Cape Town City Hall
Cape Town City Hall is situated in the heart of downtown, on the Grand Parade to the west of the Castle. It was built in 1905, and was designed by the architects Henry Austin Reid and
Frederick George Green. The building is described as an Italian Renaissance
style and one of the last buildings in this style built in Cape Town. The materials used to construct this
Edwardian style building were imported from Europe. It is made out of honey-coloured Oolitic limestone imported from Bath, England. The building is known for its mosaic floors,
marble staircase, stained glass windows and pipe organ consisting of 3,165 pipes. The Cape Town City
Hall hosts a number of concerts, including perfromances by the Cape
Philharmonic Orchestra. The hall was also used during the 2010 Fifa World Cup
Soccer Tournament, and the public could view the soccer matches live, while sitting along
the parade and shown on the screen by the City Hall.
In 1990, the Grand Parade and Cape Town City Hall hosted one of the most historic events in South African history. On 11 February 1990, 250 000 people gathered on the parade to witness the release of Nelson Mandela and his speech after 27 years of imprisonment on Robben Island. On this historic day, Mandela appeared on the balcony of the Cape Town City Hall to address the citizens and public about his struggles, apartheid, and the beginning of the new South Africa. This was a special event to all South Africans, and the speech inspired and changed many South African lives with the ideals of liberation and equality.