Bulawayo

Industrial city and railway junction in Zimbabwe; population of urban area (1992 est) 620,900. The country's second-largest city after Harare, it lies at an altitude of 1,355 m/4,450 ft on the Matsheumlope River, a tributary of the Zambezi. Industries include cement, clothing, tyres, brewing, printing, and agricultural and electrical equipment. The former capital of Matabeleland, Bulawayo developed with the exploitation of gold mines in the vicinity.

Bulawayo developed from a mining settlement which was founded by the British in 1893 on the site of the kraal (enclosed village) of the defeated Matabele chief Lobengula in his village GuBulawayo. The kraal was burned down, but the indaba, or judgment tree, was left standing.

Features Places of interest include Government House, once belonging to British colonial statesman Cecil Rhodes, who is buried in the Matopos hills above Bulawayo; the 18th-century ruins of Khami (a stone-built royal palace); and the National Museum (1901), which specializes in geology and natural history. The Matsheumlope River runs along the east side of the city, and its valley has been converted into two parks; in North Park there is a zoological garden.

Industry and agriculture Bulawayo is surrounded by a wide expanse of excellent grazing country. It is the centre for Zimbabwe's heavy industry, including metal foundries, concrete products, and motor tyres. There is also a wide variety of consumer industries.

Transport Bulawayo stands on a tableland between the Limpopo and Zambezi rivers, 1,082 km/672 mi by railway west of Beira, Mozambique, the nearest port. It is the most important transport centre in Zimbabwe, with direct rail links to Harare, Botswana, South Africa, the Hwange coalfields, and the north, and main road links to South Africa, Victoria Falls, and Harare. It has an international airport.