The beauty of this region, with it’s endless bushveld plains teeming with wildlife, it’s hundreds of spectacular waterfalls and vast stretches of emerald green forests, it’s colourful history and ancient legends, never fails to capture the imagination. Over the years, this region spawned many a story of unbelievable adventure. This is the real Africa, it’s natural attractions waiting to be explored and enjoyed.

INTRODUCTION

SOUTHERN GRASS & WETLANDS

The Southern Grass & Wetland region takes in the towns of Amsterdam, Piet Retief, Volksrust and Wakkerstroom. This is an area of exceptional beauty; a region of rolling hills and deep valleys with a temperate climate. Wakkerstroom is one of the prime birding destinations in the country. The region is also a centre for hikers, hang gliders, mountain bikers and anglers. The Northern Grass & Wetlands region is set on the central highveld of Mpumalanga and takes in the towns of Carolina, Chrissiesmeer, Ermelo and Lothair. This is primarily a farming and forestry region. Vleis and dams provide excellent fishing and bird watching opportunities, hiking and mountain biking trails. A number of archaeological sites shed light on the region’s colourful past.

Cities / Towns:

Amersfoort, Amsterdam, Badplaas, Carolina, Chrissiesmeer, Ermelo, Lothair, Piet Retief, Volksrust, Wakkerstroom

THE HIGHVELD & COSMOS

The Highveld region covers a wide area of high altitude grassland. The area is the principal power generating centre of a large part of the country. It is also a major agricultural and maize growing area, producing exceptionally high yields consistently. Numerous coal mines supply the power stations, which in turn attract major industry such as Sasol’s oil from coal plant at Secunda, steel mills at Witbank and the stainless steel plant at Middelburg. The region presents one of the country’s largest centres for industrial development, manufacture and employment. Visitors who are interested in industrial photography are able to capture interesting scenic panoramic shots of huge power generating plants set in open country, often in mist shrouded conditions. The area offers a number of excellent bird watching sites. The irrigated farmlands of the Loskop Dam and Groblersdal form part of the region. Cosmos and Highveld Ridge takes in the towns of Bethal, Delmas, Secunda and Standerton. The area features open grassland, vleis and low hills, and is a major agricultural production centre. In late summer the veld comes alive with the blooming of the cosmos flower which have spread to every corner of the region. This is an gently rolling country and an excellent scenic route to destinations further eastwards.

Cities / Towns

Bethal, Delmas, Evander, Groblersdal, Middelburg, Secunda, Standerton, Trichardt, Witbank.

GREATER ESCARPMENTS

This is one of the prime tourism areas of Mpumalanga, stretching from the Northern Province border southward following the line of the Drakensberg escarpment to the Swaziland border in the south. Some of the most dramatic scenery in South Africa can be found in the area, through which numerous mountain routes pass. On the higher reaches of the escarpment are the trout fishing villages of Belfast, Dullstroom, Lydenburg, Macdadodorp and Waterval Boven. Lower down, on the eastern slopes are the historical mining villages of Pilgrim’s Rest and Ohrigstad and the forestry towns of Sabie and Graskop. No visit to Mpumalanga would be complete without a stopover in this beautiful region, which offers visitors a wide range of activities and accommodation.

Cities / Towns

Belfast, Burgersfort, Dullstroom, Graskop, Lydenburg, Machadodorp, Ohrigstad, Pilgrim’s Rest, Roossenekal, Sabie, Waterval Boven, Waterval Onder.

THE LOWVELD

The Lowveld region of Mpumalanga offers tourists a unique African experience. Wildlife reserves have been created to conserve a large part of the eastern extremes of the province along the Mozambique border. These include the world famous Kruger National Park – offering unmatched wildlife and bird viewing. The areas not covered by the parks and reserves is primarily agricultural – it is here that many of the country’s tropical fruit and vegetables are grown. The southern lowveld and middleveld regions lies between the southern boundary of the Kruger National Park and the Swaziland border, is part of the area now termed the Maputo-Nelspruit development corridor. The history of the region is mirrored in the hills and valleys of the region, where San (Bushmen) rock engravings, archaeological ruins, wagon trails and early gold diggings are accessible to the visitor for exploration. Numerous pursuits across the wide spectrum of adventure tourism are enjoyed in this region, making it a truly unique tourism and holiday destination. Hotels, guest houses and bed and breakfast establishments cater for those tourist, whose choice of alternative routes to the lowveld via Badplaas and Barberton take them through beautiful mountain scenery on quiet country roads.

Cities / Towns
Barberton, Hazyview, Komatiepoort, Malelane, Nelspruit, White River

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

In the mountains above Barberton scientists have found traces of ‘Stromatolites’, the remnants of blue-green algae formed 3500 million years ago when oxygen was added to the earth’s first evolutionary step towards life forms.

Throughout the Mpumalanga hills and mountains exist hundreds of examples of San (Bushman) art. This art serves as a window looking into the lives of the San hunters and gatherers who inhabited the area centuries before the arrival of the Nguni people from the north.

The region abounded with all types of game, plants, birds and insects. The rivers ran full, providing for the needs of these early inhabitants. Later came the first of the Nguni people who arrived with herds of cattle, and mined red ochre in the hills south of Malelane. Early smelters, which pre-date the main Nguni infux, have been excavated, indicating that the use of iron and copper was well advanced during these years. Similarly, early pottery fragments and sculptural artifacts unearthed in the hills on the Long Tom Pass, notably the ‘Lydenburg heads’ have been described as a major art find.

Scientists have discovered evidence that clearly suggests the presence of Asiatic people who lived and mined in several regions of Mpumalanga. Stone terraced walls, religious icons and grave sites point to the presence of Hindu believers. These people landed at the mouth of the Komati river,traveled inland to the Mpumalanga middleveld to Badplaas, Lydenburg and the Steenkampsberg mountains where they established cultural and residential centres. The name Komati is the same name as the name of a well known Indian trading tribe, while the Nguni and Swahili word for cattle in the same Indian language. A number of Swazi cultural events are celebrated at the same time as Hindu ceremonies suggesting an historical association. Historians and archaeologists are working to date the presence of these people more precisely.

Around 1400 AD the second Nguni migration arrived from the north with their vast herds of cattle. These people had advanced the art of iron smelting, and built stone-walled houses for their settlements.

The creation of the Swazi nation as we know it today commenced at the time of King Ngwane. The area, which was then demarcated by tridal boundaries, was referred to as KaNgwane, a name that still stands. Clans forged friendships with other clans through marriage and for safety of numbers, while frequent raids against neighbouring clans served to replenish cattle herds and to extend tribal lands.

The movements of tribal chiefs through the region had a profound effect on the formation and bonding of nations. Most notable was the influence of Zulu king Shaka, whose empire stretched southwards from the Swaziland border to the Tugela River. Shoshangane, who escaped from Zululand and settled in the Gaza Province of Mozambique, was the founder of the Shangane people, while Mzilikazi, after being forced to the flee Zululand to escape the wrath of Shaka, travelled through the region on his way north to establish an empire in southern Zimbabwe. His passage was marked by death and destruction as he sought to subjugate the Ndebele people.

For centuries, Mpumalanga was populated by warrior clans who roamed the hills and plains in search of grazing for their cattle and safety for their people. Theirs was a life of war and survival as the centres of power moved from one clan to another. The oral tradition passed down in the folklore of the people is today an important record of the lives and tribal history of the inhabitants.

To the west, in the Steelpoort Valley, the Ndebele people settled with their herds. Historians have traced their arrival to the late 17^th century. Thereafter, their tumultuous history has been woven around the constant state of conflict, and it is to the credit of their leaders, even to the present day, that this small but proud group have maintained their language and culture. After Zulu chief Mzilikazi wreaked havoc on the Ndebele as his army passed through their territory, the Boer settlers from the west later claimed the land and set up a government at Ohrigstad.

Conflict between Boer, British, Pedi and Ndebele followed, and for many years a state of low intensity war existed, until the Ndebele leaders, Mabhoko and Nyabela, led their clan in a determined effort to drive the settlers back to the Vaal River. They failed.

The arrival of white settlers, led by Andries Potgieter, between 1836 and 1845 heralded a new era in the history of the region. A Boer party, under the command of Hans van Rensburg , was massacred in the lowveld by Shoshangane’s warriors during 1836. Later, a Portuguese settler named Joao Albasini settled near Pretoriuskop, where he established a trading station on what was later to be called the Albasini Route, to Delagoa Bay.

In 1871 the region came to life with the discovery of alluvial gold on a farm near Pietersburg. Later finds at Graskop, Sabie, Pilgrim’s Rest and Barberton focused international attention on this little known corner of Africa.

Diggers, financiers, fortune hunters and their entourages arrived to settle, and to take part in the gold rush fever that was to sweep the region. Claims offices were set up, stocks and shares were traded through a simple yet effective exchange, and towns and villages prospered. New wagon routes to the coast at Delgoa Bay were worked by hundreds of wagons, hauling much needed supplies to the booming communities. The gold bearing reeds were soon exhausted, however and with the discovery of huge gold deposits on the Witwatersrand and communities moved westwards to new fields and new opportunities.

Agriculture then took as the region’s major source of wealth. The rich soil and the subtropical climate were suited to the growing of citrus and other tropical fruits. Timber companies moved on to state lands near Sabie to plant and harvest exotic hard and soft woods. Today Mpumalanga boasts the largest man-made forest in southern Africa.

Mpumalanga still carries the scars of a turbulent past, of war and government decrees that favoured some over others, that separated, discriminated and forcibly removed certain peoples from their lands for the benefit of others. All this is now past, and today Mpumalanga stands proudly at the gateway to a future that will be shared by all of it’s people with the hope and trust that the years ahead will strengthen and suite the diverse ethnicity of Mpumalanga.

THE LAND AND THE PEOPLE

The Early Inhabitants

Red ochre mines at Dumaneni, 6 km south fo Malelane, and at Lion Cavern, a site in the Ngwenya mountains, are some of the oldest mining sites in the world, attesting to the early presence of man in Mpumalanga, some 46 000 years ago. The red ochre – ludvumane in siSwati, which means ‘four times the sound of thunder’ – emphasises the importance of this mineral to early African civilizations. Ochre was used by chiefs and diviners, who covered their bodies with a mixture of this deep red mineral and animal fats in order to endow themselves with power.

Later, San (Bushmen) used ochre both to decorate their bodies and in the manufacture if pigments. Examples of San (Bushman) rock art can be found throughout the province, marking the passage of these hunter-gatherers. Early indications of the presence of the species Australopithecus and Homo erectus take us back to the dawn of time, placing Mpumalanga in the cradle of the emergence of civilization in Africa.

In more recent times, archaeologist have unearthed evidence from the Late Stone Age – ornaments, tools, arrow heads and pottery.

In about 1400 AD, came the massive southern migration of tribes from the north, who brought with them vast herds of cattle, as well as techniques for iron smelting. These tribes built sophisticated stone walled villages, and established a culture that survives to this day.

Finally, the European settlers came, invading the province from the east and west, bringing an entirely different culture – a culture which demanded the exploitation of the land and it’s resources, that led to conflict and war.

The Ndebele

The Ndebele people of northwest Mpumalanga now live in the area around Dennilton where, after a century of struggle, they were granted land on which to re-establish their people, who had been scattered throughout South Africa by war and restrictive legislation. The history of these people has been one of hardship and rurmoil as successive waves of foreigners invaded their historic homeland.

The Ndebele are a Nguni people. During the third centuries they migrated to the Zebedelia and Pretoria areas in a series of migrations, and it was in this region that they established their tribal lands during the mid 17^th century.

When Zulu chief Mzilikazi was driven out of Zululand by Shaka, he decimated both the Ndzundza and Manala clans of the Ndebele as he passed through the area on his way to establish a kingdom at Bulawayo in southern Zimbabwe. The Ndzundza clan regrouped under their chief, Mabhoka, near the Mapoch Caves in the Roossenekal district.

During the early 1840’s an increasing number of Boer farmers arrived to settle the area, which, in turn led to strife and conflict with the Ndebele. Chief Mabhoka was a dynamic leader who was determined to defend both his rights and his lands.

When the Boers refused to vacate his tribal lands and return to their former position south of the Vaal River, armed conflict ensued.

The Ndebele were hounded by both Boer farmers and their northern neighbours, the Pedi, in a low level war that lasted until 1882. That they survived is a credit to their leaders, who constantly displayed remarkable qualities and skills in almost impossible circumstances.

When the Pedi chief, Sekhukhune, was murdered in 1882 the balance of power in the region changed, and the Boers turned on Myabela, then chief of the Ndebele, to prevent him from staging an unprising. The Boers declared war on Nyabela on 7^th November 1882. in the ensuing conflict the Boers laid siege to the Ndebele at the Mapoch Caves where the Ndebele forces had set up defensive positions.

The bitter siege lasted eight months, during which time the Boers used every tactic possible to defeat the Ndebele, including the use of dynamite, to cut off their source of supplies. The Boer forces were finally able to enforce the surrender of Nyabela, who was sentenced to life imprisonment. His men were dispersed and forced to live in groups as indentured labourers on the surrounding farms.

The plight of the Ndebele, now scattered over a wide area, came to the attention of the authorities in 1965 through a number of organizations which had been established to fight for the tribe’s unification. Simon Skosana and KM Mtsweni, both leaders of the Ndebele worked tirelessly to bring together the chiefs and headmen under a common banner. They were rewarded in 1972 when the Dennilton area was declared an Ndebele homeland.

In 1986, however, further trouble ensued when the supporters of SS Skosana clashed with those of the Royal House led by Prince James Mahlangu. The prince emerged as the leader in subsequent elections. The KwaNdebele government was later disbanded after the national elections of 1994, when the sea was officially re-incorporated into the province of Mpumalanga and into South Africa.

Today a bronze sculpture of the Ndebele leader Nyabela stands outside the Mapoch Caves, to remind the descendants of this brave and proud people of their turbulent past.

The Swazi

The Swazi people can trace their origins to a region in Kenya on the slopes of Mount Kenya, some 140 km north of Nairobi. They arrived in southern Africa under their chief, Dlamini, and settled initially near Maputo. The tribe then moved southwards to the Pongola River and later still into present by Swaziland where it developed it’s Swazi identity under King Sobhuza I (1815 – 1836) and later his son, King Mswati II. The latter was credited with uniting the many clans into one nation. Mswati II also set out to enlarge his empire by attacking this northern neighbours to as far north as Venda and the Limpopo River.

King Mswati was a cruel and determined leader whose army was greatly feared. However, in one engagement, his army attacked the Pulana clan in the valleys of the Blyde River hurling rocks down on them from the cliffs above. The survivors of this battle, fearing reprisals if they returned to their king, settled to the north of Swaziland in small pockets, where the same families live to this day.

Mswati II died at the royal village at Hhohho in July 1865, and is buried at Mbilaneni alongside his father and grandfather. The kingship of the nation passed to a succession of short lived appointments, until the infant Nkhotfotjeni was appointed heir to the throne. On his inauguration he took the title King Sobhuza II. He resigned for 60 years between 1921 and 1982 and was succeeded by his son Mswati III.

Today the Swazi people of Mpumalanga retain many cultural and language links with the people of Swaziland, and cross the borders freely to attend family and social gatherings.

The Shangane

Manukosi Shoshangane Nxumalo, a fighting general in Zwide’s Ndwandwe army, was defeated by Shaka’s army in Zululand and driven north of the Inkomati River, where he established a new kingdom in the Gaza Province of Mozambique. Over the years his empire grew through alliances with local chiefs and through war, until it extended to as far north as the Zambezi River.

When Shoshangane died in 1856 he was succeeded by one of his two sons, Mawewe. The new king, in turn, fell victim to inter-family fighting and was deposed by his brother Mzila. Years of fighting throughout the region then weakened the Shangane empire, and in the absence of strong leadership the clans scattered through a wide area of Mpumalanga, the Northern Province and Mozambique.

Today the Shangane nation is once again well defined stretching from south of Bushbuckridge into the Northern Province, and eastwards into Mozambique.

The Pedi

The Pedi, who occupy the land across the northern border of Mpumalanga in the Northern Province, have had a strong influence on the history and development of the Mpumalanga through the years.

Many of their leaders have contributed meaning fully to the development of the province, and are set to continue to do so in the new South Africa.

The Europeans and Asians

Mpumalanga today is made up of a truly diverse mix of nations, the product of a pioneering history that attracted armies, adventurers and travelers from all corners of the world. They came to farm the land, to prospect for minerals, to hunt big game, or as businessmen to trade and prosper from the many economic opportunities that arose as the region development. Others arrived from Europe to lay the railway from Maputo to Pretoria.

Today the names of the descendants of these pioneers are often remembered in the names of towns, mountains and rivers across the province.

The Land

High up on an outcrop of granite overlooking the Sabie River, 25 000 years ago, a San hunter stands poised, taking in every movement on the plain below. This is Africa. The great sky and the silence so characteristic of Mpumalanga, great herds of game moving cautiously towards the river as the sun dips on to the western escarpment. Little has changed, and today we can savour the same thrill of the wild, albeit in more secure and comfortable circumstances.

The early pioneers, who created the game sanctuaries of the lowveld, would not have understood the implications of their vision. For the most part they were lovers of nature first, and administrators second. They sought to conserve within their immediate environment, and it was only when the success of their work was recognised that these reserves took on a more urgent role in the conservation of the area as a whole.

Other regions followed the example of these pioneers by creating more conservation points; today we can see the emergence of a balanced and natural environment that caters for the needs of both the local communities and the tourists who come to Mpumalanga to see and experience the mystique of Africa. What the San hunter saw and experienced 25 000 years ago is still there for the tourist to discover and to enjoy.

Mpumalanga is now a modern and progressive region in South Africa, where the old and the new combine to create a truly exceptional atmosphere for tourism. Modern hotels and guest houses, private game reserves and lodges all provide for the needs of the visitor, while conference facilities, sporting activities, historic tours and game viewing are available through an excellent transport network of road, rail and air.

Mpumalanga is a prime destination in Africa where an awareness of the needs of the tourist area promoted by a people whose friendliness and concern are unmatched. They will welcome you to this diverse and exciting province, and invite you to experience the uniqueness of the land and the people.

TIME CHART OF MPUMALANGA

Evidence of human habitation in Mpumalanga points to the presence of man dating back many million of years. In more recent times this evidence has been supported by the discovery of exciting new sites which are adding to the knowledge of the historic phases of habitation by man. Migrations and wars caused a constant flow of peoples across the land, among them hunter gatherers, itinerant miners, slave traders, and tribesmen migrating southwards in search of grazing lands for their cattle. All have left their individual stamp on this corner of Africa.

(BC) 100 000

Evidence of early and middle stone age implements of the period.

(BC) 46 000

Red ochre (haematite) mined at Dumaneni near Malelane and Lion Cavern in Swaziland

(BC) 25 000

The presence of San people evidenced by the large number of rock art sites throughout the province. Stone flint arrow heads and simple implements from Middle and Late Stone Ages confirm uninterrupted presence by early man.

(BC) 1500

Tribes arrived from the north with cattle and sheep. There is evidence of iron, copper and pottery work, and proof of these people living in villages to protect their herds from wild animals.

(AD) 1400

There was a massive second migration of people from the north, who brought large herds of cattle, sophisticated iron tools and weapons, and who lived in stone fortified villages.

1700

Ndebele people settled in northwest Mpumalanga

1725

Portuguese explorers, led by Frans de Kuiper, traveled up to Crocodile River to Gomondwana where they were attacked by local inhabitants and forced to return to the coast.

1815

King Sobhuza I was crowned king of Swazis

1819

Shaka, the Zulu king, defeated Ndwandwe chief Zwide, who was driven out of Zululand and settled on the Komati River. Part of his army, led by one of his generals, Shoshangane, traveled further north of Gaza to establish a new kingdom, the ancestors of the present day Shangane people.

1836

Boer leader Hans van Rensburg and his entire expedition massacred by the Shoshangane army at the confluence of the Olifants and Limpopo Rivers.

1838

Louis Trichardt arrived at Delagoa Bay from the hinter land thereby opening a route to the coast.

1845

King Mswati II of the Swazis succeeded to the throne to start a period of conquest throughout the region.

Joao Albasini, the early European pioneer, settled at Pretoriuskop where he established a trading post on the main route to Delagoa Bay. The town of Ohrigstad was founded.

1856

Hot sulphur springs at Badplaas found by Jacob de Clerq

1859

The village of Wakkerstroom was founded on the farm Krynauwslust

1861

Pedi chief Sekwati died, causing destabilisation of the northern area.

1863

Clashes between Boer forces and Ndzundza

1864

The Pulana attracked by King Mswati’s army near Blyde River Canyon, suffering humiliating defeat when the tribe rolled huge rocks down the walls of the canyon on to the king’s troops below.

The town of Middelburg, originally named Nazareth, was founded

Fort Merensky, a mission station near Middelburg, was founded to protect Christians from Sekhukhune, who was conducting a campaign against Christian followers of Chief Sekwati.

1867

James Stevenson – Hamilton, the first chief warden of the Kruger National Park, was born

1871

Gold was discovered on the farm Geelhoutboom and at Graskop, east of Lydenburg

1873

Gold was discovered in Lone Peach Tree Creek by Alex Patterson. The area was later called Pilgrim’s Rest

1876-7

The Sekhukhune War

1879

The town of Ermelo was founded

1881

The Battle of Majuba (First War of Independence)

1882

Pedi chief Sekhukhune was killed by supporters of Mampuru

1882

Boers declared war on Ndebele chief Nyabela. Gold was discovered at Berlin near Kaapschehoop, and at the confluence of the Noordkaap River and Jamestown Creek.

The town of Carolina was founded

1883

Boers under Commandant General Piet Joubert defeated Chief Nyabela in battle at the Mapoch Caves, where the defenders were forced to surrender. The Boers used dynamite to cut off the defenders’ supply lines.

1884

Large gold deposits were discovered near Barberton, leading to the establishment of the town, which was named after the Barber family.

1887

Construction of the Eastern Railway Line from Delagoa Bay to Pretoria was started.

The town of Nelspruit was founded

1890

Belfast was founded, and named after the city in Northern Ireland by the owner of the land, Richard O’Neill.

1893

The village of Dullstroom on the Mpumalanga highlands, was founded

1895

The railway station at Machadodorp named after Joachim Machado, Governor General of Mozambique, for the role he played in surveying the Eastern Line to Pretoria. During the Anglo Boer War (1900), Machdadodorp was made the capital of the ZAR.

Waterval Boven was established as a railway depot during the construction of the Eastern Railway Line.

1898

Land between the Sabie and Crocodile Rivers was proclaimed a game sanctuary

1899

Start of Anglo Boer War

King Sobhuza II of the Swazis was born, and named to succeed to the throne when only four months old. He became the longest reiging Swazi monarch in history, dying in 1982.

1900

Battle of Bergendal (Anglo Boer War)

1902

End of the Anglo Boer War. Colonel Stevenson- Hamilton was appointed head ranger of the Sabie Game Reserve

1903

The town of Witbank was laid out and named after a white ridge of stone