It's 1667. You are a slave from the East Indies. Forcefully removed from your family and home by the Dutch. They have brought you thousands of miles to work. You are building the castle. It's is back breaking work. The Castle is almost complete.
You have many slave friends that work in the Castle. You are working to complete the last Buttress. The dutch are hard slave masters.
You have been pushed too far! In an act of defiance you carve your name into a stone already supporting much of the structure. You know it can't be removed. This enrages the Dutch guards and you are roughly marched from the ramparts into the Castle.
You are presented to the Slave Master. His judgement and sentence are quick and harsh. He barks in Dutch: " Put this scum in irons and throw him in the pit!" As you are dragged to the Forge (S 33°55.581 E 018° 25.672) to have your shackles fitted by the blacksmith, you are brutally beaten.
When the blacksmith sees your broken body he remembers a previous kindness you did him. He takes pity on you and you see him hiding a note in the taller wrought iron fireplace near the door (magnetic) ......
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Notes:
- There is an entrance fee into the castle. At the time of writing it was R30 (Children 5 -16 years: R 15). This will increase in the future.
- The Castle is open from every day (except DEC 25 and JAN 1) at 9:00 am. Last entry is at 15h30 with everyone out by 16h00.
- One interesting location worth visiting inside the castle (the Prison) could not be highlighted by the cache. Enquire at the information centre about the FREE tours.
For up to date information regarding fees and more serious information about The Castle's history and ghosts please visit their website. It can be found easily using a search engine and entering in "Castle of Good Hope", but may not be advertised here.
A huge thank you goes to Captain Morkel (Castle Commander) and Derek Williams who have not only given permission for the cache, but also have been extremely helpful and accommodating in its placement.