Swaziland, a small kingdom in Africa

Swaziland is a small kingdom that is completely surrounded by South Africa. The Swazi, as the people are called, exist of different clans, similar to the Scots.  

Swaziland has a wide variety of landscapes in such a small country. A large part consists of mountainous area with rivers, waterfalls and gorges. Further there are lush and fertile valleys and typical African bush. 

History of Swaziland

In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, Africans of Nguni descent migrated southwards from Central Africa. In the mid-eighteenth century, some of them settled in the area which is today southern Swaziland. These people, the Nkosi Dlamini, became known as the Swazis. Even today those two names are still used. Nkosi means king and Dlamini is the surname of the royal family. The royal line of Dlamini dates back to about 1550. In 1879 the British dismantled the Zulu kingdom, and to secure the Swazis independence the king gave the British grazing, mining and trade concessions. This attracted unscrupulous agents and opportunists and ironically resulted in loss of territorial independence as concessions were converted into freehold title in the Land partition of 1907. Swaziland stayed a protectorate of England until the independence in 1968. It was then reigned first by Queen Gwamile, as regent, and then by King Sobhuza II. It was a time of stability and rapid economic growth. Following Sobhuza’s death in 1982, Queen Dzeliwe became regent until King Mswati III ascended the throne in 1986 at the age of 18 years. 

Choosing the King

The heir to the throne is chosen according to his mother’s status. A Queen mother is selected by the Royal Council, following the old Kings death, based on her high rank. The King is always a Dlamini and never intermarries, so the Queen mother is never a Dlamini. The future king must be her only son and he must still be unmarried. He is expected to choose wives from various clans to ensure national unity. The power lies with the King, Ngwenyama (the lion) and the Queen mother, Ndlovukazi (the she elephant). 

The regions of Swaziland

Swaziland is divided in four regions. In the north-western part of the country lies the Hhohho region. The capital of Swaziland, Mbabane, lies in this region. The second largest town in this region is Piggs Peak. It is named after William Pigg, who discovered a gold reef in the area. Gold was mined between 1882 and 1954. Today, forestry is the main industry and tourism has grown a lot too. In the central area you find the Manzini region. It is the country’s largest industrial area. The eastern part is called the Lubombo region, after the mountains that form the border with Mozambique. Here you find the greatest concentration of nature reserves. It also has huge sugar estates. Finally, the Shiselweni region runs across the southern section of Swaziland, which is mostly agricultural. 

General information

The climate is temperate to sub-tropical. In the highveld you get warm summers and cool winters, while the middle- and lowveld have hot, humid summers and mild winters. The altitude in Swaziland varies from 1800 metres (1,968 yards) above sea level in the west, to 400 metres (437 yards) above sea level in the east. Swaziland is only 17,000 square kilometres (6,564 square miles) in size. The official languages are siSwati and English.

Sources: www.todio.nl