This day in history
Cuba Gooding jr celebrates his birthday and the corner stones of the Castle of Good Hope are laid.
1666 – The four corner stones of the Castle of Good Hope (Kasteel van Goede Hoop) are laid by Zacharias Wagenaer, Johan van Arckel, Gabbema and Lacus.
The Castle of Good Hope in Cape Town is the oldest surviving building in South Africa. The current building replaced a small clay and timber fort built by Jan van Riebeeck in 1652 upon establishing a maritime replenishment station at the Cape of Good Hope for the Dutch East India Company. The castle has a pentagonal plan a five-pointed star, with moat and bastions at each corner and was declared a national monument in 1936.
1843 – The world-famous opera about a mystery ghost ship, The Flying Dutchman by Richard Wagner premiers today in Dresden, Germany.
Although much of its story is legend, it is based on fact – a vessel captained by Hendrick Van der Decken, who set sail in 1680 from Amsterdam to Batavia, a port in Dutch East India.
According to the legend, Van der Decken’s ship encountered a severe storm as is was rounding the Cape of Good Hope. Van der Decken ignored the dangers of the storm – thought by the crew to be a warning from God – and pressed on.
Battered by the tempest, the ship foundered, sending all aboard to their deaths. As punishment, they say, Van der Decken and his ship were doomed to ply the waters near the Cape for eternity.
1896 – The Jameson Raid, an attempt to seize control of Johannesburg from the Boers, comes to an end on this day as Dr Leander Starr Jameson and his troops lose the battle at Doornkop (In the vicinity of what is Klipriviersberg Nature Reserve today).
1968 – African-American actor Cuba Gooding Jr celebrates his birthday today. He is best known for his roles in Boyz ‘n the Hood, Gladiator, Few Good Men and Men of Honour.
