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European Settlement
(page 8) |
| The Boom of the
1780s |
In the 1780s Cape
Town enjoyed a 'boom' decade. France and Holland were at war with Britain and
French troops were stationed in Cape Town 1781 - 1784 to prevent a British
invasion. French mercenaries remained thereafter, at great expense to the
VOC.
The garrison developed the 'French lines' - a network of
defences to protect the eastern approaches to the town, and complement the
VOC's 'sea lines' and Signal Hill batteries. Furthermore, French merchants made
the Cape their base for trade in the Indian Ocean and to supply French bases at
Reunion and Mauritius.
All of this led to a mercantile boom. Several impressive
buildings in Cape Town date back to this time, not least the work of French
military engineer Louis-Michel Thibault and the German sculptor and wood carver
Anton Anreith. They worked together on the cellar at Groot Constantia, the
re-building of the Slave Lodge and, separately, on modifications at the Groote
Kerk, the Lutheran Church and Koopmans de Wet House. All of these may be seen
today.
The boom, however, led to inflation. Furthermore, the VOC was in terminal
decline. The British East India Company had broken the VOC monopoly in
Indonesia. Furthermore, trade was shifting to the products of India and China,
where the British were dominant.
The VOC paid no more dividends after 1782. Meanwhile, the
number of its employees at the Cape tripled to 3000 as the VOC employed
mercenaries to defend the colony. Corruption and the loss of morale crippled
the Company.
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Heritage Sections
· Culture ·
· Environment
·
History
· Society
Personalities ·
Areas
In this period of Cape History:
Overview
The First
Years
A Town
Develops
Simon v.d.
Stel
VOC
Control
Frontier
Expansion
Cape Town in the
1700s
Cosmopolitan Cape
Town
The Boom of the
1780s
The VOC
Legacy
Bibliography &
Contacts
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