Groote Schuur
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Groote Schuur (Dutch for "big barn") is an estate in Cape Town, South Africa.
Cecil Rhodes bought it in 1893, and had it converted and refurbished by the architect Sir Herbert Baker. The Cape Dutch building, located in Rondebosch, on the slopes of Devil's Peak, was originally part of the Dutch East India Company's granary.
From 1910 to 1984 it was the official Cape residence of the Prime Ministers of South Africa and continued as a presidential residence of P. W. Botha and F. W. De Klerk.[1]
The building was the site for the signing of the historic "Groote Schuur Minute" between Nelson Mandela of the African National Congress and FW De Klerk, the then President of South Africa, on 4 May 1990. The document was a commitment between the two parties towards the resolution of the existing climate of violence and intimidation as well as a commitment to stability and to a peaceful process of negotiations. A working party was established to investigate the granting of temporary immunity to ANC cadres, to advise on how to deal with the release of political prisoners and to make recommendations on the definition of political offences.
Under Nelson Mandela, the Genadendal building (formerly called Westbrooke) became the Cape Town residence of the South African President. Groote Schuur now is a museum and open to the public only by appointment.
