Poetically known as the 'City of Roses', the birthplace of the ANC will next week also become the official birthplace of its breakaway and rival, the Congress of the People (Cope).

"Bloemfontein has historical and spiritual meaning to the ANC and that's why we are returning there this weekend for a mass rally," KwaZulu-Natal ANC chairperson Zweli Mkhize said on Thursday.

The ANC was founded on 8 January, 1912 ? and was then known as the SA Native National Congress (SANNC).

In 1923, the organisation changed its name to the ANC.

Bloemfontein was also the birthplace of the National Party.

In a 1990 speech, former president Nelson Mandela described the ANC as "a child of Bloemfontein", saying "the umbilical cord of the ANC" was buried there.

In a later speech, Mandela said Bloemfontein played an important role in the evolution of South Africa, "starting from the conflicts and divisions of the past to the reconciliation of today".

"This was the birthplace of the African National Congress and the National Party, organisations that largely came to determine the political landscape of our country," he said.

Bloemfontein, Mandela said, reflected the "crossroads of our history ? a geographic centre and a political hub in its own right".

In his speech, Mandela said: "Once an outpost of an invading colonial force... today it is the seat of a democratically elected non-racial provincial government."

A perfect location

Mkhize said Bloemfontein was the perfect spot to hold a mass rally ahead of the elections. The rally, he said, was a joint effort with the MK Veterans Association.

"This the place were the ANC started off and now we are returning, and we know we will succeed again," he said.

It was the perfect spot to secure votes, he said.

Acknowledging the significance the city had to the ruling party, Cope spokesperson Smuts Ngonyama on Thursday said the reason for choosing Bloemfontein to launch their party had nothing to do with the ANC.

"Bloemfontein is central to everything. We identified that space as being the most reachable to all our members from the different provinces.

"If we launched our party in Gauteng, it would be too far for our Western Cape members and vice-versa," he said.

Free State police Superintendent Motantsi Makhele said both events would be closely monitored and that strict security would be deployed to ensure safety of residents and tourists.

He said any sort of violence would not be acceptable or tolerated.