Litshe laNgwane

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Litshe laNgwane
LocationNear Pongola, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
FounderKing Ngwane III, son of Dlamini III

Litshe laNgwane (also spelt Litje laNgwane; "Rock of Ngwane") is a rocky outcrop located about 35 kilometres outside the town of Pongola, along the road to Piet Retief, just outside the present-day border of Eswatini in South Africa. [1]

The stone is very important to Swazi - being the stone where the early Swazi King Ngwane III used to play as a young boy. [2] On top the rock is basin-like and held rain water in which Ngwane III used to bathe. [3]

Ngwane III frequented the Litshe laNgwane and hot water pools near Godlwako. [1]

According to oral traditions recorded for the Swaziland Oral History Project, the young Ngwane III would climb the steep sides of this rock to play. [1] When Ngwane III was installed as king in 1745, his homestead was moved from Matsapha to Zombodze, approximately 7.5 kilometres northwest of Godlwako. [1] Despite it being located outside Eswatini due to the Scramble for Africa colonial borderlines, the rock remains a site of cultural importance for Eswatini. [4]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Westcott, Michael; Hamilton, Carolyn (1992): In the cracks of Swazi past: A historical tour of the Ngwane and Swazi kingdom, PDF download, Swaziland Oral History Project. Page 48-49 (2 pages). ISBN   0333479084
  2. ↑ Hamilton, Carolyn (1990). Carolyn Hamilton (ed.). In Pursuit of Swaziland's Precolonial Past. Kulandza Umlandvo: Swaziland Oral History Project (First ed.). Manzini, Swaziland: Macmillan Boleswa Publishers (Pty) Ltd. p. 46. ISBN   0 333 4 7907 6.
  3. ↑ Matsebula, J.S.M. (1988). History of Eswatini, Longman. 3rd edition .Page 11. ISBN   9780582031678
  4. ↑ Amasiko Ethu KwaZulu (28 November 2023). "Litshe laNgwane". Facebook. Retrieved 15 January 2026.

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