Robben Island

ROBBEN ISLAND.

Robben Island is located in Table Bay, Western Cape Province, South Africa. It was initially inhabited by wildlife like birds, penguins, seals and tortoise hence its name “robben” is derived from the Dutch, meaning “a seal”. It also had plentiful of fresh water. The land was used as grazing grounds for sheep and cattle and was also a post office due to the mails coming from outgoing ships which would be left underneath an inscribed stone for collection and delivery by a home going vessel.

Fortifications were erected during World War II and from the mid-1960s to 1991, Robben Island served as South Africa’s maximum- security prison where people were isolated, banished and exiled for nearly 400years. Most inmates including Nelson Mandela were black men held for political offences, infact the Dutch government sent kings, prices, religious leaders from the East Indies to the Island because they did not agree with Dutch rule in their country. Later, it became an asylum for the mentally ill after the British annexed the Cape.

The Island served as a medium- security prison until 1996 and in 1997 it was turned into a museum and declared a national monument. Now it is among the World Heritage Sites.

References

Encyclopedia Britannica. 2021. Robben island | History, Prison, & Facts. [online] Available at: <https://www.britannica.com/place/Robben-Island> [Accessed 21 October 2021].

Sahistory.org.za. 2021. Robben Island | South African History Online. [online] Available at: <https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/robben-island> [Accessed 21 October 2021].