Kgosi Bathoen II Museum

02/07/2026

02/07/2026

29/06/2026

🌿 Pharing Chronicles Hike 🥾
Looking Back, Walking Forward

On 6 December 2025, the Kgosi
Bathoen II Museum marked an important milestone with the successful launch of the Pharing Heritage Hike, bringing together history, conservation, community development, and outdoor recreation.
The hike was designed with a purpose beyond walking. It was meant to strengthen the museum itself.
Established in 1967 through the vision of Kgosi Bathoen II, the museum remains a key community heritage institution. Like many such institutions, it still faces challenges of limited collections and infrastructure. The hike was introduced to promote community ownership and self-reliance, reinforcing that heritage grows through collective effort.
Botswana’s history shows the power of unity. The establishment of the University of Botswana through the “One Man, One Beast” campaign remains a strong example of what communities can achieve together. The same spirit guides the Kgosi Bathoen II Museum, which belongs to the community.

📍 Why Pharing?
Pharing Gorge is a living archive of Bangwaketse history. During Mzilikazi’s campaigns, it became a refuge for women and children. The springs in the gorge sustained life, turning it into a symbol of survival and resilience.
Today, it reminds us that heritage lives beyond museum walls.
The hike also highlights the potential of cultural tourism to support local development through jobs, visitors, and strengthened identity.
The inaugural hike received strong support from hiking clubs and individuals across Botswana. Among attendees were former Vice President Hon. Slumber Tsogwane, Mohumagadi Mmasetsebi Gaseitsiwe, Kgosi Sebati and Mr Marcus Jack Rowland, alongside other guests.
We now look ahead with anticipation.

📅 The next Pharing Heritage Hike will take place on 6 November 2026

Join us as we continue walking through history and celebrating our heritage.

21/06/2026

WALKING PELENG: A HERITAGE HIKE THROUGH MEMORY AND LIBERATION HISTORY
Yesterday, Kgosi Bathoen II Museum joined fellow hikers in Lobatse for a heritage walk hosted by the Keep Walking Hiking Club, moving through Peleng and its surrounding landscape in a journey that revealed how history, place and memory are deeply connected.
Before it became known as Peleng, local memory refers to the area as Kanyane, linked to its historical connection with Kanye, the capital of the Bangwaketse. This speaks to an earlier landscape shaped by Bangwaketse territorial presence and movement.
The name Peleng is rooted in the natural environment, associated with dipela (rock rabbits) that were once common in the surrounding hills. Over time, this ecological feature became part of the identity of the growing settlement.
With the arrival of the railway and later industrial development, Peleng expanded as labour migration increased. The railway corridor and nearby industries, including the Botswana Meat Commission, played a key role in shaping Lobatse as one of Botswana’s early industrial towns.
A key stop on the route was the home of Fish Keitseng, whose residence in Peleng served as a safehouse within Southern Africa’s liberation networks. It was through these networks that Nelson Mandela passed through Peleng in 1962 under the pseudonym David Motsamayi during his underground movements.
The group later took a break at Peleng Dam, where participants shared a barbecue in a relaxed setting, reflecting on the journey through a landscape rich in layered history.
The experience concluded at the Kgotla with a tree planting exercise for a developing community orchard under the Tree365 initiative, linking heritage with environmental care.
Peleng remains a place where Kanyane memory, railway history and liberation history quietly intersect beneath everyday life.