Volksrust

Volksrust
Volksrust
Coordinates	27 ° 22 ′  S , 29 ° 53 ′  E Coordinates: 27 ° 22 ′  S , 29 ° 53 ′  E
Basic data
Country	South Africa
province	Mpumalanga
District	Gert Sibande
local community	Pixley Ka Seme
height	1659 m
Residents	24,281 (2011)
founding	1881
Website	www.volksrust.com (English)
Special features: administrative seat of the municipality
SAR Class 19D 2696 4-8-2 in Volksrust (2005)

Volksrust (German for "Volksruhe") is a city in the South African province of Mpumalanga . It is located in the Pixley Ka Seme parish in the Gert Sibande district . Volksrust is the largest city and the administrative seat of the Pixley Ka Seme parish.

geography

Volksrust is just north of the border with the province of KwaZulu-Natal . In 2011 the city had 24,281 inhabitants. and lies at around 1659 meters above sea level. In the east of the city is the former township Vukuzakhe. To the south is the city of Charlestown . The Tamatiesberg lies north of the city. The Buffalo River , which flows southeast to the Tugela , has its source at Volksrust .

history

Protest march 1913

The city was founded in 1888 near the site of the Battle of Majuba Hill , where the Boers were able to restore the independence of the Transvaal Republic from the British in 1881 . The city was called Volksrust because the soldiers of the Transvaal Army had rested here. In 1894 Paul Kruger and the Briton Sir Henry Loch signed the third Swaziland Convention on the Convention Bridge over the border river Grensspruit , which brought Swaziland under the control of the Transvaal for a short time . The Convention Bridge was later destroyed; the remains were declared a national monument.

During the Second Boer War , the British built a concentration camp in Volksrust, in which many Boers died. In 1904 Volksrust became a municipality . In 1913, Mahatma Gandhi organized a protest march for the rights of South Africans of Indian origin, which reached the then Transvaal in people's rust.

Economy and Transport

The city is an agricultural center. From here beef, dairy products, corn, millet, wool and sunflower oil are sold.

Volksrust is on the N11 , which runs north-south through Volksrust, and the R23, which meets the N11 when coming from Gauteng . Country roads lead to Vrede in the west and Wakkerstroom and Piet Retief in the east. Volksrust station is on the Johannesburg - Durban line (see also: Natal Main Line ) and is used for passenger and freight traffic. A railroad line used for freight traffic leads from Volksrust north to Bethal .

Personalities

• Rolene Strauss (* 1992), model, born in Volksrust

Web links

• Official website (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ 2011 census , accessed November 16, 2013
2. ↑ Information on places.co.za , accessed on February 1, 2016
3. ^ Sights in Volksrust (English), accessed on April 21, 2011