4th October: Lesotho Independence Day

Lesotho Independence Day - Lesotho became independent from the UK on this date in 1966. Here are 10 things you might not know about Lesotho:

1. Lesotho is not only landlocked, but is completely surrounded by one other country - South Africa. This makes it the most southerly landlocked country in the world.
2. Lesotho was named after the indigenous Sotho people, whose own name means “black” or “dark-skinned”.
3. It is the only independent state in the world that lies entirely above 1,000 metres (3,281 ft) in elevation. Its lowest point of 1,400 metres (4,593 ft) is the highest lowest point in the world. Thabana Ntlenyana (“Beautiful Little Mountain”) is the highest point and is also the highest mountain in southern Africa.
4. Lesotho is home to the highest altitude pub in Africa, at 2874 metres above sea level. It’s at the border with South Africa, at the Lesotho end of the Sani Pass.
5. Lesotho is also home to the highest ski resort in Africa, Afriski, at 3050 metres above sea level.
6. Then there is the highest single drop waterfall in Southern Africa. Maletsunyane has a drop of 192 metres. According to the Guinness book of records, the longest commercially operated single-drop abseil is one of 204m (670ft) down the Maletsunyane waterfall.
7. Its capital and largest city is Maseru. The name is a Sesotho word meaning "red sandstones". The city started life as a British police camp in the 19th century and became the capital when Lesotho, then known as Basutoland, became a British protectorate.
8. Before that the capital was Thaba Bosiu, a sandstone plateau which the king, Moshoeshoe, used as a stronghold. The name means mountain of the night and people believed that the mountain grew during the night and shrunk during the day, so enemies who tried scaling it during the night would get stranded on the cliffs and be vulnerable for attack the next morning.
9. The Lesotho Flag consists of three horizontal stripes of blue (representing rain), white (peace), and Green (prosperity); in the white stripe is a Black Basotho hat representing the indigenous people.
10. Lesotho has a unique breed of pony not found anywhere else, the Basotho pony.

My Books

As well as this blog, I also write fiction and have published two novels (Death and Faxes and Glastonbury Swan) and a collection of short stories (Jigsaw). If you like ghost stories, crime stories, a bit of romance and anything slightly bizarre you might enjoy them. 

Further details on my books page