The map on the right is a detail of WB Snow's survey of 1862. In the centre is the Vredenberg homestead, with the U shape that is still seen in Victoria Court's plan. The wing down Vredenberg Lane is still there, with buttresses. The property was granted in 1706 to KJ Slotsboo. There was already a house and garden present on the site when it was granted. Maybe buildings had been there since c1678 since a map of that date mentions "niewe erven die nagstaan bebouwt te werden" in that location. In an inventory of 1719 it was thatched, had 5 rooms including kitchen. There was also a warehouse, work room and "binneplaats, agterplaats and voorplaats". The latter suggests a configuration with courtyards – perhaps the geometry of the U shape had already been set up. Originally the farm was 2 ½ morgen in size but it was subdivided in 1802. Victoria Court was built in 1916, architects MacGillivray & Grant. Another example of this "Cape Mediterranean" phase of their work is that house with the green tiled roof in St James. (Grant is WH Grant, later the Art Deco architect of Market House, Coliseum etc etc.). Second picture below is from "The Owl" magazine of 1906. A projected development in the Gardens … perhaps on the Victoria Court site? Grant's drawing is rather exaggeratedly hopeful about how much accommodation they would be able to squeeze onto the site.
Year of Construction: Finished sometime between January 1916 and January 1917. Our lovely building Victoria Court was built on the site of the old Vredenburg Mansion and incorporated the two warehouses facing onto Long Street. The warehouse on Vredenburg Lane being a combination of the two warehouses - one built prior to 1860 - the other much older and dating back to around 1777. The warehouse nearer the swimming baths was of quite recent construction - possibly between 1880 and 1900. The old mansion house actually formed part of the huge Vredenburg Estate which in the 17th and 18th centuries stretched as far as the present Mountain View Hotel in upper Long Street. Vredenburg Mansion was the home of one Lieutenant Jesse Slotsboo who was the military surgeon in the employ of the Dutch East India Company. His varied duties included superintending the company's buildings, slaves and even the grave diggers. The mansion house was the home of the Misses J. E. Bam in the 1850's and became an Academy for young ladies and run by Mrs Percival. During the year 1882 - the German San Martens School was built and it stood in its own grounds enclosed within a red brick wall to the right of the mansion house where the present St Martini Garden flats are today. Around 1884 as recorded in the 'Almanac' of the year, The mansion house became a girls school run by a Mrs Philip but it continued to be known as 'Mrs Percival's school'.
The two warehouses which form the 'H' of Victoria Court have a most interesting history. The one bordering on Vredenburg Lane as previously stated, was composed of the two adjoining structures and it is most interesting to note that the old buildings of Vredenburg Lane can be seen from Schumachare Perspective Map of 1776/1777 as viewed from Signal Hill. Fragments of early work can still be seen at the back of the flats and around the foundations. The adjacent parking garages (completed in 1983) situated in Vredenburg Lane occupy the site of the earlier warehouse and the party wall is clearly visible as both a part of the past as well as the present structure. Recent plaster removal showed sawn-off beam ends, stone rubble and even one or two entombed small warehouse casement window frames on the Vredenburg Lane wall. The warehouse bordering on Vredenburg Lane has, over the years, had many business enterprises. Whilst I do not have actual dates - I have ascertained that Messers Martienssen had their German/Swedish brewery there. It had also served as a paint store for the Messers Shave, who had their paint shop in Burg Street. It also housed the original garage for Messers Timoney before they moved to the top of Long Street. The current occupants are "Wag" clothing and "Cake" bakery. The warehouse nearer the baths was of much more recent construction and I was not able to find out who built it or who rented it but as stated previously it was constructed between 1880 and 1900.
The forecourt, layout between the warehouses which forms our front garden today, is directly influenced by previous fabric. The plan form on the Millard Panorama C. 1850 shows up as two warehouses side by side and the plan form on Mr Snow's survey of C. 1862 is clearly seen. Victoria Court came into being around 1916. A Mr D. Lazar purchased the entire property of Vredenburg House, the land and the two warehouses for the express purpose of building a large block of flats as a monument to himself. It is believed to be the first block of flats in Cape Town. He decided to call it Victoria Court. He hired architects MacGillivray and Grant to draw up plans which were numbered 3865 as recorded by the City Council Plans Department. The old manor house was demolished to make way for the centre piece which was to join the two warehouses duly extended and enlarged and given an extra storey. The whole structure - completed in 1917 - comprised 34 Flats and two commercial Shops. However, where "Wag" Clothing is today, Mr Lazar had a kitchen and restaurant installed so that the Tenants of the Building need not cook any meals. This the reason why the kitchens in Victoria Court are so small - Mr Lazar never meant the housewives to do anything more than prepare tea! However as things turned out the restaurant scheme was not a success and the tenants tried to do their best to cook in the little space provided for them. Mr Lazar was able to negotiate an important lease for the shop nearest the baths (where "Cake" bakery is today) where the post office opened on 1st April 1917 their little post office for full service. They proved to be wonderful tenants not giving up their lease until almost fifty years later on 13th February 1967. Victoria Court during the twenties, thirties, forties and fifties had a very nice selection of tenants - many of them very well respected in the Cape Town Community.
Douglas McKilvie and Galbraith Company were appointed as letting agents and held all accounts for the property on behalf of Mr Lazazr. The agents employed several caretakers over the years - one of whom removed the lovely coloured treads on the Stairs. (It seemed incredible that no stairway banister was installed until 1981 by Murray Roberts). At one stage a Mrs Manyard had a tea shop where "Wag" clothing is today. The front garden extended right up to the official entrance in Queen Victoria Street. The Long Street entrance with colonnaded galleries, Table Mountain sandstone wall and pergola with concrete columns only became the front garden after 10th June 1972. The pathway up to the entrance at Queen Victoria Street had a fence on both sides and the front garden contained a nice tennis court. There is an underground spring (situated near where the Tennis Court of St. Martens School stood) and when this flooded the surrounding area in the winter time, the Malay people who lived all round this part of the City always said it was the work of 'Anjie Somers' the mischievous old witch!
In 1945 a little Boy - believed to have come from Poland, planted our avocado tree in the back garden. In time the building had less salubrious tenants and when Mr Lazar died he left the property to this relatives in what became known as the Lazar trust. However, after some period of time the Lazar family could not agree on the terms of his will - the upshot of this being that the whole property was sold to the German Lutheran Church who already owned the adjacent ground containing the German St Martens school. During the late 1950's the whole property, school, tennis courts, gardens and Victoria Court was sold by the German Lutheran Church to Syfrets Trust who immediately formed a property Company called St. Martini Gardens (Pty) LTD. Their intention being to build a prestigious block of flats, incorporate a landscape garden and include a swimming pool and rockery. At this stage we didn't come into their plans.
In 1962 St Martini Flats (two sides) were completed and around 1962 St Martini 'A' Block was finished. The Victoria Court section of the property continued to deteriorate both building wise and tenant wise. Around 1958 the doors and window frames were painted black and this had a very sombre effect. Later, about 1964, they were painted light brown in colour - the actual walls being pure white. The post office gave up their lease on 13th February 1967 and Barclay Bank took out a short lease and were with us up to around 1975. They decided they wouldn't opt for shareblock and moved their agency to Buitenkloof Centre. Finally, on the 10th June 1972, our building was sold by St Martini Gardens (Pty) LTD to Murray Stewart Properties for the sum of ninety thousand rands. Their intention, over the next six years, was to carry out extensive renovations of the building, interior and surrounds with the ultimate intention of selling off the flats to individuals under the newly enacted shareblock scheme.
St Martini Gardens immediately put up a fence at what was the front of the building to make it the back. The Long Street entrance then became the main front entrance. Murray Stewart originally called us Archbuild (Pty) LTD and carried out as planned their renovations, gutted all the flats ,removed all the old baths, long pull chain toilets, and basins and re-plumbed and re-wired the entire premises. Over R300, 000 was spent between June 1972 up to 1978. On 17th November 1977 all the flats were put onto a proper shareblock register. A Mr Bester was installed in his office (at Abacus Computers) as building supervisor and proceeded to extol the wonders of our newly renovated building with the aid of beautifully printed pamphlets. He arranged for Flat 112 to become the show flat but people just came and went without any sales. On 26th May 1981 we were given a new name and became Archbuild Shareblock (Pty) LTD. The deep depression in the country affected the property market and this dampened Mr Besters efforts so much that only 11 Flats were sold over the next four years under the shareblock scheme, up to the 30th June 1981. Soon after, on the 1st September 1981, Murray Roberts Properties due to a change in their company's policy sold the remaining shareblocks to a property company called Propcor. Their sole aim being to sell their investments quickly and at a good profit. They were fortunate - the tide turned in the Market and prices rose sharply during the second half of 1981 and 1982. By June 1983 Mr Gilpin had established his nice Clock Shop and Dr O'Flynn had started his practice, where "Wag" clothing is today.
By early 1985 all the Flats had been sold under the shareblock scheme and a special company meeting was called during which it was decided to opt for sectional title. On the 17th of May 1985 a sectional title register was opened and the Body Corporate of Victoria Court came into being with Mr Tim Coldrey of T.M.C Real Estate being our administrator. We were, in fact, his very first customer. Most although not all owners agreed to take out sectional title - there being no legal compunction to change. The main benefit of course, being the ability to raise a bond. During the winter of 1991 our beautiful pergola was brought crashing down by a tall tree which was blown over by a freak storm, and many thousands of rands worth of damage was done. After some number of months our insurance company completed the erection of the new pergola and Mrs Bloom, our Building Supervisor, did sterling work in transforming a disaster area into a most beautiful garden.