Durban

In 1686, a ship from the Dutch East India Company named Stavenisse was wrecked off the eastern coast of South Africa. Some of the survivors made their way to the Bay of Natal (Durban) where they were taken in by the Abambo tribe, which was led by Chief Langalibale. The crew became fluent in the tribe's language and witnessed their customs. The tribe told them that the land where the Abambo people lived was called Embo by the natives and that the people were very hospitable.

On 28 October 1689, the galiot Noord travelled from Table Bay to the Bay of Natal to fetch the surviving crew of the Stavenisse and to negotiate a deal for purchasing the bay. The Noord arrived on 9 December 1689, whereafter the Dutch Cape Colony purchased the Bay of Natal from the Abambo people for £1,650. A formal contract was drawn up by Laurens van Swaanswyk and signed by the Chief of the Abambo people, with the crew of the Stavenisse acting as translators.[10]

By 1822, James Saunders King, captain of the British ship Salisbury, together with Lt. Francis George Farewell, both men being former Royal Navy officers from the Napoleonic Wars, were engaged in trade between the Cape and Delagoa Bay. On a return trip to the Cape in 1823, they were caught in a severe storm and decided to risk the Bar and anchor in the Bay of Natal. The crossing went off well and they found safe anchor from the storm. Lt. King decided to map the Bay and named the "Salisbury and Farewell Islands". In 1824 Lt. Farewell, together with a trading company called J. R. Thompson & Co., decided to open trade relations with Shaka, the Zulu King, and establish a trading station at the Bay. Henry Francis Fynn, another trader at Delagoa Bay, was also involved in this venture.

Fynn left Delagoa Bay and sailed for the Bay of Natal on the brig Julia, while Farewell followed six weeks later on the Antelope. Between them they had 26 possible settlers, although only 18 stayed. On a visit to King Shaka, Henry Francis Fynn succeeded in befriending the king by helping him recover from a stab wound that he had suffered as a result of an assassination attempt by one of his half-brothers. As a token of his gratitude King Shaka granted Fynn a "25-mile strip of coast a hundred miles in depth".

On 7 August 1824, they concluded negotiations with King Shaka for a cession of land, including the Bay of Natal and land extending 16 km (10 mi) south of the Bay, 40 km (25 mi) north of the Bay and 160 km (100 mi) inland. Farewell took possession of this grant and raised the Union Jack with a Royal Salute, which consisted of 4 cannon shots and twenty musket shots. Only six of the original eighteen would-be settlers remained, and these six can be regarded as the founders of Port Natal as a British colony. These six were joined by Lt. James Saunders King and Nathaniel Isaacs in 1825.

The modern city of Durban thus dates from 1824, when the settlement was established on the northern shores of the bay near today's Farewell Square.[11] During a meeting of 35 European residents in Fynn's territory on 23 June 1835, it was decided to build a capital town and name it "D'Urban" after Sir Benjamin D'Urban, who was the governor of the Cape Colony at the time.[12]

The Voortrekkers established the Republic of Natalia in 1839, with its capital at Pietermaritzburg.

Tension between the Voortrekkers and the Zulus prompted the governor of the Cape Colony to dispatch a force under Captain Charlton Smith to establish British rule in Natal, for fear of losing British control in Port Natal. The force arrived on 4 May 1842 and built a fortification that was later to be The Old Fort. On the night of 23/24 May 1842 the British attacked the Voortrekker camp at Congella. The attack failed, and the British had to withdraw to their camp which was put under siege. A local trader Dick King and his servant Ndongeni were able to escape the blockade and rode to Grahamstown, a distance of 600 km (370 mi) in fourteen days to raise reinforcements. The reinforcements arrived in Durban 20 days later; the Voortrekkers retreated, and the siege was lifted.[13]

Fierce conflict with the Zulu population led to the evacuation of Durban, and eventually the Afrikaners accepted British annexation in 1844 under military pressure.

When the Borough of Durban was proclaimed in 1854, the council had to procure a seal for official documents. The seal was produced in 1855 and was replaced in 1882. The new seal contained a coat of arms without helmet or mantling that combined the coats of arms of Sir Benjamin D’Urban and Sir Benjamin Pine. An application was made to register the coat of arms with the College of Arms in 1906, but this application was rejected on grounds that the design implied that D’Urban and Pine were husband and wife. Nevertheless, the coat of arms appeared on the council's stationery from about 1912. The following year, a helmet and mantling was added to the council's stationery and to the new city seal that was made in 1936. The motto reads "Debile principium melior fortuna sequitur"—"Better fortune follows a humble beginning".

The blazon of the arms registered by the South African Bureau of Heraldry and granted to Durban on 9 February 1979. The coat of arms fell into disuse with the re-organisation of the South African local government structure in 2000. The seal ceased to be used in 1995.[14][15]

Durban has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa/Cwa), with hot, humid summers and warm, quite dry winters, which are snow and frost-free. Durban has an annual rainfall of 1,009 millimetres (39.7 in). The average temperature in summer ranges around 24 °C (75 °F), while in winter the average temperature is 17 °C (63 °F).

A 2019 paper published in PLOS One estimated that under Representative Concentration Pathway 4.5, a "moderate" scenario of climate change where global warming reaches ~2.5–3 °C (4.5–5.4 °F) by 2100, the climate of Durban in the year 2050 would most closely resemble the current climate of Kigali. The annual temperature would increase by 1.7 °C (3.1 °F), and the temperature of the coldest month by 1.8 °C (3.2 °F), while the temperature of the warmest month would be 0.5 °C (0.90 °F) lower.[23][24] According to Climate Action Tracker, the current warming trajectory appears consistent with 2.7 °C (4.9 °F), which closely matches RCP 4.5.[25]

Moreover, according to the 2022 IPCC Sixth Assessment Report, Durban is one of 12 major African cities (Abidjan, Alexandria, Algiers, Cape Town, Casablanca, Dakar, Dar es Salaam, Durban, Lagos, Lomé, Luanda and Maputo) which would be the most severely affected by future sea level rise. It estimates that they would collectively sustain cumulative damages of USD 65 billion under RCP 4.5 and USD 86.5 billion for the high-emission scenario RCP 8.5 by the year 2050. Additionally, RCP 8.5 combined with the hypothetical impact from marine ice sheet instability at high levels of warming would involve up to 137.5 billion USD in damages, while the additional accounting for the "low-probability, high-damage events" may increase aggregate risks to USD 187 billion for the "moderate" RCP4.5, USD 206 billion for RCP8.5 and USD 397 billion under the high-end ice sheet instability scenario.[26] Since sea level rise would continue for about 10,000 years under every scenario of climate change, future costs of sea level rise would only increase, especially without adaptation measures.[27]

Durban has a number of informal and semi-formal street vendors. The Warwick Junction Precinct is home to a number of street markets, with vendors selling goods from traditional medicine, to clothing and spices.[34]

The city's treatment of shack dwellers was criticised in a report from the United Nations linked Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions[35] and there has also been criticism of the city's treatment of street traders,[36][37] street children[38] and sex workers.[39] The cannabis strain called 'Durban Poison' is named for the city.[40]

There are a number of civil society organisations based in Durban. These include: Abahlali baseMjondolo movement,[41] the Diakonia Council of Churches, the Right2Know Campaign, the South Durban Community Environmental Alliance and the South African Unemployed Peoples' Movement.[42][43][44][45][46][47]

Durban has been named the greenest city in the world by Husqvarna Urban Green Space Index.[48][49]

• Burman Bush
• Durban Botanic Gardens
• Durban Art Gallery
• Durban Natural Science Museum
• Hawaan Forest[50]
• New Germany Nature Reserve[51]
• Pigeon Valley Nature reserve[52]
• Umgeni River Bird Park
• Umhlanga Lagoon Nature Reserve
• Kenneth Stainbank Nature Reserve
• Mitchell Park Zoo[53]
• Moses Mabhida Stadium - Activities include a skycar ride or adventure walk to the top of the arch with 360-degree views over Durban; Guinness World Record bungee swing; segway gliding tours of the stadium; cafes and restaurants; monthly I Heart Durban market;
• Kingsmead Cricket Ground - a major test match and one-day cricket venue.
• Kings Park Stadium - home ground of the internationally renowned Sharks rugby team.
• Greyville Racecourse - home of the Durban July Handicap and Durban Country Club and golf course.

King Shaka International Airport

King Shaka International Airport services both domestic and international flights, with regularly scheduled services to Dubai, Doha, Istanbul, Harare, Lusaka & Manzini as well as eight domestic destinations. Flights to Luanda start on 16 January 2024. The airport's position forms part of the Golden Triangle between Johannesburg and Cape Town, which is important for convenient travel and trade between these three major South African cities. The airport opened in May 2010. King Shaka International Airport handled 6.1 million passengers in 2019/2020, up 1.8 percent from 2018/2019. King Shaka International was constructed at La Mercy, about 36 kilometres (22 mi) north of central Durban. All operations at Durban International Airport have been transferred to King Shaka International as of 1 May 2010, with plans for flights to Hong Kong, Singapore, Mumbai, Kigali, Luanda, Lilongwe and Nairobi.

Durban Harbour

Durban has a long tradition as a port city. The Port of Durban, formerly known as the Port of Natal, is one of the few natural harbours between Port Elizabeth and Maputo, and is also located at the beginning of a particular weather phenomenon which can cause extremely violent seas. These two features made Durban an extremely busy port of call for ship repairs when the port was opened in the 1840s.

MSC Cruises bases one of their cruise ships in Durban from November to April every year. From the 2023/2024 Southern Africa cruise season MSC Cruises will be basing the MSC Splendida in Durban. Durban is the most popular cruise hub in Southern Africa. Cruise destinations from Durban on the MSC Splendida include Mozambique, Mauritius, Réunion, Madagascar and other domestic destinations such as Port Elizabeth and Cape Town. Many other ships cruise through Durban every year, including some of the world's biggest, such as the RMS Queen Mary 2, the biggest ocean liner in the world. Durban has built a brand new R200 million cruise terminal that has been in operation since October 2019, the Durban Cruise Terminal. The tender was awarded to KwaZulu Cruise Terminal (Pty) Ltd which is 70% owned by MSC Cruises SA and 30% by Africa Armada Consortium. The new cruise terminal will be able to accommodate two cruise ships at any given time.[61]

Naval Base Durban on Salisbury Island (now joined to the mainland and part of the Port of Durban), was established as a naval base during the Second World War. It was downgraded in 2002 to a naval station. In 2012 a decision was made to renovate and expand the facilities back up to a full naval base to accommodate the South African Navy's offshore patrol flotilla.[62] In December 2015 it was redesignated Naval Base Durban.[63]

Durban featured the first operating steam railway in South Africa when the Natal Railway Company started operating a line between the Point and the city of Durban in 1860.[64]

Shosholoza Meyl, the passenger rail service of Spoornet, operates two long-distance passenger rail services from Durban: a daily service to and from Johannesburg via Pietermaritzburg and Newcastle, and a weekly service to and from Cape Town via Kimberley and Bloemfontein. These trains terminate at Durban railway station.

Metrorail operates a commuter rail service in Durban and the surrounding area. The Metrorail network runs from Durban Station outwards as far as Stanger on the north coast, Kelso on the south coast, and Cato Ridge inland.

A high-speed rail link has been proposed, between Johannesburg and Durban.[65]

N3 freeway on its approach to Durban's CBD, with N2–N3 stack interchange in the foreground

The city's main position as a port of entry onto the southern African continent has led to the development of national roads around it. The N3 Western Freeway, which links Durban with the economic hinterland of Gauteng, heads west out of the city. The N2 Outer Ring Road links Durban with the Eastern Cape to the south, and Mpumalanga in the north. The Western Freeway is particularly important because freight is shipped by truck to and from the Witwatersrand for transfer to the port.

The N3 Western Freeway starts in the central business district and heads west under Tollgate Bridge and through the suburbs of Sherwood and Mayville. The EB Cloete Interchange (which is informally nicknamed the Spaghetti Junction) lies to the west of Durban and east of Westville, allowing for transfer of traffic between the N2 Outer Ring Road and the Western Freeway.

The N2 Outer Ring Road cuts through the city from the north coast to the south coast. It provides a vital link to the coastal towns (such as Amanzimtoti, Kingsburgh, Scottburgh, eMkhomazi, Ballito and KwaDukuza) that rely on Durban.

Durban also has a system of freeway and dual arterial metropolitan routes, which connect the sprawling suburbs that lie to the north, west and south of the city. The M4 exists in two segments. The northern segment, named the Ruth First Highway, starts as an alternative highway from the R102 in Ballito and shortly after intersects the N2. It passes through the seaside towns and villages of La Mercy and eMdloti before becoming a dual carriageway in uMhlanga, north of Durban and ending at the northern edge of the CBD. The southern segment of the M4, the Albert Lutuli[66] Highway, starts at the southern edge of the CBD, connecting through to the old, decommissioned Durban International Airport, where it once again reconnects at the southern end of the N2 Outer Ring Road.

The M7 connects the southern industrial basin of Durban with the N3 and Pinetown via Queensburgh via the N2. The M19 connects the inner northern suburbs of Durban with Pinetown via Westville and the M41 connects uMhlanga and Phoenix via Mount Edgecombe and the N2.

The M13 (King Cetshwayo Highway) is an untolled alternative to the N3 Western Freeway (which is tolled at Mariannhill) and is an important commuter route linking the nearby towns and suburbs to the west of Durban such as Hillcrest, Gillitts, Kloof, Pinetown and Westville to the city.

In the late 2000s 107 streets in Durban were renamed, typically to honour individuals involved in the antiapartheid or international revolutionary movements, with two-thirds of the streets named after individuals associated with the governing African National Congress. This was done in two stages; a first, smaller one, which renamed eighteen streets and was met with some trepidation by opposition parties, particularly the Democratic Alliance, the Inkatha Freedom Party, and the Minority Front, and a second, larger stage, which renamed 99 streets and was met with considerably wider opposition after the controversy of the first and the minimal time between them.[67][68] The first group was met with some opposition from This process was met with outrage from both opposition parties and the parts of the general public, as well as incidents of vandalism against the new road signs. The Democratic Alliance, Inkatha Freedom Party, and Minority Front were concerned with their lack of participation in the process, and that the emphasis on individuals affiliated with the ANC presented a partisan image of the antiapartheid struggle. Among the general public there was significant opposition from middle-class white South Africans, Indian South Africans, and Zulu nationalists, who believed that the new names should have a connection to the people and the history of the locality. In response, the ANC characterized the project as a transformation and part of progressive social change, characterizing their opponents as being "antitransformation" and "pro-apartheid".[69][70][71]

Several companies run long-distance bus services from Durban to the other cities in South Africa. Buses have a long history in Durban. Most of them have been run by Indian owners since the early 1930s. Privately owned buses which are not subsidised by the government also service the communities. Buses operate in all areas of the eThekwini Municipality. Since 2003 buses have been violently taken out of the routes and bus ranks by taxi operators.[72]

Durban was previously served by the Durban trolleybus system, which first ran in 1935.[73]

Since 2017 the newer People Mover Bus System which runs along certain routes has been testing out free Wi-Fi for passengers.[74]

Durban has two kinds of taxis: metered taxis and minibus taxis. Unlike in many cities, metered taxis are not allowed to drive around the city to solicit fares and instead must be called and ordered to a specific location. A number of companies service the Durban and surrounding regions. These taxis can also be called upon for airport transfers, point to point pickups and shuttles.

Mini bus taxis are the standard form of transport for the majority of the population who cannot afford private cars.[75][76][77] With the high demand for transport by the working class of South Africa, minibus taxis are often filled over their legal passenger allowance, making for high casualty rates when they are involved in accidents. Minibuses are generally owned and operated in fleets, and inter-operator violence flares up from time to time, especially as turf wars over lucrative taxi routes occur.[78]

Ride sharing apps Uber and Taxify have been launched in Durban and are also used by commuters.[79]

Although rickshaws have been a mode of transportation since the early 1900s, they have been displaced by other forms of motorised transport. The roughly 25 remaining rickshaws mostly cater to tourists.[80]

• Al Falaah College
• Canaan College
• Clifton School
• Crawford College, La Lucia
• Crawford College, North Coast
• Durban Girls' College
• Eden College Durban
• Highbury Preparatory School
• Hillcrest Christian Academy
• Maris Stella School
• Orient Islamic School
• Reddam House
• Roseway Waldorf School
• St. Henry's Marist Brothers' College
• St. Mary's Diocesan School for Girls, Kloof
• Thomas More College
• T Thunder College

• Asoka Secondary School
• Brettonwood High School
• Durban Academy High School
• Durban Girls' High School (DGHS)
• Danville Park Girls' High School (DPGHS)
• Durban High School (DHS)
• Durban North College
• George Campbell School of Technology
• Glenwood High School
• Glenridge Primary School
• Hillcrest High School
• Insizwakazi Primary School
• Isinkontshe Primary School
• Isipingo Secondary School[81]
• Kingsway High School
• Kloof High School
• Kloof Junior Primary School
• Kloof Pre-Primary School
• Kloof Senior Primary School
• Mowat Park High School
• New Forest High School
• Northlands Girls' High School
• Northwood School
• Ogwini Comprehensive High School
• Pinetown Boys' High School
• Pinetown Girls' High School
• Port Natal High School
• Queensburgh Girls' High School
• Savannah Park Secondary School
• Sastri College High School
• St.Anthony Primary School
• Westville Boys' High School
• Westville Girls' High School
• Woodview Secondary school

Memorial Tower Building, Howard College Campus, University of KwaZulu-Natal

• Durban University of Technology
• Mangosuthu University of Technology
• Regent Business School
• University of KwaZulu-Natal
• University of South Africa
• Varsity College (South Africa)
• eta College

Among the places of worship, there are predominantly Christian churches and temples. These include: Zion Christian Church, Apostolic Faith Mission of South Africa, Assemblies of God, Baptist Union of Southern Africa (Baptist World Alliance), Methodist Church of Southern Africa (World Methodist Council), Anglican Church of Southern Africa (Anglican Communion), Presbyterian Church of Africa (World Communion of Reformed Churches), Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Durban (Catholic Church) and the Durban South Africa Temple (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints).[85] There are also Muslim mosques and Hindu temples.

Compared to other South African cities, Durban has a high murder rate. Between April 2018 and March 2019, the Ethekwini Metropolitan Municipality recorded 1,871 murders, gradually increasing from 1,349 seven years earlier and down from 2,042 in 2009.[86]

Criminals usually avoid targeting tourists because they know that the police response will be greater.[87]

Heist or theft is a common crime in the city.[88] Most houses are protected by high walls and wealthier residents are often able to afford greater protection such as electric fencing, private security or gated communities.[89] Crime rates vary widely across the city and most inner suburbs have much lower murder rates than in outlying areas of Ethekwini. Police station precincts recording the lowest murder rates per 100,000 in 2017 were Durban North (7), Mayville (8), Westville (12) and Malvern (12); Kwamashu (76) and Umlazi (69) were some of the most dangerous areas.[90] Other crime comparisons are less valuable due to significant under-reporting especially in outlying areas.

There was a period of intense violence beginning in the 1990s, and the Durban area recorded a murder rate of 83 per 100,000 in 1999.[91] The murder rate dropped rapidly in the 2000s before increasing rapidly throughout the 2010s. Durban is one of the main drug trafficking routes for drugs exiting and entering sub-Saharan Africa. The drug trade has increased significantly over the past 20 years.[92]

Durban is twinned with:[93]

• Alexandria, Egypt
• Antwerp, Flanders, Belgium
• Bremen, Germany[94]
• Bulawayo, Zimbabwe
• Chicago, Illinois, US
• Gwangju, South Korea
• Eilat, Israel[95][96]
• Guangzhou, China[97]
• Le Port, Réunion[98][99]
• Kaohsiung, Taiwan
• Leeds, United Kingdom
• Maracaibo, Venezuela
• Maputo, Mozambique
• Nantes, France
• New Orleans, Louisiana, US
• Oran, Algeria
• Rotterdam, Netherlands
• Mombasa, Kenya