KaNgwane
Encyclopedia
KaNgwane was a bantustan
in South Africa
, intended by the apartheid government to be a semi-independent homeland for the Swazi people. Formerly called the "Swazi Territory", the homeland was granted nominal self-rule in 1981. Schoemansdal was designated as its capital. Its official capital was at Louieville (formerly KaNyamasane). It was the least populous of the ten homelands, with an estimated 183,000 inhabitants only.
An attempt to transfer parts of the homeland to the neighbouring (genuinely independent) country of Swaziland
in 1982 failed following protests. The homeland's territory had been claimed by King Sobhuza
of Swaziland as part of the Swazi monarchs' traditional realm, and the South African government hoped to use the homeland as a buffer zone against guerrilla infiltration from Mozambique
. This would have given land-locked Swaziland access to the sea. South Africa responded to the failure of the transfer by temporarily suspending the autonomy of KaNgwane, then restoring it in 1984.
Unlike the other homelands in South Africa, KaNgwane did not adopt a distinctive flag of its own and flew the national flag of South Africa
.
KaNgwane was re-integrated into South Africa on 26 April 1994. Its territory now forms part of the provinces of Mpumalanga
and KwaZulu-Natal
.
Bantustan
A bantustan was a territory set aside for black inhabitants of South Africa and South West Africa , as part of the policy of apartheid...
in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, intended by the apartheid government to be a semi-independent homeland for the Swazi people. Formerly called the "Swazi Territory", the homeland was granted nominal self-rule in 1981. Schoemansdal was designated as its capital. Its official capital was at Louieville (formerly KaNyamasane). It was the least populous of the ten homelands, with an estimated 183,000 inhabitants only.
An attempt to transfer parts of the homeland to the neighbouring (genuinely independent) country of Swaziland
Swaziland
Swaziland, officially the Kingdom of Swaziland , and sometimes called Ngwane or Swatini, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa, bordered to the north, south and west by South Africa, and to the east by Mozambique...
in 1982 failed following protests. The homeland's territory had been claimed by King Sobhuza
Sobhuza II of Swaziland
Ngwenyama Sobhuza II was the Paramount Chief and later King of Swaziland. He was the son of Ngwane V.-Biography:...
of Swaziland as part of the Swazi monarchs' traditional realm, and the South African government hoped to use the homeland as a buffer zone against guerrilla infiltration from Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
. This would have given land-locked Swaziland access to the sea. South Africa responded to the failure of the transfer by temporarily suspending the autonomy of KaNgwane, then restoring it in 1984.
Unlike the other homelands in South Africa, KaNgwane did not adopt a distinctive flag of its own and flew the national flag of South Africa
Flag of South Africa
The current flag of the Republic of South Africa was adopted on 27 April 1994, at the beginning of the 1994 general election, to replace the flag that had been used since 1928...
.
KaNgwane was re-integrated into South Africa on 26 April 1994. Its territory now forms part of the provinces of Mpumalanga
Mpumalanga
Mpumalanga , is a province of South Africa. The name means east or literally "the place where the sun rises" in Swazi, Xhosa, Ndebele and Zulu. Mpumalanga lies in eastern South Africa, north of KwaZulu-Natal and bordering Swaziland and Mozambique. It constitutes 6.5% of South Africa's land area...
and KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal is a province of South Africa. Prior to 1994, the territory now known as KwaZulu-Natal was made up of the province of Natal and the homeland of KwaZulu....
.