the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...

and later moved to Kampen in the

Overijssel Overijssel (; ; ; ) is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands located in the eastern part of the country. The province's name comes from the perspective of the Prince-Bishopric of Utrecht, Episcopal principality of Utrecht ...

where they Dutchified and established themselves. A branch of the family intermarried with the British and

after the British conquest in 1795 and the Coetsenburg Estate is now under their custodianship.

The Anglicization of the Coetzee/Coetsee family and the Cape Dutch regenten

Following the British conquest of the Cape in 1795, the Dutch elite of

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

– known locally in Dutch as the

regenten The ''regenten'' ( Dutch plural for ''regent'') were the rulers of the Dutch Republic from the 16th through the 18th century, the leaders of the Dutch cities or the heads of organisations (e.g. "regent of an orphanage"). Though not formally a her ...

or bestuurs-elite - quickly developed a sense of class solidarity with

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

officials. Intermarriage was not uncommon, due mainly to the dearth of marriageable expatriate British women at the

Cape A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment of any length that hangs loosely and connects either at the neck or shoulders. They usually cover the back, shoulders, and arms. They come in a variety of styles and have been used th ...

in the early years. The children of leading Dutch citizens were often educated in English. These relationships extended beyond Cape Town into the farming districts of

Stellenbosch Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronouncing Gazetteer.
Thomas Baldwin ...

and Franschhoek. Indeed, under British rule there was no great divide between the urban Dutch

bourgeoisie The bourgeoisie ( , ) are a class of business owners, merchants and wealthy people, in general, which emerged in the Late Middle Ages, originally as a "middle class" between the peasantry and aristocracy. They are traditionally contrasted wi ...

and the leading wine farmers. British officials commonly owned land and slaves themselves, and there was a concentration of farming resources and official patronage in the leading families. This urban-rural elite was heavily intermarried, and linked by an extensive credit network. The same names recur wherever landed wealth, power and patronage were to be found – Van Der Bijl (Van Der Byl), Cloete, Meijburgh (Myburgh), Coetzee/Coetsee, De Villiers, Marais are some. 21 families, mostly well connected and interrelated with high officials, produced over half of the colony’s

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented fruit. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made f ...

and also owned some two-thirds of the wine farm slave population by the 1820s. Moreover, there had been a strong degree of continuity in the identity of this elite over generations. The wine farmers were undoubtedly the

landed gentry The landed gentry, or the gentry (sometimes collectively known as the squirearchy), is a largely historical Irish and British social class of landowners who could live entirely from rental income, or at least had a country estate. It is t ...

of the Cape. The British set about cementing their alliances with the older colonial population by promoting agricultural production, particularly in the wine industry. This "

Old Money Old money is a social class of the rich who have been able to maintain their wealth over multiple generations, in contrast with new money whose wealth has been acquired within its own generation. The term often refers to perceived members of th ...

" still holds substantial land and power in

. Gradually, many of the

Cape Dutch Cape Dutch, also commonly known as Cape Afrikaners, were a historic socioeconomic class of Afrikaners who lived in the Western Cape during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The terms have been evoked to describe an affluent, educated sect ...

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

families thus became

, including the Coetsee family.

Family and early life

Dirk de Couches (Couches evolved into Coetzee/Coetsee after his emigration to the

Dutch Cape Colony The Cape of Good Hope () was a Dutch United East India Company (VOC) supplystation in Southern Africa, centered on the Cape of Good Hope, from where it derived its name. The original supply station and the successive states that the area was ...

) was born in Kampen in 1655. Dirk was a son of Gerard de Couches and Margaretha Claasdogter. Coetzee/Coetsee married Sara van der Schulp (1654 – Feb 1728) who was born in

in 1654. She was the daughter of Jacob van der Schulp (1634- Feb 1728) and Maria van der Schulp (née Elison). Maria van der Schulp was the daughter of Johannes Elison (b. 11 April 1581, d. 19 August 1639) and Maria Bockenolle who were both painted by

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (; ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), mononymously known as Rembrandt was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker, and Drawing, draughtsman. He is generally considered one of the greatest visual artists in ...

during his early years in

. Rembrandt’s innovative and fashionable portrait paintings were a key factor in his growing reputation. Reverend Johannes Elison was minister of the

Dutch Reformed Church The Dutch Reformed Church (, , abbreviated NHK ) was the largest Christian denomination in the Netherlands from the onset of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century until 1930. It was the traditional denomination of the Dutch royal famil ...

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. In seventeenth century Dutch society,

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

ministers were celebrated public figures. The

portraits A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face is always predominant. In arts, a portrait may be represented as half body and even full body. If the subject in full body better re ...

of Elison and his wife, now in the Museum of Fine Arts in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

were probably commissioned by their son, a wealthy

merchant. Such full-length

were substantially more costly than the more common bust and half-length formats.

painted only three full-length

portrait A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face is always predominant. In arts, a portrait may be represented as half body and even full body. If the subject in full body better r ...

pairs, all about 1634, when he was trying to establish himself as an independent master. Like the sons of many established

Émigré An ''émigré'' () is a person who has emigrated, often with a connotation of political or social exile or self-exile. The word is the past participle of the French verb ''émigrer'' meaning "to emigrate". French Huguenots Many French Huguenot ...

families in Kampen, Dirk de Couches pursued a career as an

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

in the

Dutch navy The Royal Netherlands Navy (, ) is the Navy, maritime service branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. It traces its history to 8 January 1488, making it the List of navies, third-oldest navy in the world. During the 17th and early 18th centurie ...

. Since the founding of the

in 1652, the

had offered land to its employees to cultivate

crops A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. In other words, a crop is a plant or plant product that is grown for a specific purpose such as food, fibre, or fuel. When plants of the same species a ...

and raise

livestock Livestock are the Domestication, domesticated animals that are raised in an Agriculture, agricultural setting to provide labour and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, Egg as food, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The t ...

to sell to the Company at a fixed price.

, the last Commander and first Governor of the Dutch Cape Colony, expanded this policy by encouraging Dutch and later French immigration and distribution of land to willing farmers. When the

Franco-Dutch War The Franco-Dutch War, 1672 to 1678, was primarily fought by Kingdom of France, France and the Dutch Republic, with both sides backed at different times by a variety of allies. Related conflicts include the 1672 to 1674 Third Anglo-Dutch War and ...

(1672–1678) ended, there were few opportunities in the

for young people. There had also been a series of disastrous

floods A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...

that had further depressed the Dutch economy. Thus in 1678, Dirk de Couches (Coetzee/Coetsee) decided to relocate to the

Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( ) is a rocky headland on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A List of common misconceptions#Geography, common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Afri ...

where the

had established a permanent settlement in 1652. VOC

Dirk Coetsee emigration to the Dutch Cape Colony in 1679

By this time, Dirk was an ''adelborst eerste klasse'' ( English: a navy cadet equal to a second lieutenant. It is unclear whether his wife Sara Coetzee/Coetsee joined him on his initial trip out or whether she joined him at a later stage. In any event, Dirk Coetzee/Coetsee left the port of

Texel Texel (; Texels dialect: ) is a municipality and an island with a population of 13,643 in North Holland, Netherlands. It is the largest and most populated island of the West Frisian Islands in the Wadden Sea. The island is situated north of Den ...

North Holland North Holland (, ) is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands in the northwestern part of the country. It is located on the North Sea, north of South Holland and Utrecht (province), Utrecht, and west of Friesland and Flevola ...

aboard the Dutch East India ship the ''Asia'' (

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

: ''Azië'') on 19 December 1678 bound for

Table Bay Table Bay (Afrikaans: ''Tafelbaai'') is a natural bay on the Atlantic Ocean overlooked by Cape Town and is at the northern end of the Cape Peninsula, which stretches south to the Cape of Good Hope. It was named because it is dominated by the fl ...

. The ''Asia'' was a

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

, built in 1671 by the Amsterdam Chamber (Kamer) of the

at the Oostenburg shipyard in

. It was 160 foot long, 39 foot wide, with a

deadweight tonnage Deadweight tonnage (also known as deadweight; abbreviated to DWT, D.W.T., d.w.t., or dwt) or tons deadweight (DWT) is a measure of how much weight a ship can carry. It is the sum of the weights of cargo, fuel, fresh water Fresh water or ...

of 1140. On 8 May 1679, the ''Asia'' cast its anchor in

. (The ''Asia'' sunk after a storm off the coast of

Cape Verde Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, officially the Republic of Cabo Verde, is an island country and archipelagic state of West Africa in the central Atlantic Ocean, consisting of ten volcanic islands with a combined land area of about . These islands ...

in 1683 on its return journey to the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

from Batavia. It had sailed on only eight voyages in total, between

and Batavia via the

Huis Herengracht (Herengracht House), Cape Town

Dirk and Sara Coetzee/Coetsee initially settled in a house on the western side of the Herengracht (now

Adderley Street Adderley Street is a street in the Cape Town CBD, central business district (CBD) of Cape Town, South Africa. It is considered the main street of the area. The street bisects the CBD. It runs from the Parliament of South Africa at the north, pa ...

), which they called Huis Herengracht (Herengracht House), in

was originally named the Herengracht, after the

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface ...

("gracht") which ran down its centre, and which had its origins in the rivers flowing down to the

sea A sea is a large body of salt water. There are particular seas and the sea. The sea commonly refers to the ocean, the interconnected body of seawaters that spans most of Earth. Particular seas are either marginal seas, second-order section ...

from

Table Mountain Table Mountain (; ) is a flat-topped mountain forming a prominent landmark overlooking the city of Cape Town in South Africa. It is a significant tourist attraction, with many visitors using the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway, cableway or hik ...

, and the

lords Lords may refer to: * The plural of Lord Places *Lords Creek, a stream in New Hanover County, North Carolina *Lord's, English Cricket Ground and home of Marylebone Cricket Club and Middlesex County Cricket Club People *Traci Lords (born 19 ...

patricians The patricians (from ) were originally a group of ruling class families in ancient Rome. The distinction was highly significant in the Roman Kingdom and the early Republic, but its relevance waned after the Conflict of the Orders (494 BC to 287 B ...

("heren") which established their

townhouses A townhouse, townhome, town house, or town home, is a type of terraced housing. A modern townhouse is often one with a small footprint on multiple floors. In a different British usage, the term originally referred to any type of city residenc ...

in the street. At the time the street was more of a wide walkway beside the canal, which was crossed by various stone bridges. The network of canals were covered over, throughout

, in the 1860s. The Herengracht river and canal therefore became an underground pipe-line. For many years the street was residential, lined with large

oak trees An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

. The Herengracht was also so-named because of the

Herengracht The Herengracht () is the second of four Amsterdam canals belonging to the canal belt and lies between the Singel and the Keizersgracht. The Gouden Bocht (Golden Bend) in particular is known for its large and beautiful canal houses. History Th ...

as most of the first European settlers of

were

. Huis Herengracht had a stoep (

veranda A veranda (also spelled verandah in Australian and New Zealand English) is a roofed, open-air hallway or porch, attached to the outside of a building. A veranda is often partly enclosed by a railing and frequently extends across the front an ...

) that opened onto the Herengracht and overlooked the Grand Parade. It is located between Castle (Krotoa Place) and Hout Streets but closer to Castle Street, opposite to where the Golden Acres shopping centre currently stands. In the record of the deed of transfer in the Deeds Office in

, it is listed as being erf E4574 in the "Heere Gragt in Block C, no.2 - date 3 June 1728 - bordered to the north-east by the erf of the Honourable Lord de Wet, to the north-west by the erf of Advocate Aalders and south-west by the captain of engineering the Honourable Lord Tiebault and surgeon Grimbeek". Like other remaining townhouses of the Dutch period in this affluent street, Huis Herengracht is double-storeyed with pedimented façades ( dwarf gables) with a

pitched roof Roof pitch is the steepness of a roof expressed as a ratio of inch(es) rise per horizontal foot (or their metric equivalent), or as the angle in degrees its surface deviates from the horizontal. A flat roof has a pitch of zero in either inst ...

and triangular

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

ends. Prior to

land reclamation Land reclamation, often known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a waste landfill), is the process of creating new Terrestrial ecoregion, land from oceans, list of seas, seas, Stream bed, riverbeds or lake ...

, Huis Herengracht was located near the sea and its address was 2 Herengracht, Cape Town but is currently 52

. Dirk and Sara Coetsee lived in Huis Herengracht for four years. 4 In 1682, the Dutch Governor of the Cape Colony,

, granted Coetzee/Coetsee land at the foot of the

on the banks of the

which Coetsee named Coetsenburg. After moving onto Coetzenburg/Coetsenburg, the Coetzee/Coetsees used Huis Herengracht as their

townhouse A townhouse, townhome, town house, or town home, is a type of Terraced house, terraced housing. A modern townhouse is often one with a small footprint on multiple floors. In a different British usage, the term originally referred to any type o ...

Coetzenburg/Coetsenburg Estate

The name of the wine estate, Coetzenburg/Coetsenburg, is an

amalgamation Amalgamation is the process of combining or uniting multiple entities into one form. Amalgamation, amalgam, and other derivatives may refer to: Mathematics and science * Amalgam (chemistry), the combination of mercury with another metal **Pan ama ...

of the

words "Coetzee/Coetsee s’n Burg", a colloquial form of "Coetzee/Coetsee en zijn Burg" which contains a

double entendre A double entendre (plural double entendres) is a figure of speech or a particular way of wording that is devised to have a double meaning, one of which is typically obvious, and the other often conveys a message that would be too socially unacc ...

. Coetzee/Coetsee is the surname of the estate’s founder, Dirk Coetzee/Coetsee, a one-time captain of the Stellenbosch schutterij (civic guard or

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

) and Hoofdheemraad (mayor) of

Stellenbosch Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronouncing Gazetteer.
Thomas Baldwin ...

.() In

and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, "burg" means "

fortress A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from L ...

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

citadel A citadel is the most fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of ''city'', meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core. ...

stronghold A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from La ...

acropolis An acropolis was the settlement of an upper part of an ancient Greek city, especially a citadel, and frequently a hill with precipitous sides, mainly chosen for purposes of defense. The term is typically used to refer to the Acropolis of Athens ...

" (the first permanent European settlers in the area were primarily Dutch-speaking). However, in

, "berg" and "burg" mean "mountain". Thus " Coetzenburg/Coetsenburg" can be interpreted either as "Coetzee/Coetsee and his Mountain" or "Coetzee/Coetsee and his Fortress". The

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

referred to in the name is the Groteberg or

, part of which is on the estate. The Coetsenburg Estate lies on the banks of the

in the town of

Stellenbosch Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronouncing Gazetteer.
Thomas Baldwin ...

in the

Western Cape The Western Cape ( ; , ) is a provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the List of South African provinces by area, fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , an ...

province of

Stellenbosch Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronouncing Gazetteer.
Thomas Baldwin ...

is the second oldest European settlement in

, after

. The town became known as the City of Oaks or Eikestad in

and

due to the large number of

that were planted by its founder, the Dutch Governor of the Cape Colony

, to grace its streets and homesteads. One gains access to the estate via Coetzenburg Road which crosses the

over an old wagon bridge at the site of the original ford, which is known as a drift in

. The estate stretches up southwards from the

onto the slopes of the

, which is part of the Hottentots Holland mountain range, to the Blaauwklippen River (Blouklip River) which forms its southern boundary. Westwards, the estate borders the Coetzenburg Sports Grounds of the

University of Stellenbosch Stellenbosch University (SU) (, ) is a public research university situated in Stellenbosch, a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Stellenbosch is the oldest university in South Africa and the oldest extant university in Sub-Sahara ...

Paul Roos Gymnasium Paul Roos Gymnasium is a leading public dual medium (Afrikaans & English) high school for boys in the town of Stellenbosch in the Western Cape province of South Africa, which opened on 1 March 1866 as Stellenbosch Gymnasium. Described as South A ...

and the old Welgevallen Farm (Rhodes Fruit Farms) which is now the suburbs of Brandwacht, Dalsig, Anesta, Eden and La Pastorale. Eastwards the estate stretches into the Jonkershoek Valley to the Hottentots Holland Catchment Area and, to the south-east, the Assegaaibosch Nature Reserve which was once the Assegaai Bosch Estate, also owned by the founder of Coetsenburg, Dirk Coetsee. C.C. de Villiers wrote in 1892 in the "Ancestry Registers of Old Cape Families" ("Geslagsregisters van Ou Kaapse Families") about Dirk Coetsee: "After 1685 he was in the service of the church (the Moederkerk or Mother Church of the

) as

and elder, and after 1687, he was in the college of heemraden (

aldermen An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands (wethouder) and Belgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking membe ...

). In 1706, he became

of the Stellenbosch Infantry. In 1682, he approached Commander Simon van der Stel and was in particular given a piece of land or place later called Coetsenburg, located close to

Stellenbosch Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronouncing Gazetteer.
Thomas Baldwin ...

. He also has a piece of land in Jan Jonkershoek (the Jonkershoek Valley), under the big mountain (

), called Assegaaibosch. A branch of the family intermarried with the British and

after the British conquest in 1795 and the Coetzenburg/Coetsenburg Estate is now under their custodianship. Stellenbosch Mountain - Coetzenburg

The 1706–1707 Huguenot rebellion against Governor Willem Adriaan van der Stel

In 1706, Dirk Coetzee/Coetsee became the

of the Stellenbocsch Infantry (Stellenbosch schutterij), replacing Henning Hüsing, the owner of the Meerlust Estate. At the time, the

was engaged in the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict fought between 1701 and 1714. The immediate cause was the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700, which led to a struggle for control of the Spanish E ...

(1702–1714) against

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Because the Stellenbosch Infantry was composed mainly of French Huguenots, and given Dirk Coetzee/Coetsee's high status in the

colony, Coetzee/Coetsee became involved in organizing a

revolt Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...

against the Dutch Governor Willem Adriaan van der Stel, under the leadership of Adam Tas and Henning Hüsing, who charged the Governor with

corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense that is undertaken by a person or an organization that is entrusted in a position of authority to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's gain. Corruption may involve activities ...

relating to his enormous estate

Vergelegen Vergelegen (Dutch: "remotely situated") is a historic wine estate in Somerset West, in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Foundation The estate was settled in 1700 by an early Governor of the Cape, Willem Adriaan van der Stel. Van d ...

and monopolizing the

and

meat Meat is animal Tissue (biology), tissue, often muscle, that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted and farmed other animals for meat since prehistory. The Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of vertebrates, including chickens, sheep, ...

trade which left the burghers of the

at a disadvantage. Henning Hüsing was the German husband of Tas’s

aunt. Tas was the very wealthy owner (by marriage) of a collection of estates with his home at Meerlust. Hüsing and Tas conspired with fellow Huguenots to establish a secret society called the "Brotherhood" to oust the Dutch Governor Willem Adriaan van der Stel. Their plan was to petition the Heeren XVII (the Lords Seventeen) of the

based in Batavia directly. Dirk Coetzee/Coetsee, as captain of the Stellenbosch Infantry, ensured that their plot was backed up by military force in the event that the petition failed. Adam Tas, representing farming burghers, drew up the formal memorandum of complaint. Dirk Coetzee/Coetsee was a signatory to the memorandum. In the memorandum the signatories accused Governor Willem Adriaan van der Stel and Company officials of illicit farming and trading, illegal landholding and setting up of illicit monopolies on the sale of wine, wheat, and meat. The Governor got wind of the rebellion and ordered a military raid of the estates of the conspirators. At Meerlust, the military officials discovered Tas' diary in a drawer of his desk (this diary was discovered by accident by a librarian of the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) (, ) is a public university, public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university status in 1918, making it the oldest univer ...

in 1911 and is now available for purchase in Dutch and English). The diary contained evidence that incriminated the conspirators. The Governor thus ordered their arrest. After a mock trial, Van der Stel had the leaders of the rebellion, including Hüsing, Tas and Coetsee, thrown into the notorious "Black Hole" dungeon of the

. However, fearing a broader rebellion in the Cape, and possibly the exposure of their own corruption, the Dutch East India Company removed the

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

, the Secunde (

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

) Samuel Elsevier, the Minister Petrus Calden and the

Landdrost ''Landdrost'' ({{IPA, nl, ˈlɑndrɔst, lang, Nl-landdrost.ogg) was the title of various officials with local jurisdiction in the Netherlands and a number of former territories in the Dutch Empire. The term is a Dutch compound, with ''land'' mean ...

(magistrate) of Stellenbosch, Johannes Starrenburg, from their posts and they ordered that all the land in possession of Company officials had to be disposed of. In addition, the monopolies were rescinded. This meant that the

re-asserted the official Company policy with regards to prohibiting the involvement of Company officials in farming and trading activities and restricting them to their official administrative responsibilities. All political prisoners were released from the

Castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

and the

celebrated their victory. On 31 December 1708, Dirk Coetzee/Coetsee began his last term as Hoofdheemraad of

Stellenbosch Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronouncing Gazetteer.
Thomas Baldwin ...

.()<

Subsequent public service

In the

, the Board of the

(Magistrate) and Heemraad (Council) governed the country districts and answered directly to the Governor. The

was divided into four districts: District of the Cape, District of

Stellenbosch Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronouncing Gazetteer.
Thomas Baldwin ...

and Drakenstein, District of Zwellendam and District of Graaff Reynet. Dirk Coetzee/Coetsee served as Hoofdheemraad (Chancellor) of the District of Stellenbosch and Drakenstein, from 1689 to 1690; 1693–1694; 1697–1698; 1702–1704; and 1709–1710. There were four Heemraden (council members) of which one was elected the Hoofdheemraad (Chancellor), all serving the district for two-year terms under the

(magistrate). Prior to the rebellion of 1706-1707, the Landdrosts were not vryburghers (i.e. citizens in the employ of the

) but born in the

and brought to the Cape by the

Company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether Natural person, natural, Juridical person, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members ...

to serve in their official capacities. To serve in this position, one had to be a prominent and upstanding member of the community, above the age of 30 and owner of land. As it was viewed as a position of honour, one had to serve voluntarily and without pay. Dirk Coetzee/Coetsee served as Captain of the Stellenbosch Infantry from 1607 to 1608, succeeding Henning Hüsing, the owner of the Meerlust Estate. He was a deacon in the Stellenbosch Moederkerk ( Dutch Reformed Mother Church) from 1691 to 1692; 1698–1699; 1702–1703.

Retirement

In 1721, Dirk’s son Gerrit and his wife Susanna Coetzee/Coetsee took over Coetzenburg/Coetsenburg and the now elderly couple Dirk and Sara Coetzee/Coetsee retired to their townhouse, Huis Herengracht, in the Herengracht (now

) in

, where Dirk died on 25 June 1725. Sara Coetzee/Coetsee died in February 1728. Like most of the

's ruling elite, Dirk and Sara Coetzee/Coetsee were buried in the Groote Kerk in the Herengracht (

) in

. Note: There are many variations of the surname spelling but as the reference material, links and maps names used to create this article are mostly spelt as Coetzee and not Coetsee it should be noted in the contents in both variations.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coetsee, Dirk 1655 births 1725 deaths People from Stellenbosch South African Christian religious leaders Dutch people of French descent

Origins of the surname Coetzee / Coetsee

The Anglicization of the Coetzee/Coetsee family and the Cape Dutch regenten

Family and early life

Dirk Coetsee emigration to the Dutch Cape Colony in 1679

Huis Herengracht (Herengracht House), Cape Town

Coetzenburg/Coetsenburg Estate

The 1706–1707 Huguenot rebellion against Governor Willem Adriaan van der Stel

Subsequent public service

Retirement

See also

References