Bondi
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Windsocker
S 34° 02.484 E 023° 02.676
34H E 688737 N 6231368
A history of "Bondi"
Waymark Code: WM31FG
Location: Western Cape, South Africa
Date Posted: 01/25/2008
Views: 66
In January 1931 a Royal navy flower class sloop HMS verbena paid one of three visits to Knysna.
She was part of the African station and as such visited southern ports. It was during a visit to Lourenco Marques (now Maputo) in 1928 that she was presented with a pedigree bulldog by the people of the city.
The dogs name was Bondi and he became the ship’s mascot and was entered on the ships list and therefore allowed to “draw an allowance for victuals from the Admiralty”.
On the evening of Friday January 30 1931 the ship’s company had arranged to present a variety concert in Knysna town hall. They marched to the town hall in the early afternoon to decorate it for the evening entertainment.
Bondi not being prepared to be at anchor watch joined his shipmates on the march into town.
It was an extremely hot day and the heat was too much for the dog and sadly he collapsed and died before they reached there destination.
The ships log records the death in simple lines as 1600 hours “Bondi died ashore”
Bondi was buried on the warft and a wooden tombstone was placed as the head of the grassy mound that marked his final resting place. with a brass plate attached to the head stone. The tradition then started of tending the grave and every British naval ship that visited Knysna played her part. The visiting ship’s captain would send a party of rating ashore to trim the grass polish the plate and secure the grave in ship shape fashion.
During the Second World War British ships did not enter the port and it was not until 1948 when the HMS Nereid returned five times her last visit being 1953 was the grave tended too. Since then no one seemed to care about the old British bulldog “bondi”
However tradition was revived by the South African navy on July 2001 when the mine hunters SAS UMzimkhulu and SAS Umhloti visited Knysna for part on the oyster festival that Commander Andrew Blake on hearing of the tradition from a local resident sent a party of men ashore to polish the grave and make it “ship Shape” once again.
The sea cadet unit continued this tradition in the absence of the navy till 2003.
In 2004 Knysna animal welfare approached a local sculptor created the bronze statue which can now be seen.
Breed: Bull Dog
Date Built: 2004/07/09
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