Rabelais Hut

[DuQues]

The original hut at Rabelais' gate is still preserved. This was the original entrance gate to the central region, on to the old Orpen road to the east of the N’wamatsatsa Drift. The Hut is 9 kilometres from Orpen Restcamp. The gate appears to have been named after the original farm on which it was situated. This gate was replaced in 1954 by Orpen Gate, when, due to the Orpen’s donation of farms, the boundary was moved further westward.

The original hut was renovated and is used as an information centre (c1932), and museum. The farm was probably named after the French writer and satirist, Francois Rabelais (c1483-1553). Beyond this small museum is the Rabelais waterhole, which usually attracts large numbers of game.

[Meandering Mouse]

I always wondered about the connection between Rabelais and Kruger. I wonder if anyone knows more about this.
I like the photo. Quite "primitively emotive".
I just made that up. It sounds like a wine taster but it does appeal to some kind of instinctive emotion.

[DuQues]

He seems to be quite a character, his first book (1533) titled "Pantagruel, Les horribles et espoventables faictz & prouesses du tresrenomme Pantagruel" is considered obsceen by the Sorbonne. The real reason was the humanistic and heretical sound of the book. There are five books to the series, and most of them have been banned by a lot of countries, including South Africa. (In 1938, wonder if that ban is still valid.)

His books, full text.
An excerpt:

How Gargantua was sent to Paris, and of the huge great mare that he rode on; how she destroyed the oxflies of the Beauce.

In the same season Fayoles, the fourth King of Numidia, sent out of the country of Africa to Grangousier the most hideously great mare that ever was seen, and of the strangest form, for you know well enough how it is said that Africa always is productive of some new thing. She was as big as six elephants, and had her feet cloven into fingers, like Julius Caesar’s horse, with slouch-hanging ears, like the goats in Languedoc, and a little horn on her buttock. She was of a burnt sorrel hue, with a little mixture of dapple-grey spots, but above all she had horrible tail; for it was little more or less than every whit as great as the steeple-pillar of St. Mark beside Langes: and squared as that is, with tuffs and ennicroches or hair-plaits wrought within one another, no otherwise than as the beards are upon the ears of corn.

But I could not find a link between him and (South) Africa...

[Johann]

The original hut at Rabelais' gate is still preserved. This was the original entrance gate to the central region, on to the old Orpen road to the east of the N’wamatsatsa Drift. The Hut is 9 kilometres from Orpen Restcamp. The gate appears to have been named after the original farm on which it was situated. This gate was replaced in 1954 by Orpen Gate, when, due to the Orpen’s donation of farms, the boundary was moved further westward.

The original hut was renovated and is used as an information centre (c1932), and museum. The farm was probably named after the French writer and satirist, Francois Rabelais (c1483-1553). Beyond this small museum is the Rabelais waterhole, which usually attracts large numbers of game.

This is all correct according to 'A Dictionary of KNP Place Names' by JJ Kloppers and Hans Bornman which was published end of 2005. ISBN 0-9584782-1-X

It might be that the farmowner never knew who Rabelais was and just liked the name? I don't know , just speculating.

The only change I'll make is that the Rabelais waterhole has been closed due to severe erosion.

[Johann]

The only change I'll make is that the Rabelais waterhole has been closed due to severe erosion.

Txs for the tip.
I would have driven to the wh this july

The gravel road past the Hut is still there to take. It is just that they have closed the borehole so no more water at the wh. You can even still drive up to the old wh but the road in is badly eroded.

[wildjohn]

Hi all,


Original farm names often have a theme - like suburban streets in the cities. In SA most blocks of farms have names of cities or provinces, i.e Madrid, Vienna, Bristol, or countries, i.e Peru in Klaserie.. That greater area might have had some theme of famous people at the time, some arb, some not, and alternatively it could just be random, - the government surveyer might have just seen the name somewhere and sommer named the place. On subject of strange names there is a small river to the north of Rabelais called the 'red gorten' - African names, or Afrikaans names are easy enough to figure - but where does this come from ???- maybe Kloppers & Bornman can shed on this..
regards,

w

[Shidzidzii]

Rabelaais farm and therefore the gate was definatly named after Rabelais the French satirist.

Red Gorten has always intrigued me too as it seems to have no meaning or origin . It was one of the farms donated by Eileen Orpen .
It would be such a nice area to build some loop roads in that area for Orpen visitors , being north of the Timbavati river and away from H-7 .

Wil go and look up all the other Orpen-donated farm names to-nite - unless someone knows them offhand . They are also all inscribed on the Orpen Tablet Memorial on the H1-2 .

[Johann]

On subject of strange names there is a small river to the north of Rabelais called the 'red gorten' - African names, or Afrikaans names are easy enough to figure - but where does this come from ???- maybe Kloppers & Bornman can shed on this..

@wildjohn, quoted from Kloppers & Bornman p.203

'Red Gorton (GR427080 - 2431AD/BD).
Latitude 24:19:50 south, longitude 31:27:03 east.
Creek, 13,5km north of Kingfisherspruit, one of the upper reaches of the Shisakashanghondzo. ENGLISH: Red Gorton - named after the original farm through which the creek flows. It was probably named after the village in Scotland by the surveyor when the farm was surveyed (U de V Pienaar) (historical name) Previous spelling: Redgorten.'

[Shidzidzii]

Well we will have to go to Maroela camp , look out over the Timbavati onto the Redgorten , and have a wee dram .

[wildjohn]

Thanks, Johann,

Was always fascinated with that, - that block is a very wild looking block in Kruger..
Cheers,
w

[Shidzidzii]

The 7 farms donated by Eileen Orpen and commemorated on the Orpen plaque on the H1-2 :
Chalons
Kingfisherspruit
Hengel
Red-Gorton (another spelling)
Sikkeltowkloof
Houtboschrand
Blackberry Glen

Total 24 529 Ha

At a current market value for game farms of say R3 000/Ha that's about R73 million plus a consideration for improvements and the game at auction prices .

[GlenD]

While we are digging up history, I would also like to know about the demise of of the old Rabelais camp, near todays Orpen (a single old hut still stands as testimony to the old camp)

[Imberbe]

Rabelais, wasn't a camp, but the origional entrance gate to the central area of KNP. It functioned from 1932 - 1954 as the entrance gate. When the Mrs. Eileen Orpen donated the eight farms adjoining that area to KNP, the gate was moved to the current Orpen gate.

Rabelais is a French name, and was the name of the farm on which the gate was situated. The farm was probably named after the writer Francois Rabelais.

[Chip]

Regarding Imberbe's last post on Rabelais gate, I assure you that Rabelais was a gate camp in the good old days. My aunt & uncle always stayed there and always boasted about seeing cheetah on the road to Satara. I have other friends who stayed there and had lions visiting one cold night, lying around the communal fires. I have a very old map that I will try to post sometime, in pieces, as it is very interesting. I had to laminate it as it was falling apart. I showed the map to my friend William Mabasa in Skukuza,who made a photo copy of it. He was most impressed and took my sister, brother-in-law and I in to meet the then Chief Director of Kruger, Dr. Mkize. My family must have purchased it in the 1940's in the park and it has roads & camps that no longer exist and of course many that are new. The map cost 2 schillings and six pence (or 25cents). Rabelais is on the map as a camp and on the reverse of the map, Rabelais camp boasts with a total of 20 beds.