Our community is rich with readers who think deeply and read widely. This space is for members who wish to pass along a memorable read…something insightful, enriching, or simply interesting. Share a brief précis, or the moments and ideas that lingered, or the significance the book held for you. Your reflections may guide another member toward a rewarding discovery.
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Did Deneys Reitz accurately portray his visit to Gamkaskloof in his memoire, Commando?
Pieter le Roux examines whether Deneys Reitz’s famous war memoir Commando (1929) gives a truthful and credible account of his visit to Gamkaskloof (“Die Hel”) during the Anglo-Boer War. The author compares Commando with Reitz’s earlier, unpublished 1903 handwritten journal Herinneringen van den Engelschen Oorlog, which contains a far more detailed record of the same events.
The comparison reveals factual differences, omissions, and embellishments in Commando, raising questions regarding Reitz’s experiences in the Klein Karoo and Gamkaskloof.
Despite this, the document argues that Commando remains valuable, but must be read with an awareness of its narrative shaping.
Admiralty House Simon’s Town and its garden
Title: Admiralty House Simon’s Town and its garden
Authors: Cdr W.M. Bisset and Dr JP Rourke
Submission by: Ronnie Glass
Ronnie Glass, our Treasurer, has just recently purchased this booklet. Why?… Our own Cdr Mac Bisset authored it together with Dr Rourke. Ronnie never knew about this booklet before. He discovered a copy for sale online and immediately snapped it up!
Admiralty House, constructed in 1743, remains one of South Africa’s longest continuously used historic residences. Admiralty House is a landmark of Simon’s Town’s naval heritage. For nearly three centuries it has served as the home of senior naval officers and a centre of maritime life at the Cape. Today Admiralty House and its beautiful surrounding garden remain a living witness to the Cape’s naval past and to the generations who lived and served there.