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Message from the Chairman: Mike Bosazza
As the 2025 calendar year draws to a close, I look back on what has been achieved. I am humbled by the dedication and effort that has been put into recording our naval heritage, preserving it and displaying it. There are so many Naval Digests in the pipeline, oral histories secured for posterity, aspects of naval history that have been classified and made available to researchers, that any heritage group must be impressed.
Then there is SAS Assegaai which proves every day that submarines are fascinating, intriguing and perhaps a little bit scary. The visitors are loving the opportunity to tour her, guided by folk who bring alive life on board a submarine. The Submarine has not been open to visitors for a full year yet and there is still much that can be done to grow and improve the experience. It is an undertaking that I believe the Navy Musuem and the NHT are well suited to and more than capable of achieving.
So, with the Christmas break coming up shortly, we wish you all the best for the Festive Season: may it be peaceful, joyful and eventful in the best possible way. May 2026 be a happy and successful year.
Mike Bosazza
Naval Digests (ND) and Books in the pipeline
The allocated two Naval Digest for 2025 have all been received by the paid-up members. Those few who did not get their additions is mainly due to non-collection at the PEP Store. These Naval Digests will be posted with the 2026 digests.
The 2026 Naval Digest are ready for printing and will be in the post around June / July 2026. If any member will be away from home during these two months and not in a position to collect the books from their PEP Store kindly let me know by May 26. There will be a reminder to this in February/March 26.
A reminder as to what to expect in 2026
Naval Digest 42. Tim Johnson
This Digest is made up of Tim`s Oral History recorded by Glen Knox a few years ago and also includes articles by other Naval officers and friends.
Many of his paintings have also been included with kind permission of Joey Johnson.
Royal Naval Surveys in South African Waters 1793 – 1821 ND 43.
This ND was written by Captain Mike Barritt, RN.
The book contains interesting and fascinating stories of the early surveys along the SA coast line. Included are old and interesting photos of the early charts produced by the RN for marine operations along a very dangerous and unknown coast.
A new book of South African submariners serving on foreign submarines by MWO Dave Harrison, has been completed and is due for publication in early 2026.
Other books and NDs in the pipeline.
Naval Digest. Voyage to the Ice – SAS Outeniqua by Marga Ley. This ND has been completed and approval has been obtained by the original author to have it published. This ND is still due for publication in 2027.
The Trust has recently been given a complete book on the SA Naval Marines called MOES TROEP, Memoirs of a National Serviceman during the South African Border War by Brad Wills.
This book is in the process of being reformatted into a Naval Digest. The story line is hard hitting and extremely blunt which may well shock some readers. We are attempting not to change anything and publish it as it is. The Marine story during their training in SA and operations on the border are very different to the sea going navy and deserves to be told as it is. This Naval Digest is due for publication in 2027.
The books and Naval Digest below are in no particular publishing order:
- The Naval Career of Cdre Sam Davis is being put together by Arne Soderlund for a Naval Digest to be published in 2028. Historic items and documents on the Cdres life and career have been kindly handed over by his daughter who is very happy to see her father career in print. Some of the supplied documents are very humous, for anyone who knew him well or served in his ships will attest too and others are more shocking and display the crass way he was told his services were completed.
Anyone having additional stories or photos on the career of Sam Davis during his various appointments should kindly forward them to glenknox090@gmail.com - History of SAS Protea by Cdr Leon Steyn
- Hydrography in the SA Navy by Capt (Ret) Theo Stokes assisted by Capt (Ret) Abri Kamfer and Capt Nicholette le Roux.
- Top Sportsmen and Women of the SAN 1922 – 2026 by Capt Glen Knox and MWO Dave Harrison.
- SAS Drakensberg – Ops Pullen by RAdm (JG) Arne Soderlund, Capt Chris Dooner and SAS
- Outeniqua – Operation White Dove by Capt Glen Knox with assistance from those serving on board at the time.
- SAS Tafelberg – Ops Gypsy with diary input from CPO Rushby and Capt Bob Harrison
Voyage of the Dias by Capt Andrew Blake, a crew member of the Dias at the time. - The history of SAS Simonsberg by V Adm Loedolff and Cdr Leon Steyn
- Operation Savannah by R Adm (JG) Arne Soderlund and MWO Dave Harrison. With details from the SAS President Steyn, OC, Capt Sam Davis Report of Proceedings
- Sea / Naval Cadets in South Africa by Capt Waldie Bartie (SCC) – nearing completion.
- Sea / Naval Cadets in Cape Town by Capt Ruper Toms. Still very much in draft form.
- Through the Periscope by MWO Dave Harrison will be updated and reprinted.
- Warships visiting SA by Capt Bill Rice. This book will cover all the naval warships that have operated around the SA Coast.
- My Life, the naval career of R Adm Nic Smit. This book will be edited and formatted by Arne Soderlund before being published.
- The family of Capt G.F. Gower have compiled a magnificent album of his life and times including letters written during WWII. Heritage will be reformatting this for a ND.
- Oral History stories of past serving naval members. A short list is being discussed as to which stories can be safely used. Permission from the surviving families will then be obtained before progressing with the stories. It is envisaged that there will be 4 Oral History stories per Naval Digest. The trust will attempt to slot these smaller Naval Digest in with the yearly two.
New Books available through Naval Heritage
Beside the books listed below kindly check out the Naval Heritage webpage for the full list of Naval Digests and books available for purchase.
Foreign Submarine Visits to South Africa and Associated Exercises 1933 – 2023. By MWO Dave Harrison
This very interesting 198-page book on visiting submarines is still available to those interested in submarine exercises and visits.
The book contains fascinating stories on the visiting vessels. Almost every page has a photo to add to the storyline.
The book costs R150 for NH Society members and R180 retail, plus R60 for PAXI post if required.
S A Navy Diver. By Daniel Gericke
The two-book pictorial set on SAN Divers are still available from the office. Vol 1 is R1000 and Vol 2 is R650.
The two Naval Divers books Vol 1 and 2
The Heritage office has two of each book available. These two books will not be reprinted once sold out.
Veteran caps are also available from the Heritage office at R130.
Heritage Symposium
Naval Heritage attended first Heritage Symposium in late October 25. The Symposium was jointly arranged by C Log and Stellenbosch University (Milacad). Naval Heritage had been allocated a 10-minute slot along with the SA Legion and Moths. Unfortunately, due to poor time keeping by the organisers the NHT slot was diminished to 3 minutes and in the end not even presented by ourselves as the slot of 10 minutes had to then be shared by the SA Legion, Moths and ourselves with one speaker allowed. This was a serious disappointment as is the NHT are leaders in Oral Histories and Naval Digests within the SA Defence community.
Besides this setback there were a few important links made with other local organisations who are willing to assist and also learn from our experiences in this field.
After a month and a half there has been no official feedback from the organisers on the Symposium.
The local Cape based Heritage groups (NHT, SA Legion, Moths, Military Museums etc), have had a meeting to discuss the preserving and way ahead for Heritage in the Western Cape. The local organisation is now called Armed Forces Heritage Association (or Group still to be confirmed) (AFHA) With the aim of supporting and growing the Heritage interests within the Western Cape. Our next meeting is planned for February 2026.
Feedback will be provided in the next newsletter
NHT Office
The NHT office is operating from the ASSEGAAI Submarine Museum Park on the left side of Cole Point Parking area. Over the wall from the NSRI Station 10.
The office is open for members to visit on Mondays and Thursdays between 0930 and 1200. If you are in the area, you are most welcome to pop in for a chat. You will then be able to view the Heritage collection of books, paintings and Oral Histories in the Office. Visits to the office outside these times can also be arranged with any of the Trustees.
If you wish to confirm a visit, please message Glen on 0846861384 or Chris on 0845130617
The ASSEGAAI Submarine Museum is open daily from 0930 – 1500 for the public right alongside the NHT office.
NHT Subs 2024/25
Although the yearly subs for Naval Heritage were increased as of 1 January 2024, to cover the climbing printing and postal costs, there is as yet no envisaged increase during 2025
Besides the ND`s and book projects the Trust is also involved in Oral History recordings, and assistance to the Naval Museum and the Submarine Museum project. These projects cost, and funds need to be carefully allocated by the Board to ensure the Trust can meet its Heritage goals.
There are savings for those wanting the electronic copy of a Naval Digests. Published Books will still need to be hard copies.
Naval Heritage Society Subs are as follows. Please ensure the correct amount is transferred.
- Electronic copy only, subs R180 (no hard copy posted)
- Hard copy, subs R280. This will include the cost of the Paxi Post with Pep Stores. Hand delivered publications in the Cape Town area will also fall into this category as the Trustees will be required to travel around their allocated areas delivering the publications personally. Each Trustee will then be given a small travel allowance for this duty.
- Overseas delivery, subs R380 this will include the standard overseas postage with the Post Office (appears to be working better than local postal services)
- Corporate membership will also be R280.
Any other postage for additional books purchased will be on an individual basis through the Paxi system. (R60)
All members should let the Trust know,
- Which option they are choosing Electronic (via email) or Hard Copy,
- Which Pep Store is their desired delivery point and their correct cell number. Paxi Post will have the packages delivered within 7 days of posting. Their system is well controlled, and packages are tracked constantly.
- Hand deliveries will need correct street address, not a P.O. Box number
Notification of Pep Store delivery point or actual home address as applicable and correct Cell phone numbers should be sent to Andre Wessels at nhtmembership@gmail.com
Kindly note the the yearly subs are either R180 or R280 for local members and R380 for overseas members.
There are no subs at R150 or R200.
NHT DATABASE
The NHT has at considerable cost just installed a database in the NHT office for the first time. This database on a 6 TB HDD now holds the electronic copies of all the Oral Histories, Newsletters, Membership data, published Naval Digests and books, financial records, historic photographs, large book collection (SA books, RN publications, and general books and then collectors and rare books that the NHT has purchased and the asset register of donated items. The loading of data and photographs will be continued over the next few months.
Prior to this all the data was retained on the Trustees laptops and standalone computers at their homes. It is now all under one roof in the NHT Office. There is a backup drive which is held by Glen and he has the master drive backed up each month.
This central database is a great step forward for Naval Heritage.
NHT Library of Collected Books
The trust has built up a considerable collection of nautical books on the SAN and other navies. A full stocktake has been completed and all duplicate books are being offered for sale at the office over the December/January tourist period. This will bring in additional funding for the Trust
Books remaining after this will be passed along to the Sea Cadet base at Zandvlei.
If any member is clearing out nautical books, lose photos and photo albums or paintings, please remember the Trust we are always happy to receive these either for our collection or passing along to the Naval Museum and Sea Cadets
Oral History Program
Every day of your life is a page of your history.
The Heritage Trusts Oral History program has continued strongly. There are 368 completed Oral Histories in the Heritage collection
One-on-One recordings slowed in the last reporting period, however a concerted effort with be made in the new year to continue with both Glen and Eddie making inroads into the considerable backlog.
Mini Oral Histories with the info being obtained from family members, old Navy News articles and other documents are always being sourced and make up a valuable additional source of heritage life stories.
The oral histories presently being proofread include Capt Peter De Beer Strydom, Capt Chris Dooner, Capt Richard Loydell, RAdm Steve du Toit.
There were no new Oral Histories completed since the last report:
WO1 Roy Marks continues putting his book together and Capt Gerrit Rademeyer is also working on his book of his naval career.
A trip to both the Cape South Coast and Durban areas for a recording session remains on the cards for early 2026 and will be programmed in once 10 candidates have been confirmed for each area. The next recording trip to the Pretoria region will be later in 2026. Interested readers should contact Glen Knox to set a date for a recording.
We would encourage Society members to start writing their own Oral Histories – an hour or two each week is all it takes. However, if you would prefer a recording to be conducted as part of this important Heritage project, please get in contact with Glen Knox on his email glenknox090@gmail.com or through WhatsApp on 084 686 1384.
Membership
New members to the NHT Society are warmly welcomed and we trust you will all enjoy the publications produced and interacting with the Trust and Society members.
The new member/s since September 2025 are:
- M Venter (Corporate member, Muzzle Loading Guns)
- Lee Connolly
We would like to encourage all Society members to recruit amongst their own friends and other retired Naval and Defence personnel who are not yet members, to join up if they are interested in SA Navy and SA Naval Heritage. The Application form is on the SA Naval Heritage fb site and on the Heritage web page.
Membership for the Naval Heritage Society now stands at 241 paid up members. With 12 members arrears in payments.
Society members who do not respond to membership renewal emails and are non-paying for 6 months after renewal date are unfortunately removed from the Heritage data base and will not be receiving any further Naval Digests.
If you are moving home or changing your email addresses, kindly update any new addresses with Andre Wessels. Confirmation of your Email, postal address and cell numbers may be sent to the membership secretary at nhtmembership@gmail.com.
Naval Heritage Website
The Naval Heritage web page continues to be maintained by the Web Master, Nicholas Dunn. The webpage has been accessed by 23429 interested readers. Sections to be found on the webpage include, Naval Digests, published Books, background to the Trust and Trustees, History of the SAN, Navy 100, Vintage Naval videos and ASSEGAAI Submarine Museum
We encourage all our Society members to log on and see the additional items on display. The link for the site is navalheritagetrust.co.za
Typing in SA Naval Heritage Trust will also link you to the page.
Additional books and Naval Digests can also be ordered through the website.
Where can you purchase Naval Heritage books and Digests?
All our published Naval Digests and books are available at the NHT Office in Simon`s Town at the Submarine Museum Park or through the Naval Heritage web page. Remember paid up members get a big discount on all purchases bought at the office or online. Postal deliveries are worked through Pep Store Paxi at R60. Payments for the books can either be cash or card.
Other stockists include
- Enkosi Africa gift and souvenir shop, Simon`s Town.
- STADCO on Jubilee square, Simon`s Town.
- The SA Naval Museum and
- ASSEGAAI Submarine Museum Gift counter
These venues only hold a selection of the inventory and sell the publications at the full retail price.
To check out the full range of Naval Heritage titles kindly consult the NH Webpage for titles and prices
SA Naval Heritage Society Facebook Site
The NHT fb site has now grown steadily to 7393 members. This site continues to be extremely popular with many positive interactions re historic memories of the SAN. The daily Shipwreck Heritage Report from SAHRA makes for additional fascinating reading each day.
Are you a member of this Facebook site yet? If not click on it and join in the daily discussions and also encourage your friends with naval interests to join this active fb site
Naval Heritage Trust Banking details
This account can be used for all payments of yearly subs, books purchases and donations.
Naval Heritage Trust
Standard Bank code 051001 Account number 072 102 276
SUBMARINE MUSEUM UPDATE: October 2025
Reported by Alisa, Assegaai Manager
The Assegaai Submarine Museum has been open for almost a year and has welcomed over 24000 visitors on board. We have had visitors from over 100 countries and territories enjoying the efforts and sometimes somewhat tall tales from the various guides, We are going from strength to strength and gathering various bits and pieces of information, photos, documentation and even actual bits of submarine (especially from the Emily so I am hopeful if we get a few more pieces, we would almost be able to rebuild her!)
We also acquired a periscope from an old British WW2 era X-craft submarine which is trained onto the False Bay Yacht Club marina so that kids and adults alike can view the world like a submariner. We have plans to include 2 Plaines -men seats (kindly donated by Dave Harrison) with control yokes (kindly donated by John Lamont) into the display room so one can also play at diving the sub.
We have had quite a few school groups from all over the country coming through and most have indicated that they will be back and also encourage other grades and affiliated schools to come visit.
The Christmas season is almost upon us and we are expecting the crowds to come as last year we had to make plans and accommodate even more visitors than the allocated 170 per day.
The Submarine will be closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years Day
The cost for entry into the submarine is:
- R 80 Adults
- R60 Seniors
- R40 Children under 12
Kind Regards
Alisa
Assegaai Submarine Museum Manager
Naval Heritage Trust Board
- Chairman: Mike Bosazza
- Vice Chairman: Capt Glen Knox (Ret)
- Secretary: Capt Trunell Morom (Ret)
- Treasurer: Mrs Glynnis Hellemann
- Trustee: RAdm (JG) Arne Soderlund (Ret)
- Member: Capt Chris Dooner (Ret)
- Trustee: Cdr Eddie Wesselo (Ret)
- Trustee: Cdr Mac Bisset (Ret)
- Member: WO1 David Harrison (Ret)
- Trustee: WO1 Andre Wessels (Ret)
- Web Master: Nicholas Dunn
- Volunteer staff: WO1 Harry Croome
Next newsletter – February 2026
Let us know how you feel about the newsletter.
Those that provided feedback on the last newsletter many thanks.
Glen Knox