Battle of Muizenberg

The Battle of Muizenberg site is the stretch of Main Road and mountainside above Muizenberg where, on 7 August 1795, British forces attacked the Dutch East India Company’s defences guarding the road to Cape Town. The Dutch eventually surrendered the Cape that September, beginning the first British occupation. It is a quiet piece of history in a beach suburb, best for anyone with an interest in the Cape’s colonial past.

What to expect

There is no visitor centre or ticket office. What survives is on the slope overlooking False Bay: stone walls, redoubts and defensive breastworks, traces of the defences that stood around the Dutch fort. The landscape also holds shell middens left by indigenous people long before European settlement. Heritage Western Cape approved it as a Provincial Heritage Site in 2025 and the declaration was gazetted in 2026. Most people on the slope are locals out walking dogs or running.

In the village below, a 6-pounder cannon stands in front of the old building known as Het Posthuys. Two cannons mark the monument site in Muizenberg.

Practical details

• Location: Main Road and the mountainside above Muizenberg, on the False Bay coast.
• Access: open public land. There are no set hours and no facilities on the slope.
• Muizenberg is on the Simon’s Town train line and the coastal road from Cape Town.
• The Muizenberg Historical Conservation Society marks the anniversary with a ceremonial cannon firing at Het Posthuys, most recently in August 2026.

Good to know

Come for the context rather than the ruins. In 1795 British ships in False Bay bombarded the Dutch position, and the Dutch fell back towards Zandvlei and Retreat. Wear good shoes for the slope, take water, and pair the site with a walk along the Muizenberg beachfront. Recent commemorations have also highlighted the role of the Khoi and the Corps Pandoeren in the fighting.

Last updated 6 October 2026. Sources: Wikipedia, Cape Argus, South African History Online, Cape Argus, Wikivoyage.