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Location |
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Bloubergstrand is situated in the Western Cape Province of South Africa along the shores of Table Bay, about 25 km to the north of Cape Town city centre. |
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History |
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The Battle of Blaauwberg, also known as the Battle of Cape Town, fought near Cape Town on 8 January 1806, was a small but significant military engagement. It established British rule in South Africa, which was to have many ramifications during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. A bi-centennial commemoration was held in January 2006. The battle was an incident in Europe's Napoleonic Wars. At that time, the Cape Colony belonged to the French controlled Netherlands (then called the Batavian Republic). Because the sea route around the Cape was important to the British, they decided to seize the colony in order to prevent it—and the sea route—from also coming under French control. A British fleet was despatched to the Cape in July 1805, to forestall French troopships which Napoleon had sent to reinforce the Cape garrison.
The colony was governed by Lt Gen Jan Willem Janssens, who was also commander-in-chief of its military forces. The forces were small and of poor quality, and included foreign units hired by the Batavian government for the purpose. They were backed up by local militia units.
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Attractions |
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Bloubergstrand has a long white sand beach on the Atlantic ocean, with a few rocky outcrops where black mussels are found. The water is cold due to the cold Benguela current but the beach is popular with surfers. The bay on the west side of Bloubergstrand, known as 'Big Bay' has become a very popular kitesurfing spot due to the constant trade winds bringing a 1-3m surf for a majority of the year. Big Bay Beach is also well known for the ease with which White Mussels can be extracted from the sand by a process locally known as 'jiving'. |
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Climate |
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Blaauwberg receives about 788mm of rain per year and because it receives most of its rainfall during winter it has a Mediterranean climate. It receives the lowest rainfall of 15mm in February and the highest rainfall of 140mm in June. The average midday temperatures for Blaauwberg range from 15.5°C in July to 25.9°C in February. The region is the coldest during July when the mercury drops to 7.4°C on average during the night. |
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