Ulundi, also known as Mahlabathini, is a town in the

Zululand District Municipality Zululand is one of the 11 district municipalities ("districts") of KwaZulu-Natal province. The seat of Zululand is Ulundi. The majority of its 803,575 people speak IsiZulu (2011 Census). The district code is DC26. It is part of a larger histori ...

. At one time the capital of

Zulu Kingdom The Zulu Kingdom (, ), sometimes referred to as the Zulu Empire or the Kingdom of Zululand, was a monarchy in Southern Africa. During the 1810s, Shaka established a modern standing army that consolidated rival clans and built a large followin ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...

and later the capital of the

Bantustan A Bantustan (also known as Bantu homeland, black homeland, black state or simply homeland; ) was a territory that the National Party administration of South Africa set aside for black inhabitants of South Africa and South West Africa (n ...

KwaZulu KwaZulu was a semi-independent bantustan in South Africa, intended by the apartheid government as a homeland for the Zulu people. The capital was moved from Nongoma to Ulundi in 1980. It was led until its abolition in 1994 by Chief Mangosuthu ...

, Ulundi now lies in

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is loca ...

Province (of which, from 1994 to 2004, it alternated with

Pietermaritzburg Pietermaritzburg (; Zulu: umGungundlovu) is the capital and second-largest city in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It was founded in 1838 and is currently governed by the Msunduzi Local Municipality. Its Zulu name umGungundlovu ...

as the provincial capital). The town now includes

Ulundi Airport Ulundi Airport is an airport serving the towns of Ulundi, Nongoma and Melmoth in the Zululand Municipal District of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Its official name is the Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi Airport. The airport is situated 1 km ...

, a three-star hotel, and some museums amongst its sights. In the 2001 Census, the population of the town was recorded as 18,420.

History

When

Cetshwayo King Cetshwayo kaMpande (; ; 1826 – 8 February 1884) was the king of the Zulu Kingdom from 1873 to 1879 and its Commander in Chief during the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879. His name has been transliterated as Cetawayo, Cetewayo, Cetywajo and Ketchw ...

became king of the

Zulus Zulu people (; zu, amaZulu) are a Nguni ethnic group native to Southern Africa. The Zulu people are the largest ethnic group and nation in South Africa, with an estimated 10–12 million people, living mainly in the province of KwaZulu-Na ...

on 1 September 1873, he created, as was customary, a new capital for the nation, naming it "Ulundi" ("The high place"). On 4 July 1879, in the

Battle of Ulundi The Battle of Ulundi took place at the Zulu Kingdom, Zulu capital of Ulundi (Zulu:''oNdini'') on 4 July 1879 and was the last major battle of the Anglo-Zulu War. The British army broke the military power of the Zulu Kingdom, Zulu nation by def ...

(the final battle of the

Anglo-Zulu War The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Following the passing of the British North America Act of 1867 forming a federation in Canada, Lord Carnarvon thought that a similar political effort, cou ...

), the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

captured the royal

kraal Kraal (also spelled ''craal'' or ''kraul'') is an Afrikaans and Dutch word, also used in South African English, for an enclosure for cattle or other livestock, located within a Southern African settlement or village surrounded by a fence of t ...

and razed it to the ground. Nearby is Ondini, where King

Mpande Mpande kaSenzangakhona (1798–18 October 1872) was monarch of the Zulu Kingdom from 1840 to 1872. He was a half-brother of Sigujana, Shaka and Dingane, who preceded him as Zulu kings. He came to power after he had overthrown Dingane in 1840. ...

, Cetshwayo's father, had his kraal. A large Zulu hut now is on the site.

Climate

Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as

humid subtropical A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

(Cfa). It is rainier in the warmer months.

References

External links

Battles around Ulundi
* Populated places in the Ulundi Local Municipality Populated places established in 1873 {{KwaZuluNatal-geo-stub