author
Réné Hansard
d. 1940
A South African-born writer who published under the name Réné Hansard, she brought Cape history and landscape vividly to life in books that blend observation, storytelling, and a strong sense of place.
1 Audiobook
The Cape Peninsula: Pen and Colour Sketches
by Réné Hansard
About the author
Born in Cape Town in 1854, Henriette Irene Louise Juta wrote under the names Réné Juta and Réné Hansard. She is identified in available sources as the daughter of Jan Carel Juta, and later married the British diplomat Luke Hansard.
Her best-known book is The Cape Peninsula: Pen and Colour Sketches (1910), a work closely associated with the history and scenery of the Cape. Sources also credit her with The Tavern (1920), a novel about the early Cape said to be based on the story of Dr. James Barry.
After her marriage, she lived in Europe and continued writing. The surviving reference material on her life is quite brief, but it shows a writer with a strong connection to South Africa's past and a gift for turning local history into readable, atmospheric prose.