South Africa’s Historic Wine Estates Reckon With Their Legacy of Slavery

At Groot Constantia, South Africa’s oldest wine farm, nearly 450,000 visitors arrive annually to tour vineyards and sample Grand Constance, a sweet wine historically favored by Napoleon. While the site remains a major tourist draw, it also features a museum maintained by the state agency Iziko Museums, which directly confronts the estate’s history of enslavement. Records indicate that approximately 30 enslaved people lived on the grounds at any time between the farm’s 1685 founding and the 1834 abolition of slavery by British colonial authorities. The oldest wine farm in South Africa, the 450,000 visitors who pass through its gates annually can admire the picturesque vineyards sloping towards a bay ringed by mountains or enjoy a glass of sweet Grand Constance, reputed to have been Napoleon’s favourite wine, a t Groot Constantia. There is also a museum that includes the history of slavery, run by state body Iziko Museums. Panels display information about enslaved people – about 30 of whom lived on the estate at any given time from its founding in 1685 until slavery was abolished in 1834 by the British colonial government – detailing everything from their work to what they ate, unusually among the region’s old vineyards. Nonetheless, Groot Constantia still faces criticism from unions and workers’ rights groups who draw a line from slavery, through colonialism and apartheid, to the present conditions of wine farm workers, many of whom are descended from enslaved people.

Memorial plaques at the site display the names of individuals forcibly brought from Sri Lanka, Mozambique, Madagascar, India, and Indonesia. These markers recognize the resilience and suffering of those whose labor helped establish the estate. Jean Naudé, the CEO of Groot Constantia, acknowledges that while the foundation of the industry was built on an unsound past, the organization is committed to building something meaningful on that history. The estate is unique in having been transferred from South African government ownership to a non-profit trust in 1993. Then transferred to a not-for-profit trust, groot Constantia is also unusual in having been owned by the South African government from 1885 to 1993.

The broader South African wine sector, which generated 36.3 billion rand (1.65 billion pounds) in sales last year, rarely acknowledges its role in historical enslavement. Historians emphasize that the industry relied heavily on this forced labor. Research by Stellenbosch University historian Kate Ekama suggests that by the 1820s, 80 percent of coerced workers were enslaved, with the rest comprised of dispossessed Indigenous people. Scholar Wayne Dooling notes that by the 19th century, the 21 most powerful industry families collectively held 3,557 enslaved individuals. Historians agree that only a handful of estates explicitly acknowledge their history of enslavement, in an industry that sold R36.3bn (£1.65bn) of wine last year, although there is no complete data. And the first enslaved people were brought there within a few years to work in houses and on farms. By the 19th century, the 21 most prominent wine industry families owned 3,557 enslaved people between them, according to Wayne Dooling, a School of Oriental and African Studies lecturer, j an van Riebeeck established a colony for the Dutch East India Company in what is now Cape Town in 1652. According to o ne farm that has tried to acknowledge its history and redress inequality is Solms-Delta, in Franschhoek, 40 miles east of Cape Town. “It’s not just some abstract historical principle,”, Neuropsychology professor Ma.

Linda Mbeki, an Iziko Museums curator, observes that most historic wine farms avoid these uncomfortable narratives to protect their prestige. Acknowledging this history often forces an admission of privilege and generational wealth built upon exploitation. Critics, including the Commercial, Stevedoring, Agricultural and Allied Workers Union (CSAAWU) and the Trust for Community Outreach and Education (TCOE), argue that this cycle of exploitation continues today, citing the eviction of at least ten families from Groot Constantia since July. Mostly of former workers, have been evicted from the farm since July, according to the Trust for Community Outreach and Education (TCOE), an NGO, and the Commercial, Stevedoring, Agricultural and Allied Workers Union (CSAAWU), at least 10 families.

Mercia Andrews of TCOE claims that workers who built the sector are being discarded despite their historic contributions. Naudé defends the estate’s policies, asserting that all evictions strictly follow legal mandates and court orders. Industry leadership, including South Africa Wine CEO Rico Basson, admits that slavery left deep-seated social and economic inequalities that remain inseparable from current conversations regarding worker dignity and fair treatment. According to naudé, Evictions did not take place without a court order and referred to comments he made about previous evictions in 2024, when he said: “As a responsible and progressive employer, Groot Constantia upholds fairness and complies with all relevant laws at all times for all employees … ensuring all policies are implemented consistently and equitably.”. A spokesperson for the department of rural development and land reform did not respond to a request for comment.

Some estates have attempted to actively address these issues, such as Solms-Delta in Franschhoek.

Neuropsychology professor Mark Solms, who purchased the property in 2001, highlighted the stark reality of living in a mansion while surrounded by employees whose poverty is a direct legacy of the farm’s history.

Estate manager Nico Jansen, whose family has lived on the property for three generations, initially viewed reform promises with skepticism. Which was founded in 1690, nico Jansen is the third generation of his father’s family living on Solms-Delta. He initially didn’t believe Solm’s promises to renovate their houses or raise wages above those of neighbouring farms, when he was appointed as estate manager in 2001.

He identifies as having Khoikhoi heritage and noted that his family and others have built the land with their own sweat and blood.

Between 2004 and 2016, Solms-Delta employed historian Tracey Randle to lead excavations and restore worker musical traditions. In 2005, a worker trust was established to purchase a neighboring farm. However, the estate eventually entered a business rescue process. In 2016, the government took over workers’ shares but failed to provide promised funding. The government cited accumulated debt and poor management for its decision to cease funding, while Jansen and Solms continue to negotiate with officials, hoping to resume operations within a year. In 2005, Solms helped the workers set up a trust and take out a loan to buy a neighbouring farm for themselves. Adding: “The challenges that have arisen have forced the department to cease the continued funding of Solms-Delta in its present form.”, a 2018 statement blamed Solms-Delta’s problems on “accumulated debt and poor management” at the time of the government takeover. Tommy Hall, an American technology executive, has pledged to buy back the government’s shares for the workers and invest in the business.