The railway line between Durban and Pietermaritzburg is completed

Updated: 30 Sep 2019

The railway line between Durban and Pietermaritzburg is completed

The construction of the railway line linking Durban and Pietermaritzburg was completed in 1880, the twentieth anniversary of railways in South Africa. The line was constructed as result of a mounting need for transport, as Natal had to hold its own in the advance of commerce and the general progress in South Africa. The legislative council of the Natal Colony had approved construction of this railway, including sidelines to Isipingo and Verulam, in 1875. Sir Henry Bulwer, governor of Natal, turned the first sod of the line on 1 January 1876. Owing to the mountainous terrain between Durban and Pietermaritzburg, the construction of the line took four years. A military band played "See the Conquering Hero comes" as the first train steamed into Pietermaritzburg.

How we know this

01Wallis, F. (2000). Nuusdagboek: feite en fratse oor 1000 jaar, Kaapstad: Human & Rousseau;
02Muller, C.F.J. (ed)(1981). Five Hundred years: a history of South Africa; 3rd rev. ed., Pretoria: Academica, p. 225.

Last updated · 30 Sep 2019

Cite this entry

South African History Online. (2011, March 16). The railway line between Durban and Pietermaritzburg is completed. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011079

South African History Online (2011) 'The railway line between Durban and Pietermaritzburg is completed', South African History Online, 16 March. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011079 (Accessed: 11 November 2026).

South African History Online, The railway line between Durban and Pietermaritzburg is completed [website], https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011079, (accessed 11 November 2026).

"The railway line between Durban and Pietermaritzburg is completed." South African History Online, 16 Mar. 2011, https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011079. Accessed 11 Nov. 2026.

South African History Online. "The railway line between Durban and Pietermaritzburg is completed." South African History Online. March 16, 2011. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011079.