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Heidelberg, Gauteng
 
 
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Heidelberg is a South Africa
South Africa

The Republic of South Africa, also known by Official names of South Africa, is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa....
n town situated at the foot of the Suikerbosrand (Sugarbush Ridge) next to the N3 highway, which connects Johannesburg
Johannesburg

Johannesburg also known as Joburg, is the largest city in South Africa. Johannesburg is the province Capital of Gauteng the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa....
 and Durban
Durban

Durban is the third most populous city in South Africa, forming part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality . It is the largest city in KwaZulu-Natal and is famous as the busiest port in Africa....
. Heidelberg began in 1862 as a trading station built by a German
Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
 H.J. Ueckermann. A town was laid out around the store and named after Ueckermann's alma mater
Alma mater

File:Alma_Mater,_Lorado_Taft.jpgAlma mater is Latin for "nourishing mother". It was used in ancient Rome as a title for the mother goddess, and in Middle Ages Christianity for the Virgin Mary....
.

elberg is some 50 kilometres south-east of Johannesburg, close to the Mpumalanga border.






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Encyclopedia


Heidelberg is a South Africa
South Africa

The Republic of South Africa, also known by Official names of South Africa, is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa....
n town situated at the foot of the Suikerbosrand (Sugarbush Ridge) next to the N3 highway, which connects Johannesburg
Johannesburg

Johannesburg also known as Joburg, is the largest city in South Africa. Johannesburg is the province Capital of Gauteng the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa....
 and Durban
Durban

Durban is the third most populous city in South Africa, forming part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality . It is the largest city in KwaZulu-Natal and is famous as the busiest port in Africa....
. Heidelberg began in 1862 as a trading station built by a German
Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
 H.J. Ueckermann. A town was laid out around the store and named after Ueckermann's alma mater
Alma mater

File:Alma_Mater,_Lorado_Taft.jpgAlma mater is Latin for "nourishing mother". It was used in ancient Rome as a title for the mother goddess, and in Middle Ages Christianity for the Virgin Mary....
.

History

Heidelberg is some 50 kilometres south-east of Johannesburg, close to the Mpumalanga border. Just south of the town is the De Hoek toll
Toll road

A toll road, , is a road for which a driver pays a toll for use. Structures for which tolls are charged include toll bridges and toll tunnels....
 plaza on the newest section of the N3, which opened in December 2001.

Heidelberg sits nestled at the eastern end of the Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve
Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve

Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve is one of Gauteng province?s premier tourist destinations. Set just a short distance from the buzzing city of Johannesburg, a few minutes drive from Johannesburg International Airport and near the historical town of Heidelberg, Gauteng, this reserve boasts a representative sample of the fauna and flora of the Rock...
, a large tract of land that is home to Gauteng's highest point, almost 2,000 metres above sea level.

Heidelberg has played an important part in South African history acting as a capital for the Boer
Boer

Boer is the Dutch language word for farmer which came to denote the descendants of the proto Afrikaans-speaking pastoralists of the eastern Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 18th century as well as those who left the Cape Colony during the 19th century to settle in the Orange Free State, Transvaal and to a lesser extent Natal Pro...
 republic during the war
Second Boer War

The Second Boer War , commonly referred to as The Boer War and also known as the South African War , the Anglo-Boer War and in Afrikaans as the Boereoorlog or Tweede Vryheidsoorlog , was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902, between the British Empire and the two independent Boer republics of the Orange Fre...
 with Great Britain
Great Britain

Great Britain is an island lying to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the List of islands by area, and the largest in Europe. With a population of 58.9 million people it is List of islands by population....
. During the First War of Independence, Heidelberg served as capital of the Zuid Afrikaansche Republiek under the Triumvirate of Paul Kruger
Paul Kruger

Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger , better known as Paul Kruger and affectionately known as Oom Paul was president of the South African Republic ....
, P.J. Joubert and M.W. Pretorius
Marthinus Wessel Pretorius

Son of Andries Wilhelmus Jacobus Pretorius, Marthinus Wessel Pretorius was the first president of the South African Republic, and also compiled the constitution of the Republic....
, from 1880 to 1883.

In 1885 the Witwatersrand
Witwatersrand

The Witwatersrand is a low, sedimentary range of hills, at an elevation of 1700-1800 metres above sea-level, which runs in an east-west direction through Gauteng in South Africa....
 gold reef was discovered in the Heidelberg district and the office of the Mining Commissioner was established there.

Heidelberg developed as a typical rural Victorian town. Many buildings dating back to the period between 1890 and 1910 have been preserved.

In addition, Heidelberg was home to A.G. Visser a well loved medical doctor and famous Afrikaans
Afrikaans

Afrikaans is an Indo-European language, derived from Dutch language and thus classified as Low Franconian languages West Germanic languages. It is mainly spoken in South Africa and Namibia, with smaller numbers of speakers living in Botswana, Angola, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Zambia, Australia, New Zealand, United States of America, Taiwa...
 poet. His home only open to the public by appointment can still be seen situated close to the main road through town. Historical landmarks in the town includes A.G. Visser's bust and the Klip Kerk.

The British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 built a concentration camp here during the Second Boer War to house Boer
Boer

Boer is the Dutch language word for farmer which came to denote the descendants of the proto Afrikaans-speaking pastoralists of the eastern Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 18th century as well as those who left the Cape Colony during the 19th century to settle in the Orange Free State, Transvaal and to a lesser extent Natal Pro...
 women and children. A monument was erected in the main cemetery to the memory of the women and children.

A monument was erected by the current ANC
African National Congress

The African National Congress has been South Africa's governing party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in May 1994....
-lead municipality in the late 90's. It commemorates the black women and children who also died during the war.

The right-wing political party AWB was founded in Rensburg (a suburb of Heidelberg).

Birthplace of Olympic Silver Medalist


2008 Olympic
2008 Summer Olympics

The 2008 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, People's Republic of China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008....
 Silver Medalist in the Long Jump
Long jump

The long jump is an athletics event in which athletes combine speed, strength, and agility in an attempt to leap as far from the take-off point as possible....
, Godfrey Mokoena, was born in Heidelberg in 1985.

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