Fouriesburg is a small town situated at the junction of the R711 and

R26 R26 or R-26 may refer to: Roads * R-26 regional road (Montenegro) * R26 (South Africa) Other uses * R-26 (missile), a Soviet intercontinental ballistic missile * R26 (New York City Subway car) * R-26 (salon), an artistic salon in Paris * Br ...

routes in the eastern Free State,

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. It is near the

Maluti Mountains The Maloti Mountains are a mountain range of the highlands of the Kingdom of Lesotho. They extend for about 100 km into the South African Free State. The Maloti Range is part of the Drakensberg system that includes ranges across large area ...

and only 10 km from Caledon's Poort border post, which gives access to

Lesotho Lesotho ( ), officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a country landlocked country, landlocked as an Enclave and exclave, enclave in South Africa. It is situated in the Maloti Mountains and contains the Thabana Ntlenyana, highest mountains in Sou ...

History

During the late nineteenth century, this land was donated to the

Orange Free State The Orange Free State ( nl, Oranje Vrijstaat; af, Oranje-Vrystaat;) was an independent Boer sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeat ...

by a local farmer of

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...

descent, Christoffel Fourie, for use as a temporary capital during the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sout ...

. It was the site of several engagements during the Boer War, and by 1902 the original settlement had been almost completely destroyed.

Vicinity

Ventersberg in Rooiberge, Fouriesburg, b

A small private resort, Meiringskloof Nature Park, is located in a valley just northeast of town. Fouriesburg is about half an hour's drive from Clarens, a popular tourist destination, and a 45-minute drive from

Golden Gate Highlands National Park Golden Gate Highlands National Park is located in Free State, South Africa, near the Lesotho border. It covers an area of . The park's most notable features are its golden, ochre, and orange-hued, deeply eroded sandstone cliffs and outcrops, es ...

. It is about fifty kilometres south-east of

Bethlehem Bethlehem (; ar, بيت لحم ; he, בֵּית לֶחֶם '' '') is a city in the central West Bank, Palestine, about south of Jerusalem. Its population is approximately 25,000,Amara, 1999p. 18.Brynen, 2000p. 202. and it is the capital o ...

, and some fifty-three from

Ficksburg Ficksburg is a town situated at the foot of the 1,750 meter high Imperani Mountain in Free State province, South Africa. The town was founded by General Johan Fick in 1867 who won the territory in the Basotho Wars. He laid out many erven and p ...

. Fouriesburg ranked first during South Africa's 2013 ''Kwela Town of the Year'' competition.

References

Populated places in the Dihlabeng Local Municipality Populated places founded by Afrikaners Populated places established in 1892 {{FreeState-geo-stub