Roedtan is a small town in the
Limpopo
Limpopo is the northernmost province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The capital and largest city in the province is Polokwane, while the provincial legislature is ...
province,
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 count ...
, set in the midst of the
Springbok Flats. Roedtan has a rail road station from
. At the road junction to Roedtan stands a monument to the battle of Moordrift in 1854 when 33 descendants mainly of Dutch settlers from the 17th and 18th centuries who had moved north from the Cape Colony to escape what they saw as oppressive rule by the British colonial government - such as having to give up their slaves (and, worse, having to co-exist with them on equal terms) in line with the legislated emancipation of all slaves in the British Empire in 1833)
white people were killed in a skirmish with the local tribe headed by Makapane of Laka/Langa. The cave,
Makapansgat
Makapansgat () (or Makapan Valley World Heritage Site) is an archaeological location within the Makapansgat and Zwartkrans Valleys, northeast of Mokopane in Limpopo province, South Africa. It is an important palaeontological site, with the loca ...
, is now known to record early hominid occupation (1,500,000 years ago) and is a national monument. The Springbok Flats is a reminder that great herds of
Springbok
The springbok (''Antidorcas marsupialis'') is a medium-sized antelope found mainly in south and southwest Africa. The sole member of the genus ''Antidorcas'', this bovid was first described by the German zoologist Eberhard August Wilhelm ...
once populated the plain, which was also frequented by
lions
The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...
and other wild animals.
References
{{Authority control
Populated places in the Modimolle–Mookgophong Local Municipality