From the Orion Mont-aux-Sources Hotel, where we’re located, we’ve got an incredible view of the Amphitheatre. It’s a highlight of the northern Drakensberg and part of the Royal Natal National Park. The Amphitheatre stands out for its five-kilometre length, height and massive cliff-face down which the Tugela Falls drops 950 metres. From the top of the Amphitheatre the ground literally drops away – it’s quite incredible. I have little doubt that the teams will be up here at some stage during the race.
Since I can’t tell you anything about the route yet, let’s look at a dash of South African history of this region.
Pre-colonial history includes a ton of San rock art in this region. This uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park is a UNESCO World Heritage site and 520 rock art sites (over 30 000 paintings) are protected. These paintings of animals, people and other subjects were first made as early as 4,000 years ago. The last known San sighting in the Drakensberg was during the 1880s.
Back in 1837 a chap named Piet Retief left the Cape Colony (in the Cape Town area), looking for a place to settle away from British control. The Brits had angered the Afrikaner farmers with their laws prohibiting slave trade and many Dutch farmers lost a lot of their wealth because of this. Retief was an Afrikaner leader at this time, trying to mediate discussions between the farmers and the British government. When talks failed the farmers packed up and left, migrating North. This became known as the ‘Great Trek’ and the people were called the ‘Voortrekkers’.
Retief’s group left after the first Voortrekker group and they were aiming for the fertile lands of Zululand. This is the current KwaZulu Natal Province. He was looking for a place “where there would be ‘prospects for peace and happiness for their children’ and ‘with resoluteness, the principle of true freedom will be esteemed’ and a government with proper laws, based upon the fundamental concept of righteousness”.
In October 1837 Retief set up camp at Kerkenberg (‘Church Mountain’), with the Drakensberg mountains in view (near the current town of Harrismith). He set off on horseback to explore the region, looking for routes down the escarpment. We drove past Kerkenberg yesterday – adjacent to the Sterkfontein Dam.
Retief sent a message a month later telling the people that they were good to go. At Kerkenberg there’s a rock on which Retief’s name – and the date (12 November 1837) – was written by his daughter on his birthday. Retief was still away, tied up in land negotiations with the Zulu King, Dingaan.
Dingaan is well known in popular South African history for killing his half-brother Shaka. In 1986 most South Africans were glued to their tv sets watching the Shaka Zulu tv series featuring the athletic (former soccer player) Henry Cele as Shaka and the uplifting theme song, ‘We are growing’.
I’ve always had a ‘soft spot’ for Shaka from this series (I was 10 years old at the time the series was broadcast). My strongest memory is of Shaka’s warriors known as Impi – the Zulu word for an armed body/regiment of men. These guys could run, run, run. Shaka would have them running huge distances. In my mind, Shaka was a runner. An adventure athlete of the highest order. He totally revolutionised Zulu warfare and a big part of this was in the mobility of the warriors.
These guys were barefoot runners of note. Shaka ditched their oxhide sandals, which he believed slowed them down. He hardened the feet of his troops by having them stamp on thorny tree and bush branches. And he’d make them train. Hard. Shaka would frequently make them cover more than 80 kilometres a day.
Back to Retief…
With negotiations progressing with Dingaan, Retief led his people over the Drakensberg and on to Zulu lands. Retief goes back to meet with Dingaan (January 1838), who asks (commands would probably be more like it) the delegation to recover their stolen cattle from a rival Northern Lesotho tribe, promising that he would give them land to live on in exchange. Retief’s gang accomplishes the task, driving 7,000 head of cattle back to Dingaan. And Dingaan is true to his word, drawing up an agreement giving the settlers a rather generous stretch of land.
That the Voortrekkers were able to return the cattle made Dingaan realise that if he had to go head-to-head with them that things would probably not work out so well for him. He was suspicious of Retief anyway and wary of an ambush.
So, Dingaan turned the tables on the visitors. He invited them to the royal homestead to celebrate the return of the cattle. Retief, his son, men and servants (almot 100 people) were clubbed to death – Retief last so that he could watch his men being killed – and left on the hillside to be eaten by wild animals and vultures. Then, the Zulus took out the rest of Retief’s people back at their camp, killing over 500 men, women and children. Ba-ba-ba-boom.
The surnames of some of the South African racers tell of their family history that is connected to Voortrekker families. Fortunately for them, and the other racers, Dingaan is long gone and the teams have safe passage through this region.