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Antbear Guest House is rated as the TOP Drakensberg accommodation. Superb food, comfortable and artisticly styled this boutique hotel is perfectly positioned to experience all that the Drakensberg has to offer. Check out the luxury cave too.

 

Northern Drakensberg
- Royal Natal
- Cathedral Peak
- Bergville
- Ladysmith
- Oliviershoek
- Van Reenen

Central Drakensberg
- Monks Cowl
- Champagne Valley
- Injasuti
- Giants Castle
- Highmoor
- Kamberg
- Winterton
- Estcourt
- Mooi River
- Weenen

Southern Drakensberg
- Lotheni
- Vergelegen
- Sani Pass
- Cobham
- Bushmans Nek
- Drakensberg Gardens
- Underberg
- Himeville

Natal Midlands
- Rosetta
- Nottingham Road
- Balgowan
- Howick
- Lidgetton
- Currys Post
- Karkloof
- Lions River
- Fort Nottingham
- Hilton
- Dargle

Drakensberg Attractions
- Bushman Rock Art
- Hiking Trails
- Hot air ballooning
- Horse trails
- Helicopter & Microlight flights
- Restaurants
- Arts & Crafts
- Drakensberg Boys Choir
- Canopy Tours
- Midlands Meander
- Fly Fishing
- Game Viewing
- Golf
- White Water rafting
- Birding
- Quad Biking
- 4x4 Offroad trails
- Battlefield Tours
- Wine Tasting
- Museums
- Bicycle tours
- Abseiling
- Wellness & Spas

Weddings

Conferences

Drakensberg Links

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Drakensberg Battlefields

The battlefields in the Drakensberg area have always been very much worth a days trip reliving the past.

spionkop battlefield central DrakensbergZulu wars, Shaka, Isandlwana, Rorke's Drift, Colenso, Spioenkop, Ladysmith, Dundee, Churchill, Blood River, Cetshwayo, Boers ... these are some of the terms which are associated with the internationally renowned KwaZulu-Natal Drakensberg Battlefields area.

Walk in the footsteps of famous military strategists - Shaka, Winston Churchill, Mahatma Gandhi and General Louis Botha - they were all part of the Drakensberg Battlefields. The wind sighs and whispers the secrets and sorrows of great battles, made visible by lone forts and small graveyards on these undulating landscapes ringed with rocky outcrops.

The legacy of our Zulu Kingdom's critical, blood-soaked conflicts today lives peacefully - reconciled in this fascinating region's myriad Battlefield sites, historic towns, national monuments and museums - and in HQs of the British regiments who make a 'pilgrimage' to these fields of bravery and supreme sacrifice.

spionkop battlefield central DrakensbergMAJOR WARS The first involved the continuing clash between the Voortrekkers and the Zulu nation during the period 1836-1852. Refusing to be subjected to British rule in the Cape Colony, the Voortrekkers headed for the hinterland. They wished to govern themselves and maintain their cultural identity and language, but after crossing the Drakensberg mountains, the trekking groups came into contact with the Zulu in Natal, leading to disputes over land and other issues.

After trekker leader Piet Retief and 101 of his group were killed by King Dingane, there followed a series of battles, particularly around present day Estcourt.

Central Drakensberg Battlefields

  • The Siege of Ladysmith - Along with its attendant battles, this tragic chain of events remains a bleak epic in Britain's long history of imperialism. The deliberate massing of regiments in an area encircled by hills offered Boer field-commanders the perfect opportunity to isolate and harass their foe with impunity. To prevent a disaster of humiliating proportions, British officers were directed from the highest quarter to relieve the town at all costs.
  • The battle of Spionkop - The Battle of Spion Kopwas fought about 38 km (21 miles) west-south-west of Ladysmith on the hilltop of Spioenkop(1) along the Tugela River, Natal in South Africa from 23–24 January 1900. It was fought between the South African Republic and the Orange Free State on the one hand and British forces during the Second Boer War during the campaign to relieve Ladysmith and resulted in a British defeat.
  • The Battle of Colenso - The Battle of Colenso was the third and final battle fought during the Black Week of the Second Boer War. It was fought between British and Boer forces from the independent South African Republic and Orange Free State in and around Colenso, Natal, South Africa on 15 December 1899. Inadequate preparation and reconnaissance, and uninspired leadership led to a heavy, and in some respects humiliating, British defeat.
  • The capture of Winston Churchill - During the Boer War, Winston Churchill, then a war-correspondent, was travelling aboard an armoured train on 15 November 1899, when it was ambushed by Boer commandos. Churchill and many of the train's contingent were captured, many others escaped, including wounded soldiers who had been carried on the train's engine.
  • the battle of Willow Grange- the Battle field site of Willow Grange (Nov. 23rd 1899) is the furtherest point east on the Battlefield route.