Zulu wars, Shaka, Isandlwana, Rorke's Drift, Colenso, Spioenkop, Ladysmith, Dundee, Churchill, Blood River, Cetshwayo, Boers ... these are some of the terms which are associated with the internationally renowned KwaZulu-Natal Battlefields area of South Africa.
Walk in the footsteps of famous military strategists - Shaka, Winston Churchill, Mahatma Gandhi and General Louis Botha - they were all part of the KwaZulu-Natal Battlefields. The wind sighs and whispers the secrets and sorrows of great battles, made visible by lone forts and small graveyards on these undulating landscapes ringed with rocky outcrops.
The legacy of our Zulu Kingdom's critical, blood-soaked conflicts today lives peacefully - reconciled in this fascinating region's myriad Battlefield sites, historic towns, national monuments and museums - and in HQs of the British regiments who make a 'pilgrimage' to these fields of bravery and supreme sacrifice.
Why leave all of this to the imagination?
Knowledgeable guides will accompany you on tours of the Battlefields, talking you through each battle, debating the strategies used, the numbers who perished and the medals and rewards won by the brave. If these legends inspire your adventurous spirit, there are more pleasurable ways of assuaging it than in battle. White- water rafting down the rapids of the mighty Thukela, sailing on the Chelmsford Dam, and hunting in the designated hunting reserves - this region offers you all of these pursuits.
Consummate shoppers will always find a way to practice their skill at tracking down a good bargain, and this area provides the opportunity at any of the large number of factory outlets selling everything from blown glass to pork sausages and baby products.
The Nambiti Conservency, situated adjacent to the Battlefields is one of the hidden jewels in game viewing in South Africa!
The KwaZulu-Natal Battlefields - Legends of the Zulu Kingdom
Hotels and Tours:
Destination in Focus
Eshowe offers a unique window on history as the oldest town in Zululand, with various secret places to visit and enjoy.
The sound of the breeze rushing through the Dlinza Forest in the heart of the town is the romantic explanation for the town's name. The more scientific is that it is a corruption of the isiZulu word ishongwe, meaning 'milkbush shrubs', also prominent in the area.
The town, lying on a plateau and thus protected from the subtropical humidity of surrouding areas, was proclaimed a magistracy in 1887 upon Zululand's annexation by Britain and became the capital of Zululand.
