Magaliesburg

Location

One hour drive westward from Pretoria or Johannesburg.

The small village of Magaliesburg lies at the heart of a beautiful region of mountains, valleys, rivers and indigenous woodland – home to a variety of birds.

Attractions

But it is not all natural bushveld. Here you will also find a wealth of hospitality – country guest houses, hotels, lodges, stores, art and craft studios, working farms, horse and mountain bike trails and much more.

History

The Magaliesburg area probably has one of the most intriguing and longest session of history, as man would have experienced, than anywhere else on earth.

The reason for this is the discovery of the remains of the earliest species of primitive man know today, in and around the Sterkfontein Caves, some 20 minutes drive from Magaliesburg.

The tribes of the descendants of the earliest proto- hominids had free reign in this tranquil valley, and fished the clear streams, and hunted the vast herds of animals that roamed the plains, with is tools made initially from stone and later forged from iron. While his life may have been threatened by the odd wild animal, or early death from injury or disease, man lived in total harmony with nature, which flourished in abundance in the greater Magaliesburg area over the past two million years of his development.

Then, in what is very recent history, in the mid 1800’s, the savage feet of the great tribes of the north swept through the valley, bringing grief and a temporary tension to the once quiet paradise. The tribes moved on, and peace returned, but not for long, as war broke out again, when Mzilikazi’s impis attacked (generally after sunset), capturing the women and enslaving the men and young, to be incorporated into his army as warriors.

In the late 1800s the “white” tribes from the south arrived, they too seeking their piece of this paradise and with guns ablazing, they drove back the local tribes and hunted the herds of game daily, causing their numbers to dwindle rapidly.

Then on 1 October 1899, war between the two “White Tribes”, the British and the Boer Republics of Transvaal and Orange Free State, was declared. Within a year, blood and human lives were lost between these two warring parties, in the Magaliesberg valleys, at Kommando Nek, Nooitgedacht and in many of the deep gorges and high ridges along the mountain side.

And since the days when peace was declared the turn of the last century/ 1902, peace reigned once again in this garden of Eden, where for over the past several decades, man has lived in a peaceful co-existence with nature, farming the land and toiling with the historic truths of democracy.

Today, Magaliesburg has developed into a tranquil haven of tourist attractions, with a number and variety of hospitality venues, where every human being descendant of the earliest species of mankind, is welcome to come back “home” and rest a while. To soak in the peaceful atmosphere and relax in our paradise, just once again.

Article Courtesy Of www.tourismnorthwest.co.za/magaliesburg