View source for Muizenberg

{{Short description|Coastal town in the Western Cape, South Africa}}
{{for|another place|Muizenberg (Curaçao)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Use South African English|date=October 2023}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name                    = Muizenberg
| image_skyline           = {{Photomontage
| photo1a                   = Muizenberg Railway Station.jpg
| photo1b                   = Surfer's corner- CT Muizenberg.JPG
| photo2a                   = Muizenberg Beach.jpg 
| photo3a                   = Beach huts, Muizenberg.jpg
| photo3b                   = Het Posthuys.jpg
| spacing                   = 1
| color_border              = white
| color                     = white
| size                      = 280
| foot_montage              = {{resize|114%|From top left, Muizenberg Railway Station. Surfer's corner at night (top right). Muizenberg beach (centre). The historic beach changing huts on Muizenberg Beach (bottom left). Het Posthuys, a special historical feature in Muizenberg (bottom right).}}
}}
| image_caption           = 
| image_map               = {{Infobox mapframe }}
| pushpin_map             = 
| coordinates             = {{coord|34|06|20|S|18|28|05|E|region:ZA|display=inline,title}}
| subdivision_type        = Country
| subdivision_name        = [[South Africa]]
| subdivision_type1       = Province
| subdivision_name1       = [[Western Cape]]
| subdivision_type2       = District
| subdivision_type3       = Municipality
| subdivision_name3       = [[City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality|City of Cape Town]]
| subdivision_type4       = Main Place
| established_title       = Established
| established_date        = 1895
| leader_title            = Councillor
| area_footnotes          = <ref name="census2011">{{cite web |url=http://census2011.adrianfrith.com/place/199050 |title = Main Place Muizenberg |work=Census 2011}}</ref>
| area_total_km2          = 15.14
| population_footnotes    = <ref name="census2011" />
| population_total        = 36857
| population_as_of        = 2011
| population_density_km2  = auto
<!-- demographics (section 1) -->
| demographics_type1      = Racial makeup (2011)
| demographics1_footnotes = <ref name="census2011" />
| demographics1_title1    = [[Bantu peoples of South Africa|Black African]]
| demographics1_info1     = 39.1%
| demographics1_title2    = [[Coloureds|Coloured]]
| demographics1_info2     = 26.2%
| demographics1_title3    = [[Indian South African|Indian]]/[[Asian South African|Asian]]
| demographics1_info3     = 1.3%
| demographics1_title4    = [[White South African|White]]
| demographics1_info4     = 27.8%
| demographics1_title5    = Other
| demographics1_info5     = 5.7%
<!-- demographics (section 2) -->
| demographics_type2      = [[First language]]s (2011)
| demographics2_footnotes = <ref name="census2011" />
| demographics2_title1    = [[South African English|English]]
| demographics2_info1     = 44.3%
| demographics2_title2    = [[Afrikaans]]
| demographics2_info2     = 22.8%
| demographics2_title3    = [[Xhosa language|Xhosa]]
| demographics2_info3     = 15.3%
| demographics2_title4    = [[Zulu language|Zulu]]
| demographics2_info4     = 1.4%
| demographics2_title5    = Other
| demographics2_info5     = 16.2%
<!-- blank fields (section 2) -->
<!-- Other information -->
| timezone1               = [[South African Standard Time|SAST]]
| utc_offset1             = +2
| postal_code_type        = [[List of postal codes in South Africa|Postal code]] (street)
| postal_code             = 7945
| postal2_code_type       = [[Post-office box|PO box]]
| postal2_code            = 7950
| area_code_type          = [[Telephone numbers in South Africa|Area code]]
| area_code               = (021) 787/788
}}
'''Muizenberg''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|j|uː|z|ən|b|ɜːr|g}} {{respell|MEW|zən|burg}},<ref>{{Citation|last=Lass|first=Roger|year=1990|editor-last=Ramsaran|editor-first=Susan|title=Studies in the Pronunciation of English: A Commemorative Volume in Honour of A.C. Gimson|chapter=A 'standard' South African vowel system|publisher=Routledge|page=283|isbn=978-0-41507180-2}}</ref> [[Dutch language|Dutch]] for 'mice mountain') is a beach-side town in the [[Western Cape]], [[South Africa]]. It is situated where the shore of the [[Cape Peninsula]] curves round to the east on the [[False Bay]] coast. It is considered to be the main [[surfing]] spot in [[Cape Town]] and is currently home to a surfing community, centered on the popular 'Surfer's Corner'.

==History==
Muizenberg was apparently named after Wynand Willem Muijs who commanded a small outpost on the shore of Zandvlei in 1743.<ref name="Brown and Magoba 2009 part 2" />

The [[Battle of Muizenberg]] was a small but significant military affair that began on 7 August 1795 and ended three months later with the (first) British occupation of the Cape. Thus began the period (briefly interrupted from 1803 to 1806) of British control of the Cape, and subsequently much of [[Southern Africa]]. The historical remnant of the Battle of Muizenberg is a site on the hillside overlooking False Bay that holds the remains of a defensive fort started by the Dutch in 1795 and expanded by the British from 1796 onwards. Cannons from that era are mounted at "Het Posthuys", the Muizenberg Park and on the station platform.

The railway from Cape Town, which for twenty years stopped at Wynberg, was extended to Muizenberg in 1882. Muizenberg started as a place for holiday homes for the rich after the discovery of gold in the Witwatersrand in 1886. Muizenberg Municipality was established in 1895. It merged with [[Kalk Bay]] in 1897. In 1910 the Muizenberg Carnegie Library<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.theheritageportal.co.za/article/five-lost-seven-remain-carnegie-libraries-south-africa | title=Five Lost Seven Remain: The Carnegie Libraries of South Africa &#124; the Heritage Portal }}</ref> opened next to the Natale Labia, and a year later a post office opened. In 1911 the first pavilion, a wooden one, was built. In the twentieth century, Muizenberg was the premier summer destination among [[South African Jews|Southern African Jews]].<ref>[https://www.jpost.com/arts-and-culture/arts/memories-of-muizenberg Memories of Muizenberg] ''The Jerusalem Post''. 4 April 2012</ref> The post office was bombed in 1986, injuring the postman.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1986/08/03/world/bomb-kills-4-in-south-african-enclave.html?searchResultPosition=2 Bomb kills 4 in South African enclave] ''The New York Times''. 3 August 1986</ref>

==Buildings==
The famous architect, Sir [[Herbert Baker]], designed his house "Sand Hills" on Atlantic Road, was the architect for "Vergenoegd" further along the same road, and designed "Coel an Mar" on Main Road.

Many of the buildings in Muizenberg date from the resort town's heyday and are built in the art deco style.  At its peak the Muizenberg beachfront attracted masses of holiday-makers and the beach in front of the pavilion earned the name "The Snake Pit".  It boasted a large Jewish population that attended the synagogue in Camp Rd.  The community is celebrated in a book called "The Stetl by the Sea".

===Rhodes Cottage===
Rhodes' Cottage is a small house on the seafront that [[Cecil Rhodes]] bought as a holiday cottage and this was where he died in 1902. The house is preserved as a museum dedicated to Rhodes' life and is open to the public.{{fact|date=October 2023}}

===Het Posthuys===
Het Posthuys is one of the oldest buildings in South Africa,<ref>[http://www.artefacts.co.za/main/Buildings/bldgframes.php?bldgid=7992 ArteFacts]</ref> originally erected in February 1673: a year before the Castle in Cape Town was occupied. It was built by the [[Dutch East India Company]] (Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie or VOC), originally as a three-roomed signal station, and used as a military observation post, and subsequently used as a toll-house to levy a tax on farmers passing by to sell their produce to ships lying in Simon's Bay. One of the early postholders was Sergeant Muys (meaning "mouse"), from whom Muizenberg (formerly Muysenbergh and Muys Zijn Bergh (Muys' mountain) before that) gets its name. After a varied career as a police station, stables, brothel, hotel and private house the building was identified for what it was in the 1980s and restored with funds from Anglo American Corporation. The house is cared for by the Muizenberg Historical Conservation Society and contains a small collection of photos and items of interest relating to early days in Muizenberg. It is open to the public.

===Casa Labia===
The Muizenberg Battle site flanks the home of the first Italian Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to South Africa, Prince Natale Labia.  Originally called "The Fort" after the site of the battle, it now bears the name Casa Labia and is a restaurant, conference centre and music venue. The house was built by skilled Italian artisans and houses part of the Labia family's extensive art collection.

Behind Casa Labia lies the grave site of [[Abe Bailey]], one of South Africa's early and important mine magnates.  The graveyard is maintained by the Muizenberg Historical Conservation Society. One of the few houses on the sea side of the railway line, is the thatched cottage owned by Bailey and called Bailey's Cottage.  This is owned by the South African Navy.

===Pavilion===
There have been three pavilions built in Muizenberg - the first was a wooden one built in 1911. The next had bathing cubicles, a tearoom, and a 900-seat theatre, built in 1929. This was demolished in 1970, and a third one, still standing, was built.

===Muizenberg Shul===
[[File:Muizenbergshul.jpg|thumb|Muizenberg Shul on Camp Road]]
[[Muizenberg Shul]] is a [[modern orthodox]] synagogue on Camp Road. The red-and-white painted building dates from the 1920s and ‘30s. The synagogue has a full-time [[rabbi]] and is open for [[Shabbat]] services and for the [[Jewish holidays]].<ref>[https://www.lonelyplanet.com/south-africa/cape-town/southern-peninsula/attractions/muizenberg-synagogue/a/poi-sig/1242665/1323001 Muizenberg Synagogue] Retrieved on 27 September 2023</ref><ref>[https://www.sajr.co.za/first-full-time-rabbi-at-muizenberg-shul-in-decades/ First full-time rabbi at Muizenberg shul in decades] South African Jewish Report. 2 July 2020</ref>

In 2022, the Shul's rabbi, Ryan Newman said: “Muizenberg may be the largest Jewish community in South Africa during the holidays. We have a [[minyan]] of over fifty men every single day. You can’t walk a minute on the beach without seeing a group of people you know sitting together. The amazing thing is that you see Jews here from across the spectrum of [[Orthodox Judaism|Orthodoxy]]. You have people – and often very different rabbis – from [[Chabad]], [[Mizrachi (religious Zionism)|Mizrachi]], [[Ohr Somayach, South Africa|Ohr Somayach]], etc. all joining together in a single shul.”<ref>[https://www.jewishlife.co.za/new/2022/03/30/muizenberg/ Muizenberg] ''Jewish Life''. 30 March 2022</ref>

==Present day==
[[File:Muizenberg 1.jpg|thumb|left|View towards Muizenberg from [[Rondevlei Nature Reserve|Rondevlei]] in [[Grassy Park]]. The white tower in the center is the Cinnabar Building. The mountains to the right are part of the [[Table Mountain National Park]] featuring ''Muizenberg Peak'', with 507m the highest point above Muizenberg.]]

Muizenberg has a fine, long beach that in effect stretches all the way round the top of False Bay to the [[Strand, Western Cape|Strand]], a distance of over 20&nbsp;km. False Bay, known for its population of White Sharks, also has a shark watch service that operates from Muizenberg, signalling alerts when sharks come in proximity of bathers at the main beach and surfers at Surfer's Corner. Above Muizenberg there is a line of steep cliffs that is very popular as a venue for rock climbing. However, certain parts of the cliff are off-limits to climbers when birds nest on the ledges.

The [[Zandvlei Estuary Nature Reserve|Zandvlei estuary]] enters the ocean in Muizenberg. The estuary is one of the most important estuaries for fish spawning on the coastline and is home to the Imperial Yacht Club, Peninsula Canoe Club and Sandvlei Sea Scout Base.

===Educational establishments===
Muizenberg houses one of the [[False Bay College]] campuses in the Cinnabar Building, a high-rise apartment tower. The college, a Public Further Education and Training Institution (FET), was established in September 2002 when the South Peninsula College (established 1970) and the Westlake College (established 1954) were merged.<ref>[http://www.falsebaycollege.co.za/ Falsebay College]</ref>  Muizenberg is also home to the [[African Institute for Mathematical Sciences]] (AIMS), a pan-African centre for education and research in mathematical sciences.

===Beach front===
{{multiple image|header = '''History'''
|direction = vertical
|width = 200
|align = right
|image1 = Muizenberg, with Pavilion, 1911.png
|caption1 =Muizenberg Beach around 1920
|image2 = Muizenberg from Boyes Drive.jpg
|caption2 = Muizenberg Beach in 2010
}}
Muizenberg is home to the well known "Surfers Corner", there is a range of restaurants and coffee shops in the area. Surf shops are also very present in the area.

[[Agatha Christie]], famous author and playwright, wrote that after nursing duty she would daily take the train to Muizenberg to go surfing.<ref>{{Cite web  |title=Agatha Christie learned to surf in the 1920s |url=https://www.surfertoday.com/surfing/agatha-christie-learned-to-surf-in-the-1920s |access-date=2022-04-29 |website=Surfertoday |language=en-us}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-07-29 |title=Agatha Christie's surfing secret revealed |url=http://www.theguardian.com/books/2011/jul/29/agatha-christie-hercule-poirot-surfing-secret |access-date=2022-04-29 |website=the Guardian |language=en}}</ref>

== Geography ==

Muizenberg is located approximately 27 km south-east of [[Cape Town]]’s [[Central business district|CBD]] by road and is bounded by [[Kalk Bay]] to the south-west, the suburbs of Lavender Hill, Seawinds, Coniston Park, Sheraton Park, [[Retreat, Cape Town|Retreat]] and Westlake to the north and [[Grassy Park]] to the north-west.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Distance Muizenberg, Cape-Town, Western-Cape, ZAF > Cape-Town, Western-Cape, ZAF - Air line, driving route, midpoint |url=https://www.distance.to/Muizenberg,Cape-Town,Western-Cape,ZAF/Cape-Town,Western-Cape,ZAF |access-date=2023-01-25 |website=www.distance.to |language=en-us}}</ref> 

The older part of the town known as Muizenberg Village occupies the foot slopes of the Muizenberg Mountain, whilst the newer suburbs have spread eastwards along the flat expanse of land, known as the [[Cape Flats]], bordering the lake of [[Zandvlei Estuary Nature Reserve|Zandvlei]] to the west.  

The municipal boundaries of Muizenberg comprises Muizenberg Village and the following other suburbs:<ref>{{Cite web |title=Census 2011: Main Place: Muizenberg |url=https://census2011.adrianfrith.com/place/199050 |access-date=2023-05-30 |website=census2011.adrianfrith.com}}</ref> 

* Capricorn
* Costa da Gama
* Lakeside
* Marina da Gama
* [[St James, Cape Town|St James]]
* Stonehurst Mountain Estate
* Vrygrond

== Transport ==
=== Rail ===

Muizenberg is situated on the main commuter to connect line between [[Cape Town]] and [[Simon's Town|Simon’s Town]], known as the [[Southern Line (Cape Town)|Southern Line]] which is operated by [[Metrorail Western Cape|Metrorail]]. Metrorail currently operates [[commuter railway]] services in Muizenberg from the False Bay, Lakeside, Muizenberg, and St James railway stations to [[Cape Town railway station|Cape Town]], [[Kalk Bay]], [[Fish Hoek]] and [[Simon's Town|Simon’s Town]].

=== Roads ===
The main thoroughfare through Muizenberg is the [[M4 (Cape Town)|M4]] (Main Road) which roughly runs in a north-south direction from [[Cape Town]] towards [[Kalk Bay]], [[Fish Hoek]] and [[Simon's Town|Simon’s Town]]. The [[R310 (South Africa)|R310]] is another major route roughly running NE to SW from [[Stellenbosch]] and [[Mitchells Plain]] to Muizenberg and runs through Muizenberg as Atlantic Road and Baden Powell Drive. 

Muizenberg is also intersected by other metropolitan routes within the [[City of Cape Town]] including the [[M5 (Cape Town)|M5]] (Prince George Drive) linking Muizenberg with Cape Town and [[Milnerton]] and the M75 (Boyes Drive) skirting above Muizenberg along the lower slopes of the Muizenberg Mountains towards [[Kalk Bay]].

The [[M3 (Cape Town)|M3 expressway]] (Simon van der Stel Freeway) runs northwards to Cape Town’s CBD from the intersection with the M42 (Steenberg Drive) in Westlake. The M42 then connects the M3 to Muizenberg from the intersection with the M4 near Lakeside.

==Nearby places of interest==
*[[Zandvlei Estuary Nature Reserve]]
*[[Rondevlei Nature Reserve]]
*[[Kalk Bay]] Harbour
*[[Peck's Valley]]
*[[Table Mountain National Park#Silvermine-Tokai section|Table Mountain Nature Reserve above Boyes Drive]]

{{Wikivoyage}}

==References==
{{Reflist|refs=

<ref name="Brown and Magoba 2009 part 2" >{{cite report |url=https://www.wrc.org.za/wp-content/uploads/mdocs/TT-376-08_Part%202.pdf |title=Rivers and Wetlands of Cape Town (Part 2) |pages=179–380 |editor1-first=Cate |editor1-last=Brown |editor2-first=Rembu |editor2-last=Magoba |publisher=Water Research Commission |work=Project No: K5/1691 |date=2009 |first1=Tony |last1=Murray |first2=Cate |last2=Brown |first3=Evan |last3=Dollar |first4=Jenny |last4=Day |first5=Hans |last5=Beuster |first6=Candice |last6=Haskins |first7=Charlie |last7=Boucher |first8=Jane |last8=Turpie |first9=Julia |last9=Wood |first10=Martin |last10=Thompson |first11=Steve |last11=Lamberth |first12=Lara |last12=van Niekerk |first13=Dean |last13=Impson |first14=Rembu |last14=Magoba |first15=Chantel |last15=Petersen |first16=Denis |last16=Davey |first17=Mandy |last17=Noffke |first18=Rowena |last18=Hay |first19=Chris |last19=Hartnady |first20=Justine |last20=Ewart-Smith |first21=Marius |last21=Burger |first22=Emily |last22=Fairburn |first23=Geordie |last23=Ractliffe |first24=Liz |last24=Day |first25=Mike |last25=Luger |first26=Katy |last26=Lannas |first27=Tovhowani |last27=Ndiitwani-Nyamande }}</ref>

}}

==Gallery==
{{Commons category|Muizenberg}}
<gallery>
File:Rhodes Cottage 246 Main Road Muizenberg Cape Town - Side view.JPG|Rhodes Cottage 
File:Muizenberg Post Office 01.jpg| Muizenberg's historical post office
File:St james walk.JPG|Walkway from Muizenberg to the neighboring community of St James
File:Muizenberg with Zandvlei.jpg|Muizenberg with [[Zandvlei Estuary Nature Reserve|Zandvlei]], centre

</gallery>
{{Cape Town|communities}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Suburbs of Cape Town]]
[[Category:Surfing locations in South Africa]]