No other South African prison incarcerated the number of world-renowned men and women as those held within the walls of Constitution Hill’s Old Fort, Women's Jail and Number Four. During its 100-year history as a prison, tens of thousands of ordinary people, men and women of all ages, races, creeds, social standings, and political agendas, as well as children, were incarcerated here. Most recent prisoners included Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, Joe Slovo, Albertina Sisulu, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela and Fatima Meer.

The history of every South African can be traced through its existence. It began in 1893 as prison, and while it continued to function as one, it also evolved into a military fort, a prisoner of war camp, a prison for strikers, women, neo-nazis, and political prisoners fighting against apartheid. In the worst period of Apartheid, it became a national monument.

Almost 100 years after it was commissioned, it was closed. Never in the best of repair, it was now left to fall into even worse decay.

After becoming newly democratic South Africa’s first black president, Nelson Mandela appointed the Constitutional Court judges. They choose the Old Fort prison complex, commonly known as Number Four, as the site of the new Constitutional Court premises, partly because of its accessibility and the space it provides, but primarily because of its historical and symbolic importance. It was fitting that the Constitutional Court was inaugurated on Human Rights Day, 21 March 1995 by then President Thabo Mbeki. Constitution Hill is open to the public and provides visitors with a unique perspective on South Africa’s remarkable transition to democracy, from the injustices of the past represented by the prison complex, to the democratic future represented by the court which endorses the rights of all citizens.