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St Cyprian's Cathedral

Why Kimberley Matters

Over the years, we have noticed that many of our guests—whether visiting Kimberley for business or leisure—have wondered why this remarkable city has played such an important role in South Africa's history over the past 160 years.

These pages invite you on a coffee-table journey through Kimberley's past, from the discovery of the Eureka Diamond in 1867 and the Great Diamond Rush, through wars, political change and the rise of the world's diamond industry, to the city we know today. They are not intended to be an academic history, but rather an enjoyable introduction to the people, places and events that shaped Kimberley.

So, make yourself comfortable, pour a cappuccino or a cup of chai, and enjoy exploring the remarkable story of one of South Africa's most fascinating cities.

St Cyprian's Cathedral – From a Diggers' Tent to a Kimberley Landmark

Standing prominently on Du Toitspan Road, St Cyprian's Cathedral is one of Kimberley's most distinctive historic buildings. Its Gothic Revival architecture, long nave, stained-glass windows, and soaring tower give it an appearance far removed from the rough diamond camp where its story began.

Yet the history of St Cyprian's stretches back almost to the beginning of Kimberley itself. The parish was established in 1871, when New Rush was still a rapidly expanding settlement of tents, corrugated-iron buildings and diamond diggers. The first Anglican congregation did not worship in a cathedral—or even in a conventional church—but gathered in a tent. From those very modest beginnings grew a parish that would eventually become the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Kimberley and Kuruman.

From Tent to Tin Church

The first Rector was Father John Rickards, who served from 1871 until 1876. As the congregation grew, services moved from the tent to the Oddfellows Hall on Market Square before plans were made for a permanent church. By 1879, a prefabricated wood-and-iron church had been manufactured in England and shipped to Kimberley.

Fire, War and a New Vision

The old St Cyprian's Church witnessed many of Kimberley's defining events. In 1898, a fire caused significant damage to the building, which was repaired shortly before the outbreak of the Anglo-Boer War. During the Siege of Kimberley, the church narrowly escaped destruction. On 14 November 1899, a Boer Krupp shell passed through the building, starting a small fire. Winifred Heberden recorded the incident in her diary: "One went through St Cyprian's Church, making a tremendous noise." Although the building survived, the church organ suffered more damage from the water used to extinguish the flames than from the shell itself.

Over the next three decades, a succession of dedicated clergy guided the growing parish. Among them were William Thomas Gaul, who later became Bishop of Mashonaland; William Arthur Holbech, who later became Bishop of St Helena; and Thomas Claude Robson, under whose leadership the congregation moved into the present cathedral in 1908. Their ministry spanned the transformation of St Cyprian's from a modest wood-and-iron church into the spiritual centre of a growing city.

In 1901, Bishop Gaul, himself a former Rector of St Cyprian's, challenged the congregation to replace what he described as their "tin shanty" with a church worthy of Kimberley. His vision ultimately led to the construction of the magnificent Gothic Revival cathedral that stands today.

Building the Present St Cyprian's

The foundation stone of the present St Cyprian's was laid on 5 March 1907 by the Right Reverend William Thomas Gaul, Bishop of Mashonaland and a former Rector of St Cyprian's. The new church was designed in the Gothic Revival tradition by architect Arthur Lindley, in association with Kimberley architect D. W. Greatbatch. Its pointed arches, tall windows, substantial masonry and long nave created a church building deliberately reminiscent of the great Anglican churches of Britain.

Construction proceeded in stages. The completed nave was dedicated on 13 May 1908, allowing the congregation to move from the old iron church into the imposing new building. The cathedral that visitors see today, however, was not completed all at once. Like many of Kimberley's historic buildings, it evolved over decades as succeeding generations added to the original structure.

From Parish Church to Cathedral

When the present building opened in 1908, St Cyprian's was still a parish church. That changed only a few years later. In 1911, the Anglican Church approved the creation of the new Diocese of Kimberley and Kuruman. St Cyprian's became the cathedral church of the new diocese and the seat of its bishop. The Right Reverend Wilfrid Gore Browne became the first Bishop of Kimberley and Kuruman and was enthroned at St Cyprian's in 1912. The change transformed the building's role. St Cyprian's was no longer simply one of Kimberley's Anglican churches; it had become the mother church of a vast diocese extending across much of the Northern Cape.

St Cyprian's During the Siege of Kimberley

St Cyprian's also has a direct connection with one of the defining events in Kimberley's history—the Siege of Kimberley from October 1899 to February 1900. The present cathedral had not yet been built. The congregation was still worshipping in the earlier wood-and-iron St Cyprian's Church in Jones Street. The Rector at the time was the Reverend William Arthur Holbech, later an Anglican bishop. Holbech remained in Kimberley throughout the Siege and ministered to a community living under shellfire, food shortages, illness and constant uncertainty.

Throughout the Siege, churches played an important pastoral role. They provided places of worship and reassurance, while clergy conducted the funerals of soldiers and civilians who died during the Siege. The connection reminds us that the history represented by today's cathedral extends well beyond the date of the present building.

Inside the Cathedral

The interior of St Cyprian's is among Kimberley's most impressive ecclesiastical spaces. The long nave draws the eye towards the chancel and sanctuary, while pointed Gothic arches, timber roof structures and stained-glass windows create a strong sense of height and space. Successive generations have added memorial windows, plaques, furnishings and ornaments, turning the interior into a record of more than a century of Anglican life in Kimberley.

Among the later additions are striking stained-glass windows in the south transept by South African artist Leo Theron. Made from thick coloured glass set into concrete, they provide a striking modern contrast to the cathedral's traditional Gothic architecture. Music has also been part of St Cyprian's life almost from the beginning. The parish had a choir within its earliest years, and organs have accompanied worship at successive St Cyprian's churches. The J. W. Walker & Sons pipe organ, installed in 1936, remains one of the cathedral's finest historic features and continues to play an important role in worship and cathedral music today.

Sister Henrietta Stockdale

One of the most significant memorials in the cathedral grounds commemorates a woman whose work in Kimberley changed the history of nursing. Sister Henrietta Stockdale was an Anglican religious sister and nursing pioneer who established professional nurse training in Kimberley and played a central role in achieving statutory recognition and registration for nurses and midwives in the Cape Colony in 1891. A bronze statue of Sister Henrietta, created by South African sculptor Jack Penn, was erected in the cathedral grounds and unveiled in 1970.

In 1984, the remains of Sister Henrietta and two of her fellow workers were reinterred beside the memorial. The surrounding Garden of Remembrance was consecrated in 2007 as part of the cathedral's centenary commemorations. The memorial forms a powerful link between two defining strands of Kimberley's history—its Anglican heritage and its pioneering contribution to the development of professional nursing in South Africa.

St Cyprian's Today – A Lasting Landmark

Today, St Cyprian's Cathedral remains the spiritual heart of the Anglican Diocese of Kimberley and Kuruman. Regular services continue beneath the soaring Gothic arches, while the cathedral welcomes visitors from around the world to admire its architecture, stained glass, and rich history.

Standing alongside many of Kimberley's other historic landmarks, St Cyprian's reminds us that the city's story is about far more than diamonds. It reflects the growth of a community, the endurance of faith through times of war and hardship, and the generations of people who helped shape Kimberley into the city it is today.