Luangwa is a town in

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...

, at the confluence of the Luangwa and

Zambezi River The Zambezi River (also spelled Zambeze and Zambesi) is the fourth-longest river in Africa, the longest east-flowing river in Africa and the largest flowing into the Indian Ocean from Africa. Its drainage basin covers , slightly less than hal ...

s, which was called Feira until 1964. It is headquarters of a district of the same name in Lusaka Province. Feira was probably the first European settlement in Zambia, but the dates are not well documented. What is documented is that the

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

first settled on the opposite bank of the Luangwa at

Zumbo Zumbo is the westernmost town in Mozambique, on the Zambezi River. Lying on the north-east bank of the Zambezi-Luangwa River confluence, it is a border town, with Zambia (and the town of Luangwa, previously called Feira) across the Luangwa R ...

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

in the early 18th century, and by 1720 some had settled in Feira. The town was abandoned again by 1856, when it was visited by the explorer

David Livingstone David Livingstone (; 19 March 1813 – 1 May 1873) was a Scottish physician, Congregationalist, and pioneer Christian missionary with the London Missionary Society, an explorer in Africa, and one of the most popular British heroes of t ...

and described as completely ruined. It was resettled in 1887 by

John Harrison Clark John Harrison Clark or Changa-Changa (c. 1860–1927) effectively ruled much of what is today southern Zambia from the early 1890s to 1902. He arrived alone from South Africa in about 1887, reputedly as an outlaw, and assembled and trained a pr ...

, who lived there until 1895. After Zambia achieved

independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the stat ...

the name of the town was changed to Luangwa as part of a preference for indigenous rather than

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

names, although the name was resurrected in 1973 for the Feira parliamentary constituency covering the town. It has only one road in or out which connects to the Great East Road about 100 km north. There are no bridges in the area over the Luangwa or Zambezi, nor regular ferry services, but local people will take visitors across in small boats.Terracarta/International Travel Maps, Vancouver Canada: "Zambia, 2nd edition", 2000 The town's location is strategically important. The Luangwa forms Zambia's border with Mozambique and the Zambezi forms its border with

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...

. In the Zimbabwe-Rhodesia War, the

Mozambican War of Independence The Mozambican War of Independence ( pt, Guerra da Independência de Moçambique, 'War of Independence of Mozambique') was an armed conflict between the guerrilla forces of the Mozambique Liberation Front or FRELIMO () and Portugal. The w ...

and

Mozambican Civil War The Mozambican Civil War ( pt, Guerra Civil Moçambicana) was a civil war fought in Mozambique from 1977 to 1992. Like many regional African conflicts during the late twentieth century, the Mozambican Civil War possessed local dynamics but was a ...

it was the scene of guerrilla activity. Zambia's practical support for nationalist guerrillas led to some incursions into its territory by Rhodesian and Portuguese forces in pursuit of them. Luangwa District is far from the famous Luangwa national parks, but includes spectacular scenery and wildlife of its own. The

Lower Zambezi National Park The Lower Zambezi National Park lies on the north bank of the Zambezi River in southeastern Zambia. Until 1983 when the area was declared a national park, the area was the private game reserve of Zambia's president. This meant that the park was pro ...

west of the town is a rugged wilderness on the

Zambezi Escarpment Zambezi Escarpment is a name used for the escarpments forming both sides of the rift valley or graben in which lie the middle Zambezi river and Lake Kariba. They are fault scarps, rising 500 to 600 m higher than the lake or river, running from t ...

and the lower Luangwa valley includes unspoilt scenery and wildlife habitats.Camerapix: "Spectrum Guide to Zambia." Camerapix International Publishing, Nairobi, 1996.

References

:General references
Google Earth

Times of Zambia website
Mozambique–Zambia border crossings Zambia–Zimbabwe border crossings Populated places in Lusaka Province 1887 establishments in the British Empire {{Zambia-geo-stub

See also

References