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Mbabane

Capital of EswatiniMbabane lies in the Mdzimba Mountains of the Hhohho Region in northwestern Eswatini, on the Mbabane River, about 1,240 m above sea level.

Why it's the capital

In January 1902 the British moved the country's administrative centre from Bremersdorp (now Manzini) to Mbabane and made it the capital of the new Protectorate of Swaziland. It remains the executive capital, where the government is based.

Fun facts

  1. The city takes its name from Mbabane Kunene, a chief who lived in the area when British settlers arrived.
  2. Mbabane was founded in 1887 at the spot where the trade route from the Transvaal to Mozambique crossed the Mbabane River.
  3. Sibebe, a huge bare granite mountain also known as Bald Rock, rises 350 m above the Mbuluzi River valley about 10 km from the city.

Finding it on the globe

Eswatini is the small country between South Africa and Mozambique. Mbabane is near its western side, a little north of the middle, roughly due west of Maputo.

Easy to mix up

Eswatini has two capitals. Mbabane is the executive capital, while Lobamba, about 16 km away in the Ezulwini Valley, is the legislative capital where the Parliament sits.

Sources: Wikipedia: Mbabane, Wikipedia: Lobamba, Wikipedia: Hhohho Region, Wikipedia: Sibebe, Wikipedia: Eswatini