Breaching the walls: (un)restricted access - the Castle of Good Hope, Cape Town
Master Thesis
2012
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University of Cape Town
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Abstract
At 346 years of age the Castle is the oldest colonial building in South Africa and its pentagonal architecture of defensive fortification is little changed. The geometric purity of its architectural form has defended it against rapid expansion of the city centre and changing political paradigms. Indirectly, this has also allowed it to foster "past" memory, perhaps too well, limiting its engagement with the transience, fluidity, conflict and contradiction that are traits of the contemporary city. The land on which the Castle sits has been heavily impacted by the Foreshore reclamation, growing transport infrastructure, the architecturally inappropriate military barracks, programmatic neglect and complacency. These factors have limited critical engagement between the Castle and the contemporary city. The military's continued occupancy and the socio-political stigma associated with this under the Dutch, British and Nationalist Apartheid Government regimes have done little to elevate this fortress' public popularity despite the Castle's newly restored image.
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Includes bibliographical references.
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Reference:
Gubb, R. 2012. Breaching the walls: (un)restricted access - the Castle of Good Hope, Cape Town. University of Cape Town.