Hercules (des Pres) du Preez (bef. 1707 - bef. 1738)

Born before 2 Oct 1707 in Drakenstein, de Caep de Goede Hoop

Ancestors

Husband of Dorothea Maria (Bekker) Oosthuijzen — married about 1733 in extra-marital affair in de Caep de Goede Hoop

Descendants

Died before 23 Sep 1738 at about age 30 in Tulbagh, de Caep de Goede Hoop

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Cape of Good Hope Project WikiTree [send private message]

Hercules (des Pres) du Preez was part of the settlement of the Dutch Cape Colony. Join: Cape of Good Hope - Kaap de Goede Hoop (1652-1806) Project Discuss: dutch_cape_colony

Hercules du Preez was a Huguenot. His parents immigrated to the Cape Colony.

Biography

Name

Hercules du Preez ^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]}

Birth

Date: Hercules was born 21 Jan 1703 ^[6] / in 1707 ^[1][4] / before 2 Oct 1707. ^[2]

Place: Drakenstein, [South Africa] ^[4] / [Paarl], [Kaapprovinsie], [Zuid-Afrika] ^[6]

Baptism

Date: 1707-10-02

Place: Dutch Reformed Church, Drakenstein

Child: Hercules

Father: Francois des Pres

Mother: Marie Cordier ^[7]

‘’2 Octobr.: Hercules; d' Vader Francois des Pres, en d' Moeder Marie Cordier. Gertuygen Hercules des Pres, en Cicilia Datijs.’’ ^[7]

Parents

Hercules DU PREEZ, ≈ 2 Oct 1707 Hy was die seun van Francois-Jean / Francois DU PREEZ en Marie CORDIER. ^[8][9]

Marriage

x Martha du Preez ^[8] circa 1723

Events and (extra-)marital affairs

He had an extra-marital relationship with Dorothea Maria (Bekker) Oosthuizen. There appear to be no children from this earlier relationship [(Dorothea Maria Bekker, they had one son)] ^{[citation needed]}, but Hercules appears to have had an illegitimate child with Dorothea Maria: Andries du Preez, baptised in Paarl on November 8, 1733. As a young man, Andries married Hester Ferreira. ^[10][11]

Death

Date: Hercules passed away in 1731 ^[1] / in 1738 / 23 Nov 1738 ^[4][6] / before 23 Sep 1738 when his estate was auctioned ^[12] (Sy vrou - Martha du Preez - sterf in 1730 en hy is vermoor deur ‘n slaaf. ^[13] / He was murdered by a slave ^[14])

Place: Tulbagh, [South Africa] ^[4] / Cape, [Kaapprovinsie, Zuid-Afrika] ^[6]

Estate

Reference no.: MOOC10/5.6

Testator(s): Hercules du Preez

23 September 1738

"Inventaris en vendu rol van alle soodanige goederen, als er door d' ondergeteekende gecommitt:e Weesm:ren van Cabo de Goede Hoop den 23:e September 1738 op de plaats van den landbouwer Daniel Walters zijn verkogt, naargelaten en met er dood ontruijmt door den medelandbouwer Hercules du Preez, namentlijk

1 opstal gelegen in de Slangenhoek over t Roode Sand..." ^[12]

Research Notes

After first removing the spousal connection between Hercules (des Pres) du Preez-137 and Dorothea (Bekker-37) Oosthuijzen (bef. 1708 - abt. 1770) with whom he had an extra-marital affair (Van der Walt-440 08:22, 8 March 2016 (EST)), I reconnected them based on this comment from Mary Rudd that makes sense: "Could you please explain why this was done? [...] I can understand not listing them as husband and wife, but is there not a better way to show that they were not married, yet had offspring. They obviously had a relationship - hence Andries Du_Preez-894. Kind regards Mary (16 feb 2017). Van der Walt-440 07:21, 18 February 2017 (EST) ^[15]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} WikiTree profile Du Preez-137 created through the import of Van der Walt Family Tree.ged on Jan 22, 2013 by Rene Van der Walt.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} WikiTree profile Du Preez-447 created by Pieter Bekker Oct 29, 2014. Source:
   • Johan Pottas & Annatjie Tiran, "Stamboom van Pieter Becker c.1673 - 1745", in 'Bekker Families van SA', p.102, www.genza.orhg.za
3. ↑ WikiTree profile Du Preez-275 created through the import of LeRoux20130810.GED on Aug 10, 2013 by Femmy Le Roux.
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4} WikiTree profile created Du Preez-654 created through the import of Ancestry 20150928 hdupreez-2b9f63 post 1700.ged by Henlo Du Preez, 3 October 2015.
5. ↑ WikiTree profile Du Preez-141created through the import of Van der Walt Family Tree.ged on Jan 22, 2013 by Rene van der Walt.
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4} WikiTree profile Du Preez-2187 created by Janet Bianco, 1 February 2020. Source:
   • family records.
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1} Source:
   • Transcription: Page 31 Date : 1707 ‘’2 Octobr.: Hercules; d' Vader Francois des Pres, en d' Moeder Marie Cordier. Gertuygen Hercules des Pres, en Cicilia Datijs.’’. Transcrcribed by Ronel Olivier from records sited at ”South Africa, Dutch Reformed Church Register, Drakenstein. Private photo collection: Photo taken by R. Olivier (2005) : Source: Verbatim Copies VC 644: Cape town repository Original registers located at Dutch Reformed Church Archive, Noordwal-Wes, Stellenbosch as G3 3/1. Seen and entered by Ronel Olivier Oct 12, 2015.
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1} Source:
   • Genealogies of Old Cape Families, by C.C.de Villiers, revised, augmented and rewritten by C. Pama, A.A. Balkema, Cape Town, 1966. The original edition of 1894, compiled by G.M. Theal from the work of C.C. de Villiers Vol 3 du Pre / du Preez p. 67 Added by Alta Bekker Dec 1, 2015.
9. ↑ Source:
   • South African Genealogies, compiled by J.A. Heese, edited by R.T.J. Lombard, GISA, 1986 SA Familieregisters Vol 1 A-C. (www.gisa.org.za) Added by Alta Bekker Dec 1, 2015.
10. ↑ Pieter Bekker Oct 29, 2014.
11. ↑ Source:
    • Letter:

    Dear Philip,

    I began researching my particular branch of the Bekker family tree in 1985, contacting as many aunts, uncles, cousins, etc., as I could. I very soon ‘discovered’ the outline biography of our notorious ‘stamvader’ Pieter Becker and applied for and was sent photocopies of the archival records of the various interrogations that had been undertaken by the VOC and the assorted punishments and imprisonments that were meted out to him. It was all very slow in those days (before the internet and all the genealogical sites that now exist to facilitate research). Also, I was operating from the U.K. and so had to rely on archivists to find things out for me. Since then I have undertaken archival research myself in Cape Town and used the GISA facilities in Stellenbosch - during frustratingly short visits undertaken while on holiday.

    I have been and still am working on a narrative which will flesh out, as far as possible, the lives of the Bekker families descended (in one direction) to my own father, grandfather, etc. The idea is also to situate these narratives within an account of key historical developments (trekboere, border skirmishes, Boer War, etc). There is a great deal of archival data available on Pieter Becker, the progenitor of the clan who arrived in the Cape in the 1690s. He was a horror, but the narrative I’m working on is allowing me to reflect on the harshness of the lives of those early settlers. In sharp contract to his character and legacy, I have found masses of everyday details relating to my great grandfather, also a Pieter Bekker, who was a Cape Rebel and imprisoned for High Treason during the Boer War. He died in 1904 and for the next 6 years his large family kept every single receipt for their daily expenses, to claim against aTrust Fund. All the documents are in the Cape Archives and I have photographed them all. I am unravelling it bit by bit and it makes for compelling reading. I am also engaged in tracking down and interviewing the living descendants of his ten children, who were all photographed together at his funeral in 1904. [...]

    Best wishes,

    Pieter (Oct 18, 2014)

12. ↑ ^{12.0 12.1} Source:
    • MOOC 10/5.6 - Seen and entered by Gerhard Swart on 4 Apr 2024.
13. ↑ Source:
    • Genealogies of Old Cape Families, by C.C. de Villiers, revised, augmented and rewritten by C. Pama, A.A. Balkema, Cape Town, 1966. The original edition of 1894, compiled by G.M. Theal from the work of C.C. de Villiers Vol 3 du Pre / du Preez p67. (www.eggsa.org/links) Added by Alta Bekker Dec 1, 2015.
14. ↑ Source:
    • Heese, J.A. & Lombard, R.T.J. South African Genealogies 8 Human Sciences Research Council, 1992, ISBN 0-7972-0949-2, page 320. Added Esmé van der Westhuizen, 3 Sep 2015.
15. ↑ Information to be studied: "I am sending a scan of the page (102) from Johan Pottas and Annatjie Tiran, ‘Stamboom van Pieter Becker, c.1673-1745’ from the website www.genza.org.za (Aflaaie/Family Registers) which deals with Dorothea Maria Bekker (b5) and her various liaisons, including her relationship with Hercules du Preez. (thanks to Pieter Bekker Nov 1, 2014)"