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Lesotho is an amazing add on to a trip that includes Kwa Zulu, or can be added on to a self drive that goes through the interior of the country, or included in a johannesburg to Kwa Zulu trip

                               

The serenity, landscape, people are worth the time..you will get an opportunity to experience a real  sense of timelessness while on a Lesotho tour.

The options are endless we use locally owned lodges from which you can do

1) Self drive trips,

2) Day Pony Treks, Hiking Trails, Village Outings & 4x4 Excursions.

3) Overnight Pony Treks Itineraries

4)Local special visits such as LOCAL MUSEUM IN A TRADITIONAL HUT, CHILDRENS CHOIR & BAND -EVENING, plus other unique experiences.

5)
DAY HIKES & DAY PONY TREKS
The Botsoela Waterfall Hike, Pony Trek or Scenic Drive
The Pitseng Canyon & Rockpool Hike
The Bushman Paintings & Echo Cave Hike or Pony Trek
The "Gates of Paradise Pass" hike along the ridge of the Matelile Ridge

We will gladly design a Lesotho trip for you .... image and text credit to Malealea

INTRODUCTION TO LESOTHO:
Landlocked in the centre of South Africa, Lesotho is one of the few countries in Africa with natural boundaries created by tribal demands rather than those imposed by colonial decree. There are few natural resources and population pressures have decreased the agricultural potential, but the country has an almost overwhelming natural beauty coupled with welcoming, generous people. Much of Lesotho is covered by the high Maluti Mountains, and indeed even the lowlands, where most of Lesotho's 1.5 million people love, only fall to 1,300 m above sea level - The Highest Lowest Point of any country in the world. The Maluti are a rugged, wild range, ideal for trekking holidays, though they inevitably create their own climate, which can lead to sudden temperature drops, low cloud and thunderstorms. The visible history goes back at least 30,000 years, with cave paintings and other Bushman relics found in numerous scattered sites.

Southern Africa was inhabited by dispersed nomadic hunters, the San, for many thousands of years, and their artistic talents have shown us many sides of their way of life, form dancing, hunting and fishing to scenes from semi-settled family life. However the San ( known as Bushman by white settlers, and as Baroa by the Basotho tribes of Bantu origin), were persecuted from the moment they were seen by outsiders and long ago retreated to the Kalahari sands, their last refuge.

In the early 19th Century, at the height of power of Shaka, king of the Zulu, many of his subjugated chiefs took flight in an attempt to form their own dominions. The result was a period of terror throughout central southern Africa known as Difaqane, or "Time of Calamity", and a scattering of the Sotho-speaking tribes of the highveld. The Maluti mountains formed a natural defence against marauding invaders, and many small tribal groups attempted to take refuge in the region. One such group, led by the enterprising chief Moshesh, selected a small steep-sided plateau at Butha-Buthe which they successfully defended for two years before moving to a better fortress at Thaba Bosiu - "Mountain of the Night". For ten years Thaba Bosiu proved impregnable to all-comers and the name rapidly gained fame. Fugitives from Difaqane flocked to the Mountain at Night and were incorporated into the tribe. By 1830 the tribe had become a large cohesive unit, newly-proud people who just a short time before had been skulking in the surrounding hills and valleys to escape slaughter and famine. They began to call themselves Basotho, or Sotho people, and to refer to their small kingdom as Lesotho.

Moshesh, by now known as Moshoeshoe, grew in stature as his military skill and diplomacy matured, and his kingdom remained unconquered until shortly before his death, in 1870. The British were called in to rescue the situation after the successful Boer invasion of 1868 and the protectorate of Basutoland was declared soon after.

MMulti-party politics took hold in the 1950's and independence was eventually wrested from the British in 1966. There followed the almost inevitable 20 years, conflict in-fighting and coups d'etat. When the long-time strongman, Chief Jonathan, turned towards Marxism and a one-party system South Africa imposed a full blockade on land-locked Lesotho, and probable instigated the coup of 1986 that overthrew Jonathan and re-instated the authority of King Moshoeshoe ll, (great-great-great grandson of Lesotho's founding father), as Head of State. Since then the government has remained successful, stable, and popular. Development is moving ahead apace, particularly that funded from South Africa, and Lesotho is showing signs of an ability to exist without outside assistance.

Moshoeshoe ll died in a car accident in January,1996 and has been succeeded by his son Chief Letsie lll.

HISTORY OF THE BASOTHO NATION.

Moshoeshoe was born at Menkhoaneng village in the vicinity of Botha-Bothe in the North of Lesotho. His father, Mokhachane was the leader of a small junior branch of the Bakoena tribe. He himself was subordinate of Mpiti, Chief of Sekake who was his kinsman. Moshoeshoe was born roughly in 1786, but since the Basotho did not keep strict account of their age the date is approximate.

The Greatness of the Man can be ascribed to his sagacity and his diplomacy which grasped the situation occasioned by the Lifaqane wars. Taking advantage of this situation, he was able to build the Basotho Nation.

Moshoeshoe chose Thaba-Bosiu because it was a stronger natural fortress than Botha-Bothe which he had held before. It was also on the left bank of the Caledon River and consequently less open to invaders from Natal.

The mountain is flat-topped and it is situated in the valley of the Phuthiatsana river. It is about fifteen miles east of the junction of this river with Mohakare or Caledon that divides Lesotho from the Free State. It rises about 350 ft. from the surrounding valley and its summit is surrounded by a belt of perpendicular cliffs some 40 ft. high on the average.

The summit has an area of about 4 square miles. To get on the summit, one has to ascend one of the six passes, namely Khubelu or the Red Pass which is also known as Wepener’s Pass, so named on account of the death of Louw Wepener, the Free State Commandant who was killed by the Basotho in 1865. There is alos Ramaseli Pass named after Moshoeshoe’s warrior who guarded it. Maebeng Pass, Mokhachane and Makara and Rahebe are respectively other passes leading to the summit.

The name of Thaba Bosiu means the "Mountain of the Night". It was in July, 1824 when Moshoeshoe and his people took occupation of the mountain which his brother Mohale had reconnoitred.

He name the mountain Thaba Bosiu - Mountain at Night - because he and his people arrived there in the evening and the essential protective work took him until late at night. Many years later the news to intimidate his enemies was spread that at night time, the mountain grew larger than usual.

There were at least eight good springs of fresh water on the mountain and when Moshoeshoe and his followers, with their cattle, first moved to Thaba Bosiu, they occupied the summit where they were safe from attack and where there was plenty of pasture and water for the cattle. Gradually as more and more refugees from the ravaging Zulu hordes flocked to Moshoeshoe for protection, villages sprang up around the foot of the hill and in 1828 there were over 3,000 people living on the mountain and in the twenty-two villages around its flanks. Eleven years later Backhouse reported that there were 1,500 inhabitants on the top of the mountain alone. Moshoeshoe’s own village was situated between the Khubelu and Ramaseli passes: that of his father, Mokhachane, was located on the western buttress: and None’s settlement guarded the southern buttress; whilst the other villages were grouped around the north and west flanks.

On the 28th June, 1833, three French Protestant Missionaries - Eugene Cassalis, Thomas Arbouset and Constant Gosselin - arrived at Thaba Bosiu at the invitation of King Moshoeshoe.

In 1838, they completed building a mission house and a chapel, and Casalis stationed at Thaba Bosiu to take charge of the mission. King Moshoeshoe has a fruitful mutual relationship with the missionaries. For example, Casalis practically became the King’s secretary and acted as interpreter in all dealings with white people. By 1840, the Paris Evangelical Mission Society had nine stations in Moshoeshoe’s country at which they taught religion and literacy. As a result, Lesotho today has the highest literacy rate in Africa. The missionaries also introduced new crop plants such as wheat and peaches which have become important in the country’s agriculture.

There is very little trace of Moshoeshoe’s first village for by 1939 he had already begun to build rectangular stone houses after the European style. In 1837 ex-private David F. Webber, a deserter from the 72nd Seaforth Highlanders, eventually reached Thaba Bosiu, where he was given a shelter and in 1841 Moshoeshoe obtained a pardon for him from the Army authorities. Webber was a good mason and carpenter and in 1839 he commenced to build a rectangular stone house for Moshoeshoe. It was in European style and the Chief had intimated that he had only provided accommodation in it for one wife. There is no record of the builder who assisted Webber, but there is the name R. Murphie and the date 1839 engraved on a nearby rock face. This is well cut by a person accustomed to using stone-dressing tools and it is very possible that Murphie co-operated with Webber in the capacity of stone dresser.

This house was situated very near the top of the Khubelu Pass, just beyond and to the right of the main entrance to the settlement. The entrance itself is marked by three stones, although in the time of Moshoeshoe there were only two sets 15 ft. apart. Here visitors were required to halt and wait until their arrival had been announced to Moshoeshoe and permission had been given for them to proceed. It was also the custom for each visitor, as a mark of respect to the chief, to add a stone to a pile on the left hand side of the entrance and the broken remnants of this cairn still remain.

The house whose walls still remain was built much later by Ntlama or Mothunts’ana, a relative of Moshoeshoe. It consisted of a bedroom and a sitting room and a door made of wood and the windows were large and had glass panes. The King lived in this house though he continued to sleep in his traditional hut. In this rectangular thatched house he kept furniture which included a set of tea-cups which he had from Paris at Maison des Missions. In addition he kept his blue military suit, green military jacket and trousers and other European clothes and various untensils.

INVADERS OF THABA BOSIU (1828 - 1865)

Thaba Bosiu was never conquered by Invaders. The various invaders, namely the Ngwane, the Korannas, the British and the Boers failed in their attempt to overcome the Basotho in their respective raids on various occasions.

In 1828, shortly after the arrival of Moshoeshoe at Thaba Bosiu, Matiwane, Chief of AmaNgwane, who since the beginning of that year had dominated the Inhabitants of the Caledon Valley, tried to conquer the Basotho under Moshoeshoe.

In a great battle that was fought at Thaba Bosiu, Matiwane’s regiments were routed and the AmaNgwane ceased to be a threat to Moshoeshoe.

Since 1831 coloured raiders had been making forays into the Caledon Valley.

The raiders repeatedly attacked Moshoeshoe’s subjects very close to Thaba Bosiu. Sometimes they got clear away with Basotho women, children and cattle, but they were driven away although they were armed with fire-arms and fought on horseback.

In 1831, the Ndebele of Mzilikazi who had created a military state on the Zulu model north of the Vaal, invaded Lesotho. On their arrival at Thaba Bosiu, they began to scale the mountain at Rafutho’s Pass, but the Basotho hurled boulders, stones and javelins down on them from behind their walled fortifications. According to tradition, as the Ndebele withdrew Moshoeshoe delivered some fat oxen with the message that he thought hunger had brouht them to this country. As a consequence, Mzilikazi did not launch another attack in the Caledon Valley.

Thaba Bosiu’s renown as a citadel was, therefore, established by the repulse of the formidable Ndebele army.

Moshoeshoe had emerged triumphant from African invaders only to be threatened by invaders from the British Colony of the Cape of Good Hope.

In 1852, the Cape Governor, Sir George Cathcart, invaded Moshoeshoe because he had been convinced by the Boers that the Basotho had stolen their cattle. In a battle which was fought on the Berea plateau and later on the plain some three miles west of Thaba Bosiu, Cathcart on his way to the fortress was attacked by 5,000 mounted Basotho armed with muskets and spears and battle-axes. The British had to withdraw. The time for diplomacy had come.

By 1854, the British had given independence to the Boers and they established their Republic, named the Orange Free State. As the country originally occupied by the Basotho had been handed over to the Boers, there was bound to be war between Moshoeshoe’s people and immigrants. The area between the Orange and the Caledon was claimed by the Boers and here Basotho villages and Boer farmers were interspersed.

The most serious was with the Free State started in 1865. The Free State commando were more than before determined to destroy the Basotho people. Thaba Bosiu withstood the last attack during Moshoeshoe’s life time, and with the death of Louw Wepener, the most ruthless of the Boer Commandants, the Free State joined the long succession of people whose leaders failed to storm the mountain. These were Matiwane in 1828, the Korannas in 1831, Mzilikazi’s army in 1831, Sir George Cathcart in 1852, Boshof who was President of the Free State in 1858.

To-day Thaba Bosiu is the most venerated site in Lesotho, for it is not only the mountain where the Basotho Nation was founded, but it is also the burial place of Moshoeshoe and of the leading Chiefs of Lesotho, the "Sons of Moshoeshoe". It was the custom until recently for chiefs to visit the summit early in the morning before going to an important meeting and runners would drive special oxen through the night to await the chief’s arrival on the hill.

Thaba Bosiu to-day is a national monument having been so declared by Lesotho Government in 1967. Ruins of the buildings are still standing.

In times of national catastrophes and psychological stress, the people look upon the mountain as a source of inspiration and guidance which since the times of the Great King sustained their spirit in their upward struggle for freedom and political Independence.

In 1870, the Great King died on the 11th March on the Mountain upon which he had lived since his youth. Just two years before, on the 12th March 1868, Lesotho had been declared British Territory and the Bastotho British subjects through Moshoeshoe’s request to the Cape Governor Sir Philip Wodehouse. Four years later in 1872 Lesotho was annexed to the Cape Colony.