Long Tom Pass
saltwaterproductions.co.za
This is a short video I filmed in the beautiful Long Tom Pass in Mpumalanga, South Africa
Long Tom Pass (R37) Part 2 - Mountain Passes of South Africa
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Long Tom Pass (R37) - Mountain Passes of South Africa
For full details on this pass, as well as all the passes and poorts of South Africa, including GPS, technical, safety, historical and tourism information, plus a fully interactive, dual view Phoca map showing printable directions from where you are with time and distance pre-calculated, go to MountainPassesSouthAfrica.co.za
Mpumalanga weekend 2017 July
A surprise weekend away to celebrate Kaleb's 10th birthday, first off a toboggan ride near Lydenburg, visit to three water falls a cave and we end off at Chimp Eden out side Nelspruit.
SCENIC PANORAMA ROUTE SOUTH AFRICA | Cinematic Travel Video
A Cinematic travel video of beautiful Panorama Route, Mpumalanga, South Africa.
The Panorama Route is one of the most scenic drives in South Africa connecting several cultural and natural points of interest. This route, steeped in the history of South Africa, is situated in the Mpumalanga province. The route is centred around the Blyde River Canyon, the world’s third largest canyon, and features numerous waterfalls, one of the largest afforested areas in South Africa and several natural landmarks. The route starts at the foot of the Long Tom Pass just outside Lydenburg, following the natural descent from the Great Escarpment to the Lowveld, and ending at the border of the Mpumalanga and Limpopo provinces near the Echo Caves.Highlight of the Panorama Route -
God's Window
Lisbon Falls
Berlin Falls
The Pinnacle
Bourke`s Luck Potholes
Blyde River Canyon
Graskop
Pilgrim's rest
Sabie
Mac Mac falls
Waterfalls
Rainforests
Kruger national park
Lone creek fall
Horse shoe fall
Forest fall
Three rondavels
History Of Sudwala Caves Mpumalanga South Africa
History Of Sudwala Caves Mpumalanga South Africa
History
In the nineteenth century the Sudwala Caves were used by Somquba, the brother of the Swazi heir apparent, as a fortress. In a power struggle for the Swazi throne, many bloody battles were fought at the cave entrance. The story begins as follows: When King Sobhuza I of Swaziland died in 1836, his heir was Mswati II, who was still a minor and too young to ascend the vacant throne. A cousin, Paramount Chief Usutfu, was installed as regent, which proved to be a flawed choice. Usutfu was too weak to prevent Mswati’s brother Somquba from making an effective bid for the throne by calling an Incwala, or Festival of the First Fruit. The significance of this is that it is high treason, not to mention sacrilege, for any other person other than the Swazi king to hold an Incwala. After a skirmish with Mswati’s army near the Mgwenyana River, 9 km west of Barberton, Somquba and his followers fled the area, with some 500 head of Mswati’s cattle. They crossed the Crocodile River and settled near the Mankelexele Mountains, between Elandshoek and Schagen, about 10 km from what are now the Sudwala Caves. Their settlement was known as M’selezie.
Somquba sought and received protection from the newly established Boer settlement of Lydenburg. He made a formal alliance with the (1856–57) Lydenburg Republic.
There was continuous conflict between Mswati’s and Somquba’s followers in the form of raids and cattle theft. The Boers continued to side with Somquba, in return for labour to dig the first water canal at Lydenburg. Another benefit for the Boers was that Somquba acted as a buffer for them, against Mswati.
During the early 1860s Somquba came to know of the Caves, and subsequently, in times of conflict, he and his followers would take refuge there, with their cattle. They stock-piled food and there was plenty of water, so it made a strong refuge. Somquba maintained observation posts, and always kept the cave entrance clear, so that he could retreat there in a hurry. At that time stage the cave mouth was much smaller, and could barely accommodate the long horns of his small herd of prized Nguni cattle, as they were led in by hand, in single file. The principal guardian of the Caves’ entrance was Sudwala, Somquba’s chief inDuna (councillor/captain), whose name is thus commemorated to this day, and whose spirit is legendarily said to linger in the Caves. Today nobody knows how many times Somquba took refuge inside the Caves, but many bloody battles were fought at the site. At one time, the ever-persistent regiments of Mswati built a massive bonfire at the entrance, while Somquba and his followers were inside, in an attempt to suffocate them, but the natural airflow in the Caves foiled this attack. Help was sent for and received from a Lydenburg Boer commando, led by one Abel Erasmus. The commando drove off Mswati’s regiments, and freed Somquba. Traces of the fire are still visible to this day. Somquba and his followers used the caves as refuge, until Somquba was killed in an unexpected attack. Survivors stayed on under the leadership of Sudwala, and that is how the caves got their name.
During the Second Boer War, in 1900, the caves were used by the Boers to store ammunition for their 94-pounder Long Tom guns. It was thought that the caves may have been used by President Paul Kruger to store the legendary Kruger Millions, gold bullion which reputedly disappeared somewhere between Waterval Onder and Nelspruit during Paul Kruger's flight from Pretoria to Lourenço Marques (now Maputo) in Mozambique.
In 1914 a company was formed to excavate huge amounts of bat guano; this was sold as fertilizer to farmers.
A newly built wing of the Sabie Hospital opened in Mpumalanga
The Mpumalanga Health Department has officially opened a newly built wing of the Sabie Hospital. The 60 million rand project was undertaken after locals raised concerns about the bad state of the hospital. Other parts of the hospital will be refurbished soon.
For more news, visit:
SECOND BOER WAR - WikiVidi Documentary
The Second Boer War was fought between the British Empire and two Boer states, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State, over the Empire's influence in South Africa. It is also known variously as the Boer War, Anglo-Boer War, South African War or Anglo-Boer South African War. Initial Boer attacks were successful, and though British reinforcements later reversed these, the war continued for years with Boer guerrilla warfare, until harsh British counter-measures brought them to terms. The war started with Britain overconfident and under-prepared. The Boers were very well armed and struck first, besieging Ladysmith, Kimberley, and Mafeking in early 1900, and winning important battles at Colenso, Magersfontein and Stormberg. Staggered, Britain brought in large numbers of soldiers and fought back. General Redvers Buller was replaced by Lord Roberts and Lord Kitchener. They relieved the three besieged cities, and invaded the two Boer republics in late 1900. The onward marches ...
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Shortcuts to chapters:
00:03:46: Name
00:04:26: Origins
00:09:30: Phases
00:12:15: Background
00:16:01: Jameson Raid
00:20:33: Escalation and war
00:21:02: Arming the Boers
00:22:10: British case for war
00:24:48: Negotiations fail
00:27:27: First phase: The Boer offensive October–December 1899)
00:27:55: Boer organization and skills
00:31:19: Boers besiege Ladysmith, Mafeking and Kimberley
00:37:32: First British relief attempts
00:42:30: Second phase: The British offensive of January to September 1900
00:55:43: POWs sent overseas
00:57:03: Oath of neutrality
00:57:30: Third phase: Guerrilla war September 1900 – May 1902)
01:00:31: British response
01:04:06: Peace committees
01:04:56: Joiners
01:05:13: Orange Free State
01:06:49: Western Transvaal
01:09:05: Eastern Transvaal
01:10:36: Cape Colony
01:13:29: Nonwhite roles
01:15:25: Concentration camps 1900–1902)
01:18:59: Public opinion and political opposition
01:22:24: The Fawcett Commission
01:26:38: Kitchener's policy and the post-war debate
01:29:54: The end of the war
01:34:21: Aftermath and analysis
01:37:46: Union of South Africa
01:39:20: Effect of the war on domestic British politics
01:42:01: Horses
01:43:22: Imperial involvement
01:46:08: Australia
01:49:34: Canada
01:53:44: New Zealand
01:55:02: South Africa
01:57:16: Notable people involved in the Boer War
02:01:28: Victoria Cross recipients
02:03:56: Final overview
02:07:43: Did the British deliberate on the use of encampments?
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Copyright WikiVidi.
Licensed under Creative Commons.
Wikipedia link:
Second Boer War | Wikipedia audio article
This is an audio version of the Wikipedia Article:
Second Boer War
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- Socrates
SUMMARY
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The Second Boer War (11 October 1899 – 31 May 1902) was fought between the British Empire and two Boer states, the South African Republic (Republic of Transvaal) and the Orange Free State, over the Empire's influence in South Africa. It is also known variously as the Boer War, Anglo-Boer War, or South African War. Initial Boer attacks were successful, and although British reinforcements later reversed these, the war continued for years with Boer guerrilla warfare, until harsh British counter-measures brought them to terms.
The war started with the British overconfident and under-prepared. The Boers were very well armed and struck first, besieging Ladysmith, Kimberley, and Mahikeng in early 1900, and winning important battles at Colenso, Magersfontein and Stormberg. Staggered, the British brought in large numbers of soldiers and fought back. General Redvers Buller was replaced by Lord Roberts and Lord Kitchener. They relieved the three besieged cities, and invaded the two Boer republics in late 1900. The onward marches of the British Army, well over 400,000 men, were so overwhelming that the Boers did not fight staged battles in defence of their homeland. The British quickly seized control of all of the Orange Free State and Transvaal, as the civilian leadership went into hiding or exile. In conventional terms, the war was over. The British officially annexed the two countries in 1900. Back home, Britain's Conservative government wanted to capitalize on this success and use it to maneuver an early general election, dubbed a khaki election to give the government another six years of power in London. British military efforts were aided by Cape Colony, the Colony of Natal and some native African allies, and further supported by volunteers from the British Empire, including Southern Africa, the Australian colonies, Canada, India and New Zealand. All other nations were neutral, but public opinion in them was largely hostile to the British. Inside the UK and its Empire there also was significant opposition to the Second Boer War.
The Boers refused to surrender. They reverted to guerrilla warfare under new generals Louis Botha, Jan Smuts, Christiaan de Wet and Koos de la Rey. Two more years of surprise attacks and quick escapes followed. As guerrillas without uniforms, the Boer fighters easily blended into the farmlands, which provided hiding places, supplies, and horses. The UK's solution was to set up complex nets of block houses, strong points, and barbed wire fences, partitioning off the entire conquered territory. The civilian farmers were relocated into concentration camps, where very large proportions died of disease, especially the children, who mostly lacked immunities. Then British mounted infantry units systematically tracked down the highly mobile Boer guerrilla units. The battles at this stage were small operations with few combat casualties (most of the dead were victims of disease). The war ended in surrender and British terms with the Treaty of Vereeniging in May 1902. The British successfully won over the Boer leaders, who now gave full support to the new political system. Both former republics were incorporated into the Union of South Africa in 1910, as part of the British Empire.