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Coordinates: 29°13′26″S 31°30′0″E / 29.22389°S 31.50000°E / -29.22389; 31.50000
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{{short description|River in South Africa}}
__NOTOC__
{{Other uses|Tugela (disambiguation)}}
:''"Tugela" redirects here. For the racehorse, see [[Tugela (horse)]]. For the [[snout moth]] [[genus]], see ''[[Lamoria]].
{{Use South African English|date=July 2024}}
{{Geobox |River
{{Infobox river
| name = Tugela
| other_name = {{lang|zu|Thukela}}
| name = Tugela
| country = South Africa
| native_name = {{lang|zu|Thukela}}
| native_name_lang =
| region = [[KwaZulu-Natal Province|KwaZulu-Natal]]
| name_other = {{lang|zu|Thukela}}
| region_type = [[Provinces of South Africa|Province]]
| city = Bergville
| name_etymology =
| city1 = [[Colenso, KwaZulu-Natal|Colenso]]
| image = Amphitheatre_Drakensberg.jpg
| city_type = Towns
| image_size = 300
| image_caption = The Tugela River with the [[Amphitheatre, Drakensberg|Amphitheatre]] in the background
| landmark = [[Tugela Falls]]
| landmark1 = [[Fort Tenedos]]
| map = JCW-Map-Natal-Tugela.png
| length = 502
| map_size =
| watershed = 29100
| map_caption = The course of the Tugela river, from the west to the east border of KwaZulu-Natal.
| source_location = Drakensberg
| pushpin_map =
| pushpin_map_size =
| mouth_name = Indian Ocean
| pushpin_map_caption=
| image = Amphitheatre_Drakensberg.jpg
| subdivision_type1 = Country
| image_caption = The Tugela River with the [[Amphitheatre, Drakensberg|Amphitheatre]] in the background
| subdivision_name1 = [[South Africa]]
| map = JCW-Map-Natal-Tugela.png
| subdivision_type2 =
| map_caption = The course of the Tugela river, from the west to the east border of KwaZulu-Natal.
| subdivision_name2 =
}}
| subdivision_type3 = [[Provinces of South Africa|Province]]
| subdivision_name3 = [[KwaZulu-Natal Province|KwaZulu-Natal]]
| subdivision_type4 =
| subdivision_name4 =
| subdivision_type5 = Towns
| subdivision_name5 = [[Bergville]], [[Colenso, KwaZulu-Natal|Colenso]]
| length = {{cvt|560|km|mi}}
| width_min =
| width_avg =
| width_max =
| depth_min =
| depth_avg =
| depth_max =
| discharge1_location=
| discharge1_min =
| discharge1_avg =
| discharge1_max =
| source1 =
| source1_location = [[Drakensberg]]
| source1_coordinates= {{coord|28|45|00|S|28|53|45|E|region:ZA-NL_type:landmark}}
| source1_elevation =
| mouth = [[Indian Ocean]]
| mouth_location =
| mouth_coordinates = {{Coord|29|13|26|S|31|30|0|E|display=inline,title}}
| mouth_elevation =
| progression =
| river_system =
| basin_size = {{cvt|29100|km2}}
| tributaries_left = *[[Buffalo River (KwaZulu-Natal)|Buffalo River]]
| tributaries_right = *[[Mooi River (Tugela)|Mooi River]]
}}


The '''Tugela River''' ({{lang-zu|Thukela}}; {{lang-af|Tugelarivier}}) is the largest river in [[KwaZulu-Natal Province]], [[South Africa]]. It is one of the most important rivers of the country.<ref>[http://myfundi.co.za/e/Key_rivers_of_South_Africa Key rivers of South Africa]</ref>
The '''Tugela River''' ({{langx|zu|Thukela}}; {{langx|af|Tugelarivier}}) is the largest river in [[KwaZulu-Natal Province]], [[South Africa]]. With a total length of {{cvt|560|km}}, and a drop of 1{{thinsp}}370 metres in the lower 480&nbsp;km,<ref>{{cite web | url=https://archive.today/20120710162812/http://myfundi.co.za/e/Key_rivers_of_South_Africa#selection-751.32-751.79 | title=Key rivers of South Africa - MyFundi }}</ref> it is one of the most important rivers of the country.<ref>{{cite web |publisher=MyFundi |url=http://myfundi.co.za/e/Key_rivers_of_South_Africa |title=Key rivers of South Africa |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120710162812/http://myfundi.co.za/e/Key_rivers_of_South_Africa |archive-date=2012-07-10}}</ref>


The river originates in the [[Drakensberg]] Mountains, [[Mont-aux-Sources]], (itself the source of tributaries of two other major South African rivers, the [[Orange River]] and the [[Vaal River]]) and plunges 947 metres down the [[Tugela Falls]]. From the Drakensberg range the river follows a {{convert|502|km|mi}} route through the KwaZulu-Natal midlands before flowing into the [[Indian Ocean]].<ref name="DWAF-ThukelaWMA-A">{{cite web|url=http://www.dwaf.gov.za/Documents/Other/CMA/Thukela/ThukelaAppendixA2.pdf|title=Proposal to establishment a Catchment Management Agency for the Thukela Water Management Area - Appendix A|date=2004-07|publisher=Department of Water Affairs and Forestry|accessdate=2008-10-21}}</ref> The total catchment area is approximately {{convert|29100|km2|mi2}}.<ref name="DWAF-ThukelaWMA-A"/> Land uses in the catchment are mainly rural subsistence farming and commercial forestry.
The river originates in [[Mont-aux-Sources]] of the [[Drakensberg]] Mountains at an elevation of 3{{thinsp}}282 metres<ref name="EB1911">{{Cite EB1911 |wstitle=Tugela |volume=27 |page=364}} This has a very detailed description of the river's course.</ref> and plunges in five distinct free-leaping falls 947 metres down the [[Tugela Falls]]. The Mont-aux-Sources is also the origin of tributaries of two other major South African rivers, the [[Orange River|Orange]] and the [[Caledon River]]. From the Drakensberg range, the Tugela follows a {{cvt|560|km|mi}} route through the KwaZulu-Natal midlands before flowing into the [[Indian Ocean]].<ref name="DWAF-ThukelaWMA-A">{{cite web |url=http://www.dwaf.gov.za/Documents/Other/CMA/Thukela/ThukelaAppendixA2.pdf |title=Proposal to establishment a Catchment Management Agency for the Thukela Water Management Area - Appendix A |date=July 2004 |publisher=Department of Water Affairs and Forestry |access-date=2008-10-21}}</ref> The total catchment area is approximately {{cvt|29100|km2|mi2}}.<ref name="DWAF-ThukelaWMA-A"/> Land uses in the catchment are mainly rural subsistence farming and commercial forestry.
[[Image:Crossing the Tugela River - 1898-9.jpg|thumb|left|200px|British troops crossing the river during the Second Boer War]]


==Course==
==Tributaries==
[[File:Crossing the Tugela River - 1898-9.jpg|thumb|left|British troops crossing the river during the Second Boer War]]
The Tugela passes Bergville and [[Colenso, KwaZulu-Natal|Colenso]], the latter the site of an important [[Battle of Colenso|battle]] in the [[Second Boer War]] and for many years the site of the first major power station in Natal. The power station was built by the South African Railways to electrify the railway line north from [[Pietermaritzburg]]. It was coal-fired and the cooling water came from the Tugela.
The Tugela is fed by a number of tributaries coming off the [[Drakensberg]], the largest being the [[Buffalo River (KwaZulu-Natal)|Mzinyathi ("Buffalo") River]] (rising near Majuba Hill). Others are the [[Little Tugela River]], [[Klip River (KwaZulu-Natal)|Klip River]] (rising near [[Van Reenen Pass]]), [[Mooi River (river, KwaZulu-Natal)|Mooi River]], [[Blood River]], [[Sundays River (KwaZulu-Natal)|Sundays River]] (rising in the Biggarsberg) [[Ingagani River]] and [[Bushman River]].<ref name="DWAF-ThukelaWMA-A"/><ref>[http://www.dwaf.gov.za/iwqs/rhp/eco/FROC/WMA7Thukela.jpg Thukela WMA 7]</ref> The Buffalo River joins the Tugela some {{cvt|19|km|mi|0}} east of [[Tugela Ferry]] at <small>{{coord|28|43|04|S|30|38|41|E|}}</small>.


The [[Battle of Blood River|Blood River]] was named by the [[Boers]], led by [[Andries Pretorius]], after they defeated the [[List of Zulu kings|Zulu king]] [[Dingane]] on 16 December 1838. The river is said to have run red with the blood of Zulu warriors. Below the Blood River is [[Rorke's Drift]], a crossing point and a battle site, in the [[Anglo-Zulu War]].<ref name="EB1911"/>
Below the Buffalo confluence the Tugela flows southeast in a deep channel between cliffs and valleys until it reaches the narrow coast belt. Its mouth is nearly closed by a sand bar, formed by the action of the ocean. The Tugela is thus not navigable. It is generally fordable in the winter months, but after the heavy rains of summer, it however becomes a deep and rapid river.


===Tugela mouth===
==Ecology==
The [[Scaly Yellowfish|scaly yellowfish]] ''(Labeobarbus natalensis)'' is found in the Tugela River System. It is a common [[Endemism|endemic]] fish in KwaZulu-Natal Province and it is found in different habitats between the [[Drakensberg]] foothills and the coastal lowlands, including rivers such as the [[Umkomazi River|Umkomazi]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.wrc.org.za/Knowledge%20Hub%20Documents/Research%20Reports/KV212-web-conservation.pdf |title=Technical Report on the State of Yellowfishes in South Africa 2007 |access-date=2012-03-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170629065416/http://www.wrc.org.za/Knowledge%20Hub%20Documents/Research%20Reports/KV212-web-conservation.pdf |archive-date=2017-06-29 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
The area near the mouth is known for a number of historical sites and events. The first European visitor to the vicinity was [[Vasco da Gama]] on December 28, 1497. He named a certain cape near this area ''Ponta da Pescaria'', due to the number of fish they caught here. Portuguese survivors of the São Bento (Saint Benedict) shipwreck reached the river on June 1, 1554, and one of their company, the aged Fernão Alvares Cabral, drowned while crossing.<ref>{{cite book | last = De Kock | first = Willem Johannes| coauthors = | title = Portugese ontdekkers om die Kaap| publisher = A.A. Balkema, Kaapstad| year = 1957| pages = 144, 166, 228 | month = | isbn = |language=Afrikaans}}</ref>

Near the John Ross bridge, 8&nbsp;km from the mouth, is the site of the historic Zulu village [[Ndondakusuka]]. In 1838 [[Biggar family|Robert Biggar]] and John Cane fell here in the [[Battle of the Tugela]] when opposed by superior Zulu forces of [[Dingane]]. In 1856 a major battle, the [[Battle of Ndondakusuka]] was fought nearby, and 23,000 died, when [[Mpande]]'s sons Mbuyazwe and [[Cetshwayo]] vied for supremacy.

About 10&nbsp;km above the mouth are two historic forts, [[Fort Pearson]] and [[Fort Tenedos]], built by the British in [[1879]] during the [[Anglo-Zulu War]], to guard the passage of the river. Near Fort Pearson is also a fig tree, the so-called ''Ultimatum Tree'', now protected in the [[Harold Johnson Nature Reserve]]. Here the British delivered an ultimatum to [[Cetshwayo]]'s chiefs as an excuse for the war.

The John Ross bridge is situated on the old [[N2 (South Africa)|N2 route]], since replaced by the North Coast Toll Road which passes 3&nbsp;km from the mouth. The bridge is named after "John Ross" (real name, [[Charles Rawden Maclean]]), who at the age of 15 walked from [[Port Natal]] to Lourenço Marques(now [[Maputo]]) and back to procure medicine. The John Ross bridge collapsed in the September 1987 floods and was rebuilt subsequently.<ref>{{cite book | last = Bell | first = Frederic Gladstone | coauthors = | title = Engineering Geology and Construction | publisher = Taylor & Francis| year = 2004| page = 398 | month = | isbn = 0415259398}}</ref>
==Transfer schemes==
There are a number of large inter-basin transfer schemes responsible for transferring water from the Tugela basin across the escarpment into the [[Vaal River]] system. The main scheme is the [[Drakensberg Pumped Storage Scheme]] operated by [[Eskom]]. There is also the original pumping station at Jagersrus.
==Tributaries==
The Tugela has a number of tributaries coming off the [[Drakensberg]], the largest being the [[Buffalo River (KwaZulu-Natal)|Mzinyathi ("Buffalo") River]] (rising near Majuba Hill), but also the [[Little Tugela River]], [[Klip River]] (rising near [[Van Reenen Pass]]), [[Mooi River (river)|Mooi River]], [[Blood River]], [[Sundays River]] (rising in the Biggarsberg) [[Ingagani River]] and [[Bushman River]].<ref name="DWAF-ThukelaWMA-A"/> The Buffalo River joins the Tugela some {{convert|19|km|mi|0}} east of [[Tugela Ferry]] at <small>{{coord|28|43|04|S|30|38|41|E|}}</small>.

The [[Battle of Blood River|Blood River]] is so named due to the defeat of the [[List of Zulu kings|Zulu king]] [[Dingane]], on 16 December 1838, by the [[Boers]] under [[Andries Pretorius]], when the river is said to have run red with the blood of the Zulus. Below the Blood River is [[Rorke's Drift]], a crossing point and another battle site, this time from the [[Anglo-Zulu War]].


==Spelling==
==Spelling==
The spelling "''Tugela''" was used for most of the twentieth century and is an Anglicised version of the Zulu name "''Thukela''". Nineteenth century writers adopted a variety of spellings including:
The spelling ''Tugela'' was used for most of the twentieth century; it is an Anglicised version of the Zulu name ''Thukela''. Nineteenth-century writers adopted a variety of spellings including:
*[[Nathaniel Isaacs|Isaacs]] (1836) used a number of different spellings in his book ''Travels and Adventures in Eastern Africa''.<ref>{{cite book
*[[Nathaniel Isaacs|Isaacs]] (1836) used a number of different spellings in his book, ''Travels and Adventures in Eastern Africa,''<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M8VjAAAAMAAJ&q=nathaniel+isaacs |author=Nathaniel Isaacs |publisher=Edward Churton |year=1836 |title=Travels and Adventures in Eastern Africa - Vol I |access-date=2010-08-08}}</ref> including ''Ootergale'' and ''Ootoogale''.
*[[Charles Rawden Maclean|C.R. Maclean]] (John Ross), writing in the ''Nautical Magazine'' in 1853, used the spelling ''Zootagoola''<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[The Nautical Magazine]] |author=C.R. Maclean |title=Loss of the Brig Mary at Natal with Early Recollections of that Settlement - Two |date=February 1853 |pages=74–80}} Reproduced in {{cite book |title=The Natal Papers of John Ross |year=1992 |publisher=Killie Campbell Africana Library |editor=Stephen Gray |isbn=978-0-869-80851-1}}</ref>
|url = http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=M8VjAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=nathaniel+isaacs#v=onepage&q&f=false.
*[[George French Angas]], a nineteenth-century artist, used the name ''Tugala'' on the captions to his sketches.<ref>[http://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/2356800 "Making outchoualla or native beer, at Gudu's kraal, Tugala River, Zulu country"], a sketch by G F Angas; National Library of Australia.</ref>
|author = Nathaniel Isaacs
|publisher = Edward Churton
|year = 1836
|title = Travels and Adventures in Eastern Africa - Vol I
|accessdate = 2010-08-08}}</ref> including "''Ootergale''" and "''Ootoogale''".
*[[Charles Rawden Maclean|C.R. Maclean]] (John Ross), writing in the ''Nautical Magazine'' in 1853 used the spelling ''Zootagoola''<ref>{{cite journal
|journal = [[The Nautical Magazine]]
|author = C R Maclean
|title = Loss of the Brig Mary at Natal with Early Recollections of that Settlement - Two
|date = February 1853
|pages = 74–80
|postscript - Reproduced in ''The Natal Papers of John Ross'', edited by Stephen Gray; ISBN:&nbsp;9&nbsp;780869&nbsp;808511}}</ref>
*Angas, a nineteenth century artist, used the name "''Tugala''" on the captions to his sketches.<ref>[http://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/2356800 Making outchoualla or native beer, at Gudu's kraal, Tugala River, Zulu country] - a sketch by G F Angus ]; National Library of Australia.</ref>


Some of the variations can be accounted for by the early European writers being unaware that [[Zulu grammar]] uses prefixes, often a "''i-''" or a "''u-''", to denote the case of a noun.
Some of the variations can be accounted for by the early European writers being unaware that [[Zulu grammar]] uses prefixes, often a "''i-''" or a "''u-''", to denote the noun class of a noun.
[[File:Tugela river mouth.jpg|thumb|right|Tugela river mouth]]


==See also==
==See also==
* [[List of rivers in South Africa]]
*[[List of rivers in South Africa]]


;Dams on the Tugela
;Dams on the Tugela
* [[Driel Barrage Dam]]
*[[Driel Barrage Dam]]
* [[Spioenkop Dam]]
*[[Spioenkop Dam]]
* [[Woodstock Dam]]
*[[Woodstock Dam]]


==Notes==
==Notes==
{{reflist}}
{{Reflist}}


==External links==
==External links==
{{commons category-inline}}


{{Rivers of South Africa}}
{{coord|28|45|00|S|28|53|45|E|region:ZA-NL_type:landmark|display=title}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Tugela River| ]]
[[Category:Rivers of South Africa]]
[[Category:Boer Wars locations]]


[[Category:Tugela River|Tugela River]]
[[af:Tugelarivier]]
[[Category:Rivers of KwaZulu-Natal]]
[[be:Рака Тугела]]
[[be-x-old:Тугела (рака)]]
[[bg:Тугела]]
[[cs:Tugela]]
[[de:Tugela (Fluss)]]
[[es:Río Tugela]]
[[eu:Tugela ibaia]]
[[fr:Tugela]]
[[hi:तुगेला नदी]]
[[hr:Tugela]]
[[it:Tugela]]
[[lt:Tugela]]
[[nl:Tugela (rivier)]]
[[no:Tugela (elv)]]
[[pl:Tugela (rzeka)]]
[[pt:Rio Tugela]]
[[ru:Тугела (река)]]
[[sr:Тугела]]
[[sh:Tugela]]
[[fi:Tugela]]
[[sv:Tugela]]
[[tr:Tugela Nehri]]
[[uk:Тугела (річка)]]
[[zh:圖蓋拉河]]

Latest revision as of 22:41, 29 October 2024

For other uses, see Tugela (disambiguation).

Tugela
Thukela
The Tugela River with the Amphitheatre in the background
The course of the Tugela river, from the west to the east border of KwaZulu-Natal.
Native nameThukela
Location
CountrySouth Africa
ProvinceKwaZulu-Natal
TownsBergville, Colenso
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationDrakensberg
 • coordinates28°45′00″S 28°53′45″E / 28.75000°S 28.89583°E / -28.75000; 28.89583
MouthIndian Ocean
 • coordinates
29°13′26″S 31°30′0″E / 29.22389°S 31.50000°E / -29.22389; 31.50000
Length560 km (350 mi)
Basin size29,100 km2 (11,200 sq mi)
Basin features
Tributaries 
 • left
 • right

The Tugela River (Zulu: Thukela; Afrikaans: Tugelarivier) is the largest river in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. With a total length of 560 km (350 mi), and a drop of 1 370 metres in the lower 480 km,[1] it is one of the most important rivers of the country.[2]

The river originates in Mont-aux-Sources of the Drakensberg Mountains at an elevation of 3 282 metres[3] and plunges in five distinct free-leaping falls 947 metres down the Tugela Falls. The Mont-aux-Sources is also the origin of tributaries of two other major South African rivers, the Orange and the Caledon River. From the Drakensberg range, the Tugela follows a 560 km (350 mi) route through the KwaZulu-Natal midlands before flowing into the Indian Ocean.[4] The total catchment area is approximately 29,100 km2 (11,200 sq mi).[4] Land uses in the catchment are mainly rural subsistence farming and commercial forestry.

Tributaries

[edit]
British troops crossing the river during the Second Boer War

The Tugela is fed by a number of tributaries coming off the Drakensberg, the largest being the Mzinyathi ("Buffalo") River (rising near Majuba Hill). Others are the Little Tugela River, Klip River (rising near Van Reenen Pass), Mooi River, Blood River, Sundays River (rising in the Biggarsberg) Ingagani River and Bushman River.[4][5] The Buffalo River joins the Tugela some 19 km (12 mi) east of Tugela Ferry at 28°43′04″S 30°38′41″E / 28.71778°S 30.64472°E / -28.71778; 30.64472.

The Blood River was named by the Boers, led by Andries Pretorius, after they defeated the Zulu king Dingane on 16 December 1838. The river is said to have run red with the blood of Zulu warriors. Below the Blood River is Rorke's Drift, a crossing point and a battle site, in the Anglo-Zulu War.[3]

Ecology

[edit]

The scaly yellowfish (Labeobarbus natalensis) is found in the Tugela River System. It is a common endemic fish in KwaZulu-Natal Province and it is found in different habitats between the Drakensberg foothills and the coastal lowlands, including rivers such as the Umkomazi.[6]

Spelling

[edit]

The spelling Tugela was used for most of the twentieth century; it is an Anglicised version of the Zulu name Thukela. Nineteenth-century writers adopted a variety of spellings including:

  • Isaacs (1836) used a number of different spellings in his book, Travels and Adventures in Eastern Africa,[7] including Ootergale and Ootoogale.
  • C.R. Maclean (John Ross), writing in the Nautical Magazine in 1853, used the spelling Zootagoola[8]
  • George French Angas, a nineteenth-century artist, used the name Tugala on the captions to his sketches.[9]

Some of the variations can be accounted for by the early European writers being unaware that Zulu grammar uses prefixes, often a "i-" or a "u-", to denote the noun class of a noun.

Tugela river mouth

See also

[edit]
Dams on the Tugela

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ "Key rivers of South Africa - MyFundi".
  2. ^ "Key rivers of South Africa". MyFundi. Archived from the original on 2012-07-10.
  3. ^ a b Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Tugela" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 27 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 364. This has a very detailed description of the river's course.
  4. ^ a b c "Proposal to establishment a Catchment Management Agency for the Thukela Water Management Area - Appendix A" (PDF). Department of Water Affairs and Forestry. July 2004. Retrieved 2008-10-21.
  5. ^ Thukela WMA 7
  6. ^ "Technical Report on the State of Yellowfishes in South Africa 2007" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-06-29. Retrieved 2012-03-29.
  7. ^ Nathaniel Isaacs (1836). Travels and Adventures in Eastern Africa - Vol I. Edward Churton. Retrieved 2010-08-08.
  8. ^ C.R. Maclean (February 1853). "Loss of the Brig Mary at Natal with Early Recollections of that Settlement - Two". The Nautical Magazine. pp. 74–80. Reproduced in Stephen Gray, ed. (1992). The Natal Papers of John Ross. Killie Campbell Africana Library. ISBN 978-0-869-80851-1.
  9. ^ "Making outchoualla or native beer, at Gudu's kraal, Tugala River, Zulu country", a sketch by G F Angas; National Library of Australia.
[edit]

Media related to Tugela River at Wikimedia Commons

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