TOPIC:

Frank
Since it is relevant to some of your comments in the preceding post, you might be interested in this street map of Maritzburg, which shows the extent to which the Fort Napier garrison's presence permeated the town. The plan was published in this book:
Dominy, G. 2016. Last Outpost on the Zulu Frontiers. Fort Napier and the British Imperial Garrison. University of Illinois Press. (Available from Amazon)

The red arrow points to the spot where our family lived at the time of the last Royal Family Visit to South Africa in 1947, shortly before the sun starting setting on the Last Outpost. By then the last of the garrisons had been gone for 33 years, and the memory of them was also fading.

Regards
Brett

PS I must point out that Graham Dominy was not responsible for the red arrow on the street plan. His book is the product of many years of research (that did not include my family), and it is well worth adding to the library of anyone interested in British military history.

Thanks so much for that reference Brett. A copy has been down loaded.

Good heavens Brett, you were certainly at the heart of things living there, has the centre altered much, I dare say there have been a few, more recent, street name changes.

Brett Hendey wrote: Frank
Since it is relevant to some of your comments in the preceding post, you might be interested in this street map of Maritzburg, which shows the extent to which the Fort Napier garrison's presence permeated the town. The plan was published in this book:
Dominy, G. 2016. Last Outpost on the Zulu Frontiers. Fort Napier and the British Imperial Garrison. University of Illinois Press. (Available from Amazon)

The red arrow points to the spot where our family lived at the time of the last Royal Family Visit to South Africa in 1947, shortly before the sun starting setting on the Last Outpost. By then the last of the garrisons had been gone for 33 years, and the memory of them was also fading.

Regards
Brett

PS I must point out that Graham Dominy was not responsible for the red arrow on the street plan. His book is the product of many years of research (that did not include my family), and it is well worth adding to the library of anyone interested in British military history.

Frank
Being so young I did not appreciate the historical associations of our neighbourhood. I suspect that our small house with its small back garden was a 20th Century replacement for what had been there in Fort Napier's heyday when Sir Theophilus Shepstone lived adjacent surrounded by Officer's of the Imperial garrison. Perhaps I was infected by a lingering bug which subsequently gave me my illusions of grandeur. I last saw the house about 15 years ago. It was then given over for an undetermined commercial use, while the area was,and probably still is very run down. Sir Theophilus and the Officers would be disgusted, as was I.
Regards
Brett

Hello Brett,
It is certainly interesting to see the central area and the layout of it's streets have remained, although, I am sure it would be a challenge for any Victorian to find his way around these days, I wonder what they would make of Northdale and Scottsville now.
Regards Frank

They would certainly be impressed to see how large Maritzburg has grown, but there is also a lot that they would find very depressing.
Regards
Brett