The Groot Constantia estate was formerly part of the farm Constantia, which was granted to Simon van der Stel in 1685. The land was sub-divided after his death in 1712, and this portion was acquired in 1885 by the Colonial Government as an experimental wine farm. It has remained a working wine estate through to the present day. The Cape Dutch manor house, known as Groot Constantia, was originally built by Simon van der Stel in 1692, and after its destruction in a fire on 19 December 1925, it was restored by architect FK Kendall in 1926-27. A second Cape Dutch manor house on the property, known as Hoop op Constantia, is a U-plan house with three gables, and was formerly known as Klein Constantia. It was declared a National Monument under old NMC legislation on17 April 1936.

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