British Influence

South Africa was a British colony for about a hundred years until 1910 when it was granted Commonwealth status. It remained part of the British Commonwealth until 1961. It is easier to forget the British influence in Johannesburg than it is in Cape Town. Cape Town seems more British colonial to me, more formal, more imperial. Johannesburg is much more Dutch-influenced, more Afrikaans. Jozi is at its heart a frontier town, one that struck it rich in gold and diamonds. Yes there are the Royal golf courses, and cricket and rugby matches, but it is pretty easy to forget the British connection just driving around the city. Until you see a billboard that advertises the South African Military Tattoo is coming to the city in September. Oh yeah. Military. Pageantry. British.

The Brits are masters of the military pageant. Trooping the Colour, the Changing of the Guard, and the Military Tattoo, I saw the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo in Scotland in 2001 outdoors on the grounds of Edinburgh Castle. It was an awesome display of pageantry, but so much so because of the dazzling setting. High above the city with this magnificent medieval castle as a backdrop. Tartan kilts, bagpipes, and a castle, that is pageantry my friend! But I do remember that even though it was August, it was absolutely freezing on top of that Royal Mile! It may be more comfortable in Jozi in September but I can't imagine it will be nearly as atmospheric without that ancient castle.

Anne Hathaway's Garden

I found another reminder of the British influence today in Jozi at the Johannesburg Botanical Gardens. A Shakespeare Garden! Shakespeare. Garden. British.

Washington DC

Shakespeare Gardens became all the rage in the 1910's and 20's when Shakespeare Societies teamed up with gardeners to bring the plays and sonnets of Shakespeare alive in flora. They can be Elizabethan-inspired gardens with a Tudor knot design or more of a cottage garden like Anne Hathaway's in Stratford-upon-Avon. They sometimes have Shakespearean-themed statuary and garden ornaments. The plants and trees usually have a direct Shakespearean pedigree named in a verse of one of his plays or sonnets. Plants in the garden will many times have a placard with the quote displayed.

New Jersey

I belonged to a garden club for ten years whose civic beautification project was and still is to maintain a historical Frederick Law Olmsted-designed Shakespeare Garden. But even before I joined the garden club, I found Shakespeare Gardens charming.

New York

I have been to quite a few Shakespeare Gardens in the US. They show up on college campuses such as Northwestern, Vassar and St. Elizabeth's in Convent Station, NJ, in Botanical Gardens such as the one in Brooklyn or in city parks such as New York's Central Park and San Francisco's Golden Gate. They even show on beside Libraries and Theaters like the Folger in Washington, DC and the Huntington in Pasadena. And oddly enough I understand there is now even one in Vienna (opened in 2005). I haven't been there but I will if I ever get back to Vienna!







The Johannesburg Botanical Garden's Shakespeare Garden is just as charming! It is circular and is surrounded by a yew hedge. There is a herbaceous border of herbs and flowers, some trees and a circular brick patio in the center. There are park benches and stone statuary all around. The plants are marked with their Latin and common names but not their Shakespearean reference verse. Maybe they put those placards out for their annual Shakespeare Festival in April to commemorate the Bard's birthday. I will find out next year when I go!