Adventures in Swaziland

Book excerpt: The author of this work, Owen Rowe O'Neil, was a South African Boer (farmer) of Irish descent who grew up near the border between Swaziland and the Transvaal. As a child and an adult he made frequent trips to Swaziland. O'Neil's book describes warfare, customs, political organization, and medicine in late-19th and early-20th century Swaziland, as well as recounts O'Neil's numerous personal encounters with King Buno, his mother, Queen Labotsibeni, Crown Prince Sebuza, and other members of the royal family. Swaziland came under the control of the South African Boer Republic in 1894. It became a British protectorate in 1902, after the British victory in the Boer War. Swaziland achieved full independence on September 6, 1968.