Ward 2 Development Forum

Marthinus Theunissen

Properties3
descriptionYoung Dutch colonist who was granted the farm Weltevreden, where Greyton now stands, in 1793. Greyton histories say he left after disputes with his neighbours at Boschmanskloof and Genadendal.
tagstheme/heritage, lang/en
aliasesMartinus Theunissen, M. Theunissen

6 min read

Marthinus Theunissen was the first colonist known to have farmed the land where Greyton now stands [IC]. In 1793 he was granted the farm Weltevreden, on land that Greyton’s histories say had belonged to the Khoekhoe leader Stoffel Koekson [IC]. He built a homestead there, but did not stay long [TBV]. Sixty years later, Herbert Vigne laid out the village of Greyton on the same farm [IC].

What the letters in square brackets mean

Facts on this page are followed by a tag that shows where they come from.

  • [IC] Independently Corroborated. Confirmed by at least two sources that do not depend on each other, or by an official record.
  • [MS] Mission-Sourced. Comes from one community’s own sources. For Theunissen, most of what is told comes from Greyton’s local histories, which appear to share one origin.
  • [TBV] To Be Verified. Seems likely, but nobody has confirmed it yet.

At a glance

BornNot known
DiedNot known
Known forHolding the farm Weltevreden, the site of Greyton, from about 1791 to 1795 [IC]
Link to the valleyThe first colonial owner of the land on which Greyton was built

Weltevreden

Forum research notes record Theunissen holding Weltevreden as a loan farm from about 1791, and the farm was granted to him in 1793 [IC]. A loan farm was land the VOC let to a colonist for a yearly fee, without full ownership [IC]. Greyton’s histories describe him as a young Dutchman [TBV]. The homestead he built on the farm no longer stands [TBV].

Why he left

Wikipedia, drawing on Greyton’s histories, says Theunissen could not settle his constant disputes with his neighbours at Boschmanskloof and Genadendal, over boundaries and straying cattle [TBV]. By 1795 the farm had passed to Hendrik Cloete of Groot Constantia [IC].

The timing matters. The Moravian mission at Baviaanskloof reopened on 24 December 1792, and Khoekhoe families moved there in large numbers in 1793 [MS]. Overberg farmers opposed the mission in those years, because it drew Khoekhoe workers away from their farms [IC]. Theunissen’s quarrels with Genadendal fall in the same years, though the sources do not say what they were about beyond boundaries and cattle.

In the missionaries’ diaries

The diaries of the Moravian missionaries at Baviaanskloof, now Genadendal, never name Weltevreden or Marthinus Theunissen. They do describe, from 1792 to 1796, a young neighbour they call “young Teunis” or “Baas Teunis’s son”, the son of Baas Teunis, who kept the company’s post at Soetemelksvlei [MS]. What they say of him matches what is known of Theunissen and Weltevreden so closely that he was probably the same man, and his place was probably Weltevreden [TBV]:

  • A young man with a new farm. In December 1792 he was unmarried and building a house about an hour to an hour and a half from the mission. The missionaries called him their nearest neighbour, and “a very pleasant man” [MS]. Weltevreden was held by Theunissen as a loan farm from 1791 and granted in 1793 [IC].
  • Land with a condition. His father told the missionaries that the place had belonged to the Khoekhoe, and that the acting governor, Johan Isaac Rhenius, had given it to his son on condition that he did no harm to any Khoekhoe and did not drive them away. If he did, he must leave the place [MS]. Rhenius headed the government from 1791 to 1793 [MS].
  • Married at Stellenbosch. In May 1793 he married at Stellenbosch, and he and his wife and sister visited the mission in June [MS]. In August 1794 their child died while they were staying at his parents’ post [MS].
  • Vines. In 1793 he laid out “a very large vineyard”, and showed the missionaries how to plant vines [MS]. Greyton’s histories say Theunissen later owned the wine farm Vergelegen [TBV].
  • Quarrels over cattle. By November 1794 he was writing that he was not obliged to let the Khoekhoe’s cattle graze on his ground, and that he would beat them and make them pay for any damage [MS]. He had Khoekhoe cattle impounded, and their owners paid a shilling a head to get them back [MS]. Greyton’s histories say Theunissen left Weltevreden after disputes with his neighbours at Boschmanskloof and Genadendal over boundaries and straying cattle [TBV].
  • The place is sold. By January 1795 his father held the place again [MS]. In February 1795 “Mr Clüde, to whom Constantia belongs”, visited the mission, and by April a Mr Claude had bought the land where the son had impounded the Khoekhoe’s cattle [MS]. Weltevreden passed to Hendrik Cloete of Groot Constantia in 1795 [IC].

He stayed in the district for a time. In March 1796 he quarrelled with the Khoekhoe of the mission, who had complained about his father to the British General [MS].

The name Theunissen means “son of Teunis”, which fits the diaries’ “Baas Teunis’s son”. Only a deed or a company record naming the holder of the place could confirm the identification.

Diaries: A363595, lines 630 to 677; A363595, lines 3560 to 3615; A363595, lines 5483 to 5531; A363595, lines 9818 to 9830; A363595, lines 11962 to 12058; A363595, lines 12469 to 12512; A363595, lines 13983 to 14071; A363596, lines 863 to 899; A363349, lines 12137 to 12168

Later life

Greyton’s histories say Theunissen later became a wealthy man in Stellenbosch and owned the famous wine farm Vergelegen for a time [TBV]. The Theunissen family bought Vergelegen, near Somerset West, in 1798 and held it until 1899 [IC]. Whether Marthinus himself was the buyer has not been confirmed [TBV].

  • Baas Teunis, keeper of the company post at Soetemelksvlei, was probably his father [TBV].
  • Stoffel Koekson’s people are said to have held the land before it was granted to Theunissen.
  • Herbert Vigne bought Weltevreden in 1846 and founded Greyton on it.
  • The missionaries of 1792 reopened the mission at Genadendal while he was farming next door.

What is still open

  • The dates of his birth and death.
  • Whether the VOC grant of 1793 names Koekson or any Khoekhoe occupiers of the land.
  • Whether he is the “young Teunis” of the missionaries’ diaries, as the evidence above suggests. A deed or company record naming the holder of Weltevreden in 1791 to 1795 would settle it.
  • What his disputes with Boschmanskloof were about.
  • Whether he is the Theunissen who bought Vergelegen in 1798.

References

  • Wikipedia. Greyton. The grant of 1793, the homestead, the disputes with Boschmanskloof and Genadendal, and his later wealth.
  • Greyton Tourism. Greyton’s History. The grant of Koekson’s land, his departure, and Vergelegen.
  • South African History Online. Greyton, Western Province. The grant of Weltevreden in 1793.
  • Wikipedia. Vergelegen. The Theunissen family’s purchase in 1798.
  • The Heritage Portal. The Vergelegen Story, Part One. The Theunissen family’s ownership from 1798 to 1899.
  • Valley of Grace: Significant Dates (2026). Forum research notes, held by the Forum. The loan farm from about 1791, and Cloete’s purchase in 1795.
  • Genadendal Diaries repository. Genadendal Diaries. English translations of the missionaries’ diaries, cited by file and line number. Unreviewed machine translations. The passages on “young Teunis”.

Graph View

Backlinks