Iziko Slave Lodge (Cape Town)

Overview of the Iziko Slave Lodge

The Slave Lodge is one of the oldest buildings in South Africa. The Slave Lodge provides the visitor with a look back into the time of slavery and slave trade in South Africa.

The Slave Lodge was built in 1679 as the slave lodge of the Dutch East India Company. It is generally believed that nearly 9,000 slaves, convicts, and the mentally ill lived in the building between 1679 and 1811.

The Slave Lodge was modified in 1810 to serve as government offices. In 1960 the building was restored for use as a cultural history museum.

Review of the Iziko Slave Lodge

This museum gives you a deeper understanding of the slave trade in the Cape, and the sadness and tragedy of human-trade. The exhibitions portrays the living conditions of the slaves, and the inhumane way they were treated as objects, and not human beings in their own right.

Make an effort to visit this museum, you will end your visit with a deeper understanding of the slave trade and respect for the people who fought against the system to abolish the slave trade.