I moved to the city on a Sunday in August this year, after living and working in the Southern Peninsula for many years. The following day at noon I was welcomed by one of Cape Town’s oldest traditions.

Whether it instils panic as it reminds me of imminent deadlines, interrupts intense concentration and makes me jump, or barely registers because I’m too busy to notice, the Noon Gun is the ideal companion: it makes me smile and never overstays its welcome. And yes, it is a convenient time check, especially given that I don’t wear a watch.

The Noon Gun is, in fact, two cannons; 18-pounder, smoothbore muzzle-loaders, according to Wikipedia.

It was fired as a time signal for the first time in 1806, but at the time was used for other signals too, including to announce the arrival of a ship in port.

After the British re-occupied the Cape in 1806 the guns were moved from its original location, The Imhoff Battery, to the Castle.

The Gun has been fired remotely, from the South African Astronomical Observatory, since 1864.

There is only one recorded instance of the gun firing at the incorrect time. In June 1895, it fired at 10:30am instead of noon. The General in command was furious and demanded an investigation, which led to the discovery that big a brown spider had interfered with the relay used to fire the gun remotely. The culprit was sent to the Cape Town Museum, where it was put on display and named “The Little Gunner”.

The Noon Gun was moved to its current location, Signal Hill, after complaints that it was too noisy (some things never change), and fired for the first time on 4 August 1902.

The only incident of the Noon Gun not firing at all is much more recent. This happened on 7 January 2005 when both the main gun and the back up failed to fire due to a “technical difficulty”.

There are about 12 other Noon and/or Time-signal Guns around the world.

But if you thought the Cape Town site was at least unique, the Noon Gun in St. John’s, Newfoundland, is also located on Signal Hill!

And finally, a fact that will never make history: the Noon Gun went off as I finished typing the previous sentence.

Sources: Wikipedia| San Francisco Call 1895 | IOL
Image: DanieVDM on Flickr

Do you have an interesting or unusual fact about Cape Town? Let us know by emailing michele@b-guided.co.za and we’ll share it with readers. Please cite a source if possible.

The home page of our website will be updated regularly with a new fact and we have a Know Your City section planned for the future.