Land and Borders

In the late 17^th century a group of the Dlamini tribe, under rule of Ngwane III, migrated over the Lumbobo Mountains and settled in the area (1).  The kingdom was expanded during the reigns of King Sobhuza (1816-1836) and King Mswati II (1839-1865).  This was a result of many local tribes becoming more aggressive while protecting their land from people fleeing Portuguese colonies in the North and Boers from the South.  The Dlamini followed suit and expanded their kingdom.  The kingdom was about twice as big as it is today, and stretched from the coastline of present day Mozambique and as far inland as Zimbabwe(2).  This expansion absorbed several people groups from the area including the Nguni, Sotho, and Tsonga (3).  This absorption lead to a new ethnic group of the four people groups, which became known as the Swazi (4).

In 1846 King Mswati ceded part of the Swazi land in the West to the Boers in return for their help in rising conflicts both internal and external.  Shortly thereafter tension rose between the Boers and the Swazi and in 1855, in an effort to renew relations, King Mswati ceded more land from the South to the Boers (5).

In 1868 the South African Republic annexed the Swazi kingdom, however the Swazi regents rejected the claim, but this would still cause problems by the Boers.  In 1877 the British annexed the South African Republic (6).  The British upheld the land claims of the Boers to the land ceded in 1955, but did not uphold the annexation in 1968.  The Boers, however, pushed in on the Swazis from the west and north further reducing the Swazi land area, especially after finding gold (7).  King Mbandzeni, feeling overwhelmed, tried to stop the incursion by appealing to former British allies for help.  The advice given, accepted by the king, was a grave mistake, and in turn added to the loss of Swazi land (8).

In 1894 the British and South African Republic made an agreement that made Swaziland a protectorate of the Boers.  This was done without inclusion of the Swazi people.  The only rights that were given to the Swazi was that the King would essentially be a chief, and land that was being occupied by the Swazi would be kept by the Swazi, even if it was originally ceded.  These concessions lead to the forced change in the economy of the Swazi as they were forced to enter into a cash economy in order to get workers for the gold mines and other work for the Boers.  This led to bitterness towards the Boers which caused fear of potential resistance (9).

In 1902 Britain gained control over Swaziland after the Boer wars, then in 1907 they took approximately 2/3s of the Swazi’s land and gave it to white settlers leaving land for that Swazi that was unsuitable for agriculture or cattle.  King Sobhuza II went to court in Britain to try and regain the land, but was unsuccessful.  He then created a trust in which taxes, gained from the Swazi, were used to buy back some of the land which he then distributed to the Swazi people (10).  In 1968 Swaziland became an independent nation, however, the Swazi only control up to 2/3s of the prior land holdings (11).  The Swazi people are still trying to regain their prior land holdings; mostly going through South Africa which now has control of the land.  Many Swazi people also live in South Africa on land that was once part of Swaziland (12).

Changes to Swaziland's Border after King Mswati died compared to today (13)

1) Swaziland: Origin and rise of the Swazi Kingdom (c1750 - 1868 CE); (http://www.content.eisa.org.za/old-page/swaziland-origin-and-rise-swazi-kingdom-c1750-1868-ce); pr 1

2) Africana: The Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience;  (http://books.google.com/books?id=TMZMAgAAQBAJ&pg=RA4-PA111&lpg=RA4-PA111&dq=boers+and+swazi&source=bl&ots=ghS-HbvPOo&sig=e1n_MspoclqdUCvHXQLGfGi3VpM&hl=en&sa=X&ei=EgeCVLuRFcmfyAT2oILYBA&ved=0CEcQ6AEwCA#v=onepage&q=boers%20and%20swazi&f=false); pg. 111, pr 2

3) Swaziland: Origin and rise of the Swazi Kingdom (c1750 - 1868 CE); pr. 1

4) The Creation of Tribalism in Southern Africa; 1989; Ch. 10, A Nation Divided? The Swazi in Swaziland and the Transvaal, 1865–1986; (http://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=ft158004rs&chunk.id=d0e7328); pg. 290

5) Swaziland: Origin and rise of the Swazi Kingdom (c1750 - 1868 CE); pr. 5

6) Swaziland: Boer incursion and British meddling (1868-1907); (http://www.content.eisa.org.za/old-page/swaziland-boer-incursion-and-british-meddling-1868-1907); pr. 1

7) Ibid; pr. 2

8) Africana: The Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience; pg. 111, pr. 6

9) Swaziland: Boer incursion and British meddling (1868-1907); pr. 5 & 6

10) Africana: The Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience; pg. 112, pr. 1-3

11) Swazi, History and Cultural Relations; (http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Swazi.aspx)

12) POLITICS-SOUTH AFRICA: Swaziland Seeks Border Adjustment; (http://www.ipsnews.net/2005/01/politics-south-africa-swaziland-seeks-border-adjustment/) 

13) Swazi History; (http://www.sntc.org.sz/cultural/swazihistory1.html)