Lesotho Independence Day – October 4, 2026

History of Lesotho Independence Day

The history of the inhabitants of the region now known as Lesotho goes back many years. In the early 1800s, the people of Sotho tribes escaped the Zulu army and journeyed to the highlands of modern Lesotho (then called Basutoland). By 1822, they united under King Moshoeshoe I as a single country

The kingdom constantly developed through contact with British and Dutch colonists from Cape Colony. The country had several diplomatic alliances with foreigners and collected guns they used against the encroachers. From the 1830s to 1860s, Boer settlers began infringing on the Sotho territory, leading to border wars. In 1867, the Sotho people triumphed over the Boers in a significant conflict known as the Free State–Basotho War. After the war, they appealed to Queen Victoria to make Basotholand a British protectorate to deter further invaders. The Queen heeded the request and Basotholand became a British Protectorate the following year.

In 1869, the British signed a treaty with the Boers that defined the boundaries of Basotholand — this led to King Moshoeshoe’s kingdom getting reduced to half its original size. Conflicts with Britain resulted when the British government tried to compel Lesotho into union with the rest of its South African colonies. Eventually, Lesotho was allowed to have Sotho leaders in 1960, making it an autonomous state under the British. On October 4, 1966, Lesotho finally gained independence from Britain and became a fully sovereign state named the Kingdom of Lesotho.