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History: Pierre de Villiers, eldest of the three brothers who had moved Franschhoek in 1694 after their farming efforts at Paarl had proved unsuccessful. The youngest, Jacques, settled at La Bri, Abraham at Champagne and Pierre at Burgundy - all three farm names being evocative of the duchy in east central France that had been the brothers' home. Pierre was granted the land on which Burgundy's homestead stands in 1713 - although he had settled there some 19 years earlier - and he enjoyed seven years' possession of it before he died. A later owner, Jacob Marais, great-grandson of Charles Marais of Plaisir de Merle, built the H-shaped house 20 years after he had acquired the farm in 1771. Marais had married Johanna Theron, and it is their initials that appear on Burgundy's front gable, although at some stage the J for Jacobus was incorrectly restored as the letter B. Burgundy has undergone many alterations over the years and has also been severely dam- aged by more than one fire. One of these disasters, in Victorian times, led to the replacement of the thatched roof with corrugated iron and to the raising of the level of the eaves. At the same time, the lower convex curve at the gable base must have been removed, giving the structure a clipped appearance. Despite this, the gable, one of the oldest in the valley remains Burgundy's most attractive feature. Dated 1791, it is late holbol in style, which is rare for the Franschhoek area. Besides, its decorations are both beautiful and unique: stars and the tendrils of some unidentifiable vine swirl and tumble across the gable face and around the owners' monogram, an expression of joyous fantasy on the part of the unknown plasterer. Early in the nineteenth century Burgundy was acquired by the Le Roux family It has remained in their possession for 200 years and is now in the keeping of Edward Le Roux.
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Construction Date: 1791c
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