Chindio is a village on the north bank of the

Zambezi The Zambezi (also spelled Zambeze and Zambesi) is the fourth-longest river in Africa, the longest east-flowing river in Africa and the largest flowing into the Indian Ocean from Africa. Its drainage basin covers , slightly less than half of t ...

River in

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

, downstream of its junction with the

Shire River The Shire is the largest river in Malawi. It is the only outlet of Lake Malawi and flows into the Zambezi River in Mozambique. Its length is . The upper Shire River issues from Lake Malawi and runs approximately before it enters shallow Lake Malo ...

. Chindio is not the same place as

Chinde Chinde is a town of Mozambique, and a port for the Zambezi valley. It is located on the Chinde River, and is an important fishing center. It exports copra and sugar, and had a population of 16,500 in 1980. Chinde lies in Chinde District of Zam ...

, although they are both on the Zambezi and in Mozambique. Between 1908 and 1914, riverboat services ran from the terminus of the Shire Highlands Railway at Port Herald in

Nyasaland Nyasaland () was a British protectorate in Africa that was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name. Between 1953 and 1963, Nyasaland was part of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. After ...

, now

Malawi Malawi, officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast, and Mozambique to the east, south, and southwest. Malawi spans over and ...

to the British concession of Chinde at the mouth of the Zambezi in Mozambique, where passengers and goods were transferred to seagoing ships. This was the main route for goods and passengers to and from Nyasaland. However, as the Shire River was difficult to navigate in the dry season when water levels were low, the

British South Africa Company The British South Africa Company (BSAC or BSACo) was chartered in 1889 following the amalgamation of Cecil Rhodes' Central Search Association and the London-based Exploring Company Ltd, which had originally competed to capitalize on the expecte ...

built the Central African Railway, 61 miles long, from Port Herald to Chindio on the north bank of the Zambezi. This line was opened in 1914. Between 1914 and 1922, the African Lakes Corporation and British Central Africa Company both ran steamer services from Chindio to Chinde in the dry season, but from Port Herald to Chinde when water levels were sufficient. In 1922, the Trans-Zambezia Railway Ltd completed its line from Murraça, on the south bank of the Zambezi opposite Chindio to Beira, and cross-river ferries ran between the Chindio and Murraça. For two months in the dry season the capacity of the ferry was limited and wet-season floods often washed parts of the railway track away. In 1937, a Zambezi Bridge, the

Dona Ana Bridge The Dona Ana Bridge spans the lower Zambezi River between the towns of Vila de Sena and Mutarara in Mozambique, effectively linking the two halves of the country. It was originally constructed as a railway bridge to link Malawi and the Moatiz ...

was opened at

Mutarara Mutarara, or Nhamayabué, is a town in Mozambique. It lies on the north bank of the Zambezi River. Transport Mutarara is served by a station on the Sena railway of Mozambique Ports and Railways. It is the junction for the line to Malawi ...

near

Sena Sena may refer to: Places * Sanandaj or Sena, city in northwestern Iran * Sena (state constituency), represented in the Perlis State Legislative Assembly * Sena, a Medieval Catalan exonym for Siena, Italy * Sena, Dashtestan, village in Bushehr P ...

, 25 miles upriver from Chindio. The line on the north bank of the Zambezi between Chindio and Murraça was abandoned, as the new line from Mutarara to Murraça was in the south bank.UK Colonial Office, (1929). Report on the Nyasaland Railway and Proposed Zambezi Bridge, London, HMSO, pp. 11–14, 38–9.

References

{{reflist Populated places in Zambezia Province Nyasaland