Lesotho (pronounced ^*), officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a country in southern Africa. It is a land-locked country, entirely surrounded by the Republic of South Africa. Formerly Basutoland, it is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. The name Lesotho roughly translates into "the land of the people who speak Sotho."

History

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The earliest inhabitants of the area were Khoisan hunter-gatherers. They were largely replaced by Bantu-speaking tribes during Bantu migrations. The present Lesotho emerged as a single polity (state) under a Paramount chief in 1822; it was recognized by Britain on 13 December 1843. On 12 March 1868 it became the British Protectorate Basutoland (already so called after its defining main ethnic and linguistic group, the Sotho people; Ba- and Le- are prefixes in Bantu languages); 11 August 1871 - 18 March 1884 it was annexed to the British Cape Colony (South Africa) as Basutoland territory. On 18 March 1884 Basutoland re-emerged as a separate colony, as one of the High Commission Territories. On 30 April 1965 it was granted autonomy. Its name was changed when Lesotho gained full independence from the United Kingdom on October 4, 1966. In January 1970 the ruling Basotho National Party (BNP) lost the first post-independence general elections, with 23 seats to the Basutoland Congress Party's 36. Prime Minister Leabua Jonathan refused to cede power to the Basotho Congress Party (BCP), declared himself Tono Kholo (Sesotho translation of prime minister), and imprisoned the BCP leadership.

The BCP began a rebellion in January 1974 and then received training in Libya for its Lesotho Liberation Army (LLA) under the pretence of being Azanian People's Liberation Army (APLA) soldiers of the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC). Deprived of arms and supplies by the Sibeko faction of the PAC in 1978, the 178-strong LLA was rescued from their Tanzanian base by the financial assistance of a Maoist PAC officer but launched the guerrilla war with a handful of old weapons. The main force was defeated in northern Lesotho and thereafter guerillas launched sporadic but usually ineffectual attacks. The campaign was severely compromised when Ntsu Mokhehle, the BCP leader, went over to Pretoria.

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@Kim_Wildman JBurg, Sun City, Soweto, C/ of Mankind, Pilanesberg, CT, Winelands, Durban, Lesotho, Shakaland, Hluhluwe. Looking forward to :)
mrdavidwhitley (David Whitley) Mon, 04 Jan 2010 07:12:38 -0000
@Kim_Wildman JBurg, Sun City, Soweto, C/ of Mankind, Pilanesberg, CT, Winelands, Durban, Lesotho, Shakaland, Hluhluwe. Looking forward to :)
#crapfact Lesotho is the only country where the entire landmass is >= 1,000m above sea level. #crapnonfact It was named after Les Dawson.
mrdavidwhitley (David Whitley) Mon, 04 Jan 2010 07:03:26 -0000
#crapfact Lesotho is the only country where the entire landmass is >= 1,000m above sea level. #crapnonfact It was named after Les Dawson.
Southernmosttipof Africa, bordering Botswana 1,840 km, Lesotho 909 km, Mozambique 491 km, Namibia 967 km, Swaziland 430 km, Zimbabwe 225 Km
amirbantu2016 (M. Amir Hameed) Mon, 04 Jan 2010 04:31:16 -0000
Southernmosttipof Africa, bordering Botswana 1,840 km, Lesotho 909 km, Mozambique 491 km, Namibia 967 km, Swaziland 430 km, Zimbabwe 225 Km
My tee shirt was made in Lesotho. Where exactly is that again?...
FernandaArreola (Fernanda Arreola) Mon, 04 Jan 2010 01:31:07 -0000
My tee shirt was made in Lesotho. Where exactly is that again?...
rocking it in mozambique...lesotho is next!
mikegore (Mike Gore) Sun, 03 Jan 2010 19:51:20 -0000
rocking it in mozambique...lesotho is next!
Lesotho-vrouw zal te zien zijn op de komende expositie in http://bit.ly/6xaGB2 in Utrecht.http://bit.ly/6mOON4 @ De Bilt
RGMCa (Rita Camphuijsen) Sun, 03 Jan 2010 18:58:58 -0000
Lesotho-vrouw zal te zien zijn op de komende expositie in http://bit.ly/6xaGB2 in Utrecht.http://bit.ly/6mOON4 @ De Bilt

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