ESWATINI'S HISTORY, TRADITIONS AND GEOGRAPHY

A BRIEF HISTORY

Eswatini is an independent monarchy, rich in traditions and heritage, led by King Mswati ill with perliament and consultation prescribing all laws and customs.

Eswatini is a Kingdom in Southern Africa, and covers an area of 17,363 square kilometers. Originally the Royal line of Dlamini lived near Delgoa Bay and Nguni people were recorded as entering Kingdom in about 1600AD. In 1750 Dlamini III settled his people in the Lubombo Mountains, along the Pongola River. Ngwane III set up his headquarters at Dwaleni and was later laid to rest in the hills surmounting Pongola - known as Embilaneni. Later Sobhuza I, who was Ngwane III grandson, colonised the Sotho, Tsongo and Nguni chiefdoms and moved north, to escape the Zulu threat, to Hlatikulu and the Ezulwini Valley and a new Swazi Nation was born, Sobhuza I married off two of his daughters to the Zulu leader bringing a period of peace of prosperity to Eswatini with the defeat of the Zulus led by Dingane at Hlatikhulu in 1863. Mswati I was the son of Sobhuza but was a minor when his father died. Mswati I himself died with the Queen Regent reigning until the accession of Mbandzeni when the kingdom was ruled by a provincial government of Boer, Britain and Swazi until 1894 when Eswatini became a protected dependency of South Africa under King Bhunu. After the Anglo Boer War in 1902, Eswatini was placed under British rule until 1968 when the Nation gained Independence. The Queen Regent reigned until Sobhuza II came into power at the age of 21 years and it was he who set about regaining lost land of the Kingdom. 1978 saw the establishment of the Parliament of Eswatini with His Majesty retaining full power in census with his Council of state, his cabinet, his members of Parliament and his people.

In 1982 King Sobhuza II died leaving the Queen
Regent to reign until in 1986 when King Mswatl III was
crowned and today rules as executive Head of State.