Krotoa lived a short but remarkable life. She died on the 29 July 1674. The important contributions she made to our history and her life of resilience and strength was never truly reflected or recognised in history taught in our classrooms. Renewed interst in her life and her story meant that an increasing number of people and scholars became familiar with her role and significant contribution to this nation and country. She was a person of influence with the Dutch, a good interpreter and a strong negotiator with her people’s interest at heart. This she demonstrated in working out terms for ending the first Dutch-Khoi war. She had a flair for languages and was fluent in a few. Krotoa was baptised and became a Christian and she was the first indigenous person to marry a white settler. She was then known to the Dutch as Eva van de Kaap. With her knowledge of Dutch and other languages she became one of the first to use “Kaaps”, amixed lingo which came about when people from all over the world started settling in the Cape during that time. Sadly, this all came at a price.

In spite of her influence she also needed to protect the interests of her own people. The ongoing conflict however meant that she did not have an easy life. She was seen by here own people as a traitor who then abandoned her. The Dutch became suspicious of her conduct when she stood up for her people. She became caught up between the world of her own people and her family and that of her colonial masters.

It was not the only time, however, that she was abandoned by the people close to her. Her own mother left her with her uncle, Autshumao, when she was a young child, he in turn “gave” her to Jan van Riebeeck, who used her and then left her at the mercy of Zacharias Wagenaer in 1662. Her three children were taken away from her after her husband was killed in Madagascar and then she was banished to Robben Island in 1671.

Krotoa’s life, marked by its many trials and tribulations, serves as a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the enduring impact of colonial encounters. With this publication we hope to celebrate her life and contributions to our country.