De Villiers uncles and aunts
Excerpt from “Die Krynauw-familie” by David Willem Krynauw, born 03/02/1908. (DWK’s mother was Anna Maria Retief de Villiers, born 20/10/1863)
Charles Pritchard
Johanna Hermina de Villiers was married to Charles Pritchard. Apparently, Charles came to the Cape in 1836 due to ill health and recovered in the Karoo.
As early as 1851, he was a member of the Municipal Council and was later elected Chairman on several occasions. Between 1874 and 1878, he served as a Member of Parliament for this Constituency alongside Sir J. C. Molteno. He also represented the Constituency of Beaufort West in Parliament from 1879 to 1883. Charles passed away in 1910, and his wife followed in 1909.
Charles’s father was Colonel Henry Hugh Pritchard. When Napoleon was exiled to St. Helena in 1815, Colonel Pritchard was one of the officers tasked with overseeing him. When Napoleon passed away in 1821, Charles, then six years old, was said to have occasionally sat on Napoleon’s lap. After Napoleon’s death, the dinner service he had always used was auctioned off, and Colonel Pritchard purchased part of it. Charles later inherited these Napoleon mementos. The collection was eventually bequeathed to the City Council by Charles’s son and is now stored in the museum in Beaufort West.
In Beaufort West, Charles practiced as a Law Agent, and his son Benjamin succeeded him in this profession.
Benjamin Thomas Pritchard, a bachelor, was the owner of the notable Pritchard Building, situated opposite the N.G. Church in Donkin Street.
Benjamin was evidently musically inclined, serving as the organist of the N.G. Congregation from 1870 to 1872. As a child, I often saw him, although he walked with difficulty in his later years. He passed away around 1921. During his illness and final years, his sister, Penelope Kinnear (née Pritchard), cared for him. The widow Kinnear and her daughter, who was married to Advocate Cyril Fanner, lived there for a while after Benjamin, known affectionately as “Old Ben,” passed away. Advocate Fanner was later appointed Secretary of the Cape Law Society.
William Auret Pritchard
Benjamin Thomas’s brother, William Henry Auret Pritchard, was the renowned surveyor who contributed to measuring our country’s largest city, Johannesburg. He was born on 1 March 1861 in Beaufort West and passed away in 1947. The South African Biographical Dictionary, compiled and published by the Council for Scientific Research, provides the following details on page 504:
William Henry Auret Pritchard (known as “Ou Basie”) was the twelfth son of Charles Pritchard and his wife, Johanna Hermina de Villiers. His father served as a member of the Cape Parliament for 25 years, and his mother was a sister of Lord de Villiers, the first Chief Justice of the Union of South Africa. However, information in C. Pama’s work on old family arms contains inaccuracies, stating: “Charles Pritchard married Hermina Johanna de Villiers, sister of Lord Henry de Villiers. Two sons. The family is largely Afrikaans-speaking.”
While the number of sons is correct, the claim that Johanna was Lord Henry de Villiers’s sister appears to have been deduced incorrectly. In the reference book on old Cape families, compiled by De Villiers, Theal, and others—and later updated and revised by C. Pama—her name is recorded as Johanna Hermina, the daughter of David Hendrik de Villiers and Anna Susanna Retief. This highlights how even respected publications, such as those by the Council for Scientific Research or genealogical researchers like C. Pama, can occasionally present unchecked or inaccurate information.
The inference that “the family is largely Afrikaans-speaking” is also questionable. This would apply only to William Henry Auret Pritchard’s family, as his brother Benjamin Thomas never married. William, who was married to a Le Roux maid, abstained from participating in the Anglo-Boer War as a combatant on the English side, citing “piety towards his mother and his wife’s family.”
During the war, he commanded the concentration camp at Vryburg, and afterward, he was honoured with military decorations by the English. Following the war, he became a lay preacher in the Baptist Church and later led the Jehovah’s Witnesses. It seems probable that his pacifist beliefs influenced his decision not to engage in the war as a combatant. Whether his descendants later became Afrikaans-speaking is unclear. However, genealogists should avoid labeling individuals as Afrikaans-speaking solely on the basis of baptism in the N.G. Church in rural areas during a time when established English churches were absent. Sister Penelope Pritchard’s descendants, for example, include the Kinnear family, who were distinctly English-speaking.
Daniël Gabriël de Villiers
Another relative who deserves mention is Daniël Gabriël de Villiers, who played a significant role during Beaufort West’s developmental years. His residence, the famous Matoppo House in Bird Street, became a local landmark. He and his brother-in-law, Charles Pritchard, alternated as chairmen of the City Council for many years. He was a very successful business man and owned ten farms in the Beaufort West area.
Daniël tirelessly advocated for the establishment of a proper water scheme. When the scheme began in 1896, he served as chairman of the City Council, earning him the title “Father of the Water Scheme.” Additionally, he held the position of treasurer on the Church Council for many years and contributed significantly to the Church Building Scheme.
Note: Matoppo House was built in 1834 as the Drostdy of the Great Karoo. Cecil John Rhodes spent many a night here on his way to Zimbabwe, hence the name Matoppo. It is currently operating as a guesthouse.