A Bit of History
The history of this fast-growing metropolitan area of Nelspruit, as it was originally called, dates back as far as 1892, when the construction of a station up at the Crocodile River Valley attracted traders and farmers to the area.
The station was built on a farm owned by the Nel family, and farmers and traders flocked there due to the natural richness of the soil, adequate for irrigation and a level valley floor. Due to Nelspruit’s fertile valley area, it became known for its production of a variety of tropical fruit (pawpaws, bananas and avocados), nuts (pecan and macadamia) and citrus fruit. The town's development was closely linked to the building of the railway line between Pretoria and Lourenço Marques (Maputo).
The section of the line from Komatipoort on the Mozambican border reached Nelspruit in 1892 and a town steadily developed around the railhead. During the final phase of the South African War, Nelspruit briefly served as the capital of the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek (ZAR). Proclaimed in 1905, the town's name honours the Nel brothers, who used the area for winter grazing in the 1870s and in 1890 bought the farm on which the town developed.
In 2009 the town was renamed Mbombela, which in Siswati means ‘a lot of people in a small space’. Mbombela is situated close to the eSwatini border and is a great stopover destination for people travelling to eSwatini from Johannesburg. Close by is the scenic splendours of the Sudwala Caves, Bourke's Luck Potholes, the Blyde River Canyon and many other world-renowned attractions.