Central Methodist Church | |
---|---|
Central Methodist Mission | |
33°55′22″S18°25′10″E / 33.9228°S 18.4195°E | |
Location | Burg Street, Greenmarket Square, Cape Town |
Country | South Africa |
Denomination | Methodist |
History | |
Status | Church |
Architecture | |
Functional status | Active |
Heritage designation | SAHRA identifier: 9/2/018/0125 |
Architect(s) | Charles A.S. Freeman |
Style | Decorated Gothic Revival |
Groundbreaking | 1876 |
Completed | 12 November 1879 |
Construction cost | £17,700 (£2,273,000 in 2024) [1] |
Clergy | |
Minister(s) | Alan Storey |
The Central Methodist Church, also known as the Central Methodist Mission or Metropolitan Methodist Church, is a large and historically important Methodist church located on Greenmarket Square in Cape Town, South Africa. The church has played a significant role in the growth of Methodism in South Africa. In 1988, the Metropolitan Church merged with Buitenkant Street Church, forming the Central Methodist Mission. [2]
The church is known for its active advocacy efforts [3] such as its yellow banner campaign that seeks to rise awareness of important social issues and as a site of refuge. [4] The church windows were damaged by police water cannons during the anti-apartheid Purple Rain protest in 1989. In October 2019 the church was a refuge site for protesting refugees during the Greenmarket Square refugee sit-in. [5]
The church is the second oldest building on Greenmarket Square after the Old Town House located opposite it. Construction started in 1876 and completed on 12 November 1879 [6] at a cost of £17,700 (equivalent to (£2,273,000 in 2024). [2] The architect was Charles Freeman [6] and the building contractor was Thomas Inglesby. [7]
Representing high-Victorian Gothic Revival architecture, the basilica-type church features a distinctive lean-to roof and a tower with a spire. [6] It is a listed heritage building with the SAHRA identifier of 9/2/018/0125.
Cape Town is the legislative capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the country's second-largest city, after Johannesburg, and the largest in the Western Cape. The city is part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality.
Fayetteville is a city in and the county seat of Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is best known as the home of Fort Liberty, a major U.S. Army installation northwest of the city.
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The Purple Rain Protest, Purple Rain Revolt or Purple Rain Riot was an anti-apartheid protest held in Cape Town on 2 September 1989, four days before South Africa's racially segregated parliament held its elections. A police water cannon with purple dye was turned on thousands of Mass Democratic Movement supporters who poured into the city in an attempt to march on South Africa's Parliament. White office blocks adjacent to Greenmarket Square were sprayed purple four stories high as a protester leapt onto the roof of the water cannon vehicle, seized the nozzle and attempted to turn the jet away from the crowds.
Greenmarket Square is a historical square in the centre of old Cape Town, South Africa. The square was built in 1696, when a burgher watch house was erected. Many historic buildings surround the square, including the Old Town House, which now houses the Michaelis Collection of art.
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