Alexandra Park

General information

Welcome to Pietermaritzburg, also known as the Garden CIty, it is set in the heart of the Natal Midlands. Pietermaritzburg, the Capital of KwaZulu-Natal, is a city of charm and dignity and is rich in natural history and secular history which has seen the rise and fall of dynasties, and societies.

The city was originally founded by the Voortrekkers, following the defeat of Dingane at the Battle of Blood River, and was the capital of the short-lived Boer republic, Natalia. Britain took over Pietermaritzburg in 1843 and it became the seat of the Natal Colony's administration with the first lieutenant-governor, Martin West, making it his home. Fort Napier, named after the governor of the Cape Colony, Sir George Thomas Napier, was built to house a garrison. In 1893 Natal received responsibility for their own government and an assembly building was built along with the city hall. In 1910, when the Union of South Africa was formed, Natal became a province of the union, and Pietermaritzburg remained the capital.

The surrounds being the scenes of bloody battles between the Zulus, The Boer and Brittish soldiers. Memorials to the fallen can be found in and around Pietermaritzburg. It is also a city of extremes in climate, dropping close to zero in winter, it can soar to over 45 degrees in the summer months, with very dry conditions in the winter months where the country side goes brown, to summer where it is very wet and the Mzunduzi river often breaks its banks.

Despite being a relatively small town, it punches above its weight in terms of diversity, culterally as well as economically and racially.

Many world champion sportsmen and women have come from this part of the world.

Many events such as the Comrades Marathon, Duzi Marathon, Midmar Mile, Arts in the Park, The Royal show and many more keep the social calender very occupied.

This site contains a host of information about Pietermaritzburg and surrounding areas, this information is easy to find. Below is a breakdown of what you can find on Pietermaritzburgtourism.co.za.

Facts and info on Pietermaritzburg can be found under history & fact file, anything related to visiting Pietermaritzburg is in the travel guide, if you are simply looking accommodation then the accommodation page is where you should be.

Annual and local events can be found on whats on page and how to become part of the Pietermaritzburgtourism.co.za web site is under get connected. We hope that this web site provides you with the information you are looking for and that you were able to get results with ease.

We are always looking for ways to improve our services to you, should you have any comments or suggestions about this web site, please feel free to email them to us and we will respond to your requests as soon as possible.