It is time to look back to the establishment of our beautiful city, to look around at some prominent and historic buildings, streets, trees and townships - more still at people who saw the early life of the city. History is man’s strongest subject and anchor. We look back to go forward. We refer to past incidents to understand the present; we look at past problems and their solutions to solve present problems; we look at past trends to understand what we may face today or in the future. So history is important.

You will find in this book some historic facts and figures, pictures and people: people who shaped our city. Around the turn of the century Mbabane was born and this book tells its story. I think this book is one the citizens of Mbabane may be proud of. When we look back at what Mbabane was then and what it is today we realise that it is not only the people who shaped the city but also the events, the buildings and the terrain.

One interesting part of this book is the making real of Mbabane’s past. In other words, the past relived. After whom was the city named? You will find out. How did the city look at the turn of the century? You will see.

The whole world is preparing to celebrate the new millennium with slogan after slogan being formulated and very serious talk about Y2K. Millennium fever does not leave Mbabane out. What will the city look like on the first day of January 2000? The only way to find out is to wait!

The other question being asked is ‘Who is going to see the year 2000 first?’ The Fiji Islanders claim it will be them but other countries also make the same claim.