Kaditshwene aka Gaditshweni or Karechuenya, was a South African

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

settlement some northeast of the town of

Zeerust Zeerust is a commercial town situated in Ngaka Modiri Molema district North West Province, South Africa. It lies in the Marico valley, approximately 240 kilometres northwest of Johannesburg. It lies on the N4, the main road link between South ...

North West The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

province. It was the cultural capital of the Bahurutshe people, one of the principal

Tswana Tswana may refer to: * Tswana people, the Bantu speaking people in Botswana, South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, and other Southern Africa regions * Tswana language, the language spoken by the (Ba)Tswana people * Bophuthatswana, the former ba ...

tribes and a centre of manufacturing and trading. The missionary John Campbell came across this settlement in the Tshwenyane hills of the

Marico Marico Limited is an Indian multinational consumer goods company providing consumer products and services in the areas of health, beauty and wellness. With its headquarters in Mumbai, Marico is present in over 25 countries across Asia and Af ...

area in 1820, at which time its population of 20,000 exceeded that of

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

. Archaeologists estimate that it had been founded in the late 1400s on the site of iron and copper ore deposits. In 1821, during the

Mfecane The Mfecane (isiZulu, Zulu pronunciation: ̩fɛˈkǀaːne, also known by the Sesotho names Difaqane or Lifaqane (all meaning "crushing, scattering, forced dispersal, forced migration") is a historical period of heightened military conflict a ...

, the town was sacked by the Batlokwa under the warrior queen

Mantatisi Mmanthatisi (also spelled 'Mantatee’, 'Ma Nthisi, Mantatise, or Manthatisi; c. 1784 – 1847) was the leader of the Tlokwa people during her son's minority from 1813 until 1824. She came to power as the regent for her son, Sekonyela, (Lents'a) ...

. The attack was followed round 1823 by another under

Sebetwane Sebetwane (between about 1790 and 1800 – July 7, 1851) was chief of the Patsa branch of the Bafokeng clan. He established the large and powerful Makololo nation in what is now southwestern Zambia after an arduous migration of over 1200 ki ...

and the Bafokeng tribe. The survivors fled west and sought sanctuary among the

Bakwena The Bakoena or Bakwena ("those who venerate the crocodile") are a large clan in Southern Africa. They form part of the Sotho-Tswana Bantu people and can be found in different countries such as Lesotho, Botswana, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Eswatini ...

and other Tswana tribes. Crumbling stone walls, foundations, ash middens and remains of a metal working industry are the only evidence of the settlement's previous existence. In 2011 the ruins were declared a National Heritage Site by the Government. The name is thought to be based on a Tswana expression, "''Ga se ka ditshwene!''", which means "''What an incredible number of baboons''". John Campbell referred to the town as "Kurreechane", a rendition which has survived in Kurrichane thrush and

Kurrichane buttonquail The common buttonquail (''Turnix sylvaticus''), also called Kurrichane buttonquail, small buttonquail, or Andalusian hemipode is a buttonquail, one of a small family of birds which resemble but are unrelated to the true of quails. Description T ...

, species that were described from there by Andrew Smith.

References

External link

{{coord, 25.3833, S, 26.2000, E, type:landmark_region:ZA, display=title, format=dms Archaeological sites in South Africa South African heritage sites Ruins in South Africa Archaeological sites of Southern Africa Historic sites in South Africa