The Cenotaph

The Cenotaph stands on Heerengracht Street in Cape Town as a war memorial designed by English sculptor Vernon March. Its inscriptions appear in both English and Afrikaans. The memorial honours soldiers who died in the First World War, Second World War and Korean War. Cape Town includes it in Remembrance Day ceremonies with the Last Post and silence. Bronze soldiers stand on separate sandstone columns, representing South Africans in the East African Campaign and on the Western Front. A winged victory crowns the central sandstone column. Facing Table Mountain, the figure holds a laurel wreath while stepping on a serpent wrapped around a globe. Bronze plaques show detailed scenes from battles involving artillery and aircraft. Delville Wood appears among the scenes shown on the memorial’s bronze plaques. The memorial was moved from Adderley Street to its Heerengracht Street location as Cape Town’s infrastructure changed. It remains a place for reflection in Cape Town.