Eastern Cape Heartland - 400km

The British government, however, refused to ratify the annexation, and barely seven months later the province was abolished. At the outbreak of the Seventh Frontier War (1846–47) the frontier territory was reoccupied by British forces, and on 23 December 1847 the Crown Colony of Kaffraria was proclaimed, with King William’s Town as its capital.

The Amathole Museum (formerly known as the Kaffrarian Museum) has interesting displays on the region’s German settlers, as well as a world-famous collection of over 40 000 mammals. Its most celebrated exhibit is Huberta, a hippopotamus that wandered approximately 700 km from Zululand to the Keiskamma River between 1928 and 1931.

The SA Missionary Museum is appropriately housed in the Gothic Revival-style Wesleyan Church, built in 1855. Among King William’s Town’s many historic buildings are Grey Hospital (1859), Town Hall (1867), the Old Court House and Post Office (1877), British Kaffrarian Savings Bank (1908) and the Old Residency.

MILKWOOD TREE

This famous milkwood, known as the Umqwashu tree, is a symbol of the Mfengu people’s release from subservience to the Gcaleka people. Their decision to seek British protection during the Sixth Frontier War (1834–35) incurred the wrath of Chief Hintsa. To create a buffer against Xhosa attacks, the British Governor, Sir Benjamin D’Urban, ordered the resettlement of the Mfengu south of Fort Peddie.

Protected by troops of the 2nd Division, some 17 000 Mfengu men, women and children moved westwards across the Kei and the Keiskamma rivers. Having finally reached safety, the Mfengu affirmed their loyalty to God and the British monarch at this spot.

PEDDIE

...was once one of the most important military posts on the eastern frontier of the old Cape Colony. In 1835 a fort shaped like an eight-pointed star was built at Peddie as part of a defence line west of the Keiskamma River. It played an important role in protecting the Mfengu against attacks by the Xhosa and in the defence of the eastern frontier. The sturdy stone-built watch tower dates back to 1841, when the fort was strengthened.

To protect those inside, the entrance to the double-storey building was placed 3 m above the ground, with a retractable entry ladder. A cannon could be fired from the roof. Just outside Peddie, on the road to Hamburg, are the church and residence of the Reverend John Ayliff, who accompanied the Mfengu to Peddie, and the Durban or Ayliff Methodist mission station.

HAMBURG

...was one of the villages in British Kaffraria where over 2 900 German immigrants were settled in 1857 in yet another attempt to stabilise the volatile eastern frontier. The emigration scheme was funded by the British government and the emigrants were recruited from members of the King’s German Legion, a military unit disbanded after the Crimean War. The village was named after Hamburg in Germany. Situated on the southern bank of the Keiskamma River, the village is a popular holiday destination, offering excellent river boating and surf angling, and sweeping white beaches.

KIDD’S BEACH

...lies on the southern shores of the lagoon formed by the Mcantsi River. The lagoon, sandy beach at the mouth of the Mcantsi River and tidal pool offer safe swimming, while the outstanding waves are popular with surfing and boardsailing enthusiasts. Anglers are attracted by the excellent fishing opportunities along the rocky coastline. The village was named after Charles Kidd, who was mayor of East London in the 1860s.