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| Lesotho Map https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lesotho-map.png |
Geography
Lesotho
is a country located in southern Africa and is completely surrounded by South
Africa. It is the only country to be completely surrounded by another single
country. It is a small country spanning the area of only 11,583 square miles. [1] Just
like its size, it also has a small population. There are only around two
million people that inhabit this country of Lesotho. On the border, only a few
miles from South Africa lies the capital, Maseru. The border to South Africa
and Lesotho is considered to be one of the busiest borders in the world
considering how much traffic is exchanged daily due to traveling and work.[2] When
discussing the geography of Lesotho, it is hard not to mention how mountainous
of a country it is. This enclave is the only independent state in the world to
have the whole country at 1,000 meters above sea-level. Since this country is
so small, it makes Lesotho the highest country in the world in terms of height
above sea-level. Lesotho is almost split into three different areas. On the
west side, there are the lowlands and the city area. On the east, there are the
Maloti and Drakensburg Mountain Ranges. Dividing these two regions is the
valley where Orange River is found. Contrary to most stereotypes received about
Africa, Lesotho has a cold climate. This climate is cooler because Lesotho is
further from the equator than most people think. Being colder, this has
effected the spread of diseases such as malaria. Lesotho does have its own
diseases to worry about though, and those are HIV/AIDs. Lesotho has the second
largest AIDs rate in the world closing flowing their neighbor Swaziland.[3] Almost
one out of every four people living in Lesotho have this disease and it is
killing this nation.
Natural Resources
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| Lesotho Dam https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lesotho-map.png |
When looking at the natural
resources of Lesotho, one can see that geography has taken its toll. Because of
the cool climate and mountainous terrain, farming is something that is scarce.
Not being on the coast and being a landlocked nation has also hurt Lesotho's
chance at trading. Their main imports that they cannot grow themselves come
from South Africa. In exchange, Lesotho provides them with water that has been
collected in dams in the mountains. Lesotho has used this along with technology
to help create hydroelectric sources of energy. Along with water, Lesotho has
diamonds located in the Maloti mines which provide revenue.[4] The natural resources of
Lesotho include the following: water, agricultural and grazing land, some
diamonds and other minerals. Lesotho is also an exporter of excess labor.[5] When one
thinks about natural resources, usually water does not cross their mind. Due to
the geography of Lesotho, water is very important. Being a land locked country,
Lesotho relies on rainfall and the dams that have been constructed up in the
mountains. This water not only provides a natural resource for Lesotho, but
also sells it to South Africa when they are on a shortage. The newly built
Polihali Dam provides water for 71 villages and the rest will be given to South
Africa being used for industrial purposes.[6] This natural resource is
almost invaluable and helps sustain this country and economy. Another natural
resource that helps Lesotho’s economy is the diamond and minerals that are
found here. In 2006, the Lesotho Promise was found. This 603 carat diamond was
found at the Letseng mine in Lesotho and is the 15th largest diamond ever to be found.[7] The diamond was sold for
12.4 million dollars in October of 2006. As one can see this is a great
addition to Lesotho’s economy. The value of this source would only change
if the rest of the world were to also change to standard of what the diamond is
worth.
Religion
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Eugene Casalis (left) and Thomas Arbousset
http://www.lesothoemb-usa.gov.ls/about/missionaries.php
|
Looking at Lesotho, one
can see that the country is predominately Christian. It is this way because of
some the early missionary work that started in between the 1830’s to the
1850’s.[8] The first people to enter Lesotho for
specific evangelical reasons were the French. In the late 1820’s Lesotho participated
in battles with the Dutch who were trying to take over the land of the Basotho.
King Moshoeshoe, the leader of the Basotho, needed to find a means to get
horses and guns for his own people so they would have a chance to fight.[9] Moshoeshoe had heard of
the advantages that other clans had received from having resident missionaries.
Because of this, he invited three French missionaries from the Paris
Evangelical Missionary Society (PEMS) to come to his country in hopes of
acquiring guns through them to fight off the invaders. Thomas Arbousset, Eugene
Casalis, and Constant Gosselin came to Thaba Bosiu in 1833 to share with these people the
Catholic religion.[10] To this today, out of the 90% that are
Christian, 45% are Catholic.[11] The effect that these men
made was more than just an evangelical trip. They did end organizing a way for
Moshoeshoe to get his needed guns and horses in order to fight off the Boers.
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King Moshoeshoe
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Moshoeshoe.jpg
|
History
To protect their land from the Boers, the Basotho fought a
series of wars called the Free State - Boer War. These Boers were the
Dutch immigrants who had come up from the Southern Cape. These wars can be
separated between two wars. The Senekal’s War of 1858 and the Seqiti War, which
spanned from 1865-68, were the two. The Senekal’s War started because of the
tension and arguments between the land claims of who got what. In 1858, there
was a formal declaration of war made by the Free State against the Basotho.[12] The Free State attacked
Moshoeshoe’s stronghold at Thaba Bosiu but had little to no success. There was
a peace treaty sign on October 15, 1858, but there was nothing peaceful about
it.[13] The next war was the
Seqiti War. This was the war that ended up shaping Lesotho's geography. In 1865
another war broke out and this time the Boers were able to easily take over.
Moshoeshoe was forced to sue for peace in 1866 and the treaty of Thaba Bosiu
was signed which entailed the giving of large territories to the Free State.[14] This was the war
where Basutoland was needed to be placed under
British protection until it later became Lesotho. Considering the small
size of this country and the containment of the Basotho, this did not affect
the culture much but it did shrink Lesotho’s original size down making it what
it is today.
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Thaba Bosiu
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Qiloane_Lesotho.jpg
|
Bibliography
BBC News Online,
"Lesotho Diamond put up for sale", BBC, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/5409092.stm (accessed April
11, 2016).
Beck, Roger B. The
History of South Africa. CT: Greenwood Press, 2000.
International River. “Lesotho Water Project.”
Internationalrivers.org. https://www.internationalrivers.org/campaigns/lesotho-water-project (accessed April 11, 2016).
“Lesotho.” Africa Research
Bulletin 48, no. 3 (May 2011): 19048B. Accessed May 12, 2016. Wiley Online
Library.
Lesotho. Washington:
Superintendent of Documents, 2012, http://ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/1545082094?accountid=12085. Accessed May 12, 2016.
Olivier, Willie and Olivier, Sandra. Touring in South Africa: The Great
SA Road Trip Guide. SA: Struik, 2005.
One
World Nations. “Lesotho.” Nationsonline.org. http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/lesotho.htm (accessed
April 11, 2016).
The Lesotho Embassy in
the USA. “Arrival of Missionaries.” http://www.lesothoemb-usa.gov.ls/.
http://www.lesothoemb-usa.gov.ls/about/missionaries.php (accessed April 28,
2016).
US Department of State.
“International Religious Freedom Report 2007.” State.gov.org. http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2007/90104.htm (accessed April
28, 2016).
Welcome to the Mountain Kingdom. “About Lesotho.” Gov.ls. http://www.gov.ls/about/default.php (accessed April 18, 2016).
Images
Eugene Casalis (left) and Thomas Arbousset, http://www.lesothoemb-usa.gov.ls/about/missionaries.php.
[1]
Lesotho. Washington: Superintendent of
Documents, 2012, http://ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/1545082094?accountid=12085.
Accessed May 12, 2016.
[2] “Lesotho.” Africa
Research Bulletin 48, no. 3 (May 2011): 19048B. Accessed May 12, 2016.
Wiley Online Library.
[3] Lesotho.
Washington: Superintendent of Documents, 2012, http://ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/1545082094?accountid=12085.
Accessed May 12, 2016.
[4] Ibid.,
[5] One World Nations. “Lesotho.” Nationsonline.org. http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/lesotho.htm (accessed
April 11, 2016).
[6] International River. “Lesotho Water Project.”
Internationalrivers.org. https://www.internationalrivers.org/campaigns/lesotho-water-project (accessed April 11, 2016).
[7]
BBC News Online, "Lesotho Diamond put up
for sale", BBC, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/5409092.stm (accessed April 11, 2016).
[8]
The Lesotho Embassy in the USA. “Arrival of
Missionaries.” http://www.lesothoemb-usa.gov.ls/.
http://www.lesothoemb-usa.gov.ls/about/missionaries.php (accessed April 28,
2016).
[9] Welcome to the Mountain Kingdom. “About Lesotho.” Gov.ls. http://www.gov.ls/about/default.php (accessed April 18, 2016).
[10] The Lesotho Embassy in the USA. “Arrival of
Missionaries.” http://www.lesothoemb-usa.gov.ls/.
http://www.lesothoemb-usa.gov.ls/about/missionaries.php (accessed April 28,
2016).
[11] US Department of State. “International Religious
Freedom Report 2007.” State.gov.org. http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2007/90104.htm (accessed April 28, 2016).
[12] Roger B. Beck, The
History of South Africa, (CT: Greenwood Press, 2000), 74.
[13] Ibid., 74.
[14] Willie Olivier and Sandra Olivier, Touring in South Africa: The Great
SA Road Trip Guide, (SA: Struik, 2005) 116.
